Girls gone Lulu
A clothing chain’s promotion leaves the ladies cold
BY Allison Gifford
When Lululemon athletica opened a new store in Kingston, Ontario, a year ago, the high-end outfitter of the new yoga army entreated its customers to salute the sun in a whole new way. Its storefront was decorated with slogans from the company’s feel-good manifesto, such as “Dance, sing, floss and travel.” But among the motivational mantras was another message: “Show us your boobs and we’ll give you free sweatpants!”
At least, that’s what Lululemon suggested people do to score free clothes at its grand opening in a full-page ad it published in Queen’s University’s student paper, the Queen’s Journal. “Grin and bare it!” reads the ad. “Let us dress you from head to toe…. The first 30 people wearing only their undies will receive a free Lululemon top and bottom.”
To be fair, the ad did have a male and a female model, suggesting men were welcome to participate. But it wasn’t guys who lined up topless for periwinkle jog bras and Bhakti capris. It was women who showed up in abundance, topless and freezing. And there was no age stipulation. That’s OK, though—17-year-olds aren’t interested in brand names, right?
If you replace the “organic” fibres with a free t-shirt and trucker hat and add a “Whoo!” Lululemon starts to sound a lot more Girls Gone Wild than Buddhists Gone Zen.
Months after the “grin and bare it” campaign, Lululemon remains a uniform among students, yogis and soccer moms. Flattering clothing is definitely a part of the brand’s success, but it’s the company’s marketing that has seduced the progressive types who would normally rally against Lululemon’s sexist cries for attention.
By espousing earthy rhetoric in its ad copy, Lululemon manages to practise the opposite of what it preaches. Let’s take an example from its corporate manifesto: “That which matters the least should never give way to that which matters the most.…” Unless we’re talking about free sweatpants. G’head! Strip!
When asked about community responses to other “Grin and bare it!” campaigns, PR rep Sara Gardiner said the campaign “was only used for the Robson Street [Vancouver] grand opening.” Reminded that the campaign was also conducted in Kingston, Gardiner explained that “Lululemon has a very decentralized marketing structure, so it’s up to each store how they want to advertise.” Indeed, marketing must be highly decentralized if corporate headquarters can’t keep track of which stores gave away thousands of dollars in free merchandise to naked people. Gardiner also described the campaign as a “great way of grassroots marketing and creating conversation.”
As Lululemon’s “grassroots” grow—into a $225-million empire with outsourcing to Israel, China, Taiwan, Indonesia and India—it gets harder to decipher the grass from the Astroturf. I think I’ll dance, floss and sing all the way to the next sporting goods store.
