The company has launched its Athleta brand into Canada, which is its first move outside of the US to compete with retailers in a growing athleisure clothing market.
Athleta will begin with Canada-wide e-commerce, followed by two store openings this fall, at Park Royal Shopping Centre in West Vancouver in September, and Yorkdale Mall in Toronto in November. In the US, where Athleta has about 200 stores, online purchases account for more than half of the brand’s sales.
Athleisure brands remained strong as the Covid-19 pandemic cratered apparel sales in Canada. With so many people urged to stay at home, demand surged for comfortable clothes such as leggings and sweats. In the 12 months up to June of this year, women’s apparel sales fell by 12 per cent compared to the pre-pandemic period ended in June, 2019. Meanwhile, athleisure sales grew by 23 per cent.
Big brands have also recently been investing in the activewear space. Denim maker Levi’s announced earlier this month that it will buy the Beyond Yoga brand for an undisclosed sum, citing the need to diversify its business. Also this month, Wolverine Worldwide Inc., which owns footwear brands such as Saucony, Merrell and Keds, announced it would buy activewear brand Sweaty Betty for US$410M.
