Lululemon Athletica Inc plans to sell larger sizes — a move to increase its customer base and move away from the founder’s vision of making apparel for only a narrow part of the overall population.
The maker of yoga pants and sports bras would expand its selection up to size 20, chief executive officer Calvin McDonald said in a conference call on Tuesday to discuss quarterly earnings.
The sizing chart for the company currently only goes up to 14 for most products.
The announcement is significant for the company, given its history on the issue. Lululemon founder Chip Wilson resigned as chairman in 2013, weeks after an interview on Bloomberg Television in which he said Lululemon’s pants “don’t work for some women’s bodies.”
He apologized a week later.
The company was also forced to recall some pants for being too sheer.
Companies that cater to stereotypes of female beauty have increasingly come under fire in the past few years, causing apparel makers to expand their offerings to more inclusive sizes.
Lululemon’s new sizes would start later this month with its core styles and by the end of next year would include the majority of women’s products, McDonald said.
It is “an important step forward” for the company, he added.
Lululemon reported a surge in its e-commerce business as quarantined consumers flocked to comfy apparel like yoga pants.
McDonald said that he is “cautiously optimistic” about the second half of the year.
In an echo of retailers including Gap Inc and Nike Inc, Lululemon’s comparable online sales excluding currency effects rose 157 percent in the second quarter, the Vancouver-based company said on Tuesday.
The company has bolstered its online offerings with free online workouts and one-on-one video chats with sales associates.
The company still is not offering a formal forecast for this year, given COVID-19 pandemic-related uncertainty and consumer upheaval.
McDonald said the company is “pleased with our overall business results” in the period that ended on Aug. 2, while citing an “uncertain environment.”
After missing analysts’ forecasts for sales and profit in the previous quarter, the latest results suggest the company is now capitalizing on the embrace of comfy clothes by consumers who are working from home.
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