love this! the substack community really is amazing, look forward to what conclusions you will draw after their FY23 reports come out, if you are planning to address it in a separate post. I specialise in supply chain as a management consultant; retailers were def hit hard by covid and other ensuing disruptions, some companies have been really clever and quick in their responses - let's see what Lululemon's was.
Thanks for inspiring this post! I love to hear about the cool things this community does for work - so awesome that you're working in supply chain and have perspective into some of the challenges facing retailers from these disruptions. Definitely hope to share any conclusions from the FY23 reports and would love to hear your thoughts!
I still love my Lulu aligns but agree with LSD that they have just not been keeping up their brand or staying current. I think that shows in the companies that they indicate are their competitors… I assume that will change this year but to mention Victoria’s Secret vs. the other more current brands seems way off.
I am primarily an online shopper too but I do end up going into the store to try athletic wear when I can as I find the fit can be so different from item to item.
Thanks for this analysis! Would love your thoughts on Outdoor Voices!
Would love to do a deep dive on OV, but I believe it's currently privately held! I learned recently from "Your Rich BFF" newsletter that OV plans to shutter all of its stores - wish we could learn more about what is happening there!
This is taking me back to b-school days! Love this serious and appreciative of the work you are putting into writing all this out! Having done this work before, definitely know it’s not that easy!! 🙌🏽
Thanks for the kind note! I learned this stuff in b-school as well and it opened up a whole new world for me - it takes a while but I love learning about different companies. Appreciate the support!
I found this article SO interesting thank you. Sadly looks like as is typical - the first to start in a new space won't be the last standing. LL was the trailblazer for the word "athleisure." I'm in the UK and also noticing LL disappearing as a brand of choice. It's interesting who LL feel their competitive set are, because I wouldn't have put them alongside the sporting retailers when it comes to the brands taking their customers. In my view it's the lifestyle brands that are biting at their heels with really good performance wear (Varley, Adanola, Tala). LL used to be cool - it's lost that. Sweaty Betty is suffering the same fate in my humble opinion.
Thank you so much for the thoughtful comment! I completely agree regarding Sweaty Betty. I used to look to Lululemon as the "reliable" athleisure wear of choice and now I'm not sure which brand I'd turn to if I had to replace all of my athletic wear (thankfully I don't need to do that).
I love these breakdowns! Their brand image really is so interesting. I'm very curious as to whether we're moving away from the world of athleisure in general – I have definitely become less interested in even window shopping at Lululemon/its competitors.
Yes, such a good point. I didn't make this connection till now, but I noticed that Lululemon has started to offer "non-athletic" everyday wear like tshirts and pants recently. Maybe, as you said, folks want to move away from athletic wear towards more structured put together outfits. Thanks for the comment!
love this! the substack community really is amazing, look forward to what conclusions you will draw after their FY23 reports come out, if you are planning to address it in a separate post. I specialise in supply chain as a management consultant; retailers were def hit hard by covid and other ensuing disruptions, some companies have been really clever and quick in their responses - let's see what Lululemon's was.
Thanks for inspiring this post! I love to hear about the cool things this community does for work - so awesome that you're working in supply chain and have perspective into some of the challenges facing retailers from these disruptions. Definitely hope to share any conclusions from the FY23 reports and would love to hear your thoughts!
I still love my Lulu aligns but agree with LSD that they have just not been keeping up their brand or staying current. I think that shows in the companies that they indicate are their competitors… I assume that will change this year but to mention Victoria’s Secret vs. the other more current brands seems way off.
I am primarily an online shopper too but I do end up going into the store to try athletic wear when I can as I find the fit can be so different from item to item.
Thanks for this analysis! Would love your thoughts on Outdoor Voices!
Yes, such a great point. Not sure if it's a good idea to compare themselves to Victoria's Secret considering all of the ups and downs that VS has gone through: https://www.businessinsider.com/victorias-secret-rise-and-fall-history-2019-5#in-the-second-half-of-2020-the-brand-started-to-recover-boosted-by-more-sales-online-33.
Would love to do a deep dive on OV, but I believe it's currently privately held! I learned recently from "Your Rich BFF" newsletter that OV plans to shutter all of its stores - wish we could learn more about what is happening there!
This is taking me back to b-school days! Love this serious and appreciative of the work you are putting into writing all this out! Having done this work before, definitely know it’s not that easy!! 🙌🏽
Thanks for the kind note! I learned this stuff in b-school as well and it opened up a whole new world for me - it takes a while but I love learning about different companies. Appreciate the support!
I found this article SO interesting thank you. Sadly looks like as is typical - the first to start in a new space won't be the last standing. LL was the trailblazer for the word "athleisure." I'm in the UK and also noticing LL disappearing as a brand of choice. It's interesting who LL feel their competitive set are, because I wouldn't have put them alongside the sporting retailers when it comes to the brands taking their customers. In my view it's the lifestyle brands that are biting at their heels with really good performance wear (Varley, Adanola, Tala). LL used to be cool - it's lost that. Sweaty Betty is suffering the same fate in my humble opinion.
Thank you so much for the thoughtful comment! I completely agree regarding Sweaty Betty. I used to look to Lululemon as the "reliable" athleisure wear of choice and now I'm not sure which brand I'd turn to if I had to replace all of my athletic wear (thankfully I don't need to do that).
I love these breakdowns! Their brand image really is so interesting. I'm very curious as to whether we're moving away from the world of athleisure in general – I have definitely become less interested in even window shopping at Lululemon/its competitors.
Yes, such a good point. I didn't make this connection till now, but I noticed that Lululemon has started to offer "non-athletic" everyday wear like tshirts and pants recently. Maybe, as you said, folks want to move away from athletic wear towards more structured put together outfits. Thanks for the comment!