Lululemon's New "Go Further" Sports Bra Is Built for High Performance
We caught up with Chantelle Murnaghan, lululemon’s VP of Research and Product Innovation to find out more about the product’s design and testing.
Finding the right sports bra is a pretty arduous task, no matter the level of fitness or discipline. However, it’s a task that’s incredibly important to get right. Wearing a badly-fitting bra during exercise can, in the short term, contribute to breast pain and poor workouts, but in the long term, can actually weaken breast ligaments and potentially lead to a rupture in the future.
It’s for those reasons that lululemon is so invested in getting its sports bras right, keeping up with changing demands and evolving innovations. According to Chantelle Murnaghan, the brand’s VP of Research and Product Innovation, “research used to be focused solely on stopping breast movement. Now, insights have evolved to be more holistic by looking at areas like breast volume fluctuations and the relationship between breathing and the under-band pressure.”
Ahead of launching the brand’s new “Go Further” sports bra, we caught up with Murnaghan to find out more about developing the new design and its commitment to serving its women’s athletes.
Read on for the full interview.
Tell us a bit about what prompted the decision to create the new Go Further Bra.
At lululemon, innovating for women’s unmet needs is at our core, and we’re always looking for ways to solve real problems for our guests. This includes listening to what they look for in their sports bras to evolve our assortment.
We know that comfort and performance can be at odds, leading to challenges like not having enough support or achieving it through compression and feeling restrictive. This was an opportunity to shift this paradigm by introducing a high-support option that feels lightweight and comfortable, both during and beyond workouts.
With our deep understanding of how the female body moves, we developed the Go Further Bra using our new Support Code technology. The result is a completely new experience – a high-support bra designed specifically for running that provides maximum support with a barely-there feel.
How does it differ from other sports bras in the lululemon range?
We wanted to complement our sports bra assortment with a high-performance solution that maintains your shape, is minimalist and without hardware. The way we approached movement management in high-support delivery is completely new, as this is the first time we debuted our proprietary Support Code technology.
It’s a combination of a bonding technique and design features that, together, provide targeted support and breathability without restriction. We also incorporated our Ultralu fabric for a smooth, second-skin fit, along with padded straps and a soft foam underband for extra cushioning and support.
What was the wear-testing process like with this product? How do you ensure it addresses the customer’s need?
We have in-depth wear-testing because we know our guests expect the best from lululemon. We test and validate our sports bras through rigorous in-lab and in-field testing to assess movement management, fit, comfort and even thermal performance. These factors in both qualitative and quantitative insights to understand how it performs in real-life scenarios and environments.
One of the ways we validated the product was by having it as a featured piece in the athlete kits during the FURTHER ultramarathon in 2024, pushing it to its limits in real-life conditions. We believe the experience for everyday runners, pursuing any distance, will be that much better knowing it performed for its intended use during the women’s ultramarathon.
It’s been said that wearing the wrong size bra can have a detrimental impact on a woman’s posture and health. What more research do you think needs to be done in the sports bra space?
When it comes to bras, research used to be focused solely on stopping breast movement. Now, insights have evolved to be more holistic by looking at areas like breast volume fluctuations and the relationship between breathing and the under-band pressure. We also have an internal research team and a broader research network that is consistently seeking new insights from a comprehensive lens. And when you unlock new understandings, that can take you in new directions to ultimately find new solutions and innovations that can solve our guests’ unmet needs.
What’s something you want more female runners to know about the importance of a supportive sports bra?
It’s important that the sports bra delivers the perfect balance of support, comfort, aesthetics, and confidence and is designed to perform for the intended activity. High-impact activities like running create a lot of movement, and without proper support, that movement can cause discomfort and other challenges. A well-designed sports bra helps control that motion, providing the stability needed to run comfortably, feel incredible and perform at your best.
How do you hope to continue addressing this issue with lululemon?
We’re always evolving our products to meet the needs of our community. By listening to our guests and ambassadors, we can keep pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in a product experience and putting forward designs that perform for their intended use, are stylish and feel great.
Our goal isn’t just to solve today’s problems, but to anticipate future challenges as well. There’s a lot of opportunity to discover paradigms that we can shift using our expertise in product innovation and in a way that’s unique to lululemon. We want to continue innovating and offering a best-in-class running assortment so guests can feel and perform their best.
