Lululemon launches a service similar to Amazon Prime

Lululemon has taken a page from Amazon's playbook. The Vancouver-based athletic wear brand beloved by yogis has just finished a successful pilot program of a loyalty subscription service, and now plans to introduce the service to more markets.

The brand tested the curated shopping experience using consumers in Edmonton, Canada. Shoppers paid 128 Canadian dollars, equal to 96 USD, for an annual membership that provides a pair of workout pants, one fitness class per month, the ability to attend more classes and events and free shipping throughout the year.

Considering the price of a pair of yoga pants is between 58 and 148 USD, this membership price is quite reasonable. However, the brand may decide to raise the annual fee, as consumers from the positive test market had said they would be willing to pay a higher price for the service.

“The people who love and breath Lululemon will likely join the membership program if they find that it’s beneficial, if they think that they’re getting value beyond the pants,” Bloomberg Intelligence senior analyst Poonam Goyal said.

According to information received by Bloomberg, this type of loyalty subscription has been known to boost sales for retailers. Amazon Prime members typically spend twice the amount spent by non-members on the Amazon site.