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Case Write-Ups
Purpose and Guidelines
Case write-ups are required for every case discussed in this class. Each will focus on a broad
range of marketing problems related to topics we will discuss in class, as well as many that you
may experience in your careers. Remember that you are being assessed on the quality of the
answers that you provide to questions asked during class. Performing these quick case write-ups
will help you to properly prepare. Some of the case studies you perform will be collected for a
grade. Others may not be. Be ready! Each write-up is due in Canvas (in “Assignments,” and
numbered) by the deadline posted in the syllabus. Late assignments will NOT be accepted.
The requirements for the write-up are listed below.
Instructions
The key to performing a good case write-up is to ground your analyses and recommendations on
sound strategic principles: take what you learned from the readings and apply it to the analysis of
the case. You must be able to justify your position, not just recommend a position. Cases should
be no more than 1 page, single-spaced, 12pt font, 1 inch margins. In most organizations, top
management has a very short attention span. It is critical to for you to be able to make a coherent
argument to your boss within 1 page for your ideas to get attention.
Your write-up is to be broken into three distinct parts (please provide headings for each part):
1. Problem summary (1-2 concise sentences summarizing problem)
2. Analysis of problem (Expand upon multiple facets of problem)
3. Recommendations (Build upon any data analysis you may need to do to outline feasible
recommendations, using facts from the case.)
Assessment
Among the critical aspects that you will be assess on are the quality and thoroughness of your
review and recommendations, the clarity of your writing. Consider two important points
emphasized by our BizComm specialists:
1.) Your job as a writer is to deliver the most accurate information with the least amount
of work required on the reader’s part (write in plain English).
2) Don’t make your reader ask, “Why are you telling me this?” (Don’t burden the reader
with information he or she doesn’t want or need).
Remember to use data, where necessary, to support your recommendations. “Pie in the sky”
recommendations are not tolerated. Clear and concise articulation of your thoughts is
paramount. Use professional tone in your writing (No “I, me, and my”)
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Examples
Examples of both good and poor case write-ups appear on the pages that follow. Please note my comments in the margins, as well as
the structure/formatting used, proper grammar, and the general quality of the write-up. In the good example, statements are backed up
with facts.
Criteria
1. Identification of the
Main Problem(s)
25%
2. Identification and
Analysis of
Complexities
25%
3. Recommendations
25%
4. Organization,
Grammar, Spelling,
and Formatting
25%
Excellent
Clearly identifies the main
problem(s), demonstrating ability to
prioritize problems. Reports this in
a concise (1-2 sentence) manner
Rubric for Case Analysis
Good
Needs Improvement
Problem identification is clear, but
Problem identification and prioritization are
prioritization is not. Reporting is
not clear. Reporting is longer than necessary,
longer than necessary.
or incomplete.
Clearly identifies several
complexities of the main problem(s).
The analysis appropriately
incorporates strategic marketing
management concepts and financial
analysis.
Identifies complexities of the main
problem(s). Some statements are
unsupported by analysis/
calculations. Assumptions are
stated, but some are not justified.
A clear action plan is given, logically
derived from complexity analysis,
that provides optimal solution for
identified problems/issues and that
further makes sense; the
recommendation is based on only
one of the strategic alternative
actions. Assumptions, caveats,
ongoing considerations concerning
recommendation are provided. The
likely benefits/disadvantages of each
action are clearly identified and
supported by the analysis.
Written work is well organized and
easy to understand. There is a brief
introduction. Sections of case
analysis are marked with
appropriate headings. The work has
been thoroughly spell-checked and
proofread. There are none to almost
no grammatical or spelling errors.
There are no formatting errors.
An action plan is given, which is
mostly, but not completely, logically
derived from alternative analysis.
There may be a better solution to the
problems/issues than the one
recommended. Most, but not all,
assumptions, caveats, and ongoing
considerations are provided. Most,
but not all, benefits/disadvantages
are clearly identified and supported
by the analysis.
The organization is generally good.
There is a brief introduction and
section headings. But some sections
seem out of place or mislabeled,
diminishing the ease with which the
case reads and is understood.
There are a few spelling and
grammatical errors. There are one to
three formatting errors.
Unacceptable
Problem identification and prioritization
are not clear or misidentified. Reporting is
longer than necessary, or incomplete.
Section is missing entirely.
The list of complexities is incomplete or
unclear in some aspects, and includes items
that are not reasonably linked to the problems
and issues. Analysis is too narrow and does
not identify a broad strategic direction. Some
analysis is included, but it is not very detailed.
