Lululemon Customers Angered by Rising Cost of Pants

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As Racked reported yesterday, Lululemon just completely overhauled the way customers shop for leggings. Shoppers can now narrow down their leggings options based on "engineered sensation" or how they want their athletic pants to make them feel. Your options are Tight Sensation, Hugged Sensation, Held-In Sensation, Naked Sensation, and Relaxed Sensation. Lululemon's bottoms feature fancy, high-tech details like zoned compression, no-dig waistbands, contoured panels, zip-free pockets, and laser-cut hems that won't roll up.

But some customers are more concerned about how Lululemon's massive leggings redesign is making their wallets feel. Fan site Lululemon Addict wrote yesterday: "People are pretty annoyed by the across the board increase in price of the solid crops and pants and stunned by the prices of the new All the Right Places, Zone In Crops, and Tight Stuff Tights." Those pants are $128, $118, and $148, respectively.

The comments on Lululemon Addict's post lament the new prices. A shopper writes: "Jet crops went up in price $10 for no reason. Wishing I purchased last week when I was at the store but I figured there was no rush... I think all this nonsense lately is really getting me over LLL for real." Meanwhile, one commenter says, "welp. i'm officially priced out of lulu, i think. $118 for pants is just too damn much."

Another says, "I'm well on my way to 'whatever' with LLL. The banner "do the clothes you wear make you feel alive" is nauseating. They definitely won't be getting $118, $128, $148 just because they're LLL. Not when there are other proven performers out there that cost the same or more but are worth it. The inflation of $10 on whatever, whenever they feel like it, will not be swallowed by this customer."

Over at Lululemon's site's message boards, a thread titled: "Insane Price Increase on Bottoms" echoes that sentiment:

This just seems like a way for lulu to a) pay off their advertising agency for whatever ungodly amount they were charged to come up with the new Choose Feeling slogan or b) increase margins on basic pieces like black High Times or Wunder Unders. To go from $72 for solid crops to $88 is insane. That is a 22% increase. I don't get a 22% raise each year, inflation isn't 22%, and surely Lululemon's cost to manufacture these items has not increased 22%. Plus, it was only in recent years that Lulu started charging more for printed versions of pants and crops.

The post begins by hoping that Lululemon listens to the concerns and ends by saying: "Because while Lulu is focused on helping us feel naked, hugged, or whatever sensation we choose, I am left feeling ripped off." Commenters in the thread say that this might be the end of their Lululemon shopping habit. A shopper wonders, "WHY did the basic full on luon WUC go from $72 to $88?? Seriously, WHY?" One writes: "I have no words for these price increases! I have been shopping at LuLu since 2005! What the heck? Truly a sad day for me, I might just have to walk away."