Lululemon is taking on Nike and Adidas with a push into sneakers
- Lululemon's CEO, Calvin McDonald, announced Wednesday that the company plans to enter the footwear market in 2019.
- Lululemon's bread and butter has long been women's yoga pants and workout clothing, but it is increasingly diversifying into new categories as competition in the market heats up.
- This includes a push into menswear, self-care, and an Amazon Prime-style membership program.
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Lululemon is inching in on Nike's and Adidas' turf as competition in the athleisure market heats up.
During the company's analyst day on Wednesday, CEO Calvin McDonald announced that the brand plans to enter the footwear market in 2019 and is currently testing new products.
"We will be in footwear," McDonald asserted on Wednesday.
This will be the first time that the brand has launched its own footwear collection. It previously teamed up with sneaker label APL (Athletic Propulsion Labs) to create a mix of men's and women's sneakers, which is currently offered online and in select stores.
"We learned a lot through the collaboration," McDonald said. "We believe we have identified an opportunity that will be unique to us in the marketplace."
Lululemon has been best known for women's yoga pants and workout clothing, but it has increasingly diversified into new categories as competition heats up and it looks to gain market share from industry leaders Nike, Adidas, and Under Armour.
Read more: Lululemon is growing beyond the women's yoga pants that made it famous as competition heats up
This has included a move to grow its menswear business into a $1 billion platform by 2020, launching a new self-care collection, and branching into casual wear. Lululemon said Wednesday that it expects to more than double the size of its men's wear revenues by 2023.
And it seems to be paying off. The company reported strong fourth-quarter and full-year earnings for 2018 in March. After adjusting for currency fluctuations, same-store sales were up 17% for the year, making it one of the company's strongest years to date, McDonald said in a call with investors at the time.