Many statements are not supported by
analysis/calculations. Most of the stated
assumptions are not justified.
A solution is recommended, but logical
derivation from analysis is unclear, and there
is clearly a better optimal solution. The
recommendation is based on more than one
alternative action. No identification of
assumptions, caveats, or considerations that
might affect the recommendation is provided.
Several benefits/ disadvantages are missing
and/or not clearly identified or unsupported
by the analysis.
Either the list of complexities is missing
or the list is very incomplete or there is no
linkage of the alternative actions to the
problems/issues. None of the alternatives
identifies a broad strategic direction.
Shows lack of thorough consideration.
Analysis is trivial or missing, lacking any
depth.
The organization is unclear; headings are
missing. The introduction is not succinct.
There is more than one spelling, grammatical,
and/or formatting errors.
The case analysis is disorganized to the
extent that it prevents understanding of
content. There are no headings. There is
no introduction. There are frequent
misspelled words, serious grammatical
errors, and formatting errors, indicating
that time was not taken to spell-check
and proofread the report.
A solution is recommended, but it is not
derived from the alternative analysis at all;
or the recommended solution is clearly
not viable; or the recommended solution
does not address the problems/issues; or
there is no recommended solution. No
assumptions are stated (and are needed).
Likely benefits/disadvantages are not
provided at all or are unsupported by the
analysis.
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Example of an Excellent Case Write-up:
Anonymous Company
Problem Summary:
Anonymous Company is trying to grow revenues to $20 million by the end of 2001 to obtain the
highest valuation of the firm. To do so, they are deciding to either expand existing products to
supermarkets or to introduce new products to natural food stores.
Analysis of the Problem:
There are many advantages and disadvantages to consider when deciding between the three
options available to the Senior Management Team.
Option 1: Expand 6 SKUs of the 8-oz. product line into one or two selected supermarket channel
regions.
• Benefits: Product has the largest dollar and unit share, other yogurt brands have successfully
expanded their distribution to the supermarket channel with a scope of earning 200% in 2
years, and the 8-oz. product line has an increasing unit volume growth (20%).
• Drawbacks: Slotting expenses would be higher ($10,000 per SKU per channel). It incurs
higher risk as the competition for 8-oz products is fiercer. It would require quarterly trade
promotions and an increased marketing budget. In addition, there would be a need for more
funds to be allocated to sales personnel and brokerage fees.
Option 2: Expand 4 SKUs of the 32-oz. size nationally.
• Benefits: Although the product is sold less, they generate a higher profit margin (43.6%). It
has less competition and has a 45% market share in the natural foods channel. Promotion
expenses along with the marketing expenses would be lower.
• Drawbacks: Slotting expenses would be higher ($10,000 per SKU per channel). New users
would be less likely to enter the brand through a multi-use size. Also, the sales team would
have to be extended and may also be unable to achieve full national distribution.
Option 3: Introduce 2 SKUs of a children’s multi-pack into the Natural Foods channel.
• Benefits: Pre-existing strong relationships with natural foods channel’s retailers. Sales team
is capable and confident in extending to current channels. Sales and marketing expenses
would be lower. It has the possibility of yielding the strongest profit contribution. Natural
foods channel will have an annual growth of 20% compared to 3% in the supermarket
channel.
• Drawbacks: R&D and Operations would have to develop the product, which might take some
time. Although Natural Foods channel is increasing at 20% per year, it only holds 3% of the
market share for yogurt while supermarkets hold 97%.
Recommendations:
Senior Management should pursue Option 3:
• Introduce 2 SKUs of children’s multi-pack to Natural Foods channels. Package type and size
were the top priority to customers when purchasing yogurt. Introducing a multi-pack would
attract more customers to the brand and increase sales.
• Natural Foods channels are growing at a 20% yearly rate compared to 3% for supermarkets
and given that children’s multipacks dollar sales are increasing at a faster rate than the 8-oz.
and 32-oz. cups in supermarkets, it is safe to assume the same for Natural Foods channels.
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•
•
•
Riley did not believe that Anonymous Company had the necessary resources required to sell
effectively to supermarkets.
Current anticipated incremental retail unit sales is 1.8M units for Natural Foods channels.
Profit that could be made = [($3.35*37.6%)*1.8M units] = $2,267,280.
In exhibit 1, it is shown that gross profits are equivalent to 37% of revenues. Thus, the yearly
increase in revenues is equal to: $2,267,280 / .37 = $6,127,784.
