The Lululemon emblem could be seen on a retailer in Manhattan.
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Activist investor Elliott Funding Administration has constructed a stake of greater than $1 billion in Lululemon Athletica and is bringing a possible CEO candidate to the desk, an individual acquainted with the matter advised CNBC.
Lululemon’s inventory rose 6% in early buying and selling Thursday.
Final week, Lululemon introduced CEO Calvin McDonald would step down efficient Jan. 31, following a year-long efficiency hunch for Lululemon.
Elliott has been working with former Ralph Lauren CFO and COO Jane Nielsen as a possible candidate, based on the particular person, who spoke on the situation of anonymity about confidential issues.
In a information launch asserting McDonald’s departure, the corporate stated its board of administrators was working with a “main government search agency” to seek out its subsequent CEO. The management change got here as Lululemon’s founder Chip Wilson has been calling on the corporate to make a change, saying earlier this 12 months that the corporate’s efficiency is “in a nosedive.”
The athletic attire firm has been going through an more and more crowded panorama, with athleisure entrants like Vuori and Alo Yoga.
Nielsen served at Ralph Lauren from 2016 till April. Earlier than that, she held roles at Coach and PepsiCo.
Elliott has taken a stake in a slate of different corporations as nicely this 12 months, together with a greater than $2 billion stake in Workday and a $4 billion stake in PepsiCo. The Wall Avenue Journal earlier reported Elliott’s Lululemon stake.
