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Lululemon’s board members were under pressure. The company’s estranged founder had launched a proxy fight, with a big-name activist investor waiting in the wings, and the board was being pushed to quickly recruit a new chief executive who could turn things around. When Lululemon landed on former Nike executive Heidi O’Neill for the job last week, Chairwoman Marti Morfitt and the board thought they had it in the bag.

Sportswear is still a growth market, but not every brand is winning equally. North American retail sales of sports-related apparel and footwear were projected to reach $173 billion in 2025 and rise to $209 billion by 2029, according to a McKinsey & Company report. But the report also ...