Lululemon rolls into footwear market with women's-first approach
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Lululemon (LULU
-2.2%) announced that it is officially entering the footwear category with four new womenâs styles set to debut in 2022.
The brand introduce its first-ever running shoe called Blissfeel, which will be available for purchase beginning on March 22 in select markets.
Three additional styles were also revealed, Chargefeel, Strongfeel and Restfeel, which will be introduced in the coming months.
"We are entering the footwear category the same way we built our apparel businessâwith products designed to solve unmet needs, made for women first," said Lululemon CEO Calvin McDonald.
LULU said it sees an opportunity because performance shoes are typically designed for men and then adapted for women. The athletic apparel company will keep a women's-first philosophy with its footwear business.
"Each shoe within the lululemon footwear collection is designed to deliver a specific feeling and features different upper materials, foam compounds, construction methods and colors for the perfect balance of cushioning and supportâand to help ensure a zero-distraction experience for guests enjoying the right fit from the first trial."
The Lululemon development is of interest to Nike (NYSE:NKE), Adidas (OTCQX:ADDYY), Crocs (NASDAQ:CROX), Skechers (NYSE:SKX), Deckers Outdoor (NYSE:DECK) and Allbirds (NASDAQ:BIRD).
Check out Seeking Alpha author Peter Way's recent breakdown on LULU.