The reasons for not choosing options 1 and 2 are as follows:
• Option 1: Introducing 6 SKU’s of 8-oz. cups in two regions incurs a huge cost during the first
year due to high slotting expenses [6 (SKU’s * 20 (stores in Northeast and West) *
10,000(cost per SKU per store)] = $1.2 million. The first-year gain including all expenditures
is as follows:
8-oz cups
Price
Cost to
Distributor Retailer Broker
Total
Profit per
produce
Margin
Margin
Margin
Margin
Product
Supermarkets .74
.31
15%
27%
4%
46%
$.2322
Gain for 35M units – (Advertising, SG&A, sales staff, marketing personnel and slotting)
6 8-oz products in two regions= 0.2322*35million – (1.2M*2+320,000+200,000+120,000+1.2M)
=$3,887,000.
• Option 2: The market share for 32-oz. cups is the smallest and only has a 2% change in dollar
sales from the previous year. There are also doubts that users will enter the brand via a multiuse size. In addition, slotting expenses would be very high as they would have to pay
$10,000 per SKU for each of the 64 stores for four products, resulting in $2,560,000 in
slotting costs.
• Lastly, CEO Barry Landers valued his current relationships with his distribution partners.
Going with option 1 or 2 is not only less profitable and more risky, but could also potentially
ruin the relationships they have built with Natural Foods channels.
Anonymous Company is nearly two years from having to achieve its $20 million revenue mark.
Option 3 allows them to obtain revenues of $13M + $6,127,784 * 2 = $25,255,568, which is
beyond the revenue mark. Thus, Christine should pursue introducing 2 SKUs of a children’s
multi-pack into the Natural Foods channel.
General Remarks about this Write-up:
Note that this student did a very thorough job with their analysis and recommendation.
Frequently, the main problem can be separated into sub-problems. Categorizing these will help
you to prioritize your recommendations. So, a different approach might be to simply label these
sub-problems based upon their themes, rather than the “Option 1,” “Option 2,” etc. approach
taken by this student. For example, if the sub-problem is related to branding, say so. Make sure
that your analysis maps to your recommendations.
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Example of a Reasonable Case Write-up:
The Upstart’s Assault Case
Problem Summary:
Meridicom has to decide on how to react to TelZip’s offer of free broadband service to new
business customers who were willing to leave their current provider and enter into a long-term
contract with TelZip. Meridicom needs to proceed very carefully because TelZip’s bold move
may be a “game changer” within the telecommunications industry.
Analysis of Problem:
There are 5 aspects of Meridicom that need to be understood and considered carefully before
making a decision regarding the strategy that needs to be implemented to counter TelZip’s offer.
• Meridicom is separated in 3 independent divisions: Landline, mobile, and broadband.
Each division operates independently. Meridicom customers receive a different bill per
service, which can be confusing. Also, the fact that the 3 divisions operate independently
does not contribute to minimizing Meridicom’s total operational costs.
• The landlines division represents 70% of the company’s revenues, and Meridicom has an
85% market share in the landlines market. This means that it is important that this
division does not lose customers.
• Meridicom has a 60% market share in the broadband market, and the broadband division
represents 25% of the company’s revenues. Offering broadband service for free would
negatively affect Meridicom’s revenues and would make the broadband division operate
at total loss.
• Meridicom’s major business customers complain about the company’s services being
expensive.
• TelZip has a much larger mobile phone market share than Meridicom’s 5% market share.
Management at Meridicom needs to understand that whatever strategy they implement will have
an important impact on the telecommunications market distribution.
Recommendations:
I have 3 recommendations for Meridicom’s management:
• Quickly develop and implement a strategy to minimize the operational costs, and send
individual bills to their business customers instead of one different bill per service. This
would decrease the company’s costs and eliminate confusions that customers may have.
• Offer free broadband to their customers because TelZip’s move is a “game changer”.
Customers will be expecting to get broadband service for free or change providers.
• Increase prices of the landlines service by 5%. This is the reason why: Offering free
broadband would help Meridicom acquire a larger market share in the landlines market,
which would increase their revenues and partially cover the losses resulting from offering
broadband for free. The 5% price increase in the landlines service is relatively low, and it
is very likely that it will not be noticed because it would happen at the same time as the
free broadband.
My remarks to this Student on the Write-up:
5
Remember to use professional tone in your writing. No “I, me, and my” references. Go
ahead and categorize your analysis and recommendations.
