-
This story is sponsored by Storyblocks. “Hey, excuse me.
Yeah, how are you doing?” “Hey, can you tell me where the Under
Armour coal black golf gear is?” “Are you?” “Tom Brady.”
“From Boston?” “Your accent! Hey, where’s the Under Armour!?” Under Armour is one of the
top three sportswear brands in the world — worth $12 billion. The company is widely known for creating
t-shirts that could wick away sweat faster than anything else on the market, while
keeping athletes cool, dry and light. The idea came to mind after a college
football player realized his biggest opponent was his own buckets of sweat. The cotton t-shirts he had to wear
on the field would constantly get soaked and even drag him down. Eager to perform at his best, he used all
of his savings and maxed out his credit cards to create an alternative from his
grandmother’s basement — hitting rock bottom for many years before outfitting
leagues like the NFL, MLB, and NHL. Kevin Plank was born in 1972 in
Kensington, Maryland, as the youngest of five brothers to a middle class family. His mother was the mayor of Kensington
before directing the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, and his
father worked as a land developer. As the youngest in his family, Kevin
was forced to become athletic to escape his brothers’ “babysitting.” While
his parents were away, his brothers often looked after him by giving him a
wedgie, putting him on a coat hanger, and then shoving him in a closet. Overtime, the athletic skills
Kevin built up led to a passion for sports, specifically football,
which he pursued at Georgetown Prep. There, Kevin played football on the
varsity squad — up until he was kicked out. After failing not one but two classes,
Kevin got into a drunken brawl with some Georgetown University football players. At that point, Georgetown Prep had
enough of Kevin not living up to their standards and decided to expel him. Fortunately, it didn’t take long
for Kevin to find a new school. St. John’s College High School took notice of his
football skills and invited him to attend. Kevin gladly accepted their offer. Having been given a second
chance, Kevin started to take school and sports more seriously. He wanted to play more than just varsity
football and hoped to get recruited for Division I college football. Sadly, he never received a
single recruitment offer. Before we get into the next part of
the story, we would like to quickly thank our sponsor, Storyblocks. Storyblocks offers unlimited downloads
of high-quality, royalty-free stock video, audio and images. With a Storyblocks unlimited all access
plan, subscribers can choose from a vast and diverse library of stock video,
motion backgrounds, special effects, After Effects templates, production
music, sound effects, and more. And if you're part of a marketing team
or larger organization, their enterprise license has your back with comprehensive
coverage for your entire company that enables you to distribute wherever, whenever. Thanks to Storyblocks, we’ve enhanced
how we bring our stories to life while saving on time, budget and resources. To check them out, simply
go to storyblocks.com/hook. Hellbent on not giving up on his
dream, Kevin graduated from St. John’s early and enrolled in Fork
Union Military Academy — a school with a reputation for sending NFL hopefuls
to top college football programs. But once again, history repeated itself,
and Kevin never received an offer. Eventually, Kevin decided to enroll
in the University of Maryland’s business administration program. There, he played for their football team,
the Terrapins, as a walk-on — a player who is recruited without an athletics scholarship. Overtime, Kevin managed to
work his way up to becoming the Terrapins’ special teams captain. And somehow, when he wasn’t in
class or on the field, he worked various odd jobs like selling roses
on campus and t-shirts at concerts. Kevin seemingly had it all together
— balancing school, sports, and work. But during his sophomore year, he received
devastating news that threw him off. His father had passed away from blood cancer. Following the tragic loss of his
father, Kevin threw himself into sports but found himself constantly
struggling to perform at his best. The cotton shirts he had to wear under
his uniform would alway soak up his sweat, drag him down on the field,
and then leave him feeling cold, wet, and heavy; a feeling that he hated. Kevin became eager to find an alternative
but discovered none existed on the market — leading to a realization
that could possibly change that. One day, Kevin noticed that his Lycra
compression shorts — form-fitting garments made from a variety of synthetic fabrics
— always seemed to stay dry during workouts. He wondered why he had never seen
shirts made with the same material and started looking for something similar. The only products he could find
were high-priced clothes for cold weather climbing — meant to keep
people dry and safe from hypothermia. Kevin then wondered if it was possible
to create something more affordable and quickly decided to try on his own. Kevin first began by visiting a tailor
shop to learn about the different synthetic fabrics and make note of his favorites. He then spent hundreds of dollars
