In the same week as Apple and Best Buy, Lululemon has announced a succession plan for its CEO, effective in fall 2026.
Of the three companies, Lululemon is the only one to name an external candidate as its next CEO. Lululemon said its board of directors unanimously approved Heidi O’Neill as the retailer’s next CEO. She starts as CEO and joins the board on Sept. 8, 2026. She will be based in Vancouver, Canada.
Meanwhile, Meghan Frank and André Maestrini will continue to lead as interim co-CEOs until O’Neill joins Lululemon, the company announced.
Marti Morfitt, executive chair of the board, said in Lululemon’s announcement that O’Neill is “an inspiring leader and proven, consumer-driven brand strategist.” He said she has “a rare ability to both imagine a new future for a brand and to create the structure and processes to deliver on that vision.”
“We selected Heidi because of the breadth of her experience, her demonstrated success delivering breakthrough ideas and initiatives at scale, and her ability to be a knowledgeable change and growth agent,” Morfitt said.
Lululemon, based in Canada, is 24th in the Top 2000 Database. The database tracks and ranks North America’s largest online retailers by their annual ecommerce sales. It recently announced its launch of an ecommerce website in Mexico.
About the incoming Lululemon CEO
O’Neill will join Lululemon’s executive leadership team from Nike, where she most recently served as president of consumer, product and brand. In September, Nike named Elliott Hill as CEO as predecessor John Donahoe retired.
During her time at the apparel and footwear giant, O’Neill helped grow Nike from a $9 billion business to one with $45 billion, Lululemon noted in its announcement. It said she “played a central role” in overseeing Nike’s product development, brand voice and operations.
25 years of her more than three decades of industry experience were at Nike. In addition, she was responsible for Nike’s global direct-to-consumer and digital business, encompassing owned retail stores, ecommerce, mobile applications, membership, and consumer data and analytics, according to the announcement.
Prior to her time at Nike, O’Neill worked in marketing for the Dockers brand under Live Strauss & Co. She also will bring to Lululemon perspectives from her time on the boards of directors for Shopify, Hyatt Hotels and Lithia & Driveway.
In the announcement, she called Lululemon an “iconic brand” with “genuine guest love.” Its global platform is still in its early stages, she said.
“As I step into the CEO role in September, my job will be to build on that foundation — to accelerate product breakthroughs, deepen the brand’s cultural relevance, and unlock growth in markets around the world,” O’Neill said.
Do you rank in our databases?
Submit your data and we’ll see where you fit in our next ranking update.
Sign up
Stay on top of the latest developments in the online retail industry. Sign up for a complimentary subscription to Digital Commerce 360 Retail News. Follow us on LinkedIn, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and YouTube. Be the first to know when Digital Commerce 360 publishes news content.
FavoriteThe post Lululemon names next CEO appeared first on Digital Commerce 360.
from Digital Commerce 360 https://ift.tt/1jd6Mtq
0 Comments