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Chip Wilson, the founder of Lululemon Athletica Inc. and one of the retailer’s top shareholders, is stepping up his campaign against the company’s board in the midst of its search for a new chief executive officer.
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In an open letter cautioning potential candidates, Wilson criticized current management’s willingness to invest and reliance on heavy discounting. He warned that merely appointing a new CEO may not resolve Lululemon’s deeper problems.
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“Until meaningful change in the boardroom has taken place, success for the new CEO could be a perpetual struggle,” Wilson wrote in the letter viewed by Bloomberg News. A spokesperson for Lululemon didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
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The company’s shares fell as much as 0.6 per cent in premarket trading Thursday.
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Wilson’s missive is the latest salvo in a years-long pressure campaign following his resignation as chairman and departure from the board over a decade ago. He recently launched a website to air his criticisms and this week even deployed a box truck displaying mobile billboards near the company’s Vancouver headquarters.
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In a letter to shareholders last month, Wilson said the company’s response to his call for changes to the board, including his nomination of three new independent directors, was insufficient.
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Lululemon, meanwhile, said it has had preliminary conversations with former On Holding AG executive Marc Maurer. The search for a new CEO follows the departure of Calvin McDonald at the end of January.
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Lululemon’s challenges are mounting: Its shares have plunged almost 70 per cent since the start of 2024. Activist investor Elliott Investment Management has amassed a more than US$1 billion stake in the company, and product issues have added to the pressure.
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Next week, Lululemon is expected to report its weakest annual sales growth since going public.
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