HOUSE ID Athletic Wear Elevates The Gym Aesthetic To Luxe Street Style

Lauren Gillespie founded the Vancouver-based House Concepts gym in 2019 for a benign yet beneficial reason. “I started House Concepts because I wanted to create my own fitness and wellness experience that brought everything together under one roof.”

Gillespie realized an opportunity to create a gym that catered to a – more so – stylish crown that cares about wellness as much as ‘fit pics’ – keep the pun. “When I came back to Vancouver after living abroad, I realized there is so much more to offer in a fitness experience after going to gyms and classes here. There wasn’t really one place where you could go for everything – I had memberships for all these different places in the city and it just didn’t make sense.”

In March 2023, Gillespie launched HOUSE iD, an athletic garment brand and division of the House Concepts gym that gets the needs of the modern fitness buff. HOUSE iD is a clothing brand that caters to active lifestyles. Its vision is to motivate people who aspire to improve themselves. Inspired by the culture of House Concepts Gym, a leading fitness and wellness space, HOUSE iD combines fashion, design, and sports.

“I live in athletic wear and need clothes that are flexible enough to go from workouts to meetings to the plane and simply live life in.” HOUSE iD collection includes interchangeable, technical apparel and loungewear specifically designed to meet the needs of a modern lifestyle.

The garments are created in Vancouver and manufactured in Los Angeles, including hoodies, sweatshirts, shorts, tees, tank tops, and specifics for women, while most styles come in all genders and unisex styles. HOUSE iD’s mission is to provide comfort and belonging wherever you are and compliments how you move.

Where active living meets style and functionality for Gillespie, lifelong involvement in athletics and the desire to create a comprehensive fitness and wellness experience reside, creating the HOUSE iD brand. “There wasn’t a brand that aligned with me and House Concepts. I knew that our gym members were looking for the same thing – something cooler, unique, and that matched both the ethos of the gym and their lifestyle.”

Gillespie explains, “This is exactly how HOUSE iD was born – I’ve always been interested in fashion but have struggled to find clothes that fit a busy, active, global lifestyle. I spend so much time in the gym or at work and if I’m not there I’m traveling, so I wanted clothes that could go from place to place. Through this, I knew there was an opportunity to create a lifestyle brand – part technical, part lounge, but mostly adaptive to modern life.”

“We spent over a year working on our first collection – choosing fabrics, building in multiple rounds of testing and sampling, and always lab testing in our House Concepts gym. We listened to our community, from our friends and family, colleagues, trainers, and members of our gym.” One style called HOUSESculpt is a collection of garments designed to keep you cool, dry, and comfortable. The 4-way stretch fabric allows for a full range of motion, ideal for high-impact activities. The material also includes sculpting and shaping features to provide a flattering silhouette, inside and outside of the gym.

The second style of clothing from HOUSE iD is HOUSESoft. This HOUSESoft material features a soft, brushed fabric that provides a bare feel against your skin. The 4-way stretch material ensures maximum movement and flexibility during any activity. The breathable fabric, along with moisture-wicking and anti-microbial technology, keeps you cool, dry, and feeling fresh.

“A lot of pieces we launched were items that we all felt were missing from our own wardrobes,” says Gillespie. “These were items that you could stay in all day and be equally comfortable and confident in – not workout wear that digs in, fits too tight, and restricts movement. By lab testing in the gym (our trainers are our fit models), we test not just for ‘fit,’ but also to ensure that the fabrics can stand up to all kinds of movement and sweat.”

She continues, “HOUSE iD combines high-performance athletic and everyday wear – sport and sweat are two subsets within that concept. Sport refers to technical athletic wear designed for high performance – it’s made from sweat-wicking, antimicrobial and quick-drying fabrics which are great for intense workouts and training. Sweat refers to everyday loungewear that’s super comfortable and versatile for every situation.”

Fashion connects with its House Concepts patrons in an organic way, aiming to provide a unified experience. Offering the HOUSE iD clothing line extends its reach, creating a lifestyle that builds community. The inclusion of ‘sport’ and ‘sweat’ in the designs of HOUSE iD reflects the goal of combining high-performance athletic wear with comfortable everyday loungewear. The distinction between the two subsets is fluid, mirroring the modern lifestyle where work, play, and exercise overlap.