Example of a Poor Case Write-up:
Alegre Hotels
Problem: The problem with this case was that Alegre Hotels just opened up a brand new flagship
hotel at Palma Cay and is struggling with filling the rooms at the peak of the tourist season.
Analysis: Beatriz Soto proposed that Alegre pay her $700,000 so that she can create a campaign
focused towards generating more revenue and bringing more customers to the hotel. The
company is struggling to accept her request because they run their hotels individually of one
another. Individual hotel managers are outraged because they feel that they could use the money
that Beatriz is asking for better opportunities but the company feels that they need to push their
new hotel as much as possible. It seems as if Alegre Hotels is suffering from an internal calamity
due to its decentralized business structure and lack of uniform brand recognition.
Recommendations: I would recommend that Alegre take the approach of Best Western when
trying to create a brand throughout the company. The Best Western model sticks to one initiative
that exudes quality and convenience at affordable rates. Alegre should brand itself amongst its
different categories because each entity is so distinct from the other. The city hotels should be
branded the same as other city hotels and the resorts should be branded just like other resorts but
the key to all of them is to have one common identity which is luxury and style. As far as giving
Beatriz the money for her campaign my suggestion would be to closely supervise her campaign
and to force her to model it off of the entire brand as a whole. The reason that she needs to brand
with a companywide focus is because the company needs to maximize revenue across the board
and it can essentially fund two different initiatives for the price of one with Beatriz’s campaign.
The company needs to develop a rewards program because several other competitors already do
that and they have seen great success in offering them. By offering rewards to customers they
can drive customers back into the hotels time and time again. Independence between individual
hotels is essential in achieving success amongst the brand because individual hotels run and
operate in specific ways from one another and help to create a unique brand for the company as a
whole. By going back to the Best Western model Alegre needs to be known for its ideals rather
than the look of all of its hotels.
My remarks to this Student on the Write-up:
A few comments about your work this week, and a general situation report:
Some of your ideas are good. However, they are overshadowed by problems, the likes
of which we have been discussing since the very first submission. I am concerned, as
the submissions from your contemporaries are now much improved, but much of your
work is not on the same level. There are flashes of wisdom, but also, thoughts that
meander.
I don’t like repeating myself, but please go back and review the formatting guidelines.
You are not writing a mystery novel. Your audience should be able to quickly assess
your thoughts. This becomes difficult if your thoughts are not organized. Furthermore,
poor writing/grammar make things challenging for your reader. Also, try reading your
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submissions out loud. This is something I practice myself. While reading aloud, the
places where you pause are generally where commas would go. If you need further
help with writing, please see the writing resource center at our library.
As far as your class discussion, the first half of today’s class was great. Afterwards, you
didn’t assert yourself into the conversation, as much. Speak up. You have great ideas.
I want to hear them, and your contemporaries deserve to, as well. This discussion is
critical to the success of your studies.
I hope that you understand that these comments aren’t intended to be overly critical. I
simply want to see you in the best position to achieve what I know you are capable of.
Find the fire. Let me know if I can help.
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W14425
LULULEMON ATHLETICA’S PRODUCT, EMPLOYEE AND PUBLIC
RELATIONS ISSUES1
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Stefanie Beninger, Simon Pek, Karen Robson and Adam J. Mills wrote this case solely to provide material for class discussion. The
authors do not intend to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a managerial situation. The authors may have disguised
certain names and other identifying information to protect confidentiality.
This publication may not be transmitted, photocopied, digitized or otherwise reproduced in any form or by any means without the
permission of the copyright holder. Reproduction of this material is not covered under authorization by any reproduction rights
organization. To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, contact Ivey Publishing, Ivey Business School, Western
University, London, Ontario, Canada, N6G 0N1; (t) 519.661.3208; (e) [email protected]; www.iveycases.com.
Copyright © 2014, Richard Ivey School of Business Foundation
Version: 2014-09-10
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2012 finished on a high note for Lululemon Athletica. Sales were growing fast, and Lululemon was
poised for expansion in Europe and Asia. At the beginning of 2013, the company faced a multitude of
what some would call luxury problems, as they struggled to keep up with high customer demand. Some
Lululemon Athletica outlets, such as stores in Florida, struggled to keep the shelves stocked, while other
locations had to bring in security guards to manage the flood of customers.2 However, by spring 2013,
Lululemon faced the first of many public relations (PR) crises that would accumulate throughout that
year. The crises spanned company operations and included product quality and sourcing, as well as
employee, customer and public relations.
