LULULEMON BUYS IN-HOME FITNESS COMPANY MIRROR

Lululemon Athletica said on Monday that it will acquire in-home fitness company Mirror in a $500 million deal.

With this purchase, Lululemon aims to accelerate its goal of driving the business through omni-guest experiences. Mirror will bolster the company’s digital “sweatlife” offerings and bring immersive and personalized in-home sweat, and mindfulness solutions, to new and existing Lululemon customers.

This transaction builds on a successful partnership between the two companies, which began in mid-2019 with an initial investment in Mirror by Lululemon, and also includes a content partnership which brought sweat and meditation classes to the mirror platform by Lululemon’s global ambassadors. This acquisition will further expand the content creation partnership between the two brands and will help Lululemon, Mirror, and Lululemon ambassadors reach new guests.

“In 2019, we detailed our vision to be the experiential brand that ignites a community of people living the sweatlife through sweat, grow and connect,” said Calvin McDonald, chief executive officer of Lululemon. “The acquisition of Mirror is an exciting opportunity to build upon that vision, enhance our digital and interactive capabilities, and deepen our roots in the sweatlife. We look forward to learning from and working with Brynn Putnam and the team at Mirror to accelerate the growth of personalized in-home fitness.”

Mirror offers weekly live classes and thousands of on-demand workouts as well as immersive one-on-one personal training. The company has seen rapid growth and strong engagement since it launched in 2018 as demand for in-home fitness offerings continues to increase significantly.

“We are thrilled to officially become a part of the Lululemon family,” added Brynn Putnam, founder and chief executive officer of Mirror, and a former Lululemon ambassador. “As part of Lululemon, Mirror can further strengthen its position and accelerate its growth by leveraging Lululemon’s deep relationships with its guests, ambassadors, and communities, as well as the company’s infrastructure, including its store network and e-commerce channels, to acquire new users.”

The purchase price is expected to be paid from the company’s primary sources of liquidity, which include over $800 million in cash, its existing $400 million revolving credit facility, and a new one-year, $300 million revolving credit facility.

Following the completion of the transaction, Mirror will operate as a standalone company within Lululemon and Putnam will continue as Mirror’s chief executive officer, reporting to McDonald.