Company Review: Lululemon Athletica

Company Review: Lululemon Athletica Name of Student Institution Affiliation Company Review: Lululemon Athletica Lululemon Athletica is a Canadian yoga-inspired, technical athletic apparel company for both men and women. Lululemon Athletica was founded by Chip Wilson in 1998 in Vancouver Canada (Company History, , n.d). The company had started as a design and yoga studio and quickly become a standalone store opening a store on West 4th Avenue in Kitsilano, Vancouver in late 2000. The company was founded on a vision to create an inclusive community hub that would give people the space to talk about “the physical aspects of healthy living, mindfulness and living a life of possibility” (Company History, , n.d). The company has now expanded its operations beyond Canada to other stores globally. Being involved in Yoga when starting its operations, the company’s first product designs targeted women to wear during their yoga. The company has expanded its designs beyond yoga to include designs for running, cycling, and training as well as designs focusing in other sweaty pursuits for both men and women (Company History, , n.d). Its products include pants, tops, shorts, jackets, undergarments, and sweater (Kim Bhasin and Porter, 2018). Lululemon started its expansion plans in 2005 by inviting investors to help the company through the company’s initial public offering (IPO) (Kowitt and Leahey, 2013). The company’s IPO raised $ 327.6 after offering 18.2 million shares at $18 per share, exceeding expectations (Reuters News Releases, 2007). The company opened its first full Europe 3,100 sq ft store in the UK addition to its existing presence in showrooms in Covent Garden, Chelsea, Islington and Richmond upon the Thames (Bearne, 2014). The company also operates other international stores in Australia and New Zealand. SWOT analysis reviews and identifies the key strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that affect a company the most. Using SWOT analysis, we can identify the competitive edge of a company against its competitors in the industry. The company’s top competitors include Puma, Nike, Under Armour, Outdoor Voices, and Adidas (, 2019). SWOT analysis enables us to explore the critical influences of internal and external strategic factors of a company within the industry it operates in. * Market Strengths * Quality Products: The company prides itself of producing top-notch quality products that are ideal for yoga and other strenuous physical activities. With athletic clientele in mind, the company delivers its products with quality fabrics such as Luon, its trademarked, above average nylon microfiber fabric and other materials that can withstand stretch and compression (Kim Bhasin and Porter, 2018). * Specific Niche Market: Lululemon Athletica has specialized sportswear products designed for physical activities such as yoga, running, cycling, training and other sweaty physical activities (Company History, , n.d). The increasing appetite for physical fitness by people has enabled the company to grow and expand in other international markets. * Specialty in Yoga: Lululemon Athletica started its operations primarily in yoga and designing clothes to wear during yoga. Yoga has continued to gain international recognitio...