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The ongoing controversies surrounding the brand started to impact Lululemon’s bottom line. Though
sales continued to grow into early 2014, revenue growth was below expectations, resulting in substantial
drops in share price in their fourth quarter ending January 2014.3 Commentators in the media and
executives began raising concerns about the company’s future. When announcing Lululemon’s reduced
financial outlook on January 13, 2014, Chief Financial Officer John Currie noted, “Since the beginning of
January, we have seen traffic and sales trends decelerate meaningfully.” These comments were
foreshadowed by a similar statement in December 2013, in which Currie acknowledged that Lululemon
had experienced “lots of PR issues” that year.4
Do
The target of increasingly unfavourable press attention, Lululemon underwent several leadership changes
in 2013. Dennis J. “Chip” Wilson resigned first from his position of chief innovation and branding officer
in 20125 and then from his role as chairman of the board in 2013.6 Chief executive officer (CEO)
Christine Day resigned in 2013, and, in early 2014, Lululemon began a new chapter under the leadership
of Laurent Potdevin, the former CEO of TOMS Shoes, effective January 2014.7 With numerous PR issues
to address, the company needed to decide what changes to make and which to prioritize. It was even
debated whether any changes needed to be made at all, considering sales had continued to increase
throughout 2013 despite the negative PR. If Potdevin decided that changes were called for within this
fast-growing and iconic brand, what would be the best way forward, and what obstacles and roadblocks
might the company face?
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BACKGROUND
Lululemon Athletica
Lululemon Athletica Inc. was an upscale athletic apparel company founded in 1998 by Wilson, a
Canadian businessman and philanthropist. When he founded Lululemon, Wilson built on his previous
experience launching the well-known brand Westbeach Snowboard Ltd, which produced surf, skate and
snowboard clothing. After selling Westbeach in 19978 and becoming interested in yoga, Wilson opened a
clothing design studio aimed at yoga in 1998 that also sold yoga apparel and offered yoga classes. In
2000, Lululemon’s “first real store” 9 opened in the trendy area of Kitsilano in Vancouver, Canada. This
was done at a time when, in Wilson’s own words, “Yoga was growing like a hockey stick upramp.”10
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Despite yoga’s thousand-year history and lofty principles (compassion, truthfulness and humility chief
among them),11 it was not until the 1990s that it received much attention from the mainstream
international market. By launching a new clothes category to outfit yoga practitioners, Lululemon was
credited as one of the first major businesses to service this growing industry. 12 Wilson’s success with
Lululemon was reflected by his net worth, estimated at $2.9 billion in March 2013.13 Lululemon itself had
grown rapidly, with a net revenue of more than $1 billion in 2012 (Exhibit 1).
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According to its mission statement, Lululemon was dedicated to “creating components for people to live
longer, healthier, fun lives,”14 and the Lululemon Manifesto was a collection of more than thirty sayings
that served to guide the organization’s values and culture.15 Topics ranged from health advice (floss your
teeth, keep cleaning chemicals off kitchen counters, decrease stress) to relationship advice (friends are
more important than money). The manifesto also included self-help and inspirational sayings, such as
“living in the moment could be the meaning of life,” “do it now, do it now, do it now!” and “successful
people replace the words ‘wish,’ ‘should’ and ‘try’ with ‘I will.” Notably, the manifesto also suggested
that success was an important guiding principle: “Nature wants us to be mediocre because we have a
greater chance to survive and reproduce. Mediocre is as close to the bottom as it is to the top, and will
give you a lousy life.” The core values of Lululemon emphasized developing the “highest quality
products, operating with integrity, leading a healthy balanced life, and instilling in our employees a sense
of self responsibility and personal achievement.”16
Do
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In 2000, the first Lululemon retail store opened in Vancouver, Canada, and, by February 2013, Lululemon
grew to include more than 6,000 employees and 211 stores, primarily in North America. The company
also sold its products online and in stores across Europe, Asia and Australasia, as well as through strategic
sales dealers in 14 additional countries, including Mexico, Japan and Turkey. Though originally focused
on yoga wear, Lululemon grew its product line to include a range of athletic clothing and accessories,
including pants, shorts, skirts, dresses, shirts, jackets, underwear and bags. Lululemon stated in a quality
commitment that they designed a “majority of [the] product line to withstand five years of intended use,”
with the caveat that that number varied based on the particular product, the user, and the conditions under
which the products were used.17 Products were made of both synthetic and natural fabrics, such as
petroleum-based materials and cotton.18
Lululemon worked with third-party suppliers to manufacture its products. By the end of 2013, Lululemon
manufactured in 15 locations around the world, primarily in Asia — specifically, China, Taiwan, South
Korea, India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.19 In 2012, Lululemon
had approximately 50 manufacturers across the world, though 60 per cent of its products were produced
by five primary suppliers. In addition to general production, Lululemon also worked with these suppliers
to “formulate innovative and technically-advanced fabrics and features”20 for its product lines. For
example, Lululemon’s signature Luon performance fabric was developed in partnership with a single
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manufacturer, Eclat Textile Co. in Taiwan,21 using fabrics sourced from one company. Lululemon also
partnered with companies who inspected and certified these new items and fabrics, “testing for a variety
of performance characteristics, including pilling, shrinkage, abrasion resistance and colorfastness.”
