Good Karma: What Bonobos Has In Common With Sexy Yogawear
Marshall Roy — July 29, 2009 @ 3:36 pm
If I asked you what Bonobos has in common with yoga, and you cocked an eyebrow and said, “Flexibility,” you would only be half right.
The other half of the answer is Lululemon, a brand of yoga-oriented athleticwear out of Vancouver that has quite a bit of common ground with our burgeoning trouser empire (much more than our twin tongue-twisting product names). New York Magazine recently profiled the company, whose signature yoga pants are renowed for their “ability to shape and display the ass,” by way of “all kinds of special gussets and flat seams to create a snug gluteal enclosure of almost perfect globularity, like a drop of water free from gravity.”
All poetic posturing aside, Lululemon has done for women’s workout pants what Bonobos has done for men’s trousers: make them stylish—sexy even—without sacrificing craftsmanship or functionality.
But the connection runs deeper. Like Bonobos, Lululemon is building a corporate culture based on freedom, fitness, and fun. Their manifesto ranges from the practical (“Sweat once a day to regenerate your skin”) to the optimistically morose (“Visualize your eventual demise. It can have an amazing effect on how you live for the moment”). And I might skewer their practice of calling sales associates “Educators” if I weren’t myself a “Ninja.” Moreover, Lululemon and Bonobos both reject the wholesale approach to fashion and build vertically integrated models that encourage a more significant role in our customers’ experience. From fabric sourcing through manufacture and distribution, Lululemon is in control. As a result, their customer service is some of the best in the retail world (just as we’re working to make ours the best on the internet). Lastly, both Bonobos and Lululemon use clothes as vehicles to enlighten and inspire. We believe that looking good instills confidence and makes you want to work harder, exercise harder, and perhaps even live a better life.
Where our paths diverge is in the operation of retail stores. But at ten years old, Lululemon is five times older than we are, so who knows? Should Bonobos open our own version of a retail experience—lounge-style fitting centers-cum-salons complete with cocktails and conversation? Would you come hang out with us, and buy trousers, swim trunks, and polo shirts? Leave your inspirational comments below.
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I would say, before you start thinking about opening retail stores, I would say work on expanding your excellent design approach to shirts, suits, shoes, or any other item of clothing that will define the very type of person you have been attracting since you started. I am on my 4th pair of Bonobos, and I see myself buying any product you come up with. Once you have developed such product portofolio (but please, maintain the design approach unchanged, as well as the mentality towards customer service), then go crazy with retail space.
By the way, when are you showing more pictures of the polos? One is not enough!
Saludos,
JD
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I love Lululemon. The people who work their are awesome and really friendly. Ask them anything about neighborhood gyms or running clubs or whatever, and they’ll be able to answer you.
Bonobos should totally open its own boutiques! Check out the Denim Bar stores – it’s a good model.
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Yes, yes and YES! Great post – correct on so many fronts.
It would be great if you could combine a retail clothing store but also have a liquor license!
I agree with JD that it would be best after you have things like polos and button-downs – maybe have a partnership with some other companies (e.g. shoes, Havaianas, etc.) that pair well with your offerings.
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I actually own a pair of lululemon brown glen plaid men’s pants and I love them (they are second to my Bonobos). They have a very similar fit to Bonobos as far as seat and thigh and they are made out of a nice synthetic tech material. They are my go-to golf pants as Bonobos does not make synthetic/tech fabric pants… yet.
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I hate shopping. I hate shopping with girls. I hate shopping with my girlfriend. Always have, its torturous. But, that all changed one Sunday morning in December. My girlfriend (at the time) and I had been out late drinking, dancing, and generally having an awesome time. We had planned on getting up and working out on Sunday, but I had a reminder pop up on my phone that a free yoga class was going on at 10:00 am on Sunday late Saturday night. We got up at 9:30, just in time to swirl some Scope, take 2 Aleve, and grab a Smartwater to ventur 4 blocks down Damen Ave in Chicago’s Bucktown neighborhood. The next 4 hours went like this. A free yoga class at Lululemon’s store from 10-11, followed by brunch at Jane’s (recommended by the yoga teacher as the end-all be-all hangover cure food) until 12:30, and then a nice hour and a half back at the Lululemon store. This is where the day was great. The girl needed some new yoga pants but needed to try stuff on. I grabbed a coffee, sat down in a nice leather couch near the fitting area and let her try on anything and everything she wanted. She has a great butt to begin with, but holy cow did it look especially awesome this day. I think I saw 20 different pairs of pants and shorts on her, along with a dozen or so tops, all the while chit chatting with the sales girls about the local running and triathlon scene. I told her to buy everything she touched. She came out with a few pairs of pants, a couple tops, and a huge smile. Me, I came out refreshed, surprised, not hungover, and ready to see those pants again…..up close and personal.
In my experience, girls love the way Bonobos look on guys (especially from the back); but more than that, they like seeing the whole variety of them. Being a longtime customer, I have a decent collection that allows me to “model” them on my deck for the cute neighbor and her friends. I have to believe that if Bonobos had a similar retail environment as Lululemon, it’d be very successful. Its in our nature to buy something when girls tell us “Wow, those look insanely awesome on you,” or “Damn, your ass….I just want to reach out and grab it.” Guys are bound to bring their girlfriends, wives, mistresses, etc. into a Bonobos retail store, and most likely walk out with some new duds because the lady loved what she saw.
Start small, see what kind of results you get, and move from there. Best of luck and looking forward to a Bonobos shop right next to a Lululemon in Chicago…..
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I also own several pairs of Lululemon shorts for athletic purposes. Awesome shorts, and definitely another example of a willingness to pay more for quality products.
Great stores with fantastic customer service. The thing I like best about their stores (and I envision a Bonobos store in similar fashion) is that they have honest, knowledgeable employees who are truly looking to help the customer make the best personal choice for them.
it also helps that the majority of the employees are attractive, athletic women in sexy yoga pants…
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Where are those pics of Splay in Bonobos wear doing yoga from back in the day? Gotta bring em back.
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Have a few pairs of lululemon kung-fu pants from an ex and although I love to wear them, I rarely do. They are much too long and I refuse to alter workout gear; just the principle of it – I feel as if it should already fit. A little pricey for clothes to sweat in and from my experience they also tend to fall apart.
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Scott,
I have a pair of their boxer briefs and really like them. Definitely a great “athletic” underwear, but maybe not quite on par with my Under Armour and Adidas compression shorts in terms of “performance.” A fantastic middle ground, though.
Other than that I haven’t tried their products, though my sister (a yoga instructor) lives in them.
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[...] day. What’s a fashionable, stylish lunch box option? I’ve used my wife’s small Lululemon vinyl shopping bag, but find it a bit immature for my job at a consulting [...]
Can you provide more information on this? take care
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