making prototypes and passed them out to fellow Terrapin athletes,
like lacrosse player, Kip Fulks. Many of them gave Kevin suggestions on
what to improve on — leading to his 37th and most favorable design, the Shorty. The Shorty was a soft, skintight,
and stretchy microfiber shirt that could wipe away sweat, while keeping
athletes feeling cool, dry, and light. Kevin was so confident that he had created
an alternative to cotton that while his UMD classmates looked for stable jobs
after graduating, he used all of his savings and maxed out his credit cards
to turn his product into a business. It was a stressful decision. Kevin was betting everything he had,
but fortunately, he wasn’t alone. He had managed to win over Terrapin
lacrosse player, Kip Fulks, to join him as the co-founder of his new business. Together, the two headed to New York City’s
famous garment district to learn more about the industry’s supply chain and find a
company that could manufacture more Shorty’s. Around this time, Kevin realized it was time
to finally come up with a business name. At first, Kevin wanted to call it Heart,
since you wear your Heart on your sleeve, but his trademark application didn’t go through. His next choice was Body Armour, but
that was already taken by body shops and ballistic vest manufacturers. The perfect name later came
in the least likely of places. Enjoying the story so far? Be sure to subscribe to our channel and
ring the bell to get more fascinating stories about industry leaders! The morning that Kevin learned Body
Armour wasn’t available, he made lunch plans with his oldest brother, Bill. When Kevin showed up at his door,
Bill looked out at him and asked, “How’s that company you’re working on? Under Armor?” While many would have been upset
by his cluelessness, Kevin was happy to have found a new name. After making the name Under Armour
official, Kevin and Kip set out to spread the word about the
Shorty’s — later renamed the HeatGear. The two began by sending freebies to anyone
who would take them, and pleaded with some to pass them out to sports players. Some players, like Jim Druckenmiller, tried
them out and quickly became early advocates. While buzz about Under Armour was
growing, the company had yet to make any profit — forcing Kevin to become so broke
that he had to turn to his mom for food. Desperate to get back on his feet, Kevin
headed out to a blackjack tournament in Atlantic City, hoping to win enough
money to pay off $6,000 in unpaid bills. Fortunately, Kevin got lucky
and managed to win that amount. But then he pushed his luck too far
by continuing to play and lost it all. Without a penny to his name, Kevin couldn’t
afford the $2 toll on the bridge to get home. At that moment, he felt like he had
finally hit rock bottom — unaware that orders would soon come to him. One day, Kevin got a call from Georgia Tech. The university’s football team, Yellow
Jackets, wanted to know if his Under Armour shirts came in a long sleeved cut. Kevin immediately told them yes — even
though they didn’t actually exist. Then, he rushed to his manufacturer
to ask if they could be made. Fortunately, it was possible and
Under Armour was able to sign its first deal for 350 shirts. After the shirts were sent off, Georgia Tech
invited Kevin to watch the Yellow Jackets take to the field in Under Armour’s gear. By then, Kevin still struggled with money
issues and couldn’t afford a hotel room. So he had no choice but to sleep in
the stadium’s visiting locker room. Under Armour’s deal with Georgia Tech opened
up more opportunities for the company. Athletes were talking up its
quality, and people were listening. Positive reviews spread through word
of mouth and led to deals with N.C. State University, the Atlanta
Falcons, and the New York Giants. Still, Kevin and Kip faced problems with
getting Under Armour’s gear to their former university team, the Terrapins. The Terrapins were impressed with Under
Armour but had a contract with Nike that made them unable to buy from them. Not one to just take “no” as an answer,
Kevin stepped in when the Terrapins were looking for a turtleneck in red
since Nike couldn’t offer anything. Under Armour not only manufactured
the turtlenecks, but even hid their logo so that the Terrapins could
avoid any repercussions from Nike. By the end of the year, Under
Armour’s sales had gone up from 500 products sold, to over 7,500. The company also launched a new
line of t-shirts called ColdGear, which kept athletes feeling warm,
dry, and light in cold conditions. One year later, Under Armour caught the
attention of the NFL and managed to close a deal to supply their Europe League. When NFL reps were in town, they called
Kevin and asked to stop by his office. Not wanting them to see him working
from his grandmother’s basement, he offered to buy them lunch at
a fine dining steakhouse instead. However, Kevin wasn’t sure if he could
actually afford it, and headed to the bank to withdraw every last dollar. In spite of the continued money issues,
everything that Kevin poured into Under Armour began to pay off that year. After hearing about an Oliver Stone film
