Amazon is reportedly developing its own sportswear line

Amazon is reportedly getting ready to take on sports apparel giants like Nike and Lululemon. According to Bloomberg, the e-retail giant is even working with known sportswear-makers' suppliers and manufacturers to challenge them in an increasingly crowded industry. The publication says the project is still in its very early stages -- Amazon hasn't signed long-term contracts yet, but it has already started ordering small batches of products as part of a trial. The first batches were shipped to the company back in August.

One of its suppliers is Taiwanese vendor Makalot Industrial Co., known for making clothes sold by Uniqlo, Gap and Kohl's. The other Taiwanese company it's working with sounds a lot more interesting though: Eclat Textile Co. also manufactures clothing for Nike, Lululemon and Under Armour. This is far from Amazon's first foray into clothing and fashion. It already has several clothing and accessories labels, including one that focuses on women's bags and shoes.

As Bloomberg notes, the e-retail titan usually looks into making its own merchandise whenever it wants to fill the gaps in its inventory. Some brands choose not to sell certain items on Amazon, and the company wants to be able to offer those to customers, so they won't have to shop anywhere else.