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Lululemon can avoid sheer 'Luonacy'

March 26, 2013 by Lisa Biank Fasig — Director, JZMcBride and Associates

You'd think a yoga outfitter would afford its customers a little more flexibility.

But if the tales of Lululemon's recent fabric faux pas are true, then the Canadian merchant is facing one lulu of an image problem. 

We speak here of Lululemon's black yoga pants, made from an engineered (and trademarked) fabric called Luon. Turns out that Luon is just as good as lu-off, because its sheerness leaves little to the imagination. Customers, horrified that others can see their posteriors, have been flocking to get their money back.

At $100 or so a pair, why wouldn’t they? But stories are emerging that Lululemon sales associates are treating their refund-seeking customers poorly. One L.A. Times story, citing the fan site Lululemon Addict, retold of employees asking customers to put on the pants and bend over. I guess we can call that the Luon pose.

The upshot is that Lululemon expects the fiasco to eat into its profits this year. It may, but I suspect the merchant will try to regain those losses in court. That’s because Lululemon relies on third parties to produce and provide about all its fabrics, according to its annual report filed March 21.

“Luon fabric, which is included in many of our products, is supplied to the mills we use by a single manufacturer in Taiwan, and the fibers used in manufacturing Luon fabric are supplied to our Taiwanese manufacturer by a single company,” the company reported.

Lululemon goes on to state that is has no long-term contracts with its suppliers or manufacturing sources, and that it competes with other companies for fabrics, raw materials and production.

It also competes with other retailers for customers, and for this reason Lululemon should be bending over backwards. Luon may soon become a household word. Lululemon should hope it remains one as well, for the right reasons.

About Lisa Biank Fasig

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