Lululemon Athletica Scandal

By Brogan Sprout, Bridget Connolly, Lauren Kandrac, Carolyn Weis, Erin Mccoy, Diana
Frigo, and Lauren Shaw

What Happened?
March 2013
Customers were complaining
about sheerness in yoga pants
when doing activities
CEO Chip Wilson blamed
customers, not the company, for
the pilling and sheerness of the
yoga pants
Said some womens bodies
don't work with the pants

Ethical Questions
Is it ethical to blame the customers for the faults of the
company?
o Is it ethical to specifically blame larger women and their bodies for the
problem?

Is it ethical for the CEO to not apologize immediately?

o Is it ethical to remove the CEO from the company?

Is it ethical to continually sell poor products?

o Especially at the Lululemon price?

Areas that need to be addressed...

Founder, Chip Wilsons comments
-

Insulting females, pushing them away from the brand

Putting blame on customers instead of company
Apology
Recall

Quality of products
-

Customers unhappy
Brand needs to revamp
Need to earn back customer loyalty

Ethical process
Potter Box Method of Reasoning
Definition
-

Customer complaints

Values
-

Honesty
Respect
Knowledgeable
Dependable
Success

Ethical process
Ethical Principles
-

Mills Principle of Utility: Seek the greatest happiness for the aggregate
whole.
Kants Categorical Imperative: Act on that maxim which you will to become
a universal law.
Aristotles Golden Mean: Moral virtue is a middle state determined by
practical wisdom.

Loyalties
-

Towards the consumer

Towards the company

Recommendations
-A sincere apology
-Apologize quickly
-Enhance the variety
of size selections
-Display plus size
models in ads

Present day Lululemon

-Lululemon hired a new CEO
-The company tried to change things up a bit
-They lost customers trust and the issue has not really
been addressed. Because of this, sales have declined.

Sources
Christians, Clifford G., Kathy B. Richardson, Mark Fackler, Peggy J. Kreshel, and Robert H. Woods, Jr. Media Ethics:
Cases and Moral Reasoning. Glenview: Pearson Education, 2012. Print.
Kim, Susanna. "Lululemon Founder Chip Wilson's Most Outrageous Quotes." ABC News. ABC News Network, n.d.
Web. 02 Mar. 2015.
Peppers, Margot. "'Frankly, Some Women's Bodies Just Don't Work.' Lululemon Boss Blames Customers' Fat Thighs
for Making His Yoga Pants See-through." Daily Mail. Associated Newspapers, 07 Nov. 2013. Web. 21 Feb.
2015.