Chip Wilson, who founded the Canadian apparel brand Lululemon Athletica in 1998, resigned from the company鈥檚 board of directors on Monday. The move comes as Lululemon faces challenges and an increasingly unhappy consumer base, .
In 2013, customers grumbled that some of Lululemon鈥檚 yoga pants were sometimes too sheer and see-through. Pilling, holes, and tearing seams鈥攅xpensive problems to fix, according to the AP鈥攆orced the company to recall 17 percent of its black yoga pants. Wilson, who at the time was Lululemon鈥檚 chairman, later drew fire when he suggested that the problems with the pants were due to customers鈥 body types and wearing improper sizes. He agreed to step down but remained a board member.
The AP reports that Wilson still owns about 10.3 million shares (7.8 percent) in the company, which is worth more than $650 million.
鈥淚 am happy to say that I now believe the company has returned to the core values that made it great鈥攑roduct, brand, and culture鈥攁nd is back on track,鈥 Wilson said in a statement, . 鈥淎fter careful thought, I believe that now is the right time to step away from the board.鈥 He plans to help his wife and son with their new business, Kit & Ace, which makes machine-washable cashmere clothing and other apparel.