Canadian luxury yoga mat brand Sugarmat opened a store on Hengshan Lu two weeks ago. Yep, you heard that right: luxury yoga mats doing for your downward dog what Lululemon leggings did for your athletic look. (Elevating it.) Their mats come at a high price but before the inevitable rage over prices washes over you, note there will be a discount till Christmas and these swanky mats might just make a pretty okay gift for that special yogi in your life.

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Important note: on the wall out of view of this photo is a sign that says 'sugar bitches'

First impressions: The store is very cute and very pink, with rolled up yoga mats in solid colors as well as in flamingo, fruit, and floral prints lining the main wall. The thing that’s most striking about the mats at first glance (irl) is just how fuzzy they are. This is the suede synthetic top that’s meant to absorb sweat, though when laying a mat flat to try it out the material seems slippery. Apparently, the more moisture on the mat, the more traction you get. This makes it seem like Sugarmats might be ideal for Bikram Yoga or the naturally sweaty-palmed. Pricing: Mats start at 499rmb for the patterned ones, 599rmb for solid colors with gold lettering (the Christmas Collection). 699rmb is the highest they climb, for the Healing Heart Collection which bear a marble design by artist Julia Contacessi. Each mat comes with black straps so you can easily tote the thing around, there are also brown and gold "fashion straps" you can buy for an additional 299rmb. The store also sells kid's mats (449rmb) and candles (388rmb) for good measure. Acknowledging here that yes you can get yoga mats on Taobao for like 30rmb and nicer no-name brands tend to stay in the 100-200rmb range. They're attempting to cater to a niche market. For gifting purposes, all mats will be 20% off until Christmas.

Sugarmat

Sugarmat is open from 11am-8pm, Tuesday through Sunday. You can check out more color and pattern choices on their site.