THE FUTURE 50 • THE LIST 2021Lululemon
Athletica
20 CANADA
(LULU, $346)Lululemon has
weathered count-
less challenges to
its dominance in
premium athletic ca-
sual wear, a cate-
gory it invented
years ago. It has
done so with a
steady stream of
new products and
lots of R&D into fab-
ric development.
The retailer this year
bought home fit-
ness system Mirror,
telegraphing a lon-
ger-term move be-
yond apparel as it
looks to continue
the fast growth that
has seen sales dou-
ble to $4 billion in
the past four years.Pinduoduo
24 CHINA (PDD, $144)China’s e-com-
merce market is
crowded with behe-
moths, but Pinduo-
duo has made in-
roads by chasing
less sought-after
consumers in Chi-
na’s lower-profile cit-
ies and by adding so-
cial and gaming
elements to the on-
line shopping experi-
ence. A group-
buying function, for
instance, encour-
ages customers to
find friends to go in
on bulk purchases.
Pinduoduo’s sales
boomed during the
COVID-19 lockdowns
in 2020, but a devel-
opment later in the
year—Beijing’s pro-
posed antitrust regu-
lation that targets
tech—represents an
emerging threat.MercadoLibre
7 ARGENTINA (MELI, $1,417)Shopify
13 CANADA (SHOP, $989)Canadian tech company Shopify, which
helps provide merchants with a digital sales
platform, has emerged as a key resource for
local retailers looking to counter Amazon’s
e-commerce dominance. Last quarter, the
volume of online sales facilitated by Shopify’s
engines doubled to $31 billion. Meanwhile,
more businesses are signing up for its growing
suite of e-commerce services, and analysts
expect revenue growth to increase by 50% a
year or so for the foreseeable future.SKYLINE IN THE SIX Taking in the views at
Shopify’s Toronto office.CUTTING-EDGE COMMERCE
MercadoLibre was
already on a tear—
with sales up nearly
60% last year—as
the biggest player in
Latin America’s
nascent but fast-
growing e-com-
merce market
capitalized on the
region’s expanding
middle class and its
increased access to
the Internet. But the
pandemic has only
turbocharged thecompany’s growth.
Revenue in the third
quarter was up 85%
year over year to
$1.1 billion. The com-
pany also offers ser-
vices like an online
payment platform,
logistics, and online
advertisements.
Now it just needs to
keep Amazon, which
currently has a small
presence in its big-
gest markets, in
check.COURTESY OF SHOPIFY