Lululemon has been hit with a A$702,900 penalty for sending over 370,000 promotional emails with delivery and purchase confirmations that did not include an unsubscribe option.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) found that over five weeks during the 2024 Christmas holiday period, Lululemon “mischaracterized service messages,” including delivery and order confirmation e-mails, that “had a clear marketing purchase.”
Under the ACMA’s spam rules, even if a message is ostensibly intended to inform customers that an order has been received, or a delivery is coming, if it also contains any promotional or sales content, it is considered a commercial message.
“In this case, Lululemon sent service emails such as shipping updates that also contained sales material and direct links to promotions,” ACMA authority member Samantha Yorke said.
Yorke added, “The law is clear — providing the ability to opt-out is mandatory for marketing messages.”
In addition to the financial penalty, Lululemon has entered a comprehensive court-enforceable undertaking committing it to an independent review of its compliance with its spam rule and to regularly reporting to the ACMA on the implementation of recommended improvements.
Lululemon said in a statement, “We are committed to delivering an exceptional guest experience that complies with all applicable legal and regulatory requirements. We take this responsibility very seriously and have worked cooperatively with the Australian Communications and Media Authority to address their findings.
“We have completed a thorough review of our practices for communicating with our guests and have made updates to our standard guest journey emails, including our order confirmation and delivery notifications to ensure ongoing compliance.”
Image courtesy Lululemon Australia
