Lululemon has filed a lawsuit against Costco alleging that the warehouse retailer sells low-cost athleisure apparel knockoffs that unlawfully trade on Lululemon’s reputation, goodwill and sweat equity, as well as infringing versions of its patents. The suit was filed last week in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, according to AP and numerous other media reports.
Some of the products Lululemon claims Costco is duplicating include its popular Scuba hoodies, Define jackets and ABC pants, according to the AP. Lululemon claims one of the duplicates that Costco sells is the Hi-Tec Men’s Scuba Full Zip, with the lawsuit showing a screenshot image of Costco’s website showing the item priced at $19.97. Lululemon sells several men’s jackets that cost more than $100 each.
“Dupe” culture has been growing in recent years, and there’s often a gray area among dupe-style knockoffs and outright counterfeits, making it difficult for brands to protect their products’ unique designs and capabilities.
In comments from a Lululemon spokesperson provided to Retail TouchPoints, the company defended its lawsuit: “As an innovation-led company that invests significantly in the research, development and design of our products, we take the responsibility of protecting and enforcing our intellectual property rights very seriously and pursue the appropriate legal action when necessary.”
At press time, Costco had not responded to a request for comment.
Lululemon’s History of Legal Action
In November 2021, Lululemon filed a similar patent lawsuit against Peloton. At that time, he exercise technology company’s decision to launch its own line of branded apparel spelled the end of a proposed co-branding arrangement with Lululemon. However, in September 2023 the two companies agreed that Peloton would be Lululemon’s exclusive digital fitness content provider and Lululemon would become Peloton’s primary athletic apparel partner.
Lululemon faces stiff competition from brands including Vuori and Alo Yoga in the athleisure space. The company’s ambitions include doubling its current revenues of nearly $10.5 billion, as CEO Calvin McDonald shared during a session at the 2025 NRF Big Show in January.
