Athletic apparel company Lululemon is under investigation by the Canadian Competition Bureau (CCB) regarding whether it made misleading claims about environmental aspects of its business.
The CCB launched an investigation into alleged deceptive marketing practices at Lululemon after receiving an official complaint by six Canadian residents, Marianne Blondin, a senior CCB spokesperson, confirmed.
“There is no conclusion of wrongdoing at this time,” Blondin said. The bureau did not provide a date by which the investigation would be complete.
“The bureau must conduct a thorough and complete examination of the facts of a case before concluding whether the Competition Act has been contravened,” Blondin said.
Environmental group Stand.earth said in a press release Monday that it filed a complaint about Lululemon with the CCB in February. The bureau notified the group in April that it had begun an investigation, according to a notice of inquiry commencement.
Lululemon’s 2022 impact report “revealed another year of staggering growth in emissions,” Stand.earth claimed. The company’s emissions have increased 100 percent since it launched its “Be Planet” marketing campaign, and more than 60 percent of the materials it uses come from fossil fuels, the group said.
“Lululemon’s business is inconsistent with its public claims to be an environmentally positive company,” the group said.
Lululemon is cooperating with the investigation, a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
The company has reduced greenhouse gas emissions in its owned and operated facilities by 60 percent, the spokesperson said. It aims to have net zero emissions by 2050.
“We are confident that [the CCB’s] review will confirm that the representations we make to the public are accurate and well supported,” the spokesperson said.
No comments yet