Lululemon plans 100 percent renewable electricity in China by 2030, takes bold step forward on wider clean energy commitments

Lululemon, a leading global performance apparel, footwear, and accessories company, announced today its investment in a new renewable energy fund, which the company claims will meet 100 percent of its electricity demand in China with new, renewable electricity generation by 2030.

This represents a significant step toward meeting its previously announced commitment to 50 percent renewable electricity across core tier one and two suppliers by 2030, a central demand of Stand.earth’s multi-year campaign pushing the apparel maker to transition its supply chain away from fossil fuels and toward clean, renewable energy sources. Lululemon also previously announced it will eliminate on-site coal by 2030, while encouraging further climate action from its suppliers.

“We’re excited to see Lululemon match its actions to its promise to ‘Be Planet.’ There’s undoubtedly more work ahead, but with this new investment Lululemon is demonstrating its readiness to deliver an effective, thoughtful, and lasting energy transition across its global supply chains that leads the fashion industry toward truly sustainable practices,” said Rachel Kitchin, Senior Corporate Climate Campaigner at Stand.earth. “We look forward to seeing the company — and other global fashion brands — learn from and build on this success across its other global supply hubs, while transparently reporting on its progress."

In 2024, Stand.earth led a complaint against Lululemon with Canada's Competition Bureau for misleading customers with green claims that were not backed up by action. In the course of the investigation, Lululemon removed significant green messaging from its websites and communications, including amending “Be Planet” to simply “Planet,” resulting in the investigation being closed.

“Emissions for the sector continue to increase despite widespread brand promises, but concrete actions like those committed to by Lululemon today can and must reverse this trend. With many major brands now starting to look at how they can increase renewable energy and reduce climate pollution from their supply chains, Lululemon’s new promise can be a major momentum-builder toward shifting the sector, making it increasingly difficult for the laggards to ignore their responsibilities,” said Kitchin.

Lululemon joins only a handful of brands directly investing in growing the share of renewables across their supply chains, in what could be a new model for the industry. Financial support from brands is key to unlocking rapid and fair decarbonization projects worldwide. However, in the latest Fossil Free Fashion Scorecard, only six brands – including H&M, Bestseller, and PVH – were found to provide any kind of direct financing or investment in supply chain renewable energy.The report concludes that if even 10 major brands sourcing from Bangladesh acted on these recommendations, it would represent a significant step toward a faster, fairer decarbonization of one of the world’s most important manufacturing hubs.

Fashion remains one of the world’s most polluting industries, responsible for at least four percent of all climate pollution. The industry’s manufacturing processes disproportionately rely on coal and other fossil fuels, undermining climate stability while also causing a devastating impact on the health of supply chain workers and their communities. A 2021 Harvard University study found that one in five deaths globally can be linked to air pollution caused by the burning of fossil fuels.