The collaboration with the featured runners helped lululemon create products that can not only help them but also be of use to others. The designs also factored in research insights tied to improving performance and extending running duration, such as the role of compression and cooling.
“Our ambassadors shared what they needed for a multi-day race, and we knew we could create something that hasn’t been seen in the sport,” said Chantelle Murnaghan, Vice President, Research and Product Innovation, lululemon. “These innovations were designed to solve the real problems these athletes and many women runners experience. By understanding their holistic needs and using our research insights, we engineered bespoke kits that meet their physical and emotional needs so they can unlock their potential.”
Key designs include:
- beyondfeel Women’s Running Shoe – Shaped by guest insights and validated by FURTHER athletes to redefine how comfortable and supportive a running shoe can feel, this was built off a unique last that was informed by the shape of the female foot.
- New supercritical foam offers a cushioned feel and softer heel-to-toe glide, and a ventilated mesh that stretches and supports each step.
- Special edition colourway was created for athlete kits and now available online here, with comparable men’s running shoe here.
- Support Code Bra – A high-support running bra with a minimalist, chafe-free construction. Through its advanced make, technology, and material, this sports bra unlocks a new sensory experience for a barely there feeling. Runners can move comfortably while feeling supported and without restriction. Formally launches to the public in Fall 2024. A bespoke version was created for the athletes with an added storage feature, made with a proprietary construction, to hold running essentials like hydration and nutrition.
- Runsie – Inspired by the opportunity to evolve the women’s ultra uniform, it fuses performance with aesthetic. It does this through a comfortable on-body feel, 360-degree waistband storage, unique design and construction at the back and waist to simplify bathroom breaks, legwear split for range of motion, and other intentional product benefits.
- Cooling apparel and accessories – Designed to prioritize cooling functionality and elevate performance, the Running Ice Vest has a women-first design, storage features, and delivers targeted cooling informed by scientific research and insights.
- Other innovations include an ice tank, UV cooling ice sleeves, and cooling headwear.
Continued Research into Unmet Needs
lululemon’s scientific research program, led by the brand’s internal research team and operated in partnership with the Canadian Sport Institute Pacific and lululemon’s academic research network, will continue during and after the race to better understand human performance by advancing women’s- first research and helping close the sex and gender data gap in sports science.
The ongoing research will dive deep into topical questions such as whether female ultrarunners have superior fatigue resistance compared to males, and will study areas that haven’t been explored such as the lived experiences of women ultrarunners and the physiological and biomechanical effects of six days of running. All findings will be published over the next two years, with initial findings to be published in
the Fall of 2024. Takeaways will serve as a catalyst for additional research on female and women athletes and inform lululemon’s pipeline of women-first innovations.
Partnering with Girls Opportunity Alliance
lululemon is committed to breaking down the barriers that prevent access to wellbeing and partners with organizations that share a similar mission. Through the lululemon Centre for Social Impact, the brand is making an additional $1.5 million USD contribution to the Girls Opportunity Alliance.
Girls Opportunity Alliance is a program of the Obama Foundation focused on empowering adolescent girls globally through education and wellbeing tools, allowing them to achieve their full potential. Too often, girls around the world face barriers to pursuing their education and their dreams. Investing in adolescent girls positively impacts their families, communities, and countries. The Centre for Social Impact will have contributed over $5 million USD since 2021 to advancing the program’s work globally.
