Lululemon (LULU) CEO Laurent Potdevin remains bullish on the future of brick and mortar retail, saying “people don’t want to be stuck on their phone” and those that seek “mindful lifestyles continue to crave human connections”. The company employs 10,000 “educators” to develop those connections within in their 421 stores and an additional 2,500 “brand ambassadors” worldwide to foster human engagement. Potdevin points out that Lululemon should not be grouped with other struggling athleisure apparel companies, as the brand does not sell footwear and controls its fleet of stores (competitors tend to be wholesale companies).
Howie Long-Short: Yoga’s popularity in China is growing and Lululemon is cashing in with sales in the country up 350% YOY. LULU, who has an exclusive partnership with Tmall (BABA), China’s largest B2C e-commerce platform, saw a 100%+ increase in traffic and higher conversion rates lead to a 175% YOY increase in sales on the platform. Rapid growth within the Asian market puts the company’s $4 billion revenue target for 2020 in sight.
Fan Marino: Speaking of footwear, NBA MVP Russell Westbrook is the new face of Jordan Brand (NKE). Westbrook signed a 10-year deal that will make him the highest paid endorser in the history of the company. Westbrook will also get his own signature shoe line. While financial terms of the deal were not released, Westbrook shouldn’t be short on cash. He recently signed the richest deal in NBA history, a 5 year $205 million extension with Oklahoma City.
Lululemon CEO: Retail isn’t dead because people ‘crave human connections’
