Athleta goes for resale, opens outlet storefront on Shop Premium Outlets

By

Benjamin Fitzgerald

Published
Oct 3, 2022

U.S. activewear brand Athleta announced on Wednesday the launch of its new resale platform, in partnership with ThredUp, coinciding with the launch of its new digital storefront on Shop Premium Outlets.

Dubbed ‘Always Athleta’, the trial-phase program will see randomly selected Athleta customers gain access to the resale platform when visiting Athleta.com. Here, customers can choose 'Preloved' from the website’s navigation bar to be directed to the Always Athleta platform, where they can shop a range of gently used Athleta products up to 90% off estimated retail price.  
 
The new 360-resale program is enabled by ThredUp’s Resale-as-a-Service (RaaS). The new platform builds upon the brand’s and Gap Inc. sister brands, Banana Republic and Gap’s, existing partnership with ThredUp, according to the company in a press release.

“As a certified B Corporation, Athleta believes in using business as a force of good,” said Kim Waldmann, chief digital officer at Athleta. “The launch of our first-ever resale pilot, Always Athleta, marks a major milestone toward our vision for a more sustainable future. We’re thrilled to partner with thredUP on this innovative platform that invites consumers to make a positive environmental impact without compromising on performance or style.” 
 
Coinciding with Always Athleta, the Gap Inc.-owned company said it has opened a new digital storefront on Shop Premium Outlets, a joint venture between Simon and Rue Gilt Groupe.
 
Starting in early October, customers can shop a curated assortment of Athleta’s performance and lifestyle product, via its dedicated outlet storefront on ShopPremiumOutlets.com
 
“Expanding our customer base is critical to our long-term growth, and we’re always looking for new avenues to introduce women to our brand and products,” continued Waldmann.

“Investing in new digital collaborations with companies like Shop Premium Outlets serves as a customer acquisition and loyalty driver, introducing her to our versatile performance and performance lifestyle product as we continue to track toward Athleta’s goal of opening 30-40 new stores this year.” 

The online outlet store news comes on the back Athleta's announcement in July that it plans to open its first two outlet stores this summer and fall, as part of its goal to open another 30 to 40 mores stores in 2022.