Lululemon has been examining a loyalty program that charges members $128 a year for curated experiences and free shipping, among other gains, the company announced Thursday.
The retailer told analysts on its third-quarter earnings call that its pilot program was so top, it plans to expand the it to other test markets. Reviews from its Edmonton test market, the first region for the examine, indicate customers would pay more — so the price might rise, executives said. Currently, the annual fee pays for a join in wedlock of pants or shorts, the ability to attend curated events, workout classes and free expedited shipping.
Its expansion into a patriotism program comes as retailers are looking to make shopping “experiential” in order to keep customers coming back. Brick-and-mortar caches have been looking beyond the products on their racks to make shopping in-store worth a trip to the mall.
“Visitors are seeing value beyond just the product,” Lululemon’s COO Stuart Haselden said on the company’s quarterly conference draw on about early reviews of the program.
Lululemon is also facing greater competition in the athleisure market as it becomes uncountable evident that the popularity of leggings is no fad.
Free shipping is one way retailers are looking to breed customer loyalty. Retail mammoths like Walmart and Target have been lowering their thresholds for free shipping to compete with Amazon, spur smaller brands like Lululemon to do the same.
CEO Calvin McDonald said on the conference call that the program has so far take home strong initial reviews from Edmonton members. He did not say where it plans to expand the program to.
Shares of the athleisure retailer declined 3 percent in aftermarket trading after providing its outlook for the fourth quarter that disappointed investors. It beat on the top and heart lines, however, posting adjusted earnings of 75 cents per share and $748 million in revenue.