Apr. 23 at 1:13 AM
Lululemon named Nike veteran Heidi O’Neill as its next CEO, but investors reacted cautiously, sending shares lower after hours.
O’Neill, who spent over 25 years at Nike overseeing global consumer, digital, and direct-to-consumer operations, will take over on Sept. 8. She also previously worked at Levi’s in marketing. The company has been led in the interim by co-CEOs since Calvin McDonald’s departure earlier this year.
The market response was negative, with shares falling about 4% after hours, extending a broader decline of roughly 40% over the past year. Investors remain concerned about slowing growth, brand relevance, product issues, and rising competition in the premium athletic wear space.
Analysts were mixed: some see O’Neill’s Nike experience as useful for scaling innovation and global retail operations, while others caution that Nike itself has faced its own execution and turnaround challenges in recent years.
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