Wall Street man loves his Lululemon pants, but there's one tiny problem

Do you see that? (Image: lululemon)

Lululemon Athletica (LULU) has found huge success marketing yoga apparel to women. In fact, it’s one of the biggest brands behind the fashion trend known as athleisure, which is more or less people wearing workout clothes while having no intention of working out in them.

In its efforts to boost growth, Lululemon has expanded its offering of men’s apparel, which include shirts and pants that can be worn to work.

One Wall Street analyst is impressed.

“I’ll just admit it, LULU’s Commission and ABC pants are the most comfortable pants I own,” Citi’s Paul Lejuez said. “Even better, they look like chinos/khakis so I could wear them to work…”

So, what’s wrong?

“… except for one thing: there is a black logo on the side of the knee,” Lejuez continued.

He explains: “In conversations with many clients/friends about LULU, I think I represent a large majority with my views (from a consumer perspective): Whether that logo is black or beige, I can’t risk getting called out wearing yoga pants to work (regardless of the comfort). And it isn’t about the LULU logo specifically. I couldn’t have a Nike or UA logo on the side of my knee either. It just isn’t an acceptable place for a logo on ‘work pants.’ So I don’t wear them to work.”

A sampling of lululemon pants. (Image: lululemon)

Then again, it might just be this is one guy. And his clients. And his friends. But, this doesn’t mean that Lejuez will never wear them.

“I wear them to golf, outdoor events, on planes, but not to work,” he said.

So, it’s not a total disaster for Lululemon.

Lejuez, however, does offer a solution.

“Take away the logo, open up a new market: If there was no logo, I would wear these pants to work in place of traditional khakis,” he said. “And I would tell people they were LULU. But I want to initiate the discussion – I don’t want someone to ask if those are LULU pants I’m wearing.”

Clothing isn’t just about comfort; it’s also about style. And part of style is about empowering the person.

“I want to control the message.”

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Sam Ro is managing editor at Yahoo Finance.
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