Newest Trend in Advertising: Throwing Shade at Lululemon

Oh, Lululemon. It seems the retailer will never live down the controversy surrounding their pricey yoga pants, which were criticized for being way too sheer for their near hundred-dollar price tag. But it looks like some labels are looking to profit off the brand’s failures, one being “technical apparel” brand Kit + Ace, founded by Lululemon founder Chip Wilson’s wife and son, Shannon and JJ Wilson, which decided to pepper its current campaign with a helping of shade.

For its latest set of ads, Kit + Ace is using the slogan, “Not for Yoga,” a clear nod their Lululemon roots. “Lululemon is such a big part of our history,” JJ Wilson told WWD. “I’m taking the best from our past. We’re not just fashion, we’re a technical brand. We want to make a little bit of fun of athleisure and poke fun at Lululemon…and draw a distinction.”

But Lululemon isn’t only getting ripped on by family. As Jezebel points out, Kate Hudson’s low-priced subscription-based activewear label Fabletics is also capitalizing off the Lululemon snark in its latest commercials, which depict an exchange between a woman and a checkout girl at an unnamed high-end athletic apparel store. In the first commercial, a woman tries to purchase a pair of leggings, which get pricer by the second as she tries to check out. The shopgirl smugly explains that the price is climbing because the leggings are “new and improved” (read: the same as they always were). It’s a clear comment on Lululemon’s hefty price tags – and a dash of shade that perhaps their clothes aren’t worth the cost.

In the second commercial, we see a woman returning her expensive leggings because they are so sheer that “you can totally see [her] p***y.” The camera cuts to the same woman in yoga class a few hours before, where a few of her fellow yogis comment that they can see her lady parts through the leggings as she bends over. Ouch.

To be fair, Lululemon’s past missteps and still-lofty prices kind of make them an easy target, especially for Fabletics, which has been dealing with its share of customer complaints as of late. We’ll have to see if these pot-shots work for either label.

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.