Breaking Down the Lululemon Affiliate Program

Posted by Coty Perry, in Blog

If you’re an influencer, blogger, or content creator in the health, wellness, or fitness space, you’ve likely heard about the Lululemon affiliate program. As one of the most popular athletic apparel brands on the market, Lululemon offers affiliates an opportunity to earn commissions by promoting their products.

But is their affiliate program right for you? In this comprehensive guide, we’ll break down everything you need to know about the Lululemon affiliate program to help you decide.

Lululemon Affiliate Program Overview

The Lululemon affiliate program allows content creators to earn a commission from sales they drive to Lululemon’s website. You’ll receive a unique affiliate link to share on your website, social media, or email list. When someone makes a qualifying purchase through your link, you’ll earn a 7% commission.

It’s a cost per action (CPA) affiliate program, meaning you only get paid when a sale occurs. This differs from a cost per click (CPC) affiliate program. 

There’s no cost to join, making it relatively low risk as far as affiliate programs go.

What is the Lululemon Affiliate Program?

The Lululemon affiliate program, known as the Lululemon Collective, is the company’s official affiliate program that allows fitness professionals, yoga instructors, bloggers and social influencers to earn money by promoting Lululemon products to the health and fitness niche.

When you join, you receive unique affiliate links and assets you can share with your audience. These links will track sales back to you, earning you a commission anytime someone clicks and shops. 

Think of it like an online word-of-mouth program—you recommend products you love to your followers, they shop using your link, and you get paid.

It’s a collaboration that’s mutually beneficial for both Lululemon and its affiliates. The brand increases awareness and drives new sales, while affiliates have the opportunity to easily monetize their platforms.

How Does the Lululemon Affiliate Program Work?

The Lululemon affiliate program works on a commission structure. As an affiliate, you receive custom affiliate links that allow Lululemon to track any sales generated through your unique links.

When someone clicks on your affiliate link and completes a purchase on Lululemon’s website within 30 days, you’ll earn a 7% commission on the total sale price minus taxes and shipping costs. As long as the buyer makes a purchase during that 30 day window after first clicking your link, you’ll get credit for driving that sale.

It’s pretty straightforward: promote Lululemon products, drive sales, earn money. But to fully understand how it works and how you can maximize your earnings, let’s look at some key components of their commission structure.

Commission Rate

Lululemon offers one of the most competitive commission rates in the fashion and retail affiliate space at 7%. The majority of affiliate programs pay between 1-5%, so Lululemon’s rate is on the higher end.

The 7% commission applies to all qualifying purchases, excluding taxes and shipping fees. So if you refer a sale with a subtotal of $100, you’ll earn $7 in commission. Not too shabby!

While 7% may not seem huge, it can add up fast. If you have an audience of fitness buffs, you likely have influence driving sales of higher ticket items. Quality leggings and sports bras often sell in the $100+ range, so it’s very possible to earn $15+ per transaction you drive.

Cookie Duration

Lululemon keeps their cookie duration short at just 30 days. This means you’ll get credit for any purchases made within 30 days of a customer first clicking your affiliate link. After that, the cookie expires and the affiliate connection is severed.

30 days is on the shorter end, but for a brand like Lululemon with higher priced items, that may not be a bad thing. Most customers will decide and complete their purchases within that initial shopping experience. So as long as you’re driving committed buyers, a shorter cookie window won’t limit your commissions.

Average Order Value

Thanks to their loyal customer base willing to pay premium prices, Lululemon has a high average order value (AOV). AOV refers to the average amount spent each transaction across the entire Lululemon business.

Their AOV is estimated to be around $155 per order. That’s significantly higher than many retailers. Compare that to brands like Nike ($95 AOV) and Fabletics ($100-125 AOV), and you can see Lululemon shoppers tend to spend more per order.

For affiliates, a higher AOV directly translates into higher earning potential per sale you drive. Instead of earning $5-10 commissions, you can easily score $15-20 per transaction.

Driving high ticket sales takes effort, but the reward can be well worth it!

Payout Frequency

Lululemon pays affiliate commissions on a monthly basis for earnings accrued in the previous month. So you’ll have to wait roughly 30 days after the end of each month before receiving your payout.

Payouts are processed on the 15th of each month, either via direct deposit or mailed check depending on your selected payment method. All affiliates must reach a $50 minimum payout threshold before receiving payment, so be sure to drive enough sales volume each month to clear that minimum.

Marketing Materials and Tools

Once approved for the program, Lululemon equips its affiliates with ample marketing assets and tools to optimize promotion.

On their Partnerize platform, you’ll find pre-made banner ads, text links, product photos, logos, and email templates provided for use. These visual assets help you easily produce on-brand marketing materials without needed to create anything from scratch.

