Lululemon Athletica Inc. has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Mirror, a home fitness start-up that sells a $1,495 wall-mounted machine for streaming workout classes. The purchase price is $500 million.
Lululemon said Mirror positions the company to accelerate its vision and build upon an ecosystem that will fuel the company’s Power of Three growth plan which includes driving the business through Omni guest experiences.
Lululemon CEO Calvin McDonald commented, “In 2019, we detailed our vision to be the experiential brand that ignites a community of people living the sweat life through sweat, grow and connect. The acquisition of Mirror is an exciting opportunity to build upon that vision, enhance our digital and interactive capabilities, and deepen our roots in the sweat life. We look forward to learning from and working with Brynn Putnam and the team at Mirror to accelerate the growth of personalized in-home fitness.”
Mirror offers weekly live classes and thousands of on-demand workouts as well as immersive one-on-one personal training. Mirror has seen rapid growth and strong engagement since it launched in 2018 as demand for in-home fitness offerings continues to increase significantly.
This transaction builds on a successful partnership between the two companies, which began in mid-2019 with an initial investment in Mirror by Lululemon and also includes a content partnership that brought sweat and meditation classes to the Mirror platform by Lululemon’s Global Ambassadors.
Putnam, founder and chief executive officer of Mirror, and a former Lululemon Ambassador said, “We are thrilled to officially become a part of the Lululemon family. As part of Lululemon, Mirror can further strengthen its position and accelerate its growth by leveraging Lululemon’s deep relationships with its guests, ambassadors and communities, as well as the company’s infrastructure, including its store network and e-commerce channels, to acquire new users.”
The purchase price is expected to be paid from the company’s primary sources of liquidity, which include over $800 million in cash, its existing $400 million revolving credit facility and a new one-year, $300 million revolving credit facility.
Following the completion of the transaction, Mirror will operate as a standalone company within Lululemon and Putnam will continue as Mirror’s chief executive officer reporting to McDonald. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the second quarter of fiscal 2020.
Barclays served as the financial advisor to Lululemon and Fenwick & West LLP and Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP served as legal counsel. Cooley LLP served as legal counsel to Mirror.
Photo courtesy Mirror
