The battle for the direction of Lululemon took another step on Monday as founder Chip Wilson pushed to have private equity firm Advent removed from the company’s board, according to published reports.
Wilson, one of Lululemon’s largest shareholders at around 4.27 percent, launched a proxy fight in December when he nominated three independent directors for the company and wants two legacy directors associated with Advent to resign, based on a report from Semafor.
The move comes at a time when Lululemon is in search of its next chief executive as current CEO Calvin McDonald will leave the company at the end of the month after announcing his departure in December. Lululemon has struggled in the past year in the the athleisure wear segment it helped define and its shares were down nearly 50 percent in 2025.
McDonald will stay with the company as a senior advisor until March 31, while Lululemon’s chief financial officer, Meghan Frank, and chief commercial officer, André Maestrini, will serve as interim co-chief executives.
But while the search for a new executive continues, Wilson has tried to use his holding in the company to influence the future of the brand and has been outspoken amid its difficulty holding steady against rivals like Vuori and Alo.
Wilson claims to not want a board seat but has been discouraged by Advent’s own shaky position in the consumer space, according to Semafor.
In December, Elliott Management revealed its $1 billion stake in Lululemon and will likely have a say in who will lead the brand next.
Elliot has been linked to Jane Nielsen, an industry veteran who recently served as chief financial officer and then chief executive at Ralph Lauren before stepping down in April.
Later in the month Wilson nominated former On Running co-CEO Marc Maurer, former ESPN chief marketing officer Laura Gentile and former Activision CEO Eric Hirshberg to the company’s board as his voice grows louder to revamp the brand he founded.
“It is clear to the world that Lululemon is special, but in need of change,” Wilson said in December. “As I have stated for years, Lululemon needs visionary creative leadership to thrive. The simple truth is that the current Board lacks these skills and, as a result, Lululemon is unable to win back the confidence of its critical stakeholders and regain commercial momentum. The nominees I put forward today are the change that is needed to redefine Lululemon and begin this company’s next chapter of success.”
Wilson founded Lululemon in 1998 and within ten years the company soared in an athleisure wear segment that thrived on its popular yoga outfits. But within years of the brand’s boom, Wilson had disagreements with company leadership and retired as chief innovation and branding officer in 2013. He stayed on as a board member but later stepped down after making comments on television that year about how women’s bodies looked in yoga pants.
