lululemon athletica

UVic To Honour Lululemon Founder

UVic To Honour Lululemon Founder

Chip Wilson, founder of yoga-wear giant Lululemon Athletica and one of Canada’s most valuable public companies, has been named the 2012 Distinguished Entrepreneur of the Year by the University if Victoria’s Gustavson School of Business.

“Chip Wilson exemplifies the values of a visionary entrepreneur,” Peter Gustavson, chairman of the Distinguished Entrepreneur of the Year Award committee, said in a statement Monday. “He turned a passion for health and fitness into a worldwide movement and has inspired countless others through his unique outlook and commitment to quality. His values permeate everything he does.”

Read the full article here.

 

Lululemon’s Christine Day Named CEO of the Year

Lululemon's CEO, Christine Day. Source: http://www.torontosun.com/2011/11/23/ lululemons-christine-day-first-woman-named-ceo-of-the-year

On the heels of consumer backlash about the Ayn Rand-inspired quotation that appeared on some Lululemon bags (see story here), Lululemon has made the news again this week as Christine Day was named CEO of the Year by Report on the Business (and the first ever woman to do so!).

The Toronto Sun reports in an article this morning:

Lululemon Athletica Inc.’s Christine Day has become the first woman to be crowned chief executive of the year by a leading business magazine.

Day was chosen for “her ability to create a remarkable bond between the brand and its ultra-loyal fans,” the Report on Business said Wednesday.

Since Day joined the company in 2008, Lululemon has gone from a niche Vancouver startup specializing in yoga wear to an international lifestyle brand
worth nearly $5 billion.

Day has a knack for building strong corporate cultures and cult-like followings around consumer goods. Prior to Lululemon, she spent 20 years at Starbucks, where she held several key management positions.

Day – wife and mother of three now living in Vancouver – has a BA from Central Washington University and is a graduate of Harvard Business School’s Advanced Management Program.

Last year, the magazine named Quebecor’s Pierre Karl Peladeau, Wind Mobile’s Anthony Lacavera and Shaw’s Jim Shaw CEOs of the year. Past winners also include  Chrysler’s Sergio Marchionne and Fairfax Financial’s Prem Watsa.

 

Vancouver Yoga Pants To Blame?

MSN created a list of the Worst-Dressed Cities In The World. Guess who made #3 on the list? That’s right, beautiful Vancouver, BC. The offending reason being that Vancouver is the birthplace of Lululemon Athletica yoga pants – although they don’t specify the company outright, they do allude the famous brand name.

Here’s an excerpt:

There is one reason, and one reason only, why we’ve decided to include Vancouver on this list of the sartorially damned: yoga pants. We blame you, Vancouver, birthplace of a certain, insanely popular yoga gear brand which will go unnamed, for spawning a street trend dreaded by all women with wobbly bits and fat deposits in the wrong places. Really, what gives with the whole wearing of bum hugging workout gear to every other place except the gym? On behalf of women with hips and thighs everywhere, who like their pants to have buttons and zippers thank you very much, and who are of the opinion that yoga pants are a ruse worn by lazy pseudo-fashionistas, we beseech you: unless you plan to do a downward dog within the hour, spare us the yoga pants and put on some real trousers.

What do you think of this list, and the fact that Vancouver’s on it? Let us know in the comments below!

Lululemon Gift Certificate Giveaway!

Our friends at I Heart Wellness (Vancouver ladies who ‘bring the glam to healthy’) are currently offering a chance to win a $250 gift card to lululemon athletica!

Yes, you heard correctly, $250 to spend at Lululemon to purchase more yoga pants, perhaps a new mat, or whatever your heart desires! How do you enter this contest? Visit their Vancouver-based health and wellness website here for all the details.

1SCHOOL 1DAY: BE A PART OF A DAY OF MOVEMENT “BEND 4 A CAUSE”

 The health and fitness community of Vancouver builds a school for the kids in Ethiopia. Want to be part of the movement? Join us for this special event on September 24th, 2011 at 1pm. This is a great opportunity to get Vancouver Yoga Teachers and their students involved in a one day event geared towards spreading the  our love of Yoga, health and movement AND support education in Ethiopia. 