Lululemon did not have any formal long-term agreements with any of their manufacturers, noting in their
2012 Annual Report that “producers of [their] fabrics could be obtained with little or no additional
expense…and/or delay in the timleliness of our production process.” Despite this, also in their 2012
Annual Report, Lululemon noted that relying on a limited number of third-party suppliers was a risk
factor, as it could be a challenge to find alternate and acceptable suppliers at an appropriate price and in a
timely fashion
PUBLIC RELATIONS ISSUES
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Lululemon described its target customer as a “sophisticated and educated woman who understands the
importance of an active, healthy lifestyle. . . to achieve physical fitness and inner peace.” This customer
was also described as being “increasingly tasked with the dual responsibilities of career and family.”
While the company primarily targeted adult women, it had also successfully developed products for men
and youth. In 2009, Lululemon launched a brand aimed at the female youth market, ivivva athletica,
described as dance-inspired products. The organization strove to educate its customers about the new
product categories, as well as the diversity of uses of the main lines for non-yoga-related activities, like
running, cycling and general athletics.22
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Early on, bad PR plagued Wilson and, by extension, Lululemon, when the founder’s controversial
comments on subjects like the Japanese, child labour, plus-size customers, feminism and women’s bodies
surfaced on various blogs and in traditional media. Articles with provocative titles like “12 Utterly
Bizarre Facts About The Rise Of Lululemon”23 and “Lululemon Founder Chip Wilson’s 5 Most
Controversial Quotes”24 were released in late 2013.
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After being recognized as Entrepreneur of the Year in Canada by the National Post 2005, Wilson wrote a
special citation for the National Post. In it, he described how the company name, Lululemon, was
designed with Japanese consumers in mind, as the letter ‘L’ was not present in Japanese phonetics and
would allow Lululemon to be viewed as authentically North American.25 Wilson, when reflecting on a
previous company he had sold to Japanese investors, said:
L is not in [the Japanese] vocabulary. It’s a tough pronunciation for them. So I thought, next time
I have a company, I’ll make a name with three Ls and see if I can get three times the money. It’s
kind of exotic for them. I was playing with Ls and I came up with Lululemon. It’s funny to watch
them try to say it.”26
Do
Later in 2005, TheTyee.ca, an independent online news magazine, accused Wilson of condoning child
labor. Wilson was reported as having said in a conference presentation that child labor provided muchneeded wages to impoverished youth and suggesting that Canadian street youths could also benefit from
factory work.27
Lululemon also faced criticism from some employees and consumer advocates regarding its treatment of
plus-sized customers. Staff reported that, while most merchandise was attractively showcased throughout
the showroom, plus-sized clothing was often stored in a shoddy manner at the rear of the store and was
rarely restocked.28 In 2005, Wilson was reported by Canada’s Calgary Herald as referring to plus-sized
clothing as a “money loser,” citing pricing considerations. Wilson allegedly told the reporter that it took
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30 per cent more fabric to produce plus-size clothing. He also said that it would not be possible to charge
more for the clothing for two key reasons: first, heavier consumers would not be willing to pay the higher
price; secondly, such a pricing scheme could result in him being taken to the human rights commission by
plus-size people, as that demographic was “very sensitive.”29 While many clothing companies reportedly
pursued a similar strategy, critics were disappointed with Lululemon, given that its brand emphasized
leading a healthy and balanced lifestyle and aspiring for better health.30
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In 2009, Wilson angered some customers when he wrote a blog post explaining that Lululemon was
created because “female education levels, breast cancer, yoga/athletics and the desire to dress feminine
came together all at one time.” In the same post, he linked the introduction of the birth control pill to the