Then which is better?

Both the brands have their customers that they cater to. If you are a professional athlete or a yogi, Lululemon is your best choice. If you are looking for more casual workout wear, Athleta would be a better choice. 

Their focus

As mentioned earlier, both brands have their customer targets and they update the features according to them. Lululemon looks for innovative products and quality. They try to bring new features to the clothes and make them professionally wearable. People who do heavy workouts every day happen to face heavy sweating and stretching. Everyone who faces these needs their clothes to be of high quality, to last longer in their extreme conditions. Lululemon tries to counter these very problems. Athleta, on the other hand, tries to make the clothes more comfortable in leisure and focuses on innovations in style rather than innovation in features as Lululemon does. They bring in various colors, designs, and patterns to focus on the fashion aspect of Athleisure wear. So Athleta provides a large variety. For a few years, Athleta has been focusing on womenswear more. Their aim leans toward women’s empowerment through fitness. They still have their name in menswear as well, but their focus has been women’s clothing. 

Quality

In terms of quality, Lululemon seems to be a better option. Lululemon, from its beginning, has been focusing on quality. They do not experiment as such with the material of their clothing and keep it as it is to cater to the customer base. Lululemon is a great example of high customer retention, that is, customers tend to buy their clothes once they try them out once. Athleta has been experimenting with the material for some time now. They have products in recycled polyester, nylon, and even organic cotton to make it more environmentally friendly with similar quality. 

Longevity and affordability

Athleta is very popular in the longevity department. 2-5 years is the average age of an Athleta product depending on the fabric used. Lululemon gets mixed feedback in terms of longevity, some say they can even go for 5+ years, while some say it can’t even last for 2 years. Athleta, without a debate, is more affordable than Lululemon. Lululemon sells anywhere from $9 for shorts to $249 for jackets. Specifically for Athleisure, this price range is somewhere in the middle. The reason behind the high price is because of their premium quality clothes, and exclusive brand value. 

Websites

Since GAP bought Athleta, it has been incorporated with other ventures of GAP: Old Navy and the Banana Republic. Thus both helped the site to grow and reach a wide audience through the brand names. Lululemon has a loyal customer base that tends to rebuy Lululemon exclusively. Both the official websites are user-friendly. Athleta provides a wide range of categories: Bottoms, Tops, Dresses & Rompers, Swim, Bras, Jackets, Sleep, and accessories. Athleta has more sizes and designs compared to Lululemon. But Lulumelon leads with the types of clothing and accessories they provide. 

Specialty of Lululemon

Lulumelon has a special feature of the Mirror. It is the newest way to exercise where you can build a small ‘home gym’. This product has become recently popular through their website and is profitable for other products as well. People buy clothes and accessories with the Mirror.

Conclusion

There are pros and cons to buying from either of them. But if you are more into intense workouts and look for quality, Lululemon is your option. If your choice is getting affordable and trendy wear, Athleta is the best option.  

Are Athleta and Lululemon the same company?

No. Both companies do sell the same categories of clothes and accessories but have quite strategies to do so. 

Are Athleta and Lululemon the best fitness brands?

These two brands have made their name in the fitness industry. It would be fair to say that they are the best fitness brand. 

What is Lululemon known for?

Lululemon is known for its high workout-friendly Athleisure wear. 

Where do I find Lululemon retail stores?

Lululemon has its retain stores all across the USA and Canada. You can check it on their website for exact locations. https://shop.lululemon.com/stores/all-lululemon-stores

Where can I find Athleta stores? 

There are many stores in Athleta. You can check them out based on your location on https://athleta.gap.com/stores?q=usa