Lululemon is buying Mirror, the startup that sells a $1,500 high-tech mirror for streaming workout classes at home, for $500 million

Lululemon had already invested in the company last year, and has a content partnership with the firm.
Mirror sells a $1,495 device of the same name for participating in fitness classes at home.
The acquisition comes as demand for streaming at-home workout classes has grown, particularly during the coronavirus pandemic.
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Workout apparel brand Lululemon has agreed to acquire the at-home exercise startup Mirror for $500 million, the company announced on Monday.

Lululemon Athletica Inc. said in a press release that the deal will help the apparel maker boost its "digital and interactive capabilities." It also comes after Lululemon had already invested in Mirror last October as part of a $34 million funding round led by Steve Cohen's hedge fund Point72.

Brynn Putnam, Mirror's founder and CEO, will stay on as the company's CEO, and Mirror will operate as a standalone company within Lululemon. The transaction is expected to close in the second fiscal quarter of 2020.

In addition to the investment, Lululemon has also worked with Mirror through a content partnership that included sweat and meditation classes from the apparel company's global ambassadors being offered on Mirror's platform.

Mirror, as its name implies, sells a $1,495 high-tech mirror that's meant to serve a sleek gym alternative for working out at home. The product doubles as both a mirror for keeping track of your form and a screen for following interactive workout classes.

The mirror can be controlled via a smartphone app, and users can see exercise stats on the mirror's screen. The company also expanded into personal training last October.

The deal comes as the demand for streaming workouts and specialized equipment meant to replicate the experience of participating in a boutique fitness class at home has risen in recent years, following the popularity of brands like Peloton.

For Lululemon, the acquisition could help the company further expand into digital fitness as the company faces increased competition in athleisure from rivals like Nike .

It also comes as there's an increased interest in working out from home amidst the coronavirus pandemic. Peloton, which makes high-end fitness bikes and treadmills and offers digital workout classes, said its sales were up 66% when it reported third-quarter earnings in early May.

Putnam said that her dissatisfaction with other at-home workout platforms led her to create Mirror, which launched in 2018.

"It was a passive, one-way experience," Putnam said in a previous interview with Business Insider last year in reference to at-home workout apps she's tried in the past. "There was no interaction, there was no community, there was no progress reporting."

It's unclear how many products Mirror has sold, but Putnam told Business Insider last year that the company had sold Mirrors in every state in the US within a couple of months of its launch.

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