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The NHL has bet on premium fan apparel, with an eye toward the massive women’s merchandise market, in a new partnership with Lululemon and Fanatics. This month the league announced a multiyear deal for a new collection of designs based on many of Lululemon’s best-selling items, including jackets, hoodies, and yoga pants.
The price points within the Lululemon x Fanatics collection are steep, especially in a world in which fans already bemoan the cost of officially licensed gear. Half-zip women’s hoodies with team logos go for $148 and men’s pullovers are $168. The least-expensive item at $48 is a logo version of Lululemon’s Everywhere Belt Bag. Several items are already sold out on the Fanatics website, including the $108 Rangers and Maple Leafs versions of Lululemon’s marquee Align leggings, as well as a large portion of the reigning Stanley Cup–champion Panthers collection.
Regardless, the NHL tells Front Office Sports that first-day sales for the collection’s Oct. 29 launch were “explosive.” The 11-team collection accounted for 80% of all NHL merchandise sales Tuesday, with women’s products making up 40% of those transactions. (The NHL declined to provide revenue figures to FOS.) During an event at New York City’s NHL Store on Tuesday night, Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin said his company sold more Lululemon products on launch day than any other brand it retails. He also noted Fanatics expects to expand the collection to include all 32 NHL teams next year.
No one ask me how much I just spent on the Lululemon/NHL collab 😭 I’m not ready to acknowledge it.
— Amelia (bruins szn) (@_rugby_barbie) October 29, 2024
Vancouver-based Lululemon, widely known for premium yoga gear and loungewear, has been circling the NHL for a while. In June 2023, the day before the NHL draft, the brand signed expected first pick Connor Bedard to his first major sponsorship deal. Then-17-year-old forward Bedard did indeed get selected first, and the 2023–2024 Calder Trophy winner, now 19, features prominently in the new Lululemon NHL campaign in Blackhawks gear.
Fanatics, which has deals with all major pro sports leagues, also continues to put its stamp on the NHL space. The 2024–2025 season marks the first that the brand is providing the official on- and off-ice gear for the league through a 10-year contract that replaced Adidas.
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