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2PM Annual Report: Athleisure 2025

Web Smith

The all-day athleisure era is giving way to something more disciplined. Over the last 18 months or so, the everyday uniform has shifted from leggings and hoodies to polished work-leisure: stretchier chinos, knit blazers, temperature-regulating shirts, and trousers with a drape. That shift didn’t kill comfort; it put guardrails around it. Comfort now has to “pass” in more rooms—client coffees, school events, airport lounges, all without reading like a gym kit. At the same time, the culture has rediscovered real sport, especially tennis and running, as a stage for style and credibility.

As those two currents converge, athleisure has narrowed. It’s no longer the default “worn by all.” It’s increasingly worn most by people whose lives actually orbit sport: those who play, coach, race, or at least anchor their social life around studios, courts, clubs, or run crews.

Even a pawn can beat a king.

Adidas advertises the potential future of her sport. Look at it as a rookie QB deal; the best of them outperform their relatively meager pay as they graduate into the top ranks of their sport.

That’s visible in product (court/pickleball capsules, performance trousers replacing leggings as daywear), in distribution (destination retail near clubs and studios), and in marketing spend (athlete deals and federation partnerships instead of purely influencer grids). Adidas’ partnership with Texas Tech Women’s Soccer player Sam Courtwright appeared this week on the homepage, in what I gather is a leading indicator for what’s to come. The redshirt sophomore is a high value athlete, providing credibility to Adidas in the collegiate scene. With under 700 Twitter followers and ~4.200 Instagram followers (at the time of publishing), she’s not a bonafide “influencer” in the sense that her posts will drive instant business. Adidas is not playing checkers like the minions, they’re thinking further ahead. Even a pawn can beat a king.

Sportswear is returning home. And it needs athletes to provide the credibility and authority that once rested on the pliable shoulders of fitness influencers and barely-clothed yogis.

Lululemon, Vuori, and Alo: once shorthand for anytime/anywhere athleisure are also investing where the cultural heat is: real sport plus a club-coded lifestyle that reads appropriate off-court. Lululemon’s Team Canada outfitting and the brand’s women’s ultramarathon project (FURTHER) are emblematic of that pivot from “studio vibes” to “performance receipts.” Vuori’s jump onto the pro-tennis stage is another. Alo’s tennis/pickleball push and athlete seeding is the same play in LA tones. Just this week, it was announced that Adidas’ part

The net effect: the mass, anything-goes uniform is giving way to a split market. On one side, polished business-casual made with performance materials (the Mizzen+Main, Ministry of Supply, State & Liberty, Fair Harbor universe) satisfies daily wear. On the other, “sport-first lifestyle” led by tennis/run/golf claims permission to travel beyond the venue. The middle—undifferentiated leggings-and-hoodie looks for non-athletic pursuits, is what’s shrinking.

Who the top brands are signing (recent headline deals):

Below are notable, verifiable athlete partnerships and ambassador signings from 2023–2025 that illustrate the shift toward authentic sport. This is a curated snapshot of marquee names (not an exhaustive list of every ambassador).

Lululemon

Vuori

Alo

Athleta

Sweaty Betty

Why this list matters: it maps the center of gravity for the category. The biggest storytelling budgets are flowing to real athletes and federation-level platforms, not just studio instructors or generic influencer seeding. For brands born in the athleisure boom, these deals buy credibility on court/track—then justify the off-duty product that customers want to wear to dinner.

The Analysis:

From “Gym-Anywhere” to “Polished Off-Duty.” Or why athleisure is ceding ground to casualwear and how Lululemon and others are leaning into sport and Sporty & Rich-adjacent aesthetics to win what’s next

After a decade of “wear-it-everywhere,” the cultural permission for overtly gym-coded outfits outside the studio, court, or track is narrowing. Consumers still want comfort, but the uniform is evolving toward polished casual (denim, trousers, cardigans) and club-coded sport (tennis/golf silhouettes that “pass” in more social settings).

At the same time, performance sport is culturally hot again (tennis, running), nudging leaders to prove they’re serious about sport while selling a cleaned-up lifestyle aesthetic. Lululemon, Alo, and Vuori are each threading this needl: sport for credibility, Sporty-&-Rich-adjacent for lifestyle. as growth in the broader sporting-goods market softens from ~7% (2021–24) to ~6% (2024–29).

The demand shift: from “anywhere athleisure” to “polished comfort”

Why it matters: The “anywhere” athleisure look that felt novel in 2016 America can read underdressed at dinner, derivative on vacation, and flat at the office. The culture hasn’t abandoned comfort. However, it’s editing the costume toward refined, venue-appropriate pieces or sport-coded uniforms that carry social credibility.

Culture & sport: tennis goes mainstream, running gets mythic:

Tennis has become a fashion stage again (US Open capsules, pleated skirts, club sweats), and brands are investing accordingly. Meanwhile, running reclaimed mindshare as a proving ground for material innovation and women-specific design—spotlighted by Lululemon’s FURTHER ultra initiative and women-specific run capsule.

Lifestyle proof points:

Category economics at a glance:

Implication: With softer topline, the winners must harvest efficiency while re-segmenting product: more polished casual for lifestyle, more real sport for credibility.

Brand narratives: how the leaders are repositioning:

Lululemon: leaning Varsity while doubling down on sport

The pivot in plain sight:

Read: Lululemon is re-earning permission for lifestyle by proving it on-course/track—then selling the cleaned-up off-duty uniform.

Alo: luxury-wellness halo meets tennis-adjacent lifestyle

Read: Alo scales through high-touch retail, creator marketing, and a wardrobe that implies sport yet reads refined in daily life.

