Lululemon Athletica Inc. cut its full-year revenue and profit forecast for the second time this year on Sept. 4, sending the shares down more than 17 per cent in a single session and reducing the value of the stake held by Vancouver founder Chip Wilson, the best known name in Canadian apparel wealth.
The company reported second-quarter net revenue of US$2.42 billion, down 4 per cent from a year earlier and below the US$2.46 billion analysts had expected, Reuters reported. Revenue in the Americas, Lululemon’s largest market, fell 8 per cent after rising 1 per cent in the same quarter a year earlier. Reuters reported that management now expects fiscal 2026 revenue to decline 5 to 7 per cent, against a previous forecast of flat to down 1 per cent, and lowered its earnings guidance to US$9.48 to US$9.73 a share from US$10.95 to US$11.15.
The stock closed at US$100.61 on Sept. 4, down 17.38 per cent on the day. Forbes reported the decline as 18 per cent. All figures for the company are in U.S. dollars.
Wilson holds about 8.6 per cent of Lululemon, according to Bloomberg. Forbes’ 2026 Billionaires List valued him at US$6.5 billion, The Canadian Press reported, placing him among the 82 Canadians on this year’s ranking. The Bloomberg Billionaires Index has more recently valued his fortune at US$6.1 billion. Neither tracker has published a revised figure specifically attributing the Sept. 4 move, and this index does not estimate the change independently.
The results landed four days before a leadership change Wilson spent much of the past year pressing for. Heidi O’Neill, a former Nike executive, becomes chief executive effective Sept. 8, according to the company’s proxy filings. Lululemon named her to the role on April 20. Her predecessor, Calvin McDonald, had his employment terminated by the company without cause effective Jan. 31.
Wilson has been the loudest critic of the company he founded. He filed notice on Dec. 29, 2025 of his intent to nominate three directors for election at the 2026 annual meeting, and the fight became public in May. Lululemon and Wilson settled on May 27, CNBC reported. Under the agreement, former ESPN chief marketing officer Laura Gentile and former On co-chief executive Marc Maurer join the board following the 2026 annual meeting, and the company committed to appointing a further director with apparel product and brand expertise by Oct. 1. In place of reimbursing Wilson’s expenses, the two sides agreed to donations supporting athletics, art and landscaping at Kitsilano Beach in Vancouver, where the company was founded in 1998.
The settlement also constrains what Wilson can say next. He agreed to standstill, non-disparagement and voting provisions running roughly 18 months, until 30 days before the nomination deadline for the 2028 annual meeting. That leaves the founder holding a stake worth about a billion dollars in a company whose guidance has now been cut twice in a year, with limited room to campaign publicly about it before 2028.
Lululemon has attributed the slowdown to softening demand in North America, where Reuters reported the brand is ceding ground to newer competitors including Alo Yoga and Vuori. The next test is O’Neill’s first quarter in the job, and whether the revised guidance issued on her predecessor’s watch proves to be the floor.
Sources: Reuters, Forbes, CNBC, The Canadian Press, Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Lululemon Athletica Inc. filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
