Help wanted: Lululemon's cheeky CEO ad

[June 15, 2013]  NEW YORK (AP) -- If you can hold a headstand for at least 10 minutes, communicate in Sanskrit and enjoy downing wheatgrass and tequila shots on Fridays for work-life balance, Lululemon has a job for you.

After a rocky few months, the company is seeking a new CEO. Lululemon Athletica Inc. has posted a joke-filled want ad that it says shows its "fun and irreverent" brand.

The ad comes as the Canadian company's stock has slid 20 percent after it announced Monday that its current CEO plans to leave. In March, Lululemon suffered a public relations nightmare after pulling too-sheer yoga pants from shelves. The company is known for its pricey yoga pants, which go for $100 a pair.

Lululemon posted a sign on its Facebook page and in stores Thursday reading "CEO Wanted, Apply Within." A job listing on its website says, "You report to no one, you are the CEO (duh)."

The company "love(s) that our stores and social media teams are not afraid to spark a conversation in our communities," Lululemon said in a statement. There have been 160 replies to the ad, said Lululemon spokeswoman Alecia Pulman.

RBC Capital markets analyst Howard Tubin said Lululemon's ad should not be taken too seriously.

"It's in keeping with the fun and irreverent way they like to approach their business," Tubin said. "It's a quirky way of them addressing the situation."

Lululemon's CEO, Christine Day, has said she would stay at the company until a successor is named. Under her leadership over the past five years, Lululemon has grown annual revenue from $274 million to $1.4 billion. It now has more than 200 stores.

Lululemon stock fell 69 cents to close Friday at $66.16. It's down nearly 14 percent in 2013.

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The ad:

CEO

Lululemon Athletica

Founded in 1998 in beautiful Vancouver, BC lululemon athletica creates components for people to live long, healthy and fun lives.

Description

You report to no one, you are the CEO (duh). You are passionate about doing chief executive officer type stuff like making decisions, having a vision and being the head boss person.

A day in the life of a chief executive officer

• You communicate powerfully, often through Sanskrit.

• You are disciplined, focused and can hold headstand for at least 10 minutes.

• You're a long-term thinker. You already have a plan to bring yoga and luon to Mars by 2018.

• You break all the rules like getting your OM-on (loudly) whenever the urge arises.

• You elevate and cultivate the level of talent within the senior leadership team by holding The Bachelor lululemon. Only one successful SVP will get the final rose.

• Not only do you lead the organization to create components for people to live long, healthy and fun lives, you know the secret to how they got the caramel in the Caramilk bar.

• You wear The Mansy to lead our company-wide morning chant and kombucha ritual.

The finer print

• Your go-to party trick is your dead-on impression of the yogi in "Sh(asterisk)T Yogis Say."

• You voted for Pedro.

• You have Chip Wilson, Bill Clinton, Ellen DeGeneres and Oprah Winfrey on speed dial.

• You actively live and breathe the lululemon culture -- on Friday afternoons you hit up wheatgrass and tequila shots (it's called work/life balance).

• You use your third eye to channel innovation.

• Your lineage is directly related to Phidippides.

• You own yoga.

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Link:
http://www.lululemon.com/about/careers/
job-details/?jobId006856

[Associated Press; By MAE ANDERSON]

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