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Heidi O\u2019Neill is having a tough week. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n
In late April, the Lululemon board announced it had ended its monthslong search to replace CEO Calvin McDonald, who left the company abruptly in 2025 after six years at the helm. As soon as the company announced that O\u2019Neill, a 26-year Nike veteran, would be taking on the position, things got messy. Lululemon\u2019s stock took a plunge, suggesting that investors didn\u2019t think O\u2019Neill was the right pick. And many analysts\u2014including myself\u2014argued that following the Nike playbook would not lead Lululemon out of its financial doldrums.<\/p>\n
Then, Lululemon founder Chip Wilson weighed in. Wilson launched the company in 1998 as a yoga brand and left in 2005, but he has never stopped trying to stay involved, and he still wields considerable power at the company as its largest shareholder. He had made it clear that he didn\u2019t approve of McDonald\u2019s leadership, and in a LinkedIn<\/a> post, he went after the board for choosing O\u2019Neill, arguing they should be looking for \u201cpassionate, creative renegades who have a vision that will shake up the status quo.\u201d<\/p>\n Wilson\u2019s judgment is not always right. This is someone who once had to apologize for saying that women\u2019s thighs rubbing together was responsible for the pilling on Lululemon leggings\u2014a comment widely perceived to be body shaming. And last year he criticized Lululemon\u2019s diversity, equity, and inclusion policies for welcoming customers \u201cyou don\u2019t want .\u00a0.\u00a0. coming in.\u201d But that doesn\u2019t mean his instincts are always wrong.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n What Lululemon needs right now is the kind of revitalization we\u2019re seeing at Gap\u2014and it\u2019s worth paying attention to how that brand pulled it off. The legacy apparel brand, founded in 1969, had gone through several years of declining sales. But these days it\u2019s having a moment.<\/p>\n Over the past two years, it has had hit marketing campaigns every season, tapping stars like Young Miko, Troye Sivan, and, most notably, Katseye. Zac Posen has created a high-fashion version of the Gap label called GapStudio, which has put red-carpet garments on the backs of celebrities like Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet and Anne Hathaway. The brand has also launched collaborations with B\u00e9is, D\u00f4en, and, most recently, Victoria Beckham, all huge hits.<\/p>\n While this kind of turnaround is the stuff brands dream of, Mark Breitbard, president and CEO of the global Gap Brand, has made it clear that it\u2019s the result of a lot of hard work. It has also required a deep knowledge of the brand. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n