Lululemon also arms affiliates with exclusive special offers and limited-time sales promotions. As an insider affiliate, you gain access to discounts, gifts with purchase, and early releases before the general public. Featuring these special perks helps sweeten the deal for your audience.

To track your performance, robust analytics and reporting provide insight into important metrics like clicks, impressions, conversions, and commission totals. Monitoring these real-time stats allows you to gauge what content and products resonate best with your followers.

Lululemon Affiliate Program Influencer Requirements

The barrier to entry for the Lululemon Collective is higher than many other affiliate programs. You must have an established social media presence and clear expertise in health, wellness, or fitness to be approved.

At minimum, Lululemon requires all affiliates to:

• Have at least 5,000 social media followers or website visitors
• Create expert content related to health, fitness, nutrition, mindfulness, self care, or holistic living
• Promote products ethically and follow their brand guidelines
• Submit an application for review and meet all compliance standards

These prerequisites indicate Lululemon is selective about who they partner with. But the upside of these requirements is that it weeds out lower-quality affiliates less likely to drive sales. If you meet the qualifications, you’ll be collaborating with a vetted network of genuine influencers in your niche.

What Can You Promote?

The beauty of the Lululemon affiliate program is that almost all products are eligible for commission, including:

Yoga Clothing

Lululemon rose to fame thanks to their technical yoga clothing engineered for movement and sweat during demanding practices. Everything from yoga pants, shorts, tops and bras are top products to promote. Their proprietary fabrics and flattering fits keep yogis coming back for more.

Running Gear

Beyond yoga, Lululemon has expanded into all categories of fitness apparel. Running is a key focus, now offering shorts, shirts, jackets and even shoes for runners. Promoting popular Lululemon running essentials like their Speed Up Shorts or Metal Vent Tech shirts can connect with fitness buffs.

Accessories

Completing the picture, Lululemon sells a variety of accessories to fans can deck themselves out head-to-toe in branded gear. Bags, hats, socks, underwear…you name it! Cross-promote these complementary products alongside hero pieces like leggings and tank tops.

The most important tip when deciding what to promote? Share products you actually use and connect with so your recommendations carry authentic weight. Nothing drives conversions better than genuine recommendations from real-life product fans.

I see this as one of those affiliate programs that benefits from someone who truly understands their audience and the products. This opens the door to a variety of promotional opportunities on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram. 

As a result, the Lululemon affiliate program isn’t a good option for beginners, especially since the program requires you to have a following to even be accepted in. 

Pros of the Lululemon Affiliate Program

The Lululemon affiliate program stands out with several distinct advantages:

• Generous 7% commission rate on all product categories
• Higher average order sizes increase earning potential
• Turnkey program makes promoting effortless for affiliates
• Established brand with loyal customer base converts well

Cons of the Lululemon Affiliate Program

Despite the many perks, a few drawbacks exist:

• High barrier to entry with approval requirements
• Short 30-day cookie duration limits long-term tracking

Alternatives

While Lululemon has a strong program, competition exists. Two alternatives in the activewear space are Fabletics and Beyond Yoga.

Fabletics

Fabletics offers a competitive 20% commission rate on all their budget-friendly activewear. With a similar product selection and an engaged social audience, Fabletics could be an option for affiliates who don’t meet Lululemon’s influencer requirements.

However, Fabletics has a lower average order value in the $100-125 range. But shorter cookie windows (only 5-10 days) incentive buying, balancing out the smaller transactions.

Beyond Yoga

Beyond Yoga fills the gap between lower cost brands like Fabletics and premium names like Lululemon. Offering stylish yoga fabrics and fits at slightly lower prices makes this brand more accessible.

Their affiliate program offers a 10% commission rate and sources influencers with smaller, more niche audiences. With good crossover appeal between devotees of both brands, promoting Beyond Yoga provides a pivoting opportunity if the Lululemon program doesn’t approve you.

Nike

Finally, for an athleisure giant outside strictly yoga apparel, Nike has an established affiliate program fueling their leader sales. Rakuten Advertising manages the Nike program, granting access to robust reporting for tracking sales.

Nike offers a lower 4% commission rate but higher order volumes to drive bigger checks. The cookie window extends for 30 days same as Lululemon. The downside? Links and assets are limited, making custom content creation necessary to stand out.

Final Thoughts

In the world of fitness apparel and gear, Lululemon remains an elite brand. Their loyal community supports premium prices resulting in large order values and big commission potential.

Securing approval for the Lululemon affiliate program brings you into the fold of authentic influencers driving this market. Backed by their brand recognition and your audience trust, you’re primed to maximize conversions and earnings.

While not the easiest entry bar, if you meet Lululemon’s qualifications you simply can’t beat the opportunity. Add it to your affiliate program short list today!

Looking for more information about getting started with affiliate marketing? Check out our beginner guide!