Saw It On Social: Fabletics

With the world going casual in a big way, it isn’t surprising that Fabletics, the activewear subscription brand that launched to great fanfare in 2013, upped its advertising spend.  Every other Hulu ad is Fabletics.  My Instagram feed is awash in Fabletics.  And several of you have DM’ed to ask if I’ve tried Fabletics.

So let’s reach back into the past and talk about leggings, subscription services and TikTok stars.

Fabletics is an athleisure brand founded by JustFab and marketed as a partnership with actress Kate Hudson.  It’s one of those websites where the workout top you like is either $44.95 for the general public or $17 if you join for the subscription VIP service.  That service charges you $50 per month, which entitles you to a small amount of included merchandise and allows you to buy the rest of the items you want at the lower price.

When Fabletics first launched, it seemed like a great idea.  Women subscribed in droves.  But the hype soon turned ugly.

Like many other subscribers, I eventually tired of the “membership experience.”  Within a couple of months, I had enough workout gear to last me for years.  And while the quality was good, it was not so superb that I felt the need to keep paying.

Sure, I could have paused my subscription in perpetuity until I was ready to shop again, but who wants to remember to do that on the 5th of every month?  So I cancelled it.

At least I thought I did.

Like tens-of-thousands of other women, I called customer service to cancel only to be charged again the next month.  I’d send e-mails and receive replies assuring me that my membership was cancelled.  But then, the next month I’d be charged.  This went on for four months, netting Fabletics an extra $200 of my money.

Finally, I called my bank and let them handle the matter.  And even then, it took seven attempts to be removed from ALL of the many e-mail lists that send reminders about new styles, discounted memberships, and hot new partnerships with influencers that  you’ve probably never heard of.

Now, in the time of global pandemic, when we’re all struggling with life, love, and what to wear, Fabletics is back, like an unrepentant ex, trying to lure unsuspecting women into joining its subscription service.  Well, maybe ‘women’ is the wrong word.

See, judging by the age of the new “celebrity” endorsers, JustFab is clearly trying to coax teenagers and college students into the fray.  TikTok creators, YouTube personalities and reality TV show sidekicks abound in their ads, making their target demographic obvious.  Because when you run out of grown women to scam, teenage girls are an easy fallback position.  Just make the leggings hot pink, talk about how they’ll give you a “teeny tiny waist,” and watch the subscriptions roll in.

Bottom Line: Yes, you can buy the Fabletics leggings and other attires as stand-alone products.  But the company runs an unscrupulous subscription service as its primary business model.  Much like Proactiv before it, the goal is to get you in the habit of paying for something you don’t want but can’t cancel.  So skip the scheme, and just buy your leggings elsewhere.

I recommend ColorfulKoala from Amazon for affordable leggings (with pockets!), Vuori leggings and Lululemon Wunder Under.

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