Lululemon's product chief to leave in organizational shuffle

VANCOUVER, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Lululemon Athletica Inc
LULU.O said on Wednesday that its chief product officer is
leaving after just two years with the premium yogawear retailer,
which has struggled in recent months with narrowing margins and
supply-chain hiccups.
Tara Poseley, a former Kmart executive who was hired by
Lululemon in October 2013, will leave "after a transition
period" and her role will be eliminated, the Vancouver-based
company said.
Poseley replaced Sheree Waterson, who departed earlier that
year amid a backlash over the high profile recall of overly
sheer yoga pants and concerns about product quality.
Analysts had lofty expectations for Poseley, who joined up a
couple months ahead of new chief executive Laurent Potvin, and
shares in the yogawear maker, which plunged through the end of
2013, climbed back up in 2014.
But supply-chain woes, concerns over dwindling margins and
another recall has pushed the stock back down in recent months.
Lululemon, which said the leadership changes are aimed at
reinforcing its brand, also announced a new creative director
role, geared at bringing the design of the men's and women's
product lines under the same organizational umbrella.
Lee Holman, who joined Lululemon in 2014 from Nike (N:NKE), was
named to the newly-created executive vice president, creative
director post.
Chief Financial Officer Stuart Haselden will gain broader
responsibilities, including heading up operations, and the
company has also created a new, still unfilled, chief supply
chain officer role.
Analysts last month questioned Lululemon's margins, which
have dwindled as the company has faced higher costs associated
with its international expansion. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N11G3MB
The company has also been hit hard by a series of quality
lapses, including the high profile recall of overly sheer yoga
pants in 2013 and a more recent recall of women's tops due to
injury risks from their drawstrings. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N0ZB1Y0