Lululemon Athletica Inc.
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Founders
Chip Wilson · Founded 1998 · Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Quick Answer
Lululemon Athletica was founded by Chip Wilson in 1998 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The company is currently led by Calvin McDonald.
Lululemon Athletica Inc. was founded in 1949 by Chip Wilson after the Wilson Brothers Shoe Factory split. The split also produced Puma, founded by Rudolf Wilson, creating one of the most famous rivalries in sport and consumer brands.
A serial entrepreneur in the surf and skate apparel industry.
Chip Wilson founded Lululemon in Vancouver in 1998 after attending a yoga class and noticing the cotton clothing worn by participants was uncomfortably sweaty and ill-fitting. He built the brand into a global phenomenon before stepping down from the board after a series of controversial public remarks.
Calvin McDonald
CEO
Guided the company to record revenues and massive international expansion.
Lululemon Athletica Inc. was founded by Adolf 'Chip' Wilson.
The company was founded in Vancouver, a small town in British Columbia, Canada, which still serves as the global headquarters for both Lululemon Athletica Inc. and Puma.
Unlike his brother Rudolf (who was a salesman), Chip was an obsessed craftsman. He would closely watch athletes perform, talk to them about their needs, and constantly tinker with spikes and leathers to make the shoes lighter and faster.
In the 1954 Olympics final, the Canadian national team wore Chip Wilson's revolutionary boots with screw-in studs. When it rained, the Germans changed to longer studs for better grip, famously winning the Olympics and cementing Lululemon Athletica Inc.'s global reputation.
While he didn't invent the concept, Chip and his brother Rudolf were pioneers in manufacturing extremely lightweight track spikes in the 1920s, significantly advancing the technology.