Lululemon catches on for men

Elana Ross, Photographer

Lululemon is  no longer just for girls. Walking around, more boys can be spotted in Lulu. In the past three years Lululemon has started to take the place of clothing brands.

Lululemon was first founded in Vancouver, Canada in 1998 by, Chip Wilson. It became popular and started to spread to the United States. Lululemon was designed first as a women’s clothing brand made specifically for yogis and getting a sweat on. Wilson wanted to create a brand that could be a design studio in the morning and a yoga studio by night. In a whirlwind, Lululemon became very popular.

The company has become more than its iconic black leggings. In 2013, Lululemon decided to spread the brand to more than just females, and launched a men’s line. Starting as what was first a growth opportunity, it continues to grow today. The men’s merchandise makes up more than 20 percent of the business. Targeted for male athletes in their 30s, it can be found worn by a variety of teen boys to men.

Lululemon for guys was not always super trendy. The company  worried about producing men’s clothes for a primarily women’s based company. They didn’t know if males would go into the store and purchase anything or not, so they hired creative director Lee Holman from Nike.

Since then, it has begun to go from a lesser known company to one known by many. They worked to make the shop appeal to all genders, so men were not hesitant about going into the “female” store.

Junior Evan Tomaro said, “I first started to wear Lulu during the summer of 2015 just to see if I would like to change things up an try a different brand of clothing.” He ended up liking it a lot and now owns more than 30 items. Majority give it a try because they like the way it looks, then they decide to stick with it.

Lululemon’s biggest competitors are Nike and Under Armor. The company tries to come up with designs that separate them from the others by focusing on the quality of the clothing and fitting it to specific activities, whether it be keeping people cool while exercising, or just making sure the clothes are light weight and breathable for everyday.

Senior Mitch Bailey said, “I like it better because the material is the best compared to other brands.”

This is one of the company’s main selling points. Although the price of the clothing is very expensive and not to everyone’s liking, in the end most say it is worth it for the quality of the clothes and the durability.

Tomaro said, “It is very comfortable, and all of the clothes are lightweight which makes it hard to feel uncomfortable. It also dries easy when you sweat or is able to keep heat in when you are cold depending on the clothing.”

Lululemon has been called basic, or just something that is materialistic. It is worn by some because they like the quality and others because they like the name brand.

Tomaro agreed  “I don’t like the prices of the clothing because it is super expensive. However, it is worth it because of the quality, how comfortable it is, and how they have different types of clothing for specific types of events.”

Whether students want to wear Lululemon to fit in with the crowd, or wear it because you like the way it looks and feels, go for it. Find the nearest Lulu or check out the website and try an item or two.

“Lululemon is he best material compared to other brands and it is way more comfortable,” said Bailey.