BE A PART OF A DAY OF MOVEMENT :

Education for all should be a basic human right. In developing countries women and girls are around 70% of the beneficiaries, yet many children, especially girls are not given the opportunity to attend school. An educated child will help form the backbone of a healthy society and  help lift the community from the hands of poverty.

On September 24th at 1pm, participants will come together for an hour (or more) of motion to support education in Ethiopia. Participants will choose where they move from a list of our health and fitness affiliates or  –  create your own and become an affiliate. We will share the experience of moving together and on that evening, a Wrap Up Celebration will acknowledge all the great efforts of our community.

1SCHOOL 1DAY GOALS:

  • To raise $100,000 – the cost of One School in Ethiopia via Imagine1day
  • 5,000 Participants moving at the same time all across Greater Vancouver
  • To unify the Health and Fitness community towards a greater good

CALL TO ACTION FOR TEACHERS & STUDENTS:

I would like to propose a Yoga call to action, “Bend 4 A Cause.”  Many of us live all over Vancouver, we read each other posts, we enjoy each others classes, why not ban together and spend an hour (or more) teaching Yoga. The concept is to have as many Yoga teachers teaching outside or inside their chosen parks or places at exactly the same time, with the same purpose –  to raise awareness and much needed funds for education in Ethiopia. This is a movement for social investment.

As part of the health and wellness movement, our combined power will help bring to the forefront of our time, the importance of health and balance, while creating a social change movement  stemming from a unified front to support and empower our  leaders of tomorrow.

If you would like to be part of a whole day of movement, YogaFORM will be spearheading a Yoga Relay, an entire day of movement starting at 9am and will be looking for teachers to hop on board and create the day with me. How amazing would it be to do a variety of Yoga classes, around the city and  zen-co-mingle, get fit, all that the same time. If interested email sarah@fittotrain.com for more details.

To get involved and become an affiliate with 1School 1Day please contact rob.tubajon@1school1day.org  and join a team of talented individuals who are committed to changing the world.

REVIEW: LULULEMON ATHLETICA & THE SAN FRANCISCO MARATHON

 As we all know travelling can sometimes put a damper on your routine, especially if you are heading out of country for an event.  However need not fear, where there is a will there is always a way. 

More importantly, where there is a Lululemon, there is always a way!

Tomorrow I run the San Francisco Marathon, my RUN FOR A CAUSE platform has gone global by supporting both the Canadian Mental Health Association of North and West Vancouver and the San Francisco Mental Health Association. I will be running 42km and advocating, educating and supporting those struggling with mental health and addiction, in honor of my mom.

As we all know Yoga is one of the most therapeutic practices one can embody and practice, as it not only focuses on the discipline of the mind, body and spirit, but it also harnesses the power to go inward and process our greatest strengths and fears. When I travel and RUN FOR A CAUSE I always make it a priority to find a local Yoga studio to rest my weary limbs, and the San Francisco Marathon has managed to combine Yoga & Athletics beautifully.

“Karma Yoga, means giving back and investing in one community” Lululemon knows this mantra well and as part of the extensive Runner’s Expo, Lululemon’s Ambassadors & Runner Specialists will be in full force teaching classes all weekend long for all the runners. And classes are even open to the public!

The runner superhero side of my personality finds solitude in every event expo, as I am able to meet participants from all across the globe, who flock to the expo to seek out community, network, pick up any last minute racing finds and prepare for race day. Combining this energetic frequency with the vibration of a balanced Yoga practice (under the same “serene” roof) is a recipe for perfection leading up to any event.

Lululemon has always been at the top of their game, combining Yoga with organic innovation, towards an authentic space from which they can harness the power of balance and sport. More racing events are seeing the advantage of combining the runners asana practice for the body, and the necessary mindful asana of the mental discipline found in Yoga, which mimics the “runners high” we feel when we stride effortlessly on race day.

