Introducing lululemon Like New

May 4, 2021

This spring, lululemon Like New launches online and in nearly one third of the brand’s US stores. The pilot trade-in and resale program is part of lululemon’s Impact Agenda and Be Planet environmental commitments to accelerate progress towards a circular ecosystem by 2025.

Starting in May, lululemon guests in Texas and California can trade in gently used lululemon clothing in one of the 80+ participating stores or by mail in exchange for a lululemon e-gift card. In June, the online resale program will activate, with 100% of profits¹ being reinvested into the brand’s sustainability initiatives, including circular product design, renew and recycle programs, and store environmental programs, extending and amplifying the positive impact of lululemon Like New.

lululemon’s renowned product quality is at the heart of the program, extending the life of gear that has been designed to last. Buying lululemon Like New or trading in lululemon gear is one action that helps to reduce carbon, waste, and water—minimizing environmental impact on the planet. Research shows that 30% of clothes in a typical household wardrobe have been unused for at least a year² and that across the apparel industry, less than 1% of material used to produce clothing is recycled into new clothing³.

Purchasing lululemon Like New product, including guest favourites like Wunder Unders and ABC Pants, can save up to 50% of the product’s carbon footprint and 310 grams of waste⁴.

As the program name suggests, eligible products need to be in “Like New” condition. lululemon has partnered with Trove, recognized industry experts in branded recommerce, to support with resale technology and operations. All trade-in products will be cleaned using state-of-the-art technology. Gear that does not meet quality standards will be recycled through lululemon’s longstanding partnership with debrand.

Guests interested in participating in lululemon Like New will be able to find all program information including eligible products for trade-in and resale online and in-stores across test markets, starting May 4th, 2021.

Guest feedback will be collected throughout the duration of the lululemon Like New pilot to inform future scaling.

To learn more about lululemon Like New as well as updates on lululemon’s Impact Agenda and sustainability commitments, please contact media@lululemon.com.

¹ 100% of pilot program profits or 2% of revenue, whichever is higher.
² Waste & Resources Action Programme 2012
³ EMF New Textiles Economy 2017
⁴ Trove calculations on average carbon footprint and waste savings between lululemon's Wunder Under High Rise Tight 28" Full-On Luxtreme and ABC Joggers 30" Warpstreme as of January 2021. Per item carbon footprint savings were calculated by taking the percentage difference between the life cycle impact of a new item versus a resold item, including the incremental impacts of transporting, cleaning, and reselling the item. The impact of a resold item assumes that the item has 90-95% (depending on item condition) of usable life left at the time of resale, and that the purchase of a resale item directly replaces the purchase of a brand new item 60% of the time (i.e., displacement rate). Waste savings is equal to the weight of the garment in grams. Amount of savings may vary for other lululemon products.