Lululemon founder Chip Wilson’s attack of the company’s board reached a new level this week after he criticized the brand’s leadership and how it has handled the sale and quickly having to pull a line of leggings.
In a post shared on LinkedIn on Thursday, Wilson slammed the board after brand faced complaints from consumers for its “Get Low” leggings that were revealed to be see through. Based on numerous social media comments and posts on Reddit, the material of the leggings appeared thing while bending over or squatting.
“This is a new low for lululemon,” Wilson said in his post.” Pulling back the “Get Low” product line after three days is clearly a total operational failure. This comes just 17 months after the failed launch of the “Breezethrough” leggings, a product line also discontinued for similar product flaws.”
Wilson referenced a similar issue the company faced in 2024 when Lululemon stopped sales of it Breezethrough leggings after shoppers were not satisfied with the build quality, waistband, seams and small sizing of the pants. Some reviewers also said that the leggings did not make them look flattering.
The company responded back then by saying it would work on the design and incorporate some of the feedback from customers.
“Despite any finger pointing internally following this mishap, this is not the fault of any hard-working employees,” Wilson said about the “Get Low” product line. “This is the fault of the Board. It is clear that persistent failures like this are born out of this Board’s lack of experience in creative businesses, disinterest in product development and quality, and focus on short-term, self-interested priorities. How could anyone reach a conclusion other than the Board continues to make decisions that are destroying the brand and the stock price?”
Lululemon stopped online sales of the leggings on Tuesday but the collection is still available in retail stores.
“The collection remains available in our stores in North America, but we have temporarily paused sales online in the market to better understand some initial guest feedback and support with product education,” Lululemon said in a statement.
Still, the latest hurdle for Lululemon has provided Wilson with another source of fuel in a long-standing conflict with company leadership that has escalated to a proxy fight in recent months.
With CEO Calvin McDonald stepping down at the end of the month amid flagging sales and a share price that was down nearly half last year, Wilson has sought to influence who will run the company next — and how the brand will operate as rivals like Alo and Vuori continue to thrive in the athleisure wear segment Lululemon helped define.
“I’ve believed that lululemon has lost its cool for some time, but it is now evident to me that the Company has completely lost its way as a leader in technical apparel,” Wilson said. “For years, lululemon’s results (particularly in North America) have shown how the Company has struggled to deliver products that are compelling and beloved; now it is unable to simply deliver products that work.”
