Lululemon’s board tears up peace plan with rebel founder

May 20, 2026 — 3:51pm

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The chakras are well and truly out of alignment among the board members of global athleisure powerhouse Lululemon. They collectively declared open war on the controversial founder who started the fitness-adjacent empire from a yoga studio in Vancouver: Chip Wilson.

But the most startling revelation from the public statements and corporate filings that emerged this week is that the Lululemon board came so close to reaching a peace agreement with Wilson.

Wilson’s public criticisms of the business date back more than a decade, but his campaign has now found fertile ground after the group’s recent stumbles which have seen the stock plunge more than 40 per cent this year to lows not seen since 2019.

Underlying sales in the US have gone into reverse – not helped by the latest ‘see through’ controversy, with customers lashing the retailer on social media about its new yoga tights being so sheer their underwear was visible – or worse.

You might expect that from Kmart’s $7 Anko leggings, but not Lululemon’s $159 version.

It might explain why Lululemon’s directors contemplated supporting Wilson – who is its largest single shareholder but owns less than 10 per cent of the business – and his bid to have three nominees on the board by........

© The Age