Vuori: “Court to Resort” + real on-court receipts

Read: Vuori pairs an easy lifestyle look with visible elite-sport proof, strengthening its “wear-it-everywhere” claim without the athleisure stigma.

The store race (because stores tell the strategy):

What the footprints signal:

Price ladders are hardening (and visible to the consumer):

Sources: brand product pages (retrieved Sept 2025).

Take: With active bottoms softening, premium brands need new reasons to pay up (fabric handfeel, fit innovations, and—crucially—styling that “passes” at the restaurant).

East Hampton × Erewhon: the five brands setting the uniform:

Alo: LA pilates energy with clubroom polish. Think tennis dresses, pleated skorts, cropped collared knits and sculpted leggings that pass from Reformer to lunch. It’s the default Erewhon look and shows up in Hamptons school-drop-off lines just as easily.

Varley: LA/London court-core made elegant. Soft neutrals, half-zip knits, tailored track pants, tennis skirts—the precise “polished comfort” moms wear from the club to Main Street. If you see a cable-stitch over a pleated skort in East Hampton, odds are it’s Varley.

Sporty & Rich: Off-court preppy as a worldview. Tennis club sweats, logo caps, retro polos and cream palettes that scream “country-club casual.” This is the reference aesthetic Lululemon and others are orbiting; the East Coast reads it as heritage without the fuss.

Why these five: they each deliver the new dress code, court-inspired, studio-capable, socially acceptable—without reading like gym gear. They’re the overlap in two style capitals (Montauk brunch and Beverly Hills produce runs), where comfort is table stakes but polish is the pass.

FP Movement: Fashion-forward active that still feels fun. One-shoulder sets, airy parachute pants, bold color capsules that move from pilates to beach errands. It’s the youthful, Instagram-native counterweight in carts that already have neutrals and knits.

Set Active: LA minimalist matching sets for the grocery-run-to-meetup window. Box-cut tees, compressive bras, monochrome leggings/shorts, all in seasonal tones. It’s the Erewhon aisle staple that also sneaks into Hamptons weekends when the brief is “clean, not try-hard.”

International challengers with real North American upside:

Also watch: Sweaty Betty (UK), back to U.S. stand-alone retail (Chicago & DC); and LSKD (AU), a scrappy, community-led playbook gaining ground in the U.S.

Outdoor Voices: a case study in the narrowing “anywhere” permission:

OV’s 2024 store closures signaled the end of a specific DTC era; the 2025 relaunch under returning founder Ty Haney aims to rebuild community and refine the aesthetic. It’s a reminder that generic “athleisure” storytelling is no longer enough—brands must own a credible sport lane or a distinctive polished lifestyle lane (ideally both).

Sporty-and-Rich-adjacent: the playbook in action:

A critical nuance: mimicry isn’t strategy. Sporty & Rich continues to elevate the off-court tennis narrative via fresh color/material capsules with Adidas—so incumbents must avoid derivative “country-club” clones and instead push their own fit/fabric signatures and authentic sport credentials.

What the numbers are telling me right now:

  1. The growth curve is bending, not breaking. A 6% CAGR outlook is still healthy, but it rewards clearer differentiation and sharper inventory discipline. (See Chart 1.)

  2. Lifestyle dollars are migrating to “passable” silhouettes. Circana’s polished-comfort data is consistent with what we see in merchandising across the leaders. Circana

  3. Active bottoms need a new story. With –12% category pressure, brands must either re-architect the legging (fit/feel/opacity) or sell alternative bottoms that still read active-adjacent.

  4. Retail footprint matters again. Vuori (100+), Fabletics (>100), and Alo (flagships) are proof that physical retail is a brand-experience moat—especially for a more refined, try-on-worthy wardrobe. (See Chart 2.)

Strategic implications (12–18 months):

For incumbents (Lululemon, Nike, Adidas, etc.):

For challengers (Alo, Vuori, FP Movement, Varley, Beyond, YPB)

For wholesale/retail partners

What could go wrong:

Brand scorecards (executive shorthand):

What to watch (next 6–12 months):

  1. US Open → Holiday tennis halo: Expect more tennis capsules (and brand/athlete moves) to ride the court-to-clubhouse wave.

  2. Active bottoms reset: Who tells the best non-legging bottoms story (tailored track pants, performance trousers) with true fabric innovation?

  3. Store productivity spreads: Vuori and Alo flagships vs. Lulu’s fleet—watch traffic quality, not just door counts.

  4. Value-active acceleration: As promo pressure rises, expect Abercrombie YPB, Fabletics and department-store private labels to take more oxygen.

I’ve written about this category for years, but I’ve never published an analysis like this. Consider it a line in the sand. The era of all-day athleisure is closing; the permission structure changed. Comfort didn’t lose—presentation won. The uniform is migrating to polished workleisure and court-coded pieces that pass at dinner, while generic leggings and hoodie looks recede to people whose lives actually orbit sport.

The winners will choose a lane and prove it: real performance receipts (athletes, federations, timed results) that legitimize off-venue wear, or business-casual silhouettes built from technical fabrics that survive the office, the flight, and the evening. Expect tighter clustering around clubs and studios, faster fabric refresh cycles, and stricter chemistry and sustainability standards that raise the cost of imitation. Watch the outside lane too. If I’m right, this framework will shape how brands merchandise, price, and expand for years.

This analysis began, “the all-day athleisure era is giving way to something more disciplined.” Better put: athleisure is dying, long live sportswear.

Research and Analysis by Web Smith (LinkedIn)
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