EXCLUSIVE: Kate Hudson’s Activewear Brand Fabletics Adds Loungewear to the Assortment

Fabletics is in full-on expansion mode with its recent attempts at resale, growing store fleet and plans for an IPO. The latest on the list: Fabletics Lounge.

“We’re living through a major shift in culture with the pandemic,” Felix del Toro, Fabletics senior vice president, chief merchandise and design officer, told WWD, regarding the category expansion. “We definitely started to see accelerated sales beyond our performance core [during the last year]. And we learned early on that our guests want to be both comfortable and stylish.

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“And the other piece of it is that hybrid work is not going away,” del Toro continued. “Many companies have already said that many people can work remotely indefinitely. So, this is really the time to expand and to understand that as culture and life evolve, in terms of her life specifically, how we can address those needs.”

The 17-piece Fabletics loungewear collection, which drops in stores and at fabletics.com, on Sept. 1, includes ribbed T-shirts, terry cotton shorts, fleece hoodies, leggings, sweatshirts, robes and more in a variety of fabrics, with new pieces dropping each month.

“We have sets; we have separates, but all of them are meant so that she can decide how she wants to put them together, and, or layer them over her athletic apparel,” del Toro said. “She can be comfortable on a Zoom call, but if she has to get up and go run an errand, she is also stylish and ready to go. The collection really does build out that versatility for her.”

The inaugural loungewear assortment will focus on women’s apparel, but del Toro said a selection of men’s loungewear is coming in the fourth quarter.

Sizes in loungewear are on par with activewear pieces, XXS to 4XL, and range in price from $24.95 up to $69.95 for VIP Fabletics members. (Non-members can still purchase products at retail price, or for about 30 percent more, del Toro said.)

The executive added that Fabletics is open to expanding into other categories in the future that complement the existing assortment.

“We definitely believe there is plenty of runway for us to grow beyond our current space,” del Toro said. “There’s our core of performance and then there’s these other elements around it that help build out her wardrobe for her lifestyle. We think of our portfolio as active lifewear, which really is the mirror of what our guest is engaged in and how she wants to live her life.”

Fabletics, which was founded in 2013, continues to grow. The brand, co-created by actress Kate Hudson, along with Adam Goldenberg and Don Ressler, co-chief executive officers of TechStyle Fashion Group (the same firm that also co-owns Rihanna’s Savage x Fenty lingerie brand), began as a direct-to-consumer activewear apparel and accessories business, operating on a subscription model.

Since then, Fabletics has grown to include about 60 brick-and-mortar stores (with plans to increase to 75 locations in the U.S. by the end of the year) in such markets as Massachusetts, North Carolina, Maryland, Virginia, Michigan, Iowa, Kansas, Texas, Colorado, Arizona, Oregon and California. Early this year, the brand also launched Fabletics FIT, an app that offers on-demand workouts and meditation classes.

In March, Fabletics surpassed more than $500 million in annual revenues and is currently courting investors with plans to go public. The business is hoping to raise $500 million in an initial public offering, which would bring the company’s value to around $5 billion. In July, Fabletics hired Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Barclays and Bank of America to help.

Last month, Fabletics also got into the resale game by way of a partnership with ThredUp, allowing shoppers to return pre-worn apparel for store credit. Del Toro said consumers will also be allowed to return pre-worn loungewear through the program for credit.

“The opportunity ahead for loungewear is massive,” Goldenberg said. “We have the best talent to take advantage of this surging trend, applying performance materials to a category that isn’t going anywhere. As experienced fashion disruptors, we’re confident Fabletics Lounge will soon be a new category leader.”