Lululemon names Athleta's Maggie Gauger president in first C-suite overhaul

Lululemon named Maggie Gauger president and chief product officer on Wednesday, a month to the day since Heidi O'Neill took over as chief executive. Joseph Godsey was appointed chief operating officer. Both roles are newly created and take effect Oct. 26.

Gauger arrives from Athleta, the Gap Inc. activewear division and a direct competitor, where she ran the brand as chief executive and global brand president for a little over a year. She is a long-time Nike veteran, as is O'Neill.

Godsey spent 15 years at Adidas in various leadership roles, alongside stints at Walmart and Sam's Club. As chief operating officer he will run sourcing, production, commercialization, go-to-market, fulfilment and related functions.

The restructure is the first concrete move O'Neill has made since observers began waiting in April to see how she would turn Lululemon around. The company said the evolved structure will sharpen focus on innovation, a distinct brand experience and operational improvements.

"Lululemon is a rare, extraordinary brand, but we have work to do to build a stronger and more competitive company," O'Neill said in a statement. She said the leadership team would coordinate around strategy and execution to serve guests, communities and the business.

Design moves to the centre

Design is now the remit of the new product chief. Gauger will oversee merchandising and design teams as well as footwear, product innovation and materials science, roles aimed at improving the pipeline of differentiated product.

The press release said the new structure is intended to enable "greater focus and speed from product vision through execution" while raising the bar for product excellence and technical innovation. It matters for a company whose recent product has struggled to resonate with shoppers.

At Lululemon, Godsey's stated brief is to "strengthen product quality, execution across the business, and speed-to-market." O'Neill added that connecting brand, product and the guest experience would support a unified approach across the core of the business.

Chief financial officer Meghan Frank and chief commercial officer André Maestrini keep their positions. The pair jointly led the company as co-CEOs once Calvin McDonald left in January. Frank adds brand and technology functions until new leaders are named for those departments.

Shannon Higginson stays on as chief legal and compliance officer, and Susan Gelinas remains chief people and culture officer. At the same time, chief brand and product activation officer Nikki Neuburger and chief supply chain officer Ted Dagnese will leave the company to pursue other opportunities, departing Nov. 6.

Searches still open

Three senior leadership roles and a chief strategy officer, who will report to Frank, remain unfilled. The next chief brand officer will oversee brand marketing, creative, community and the store experience; a communications chief will join the senior leadership team and run communications globally.

The chief technology officer will handle product and supply chain technology, cybersecurity and AI use. O'Neill thanked Neuburger and Dagnese for their contributions and wished them success, describing the changes as a first step toward sustainable, long-term growth.

At Athleta, Gauger is being succeeded on an interim basis by Erika Everett, the brand's current chief marketing officer. A spokesperson said Everett would report to Richard Dickson, president and CEO of Gap Inc., and provide interim oversight and support for the Athleta team.

Gauger's exit is a setback for Gap Inc., which has spent several seasons trying to rebuild Athleta. The division reported 2025 sales down 10 percent to $1.2 billion, and second-quarter sales fell 12 percent to $264 million.

Dickson called Athleta "our rebuild brand" when reporting the quarter, saying the priority was restoring momentum through leaner inventories, less discounting and more regular-price selling. He cited customer acceptance of the new Journey Collection, a six-piece travel and wardrobing range.

Lululemon has been suffering from revenue declines and shrinking profitability. Second-quarter sales fell 4 percent to $2.4 billion, with a 12 percent comparable sales drop in the Americas and 3 percent internationally. Profits dropped 11.2 percent to $329.2 million even with a $134.5 million tariff refund boost.

In full-year 2025, net revenue rose 5 percent to $11.1 billion while income from operations fell 12 percent to $2.2 billion. We reported in September that leggings sales had fallen 20 percent as the new chief executive arrived to a twice-cut guidance and no 2027 plan.

We also noted that Oura's IPO pricing could value the smart ring maker above Lululemon, Prada and Dick's Sporting Goods. Further management changes are expected as the searches continue, with the new appointments effective Oct. 26 and departures set for Nov. 6.

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Images: Courtesy of Lululemon; Lululemon