Lululemon finds its zen in the WFH era — flexibility is its greatest strength

When life gives you Lululemons... make Lululemonade. Lululemon's 400+ stores have been closed since mid-March. The yoga, spin, and pilates studios where people show off matching Lulu outfits are equally shuttered. But the corona-conomy hasn't stopped the athleisure icon:

• 33%: Online sales already made up 33% of Lulu's total sales before lockdowns started, making it well-position for a shift to full ecommerce.
• +50%: How much Lulu's online sales jumped in April (aka, mid-corona crisis) compared to January of this year.
• +200%: How much Lulu's online sales soared in April compared to April 2019.

Just as flexible as its $90 leggings... In a recent WSJ survey, 24% of people chose athletic/athleisure wear as a top-three category of what they would spend their stimulus checks on. The 24/7 stay-at-home life mainly consists of chilling, working, exercising, and sleep. Lululemon is cruising because it checks 3 of those 4 boxes:

• One legging, many leg things: Lulu clothes are athletic enough for an at-home yoga sesh, stylish enough for an Erewhon run, and comfy enough for a Netflix binge.
• The rise of "work-leisure": Lulu also leaned into styles that look like work clothes, but feel like sweats — this anti-khaki innovation helped sales of menswear jump almost 40% in the December quarter.