Lululemon Brings Brand’s Approach To Wildfeel Trail Shoes

Lululemon’s growth in the running shoe space has left the pavement and hit the trail with the introduction of the Wildfeel Trail, a new shoe designed for trail running with models specifically for both women and men.

“In the trail space,” George Robusti, Lululemon vice president of footwear design, tells me, “what really sets this shoe apart is how we approach it through our science of feel innovation philosophy.”

Lululemon first entered the footwear space with women’s running shoes in 2022. In 2024, the Canadian-based brand expanded into men’s running. The Lululemon latest for 2025 comes to the trail, building on the success of the brand’s early road-to-trail designs, Robusti says, while creating something purpose-built for trail running.

“You see this across all elements of the shoe,” he says. “The foam is more adaptive and works seamlessly with the mixed terrain, while the geometry of the shoe itself features increased wrapping of the midsole on each side of the foot to bring support and stability, while more rubber surface area and wrapping in the heel and toe areas give runners added traction and support on uneven ground.”

The Wildfleel Trail also features what Robusti calls a “sock-like upper” with protective woven panels that flex with the runner’s foot to help keep rock and debris out, an added trail-specific feature. The brand added its proprietary Nulu fabric in the forefoot lining to increase comfort.

The Wildfeel Trail includes multi-directional lugs meant to grip during climbs and descents.

From the 2022 launch, Lululemon has always said the science of feel has driven the brand’s footwear philosophies. “We focused on delivering an unparallel fit and feel, designing each shoe to support the unique morphology of the female and male foot,” Robusti says. “Every aspect was tuned specifically for trails so runners can enjoy a softer, more flowing run.”

To make it happen, the shoe also adds softer foam in the heel for impact absorption and a smoother descent, with a firmer forefoot foam to enable quicker takeoffs. This dual density supercritical foam is new for Lululemon.

Robusti says that understanding the need for protection, grip and overall support helped craft a trail shoe off the learnings already developed from the brand’s previous models. “We knew we had to build every element of this shoe with the trails in mind from the start,” Robusti says. “That’s why it took about two years to develop. It’s designed to be nimble and adaptive for the unpredictable terrain that runners face.”

With the science of feel principle leading the way in the early stages of footwear creation, Lululemon focused on materials and engineering that would support women. That led to building from scratch, with a brand-new last specific to a women’s foot—generally wider in the forefoot and narrower in the heel—and proprietary foams and upper fabrics.

Instead of placing a focus on the ankle down, Lululemon focused on the knee up. By using data from the heel strike as the building block, Lululemon shoes then created a distinct heel cradle, designed to soften the impact. That focus radiated out across the Lululemon lineup and has since expanded to multiple running, training and lifestyle options, now for both women and men. The latest effort, though, leaves the Lululemon research lab and hits the trails.

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