Mental health rises in importance as a driver of being well, while lack of a support network and stress emerge as the top two barriers

Better coping strategies, social media mindfulness, a return to the workplace, and community lift wellbeing

lululemon athletica inc. (NASDAQ:LULU) today released its second annual Global Wellbeing Report, demonstrating the Company’s ongoing commitment to advocate for holistic wellbeing across physical, mental and social dimensions. The 10-market study¹ benchmarks the state of wellbeing with the Global Wellbeing Index and explores the drivers and barriers to being well.

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“As we continue to navigate these challenging times, our second Global Wellbeing Report shows that people are using important coping mechanisms to improve their mental health, yet are yearning for more connection,” said Calvin McDonald, Chief Executive Officer. “At lululemon, we believe everyone has the right to be well – this data is a call-to-action for a continued focus on the collective health and wellbeing of one another, and the communities we serve.”

This year, the Global Wellbeing Index rose by one percentage point to 66, driven by gains in mental health as people have developed better coping strategies throughout the pandemic. Highlights include the challenges facing Gen Z, the negative consequences of spending too much time on social media, and the importance of social networks, including the wellbeing benefits from returning to the office.

The Index is based on how people in markets around the world rate the way they feel across the physical, mental, and social dimensions of wellbeing. Key findings include:

Higher wellbeing is driven by an increased focus on mental health and better coping strategies.

• Mental wellbeing has improved since last year, while physical and social wellbeing remained at the same level. Social wellbeing, despite edging upwards since last year, continues to score the lowest among the three.

• The top drivers of wellbeing are being in good physical health, feeling confident in oneself, managing stress effectively, having enough energy to accomplish daily tasks, feeling in tune with one’s emotions, having a good work/school/home life balance, and getting enough sleep.

• Four coping strategies show the highest increases: spending time outdoors (up 10%), physical activity (up 9%), connecting with people (up 8%), and taking breaks to relax throughout the day (up 8%). Other top coping strategies include getting enough sleep, listening to music, and eating healthy food.

Holistic wellbeing remains a challenge, especially for Gen Z.

• While feeling well shows signs of improvement, there is still a critical need to improve holistic wellbeing. Only 21% of Gen Z indicate strong wellbeing across all three dimensions (vs. 29% of the total population).

• Gen Z index lower on mental and social wellbeing than any other generation. Gen Z is 1.5 times more likely to not be able to manage stress effectively and cite higher levels of loneliness (53% vs. 40% of the total population).

• Globally, lack of a support network — defined by connecting with people of similar opinions, joining virtual groups relating to interests, and access to physical or mental health services and resources — is the top barrier to wellbeing. Other barriers to wellbeing include stress, the pandemic, lack of money, lack of time, health conditions and lack of knowledge.

Social media mindfulness continues to impact wellbeing.

• Social media is not an all-or-nothing game; wellbeing is strongest among those who spend 1 hour on social media per day.

• While more than half (53%) of respondents say that social media helps them to feel connected, heavier social media users (more than 1 hour a day) report stronger negative impacts on their social wellbeing, including feeling like they are missing out on social connections and comparing themselves to others.

• The negative impacts of social media are felt more acutely by Gen Z who spend the most time on social media, averaging 3 hours per day.

Returning to the workplace drives higher wellbeing but requires employers to implement lasting changes.

• Wellbeing is directly linked with a return to activities. Wellbeing is higher among those who have returned or expect to return to the workplace full-time vs. those who return part-time, or will not return to the workplace at all.

• While returning to the workplace benefits wellbeing, employees are equally worried about COVID-19 exposure (53%) and having less personal time (52%). Gen Z is the most concerned generation about personal time (66%) and parents with children under 13 have pressing concerns about childcare (33%).

• Employees have higher expectations of their employers and want long-term changes implemented. Almost half of employees (44%) are looking for more flexibility in working hours and location beyond the current pandemic environment, followed closely by increased mental and physical health support — especially among Gen Z and parents.

Community plays a vital role in strong wellbeing.

• Half of global citizens (52%) recognize the importance of community and agree that it is important to feel a sense of belonging to a community — one of the top drivers of social wellbeing.

• Those who do find a sense of community and giving back to one’s community important are more likely to indicate stronger levels of wellbeing.

• Those who do not recognize the potential benefits of community are seeing negative impacts on their wellbeing, with only 15% indicating strong overall wellbeing vs. global average of 29%.

In addition to the Global Wellbeing Report, today lululemon announced mental health first aid training will be available to all employees globally from Educator to CEO by 2023. Starting with managers, the training will equip participants with tools to identify signs of emotional distress and connect them with the appropriate resources, including lululemon’s mental health benefits. This offering builds upon additional lululemon programs that focus on employee wellbeing, including on-demand coaching, a leading employee assistance program, psychological counselling benefits, and a monthly per-diem to participate in fitness and meditation classes in local communities.

Additionally, lululemon’s Centre for Social Impact today announced new fund recipients with $2.25 million in contributions to local grassroots organizations and global non-profits focused on wellbeing in the global supply chain, including CARE’s Made by Women (promoting improved practices in global supply chains), the United Nation’s Resilience Fund for Women (investing in long-term health and economic resilience of women in the global supply chain), and Women Win (global fund to support maker wellbeing). The newly launched lululemon Centre for Social Impact disrupts inequity in wellbeing through movement, mindfulness, and advocacy with the goal of impacting more than 10 million people globally by 2025 through a $75 million pledge.

For more information and to view the lululemon Global Wellbeing Report, visit here.

About lululemon athletica inc.

lululemon athletica inc. (NASDAQ:LULU) is a healthy lifestyle inspired athletic apparel company for yoga, running, training, and most other sweaty pursuits, creating transformational products and experiences which enable people to live a life they love. Setting the bar in technical fabrics and functional designs, lululemon works with yogis and athletes in local communities for continuous research and product feedback. For more information, visit LULULEMON.COM.

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