The Runner’s Expo classes Lululemon provides, along with their ambassadors create a space from which we can set an intention, visualize our outcome and prepare our body, mind and spirit for race day. Tomorrow I will run the San Francisco Marathon with my BIB displaying “RUN4MOM” and I have Lululemon Athletica San Fran to thank for “Namaste-ing” me into action! More importantly, they are filled with runners, like me, who are so incredibly excited for game day, the ambiance was more then inspirational.

Make sure to stop by the two locations on Grant Avenue and Union Street.

My review – Refreshingly awesome, and ready for the marathon!

SOURCES:

RUN FOR A CAUSE: www.sarahmjamieson.wordpress.com

San Francisco Marathon  Expo & Lululemon Athletica: http://www.thesfmarathon.com/

Lululemon Grant Avenue: http://www.lululemon.com/sanfrancisco/unionsquare

Lululemon Cow Hallow: http://www.lululemon.com/sanfrancisco/cowhollow

Yoga Pants or?

I’ve heard a LOT of talk over the last little while that “Yoga Pants are Not Pants!”  From newspaper articles, word of mouth, to even a pol on Virgin Radio a couple of weeks ago. While yoga pants, specifically lululemon branded ones, seem to be the staple in the yoga community around Vancouver, there seems to be a lot of huffing & puffing about whether or not yoga pants should be worn out in public.

Whether you want to call yoga pants and all the accessories, tanks and hoodies as part of the fashion industry or not, there are certainly enough styles and colours and fabrics to enter them into this category, as I’m sure all the designers who make these items would agree.

So being the devils advocate that I am, I’ve compiled a list of 3 Places to NOT where Yoga Pants and 3 Reasons Yoga Pants are Pants!

3 Reasons Yoga Pants ARE Pants;

  • Well, let’s just say – They are PANTS!
  • They are more cleverly designed than a pair of sweat pants from the 80’s with the elastic ankles.
  • They are available in multiple colours, fabrics and styles and there is something for everybody from straightlegged to tights to capris.

Posted in a Gastown Shop Window; Ishara boutique, 38 Water Street, Vancouver, BC

While the argument can be construed that they are great if you are going to or coming from yoga they aren’t meant to be worn everywhere. Sure, but in reality how are most yoga pants different from regular pants? Form fitting? Yes, but so are tights or pencil skirts for that matter.

But realistically, there is a time and a place for everything! While I will admit, I do wear yoga pants A LOT, as tights or in the summer as capri”s, they are multi functional when I want to run in & take a class, I don’t need to go home and change first. But there are places that we really don’t need to see the lululemon logo!

3 Places to NOT Wear Yoga Pants;

  • Funerals – Take the extra 5 minutes and put on a pair of slacks that will make you come off as being a little bit more modest, especially if you are in a church.
  • Weddings – Unless the wedding involves a yoga class they are probably way too casual to pull off at a wedding.
  • Job Interview and maybe the job depending of course what it is, if you work in a business office downtown, the lulu’s won’t fly!

While I’m sure there are the lover’s and the haters out there on where they should and shouldn’t be worn, but my vote is in; Yoga Pants are Pants! What do you think?

Lululemon Comes Home

Lululemon Comes Home

lululemon athletica has come full circle: it is now officially back home in its birthplace of Kitsilano.

Previously located on Clark Drive, the Vancouver yoga apparel company’s corporate headquarters now resides at the base of the Burrard Street Bridge, overlooking Kits Beach and the beautiful North Shore mountains. Its head office has been occupied by more than 300 lulu employees since late Fall 2010. lululemon announced that they expect to complete the purchase of the building, located at 1818 Cornwall Avenue, on or around March 1, 2011.

Founded in 1998, by Chip Wilson (who also started Westbeach Sports in 1979), lululemon’s first real store opened in the heart of Kitsilano, on West 4th Ave, in November of 2000.

Welcome home lululemon!

[lulumum]

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