Lululemon Now Wants To Dress You For Work, Not Just Workouts

If you haven't ventured to Vancouver, Canada in the past few years, you've probably never heard of Lululemon's high-end, beyond-the-gym Lab offshoot. The Lab's first (and only other current) outpost is in the northwestern Canadian city, which originated in 2009. This week, the company opened its second Lab location (and its first in the U.S.) in New York City's Noho neighborhood.

Each Lab's selection caters to the store's location — the Vancouver outpost stocks more outdoorsy goods, while the NYC spot places a heavy emphasis on commute-friendly, work-to-play transitional pieces.

"Retail, style creation, innovation, are all happening at once, interactively; everything about the process is transparent," Marcus Le Blanc, head designer of the first U.S. outpost of Lululemon Lab, told Refinery29. Thus, you'll be able to see Le Blanc and his design team at work, 20 feet away from shoppers.

"Lululemon is best in the world with sweat [-wicking clothes], and now we're experimenting with new ways of using the brand's technology and [customer] information and infusing that into other parts of your life," Le Blanc says. "We're using a lot of great technologies in our construction — a lot of them are not sewn at all," he says, citing the slew of laser-cut, bonded pieces in the collection.

This is an excerpt from an article posted on Refinery29.com. For complete article, click here.