Descente to sell yoga wear made by Canada's lululemon athletica

Descente Ltd., a leading Japanese sportswear maker, said Monday it has established a joint company in Tokyo with lululemon athletica to retail yoga-inspired athletic apparel made by the Canadian firm in Japan.

The joint company, lululemon Japan Inc., has already begun operating a store in Aoyama, Tokyo, and will open another Tokyo outlet in Mejiro on Tuesday, Descente said.

Capitalized at 200 million yen, lululemon Japan plans to create a network of 20 stores, mainly in Tokyo and the Kansai region centering on Osaka, by the end of the year to Jan. 31, 2010, and aims to chalk up annual sales of 1.4 billion yen in yoga apparel under the lululemon athletica brand.

Lululemon athletica was established in 1998 in Vancouver.

Descente opened a yoga-based fitness studio for women in Tokyo on Monday.