in production, Any Given Sunday, Kevin sent Under Armour samples to the set. Sports Robe, the company supplying
the film’s sporting equipment, loved them and asked for more. When Kevin sent them an invoice, they
were shocked but eventually agreed to pay. Finally, Kevin had enough money
to get back on his feet and move operations out of his grandmother’s
basement and into a proper office. When Any Given Sunday was released,
athletes took notice of the Under Armour gear worn by the actors. Soon after, Under Armour saw an
immediate boost in sales and became the fastest-selling soft goods
producer for sportswear store, Eastbay. By the end of the year, Under Armour went
from having to send out small batches of gear out of his grandmother’s basement, to
selling over 200,000 from a proper office. Under Armour also began outfitting the
MLB, NFL, NHL, NCAA, XFL, and even the U.S. archery team for the 2000 Summer Olympics. From then on, Under Armour continued to
grow at a breakneck pace — hiring 100 employees and hitting $55 million in sales. Competitors then took notice and
took advantage of the fact that Kevin didn’t patent Under Armour’s designs. Reebok and Nike soon came out
with similar designs and snatched contracts away from Under Armour. Fortunately, Under Armour still managed
to score a long-awaited goal around this time: becoming the official outfitter for
the University of Maryland’s Terrapins. In the following years, Under Armour
would achieve even bigger wins — but only after accepting one loss after another. After nearly a decade in business,
Kevin and Kip decided it was time to take Under Armour public. Shares were expected to sell at $13
per share but instead reached a high of $31 — making it the first U.S. company in five years to double its
share price on the first day of trading. From then on, Under Armour continued
to grow and impress investors. First, the company expanded into
football cleats and quickly snatched up almost a quarter of the market
— helping them to become the official footwear supplier for the NFL. Afterward, Under Armour’s products
expanded from the big screen to the silver screen, with its gear being seen
in the NBC TV show, Friday Night Lights. One year later, the company opened its
first retail store and revealed a new shoe design in their first Super Bowl ad. By the end of the year, Under
Armour’s apparel revenue increased by 20% and footwear by 40%. In the following years, Under Armour
became more focused on innovating new sportswear performance products. The company introduced a faster drying
cotton shirt, expanded into sports bras, and moved into the digital
space by acquiring MapMyFitness. Under Armour appeared to be
seemingly unstoppable, and once again, competitors took notice. Threatened by Under Armour’s success,
Nike and Adidas ramped up their efforts to take a larger share of the athletic
apparel and footwear market from them. Soon after, Under Armour began to lose sales
for reasons beyond increased competition. While the industry shifted towards
athleisure and fashion trends, Under Armour remained focused on sportswear performance. And while they later partnered up with
designer Tim Coppens to hop on the trend, the collection was considered a failure. Eventually, Kevin stepped down as
Under Armour’s CEO and transferred leadership to former COO, Patrik Frisk. Meanwhile, Kip remained at the company
as its CMO and was later appointed president of footwear and innovation. Under Patrik and Kip’s leadership, Under
Armour continued to innovate new sportswear performance products, particularly for women. It also focused on selling directly to
consumers through its stores and websites as opposed to wholesalers, and better
marketing its brand which included less off-price retailing — a practice where
high-quality goods are sold at cheap prices. Only one year later, Under Armour
experienced their strongest top and bottom results in the company’s history
— thanks to many of the new changes. From the beginning, Under Armour had
called its operations unconventional. The company had been created by an
athlete who was dissatisfied with the workout clothes that were the norm, and
had to make people want an alternative. As it grew, all of its campaigns and creative
designs were worked on in-house, instead of being contracted to other firms, and
instead of grand testing facilities, its products were tested in real life conditions. But when it came to following the industry,
being unconventional is ultimately what led to Under Armour’s stumbles. When the rest of the market pivoted to
follow the athleisure and fashion trends, Under Armour remained set in their
mission to improve performance sportswear. While there were bumps along the
road, in the end, Kevin did manage to convince athletes that they needed
something better than cotton, and built an industry around just that. Today, Kevin’s legacy lives on. Under Armour is now among the
top three sportswear brands in the world — worth $12 billion. This is the story of how a college football
player invented a revolutionary product from his grandmother’s basement and hit rock
bottom for many years, before outfitting leagues like the NFL, MLB, and NHL — turning
the business into a billion-dollar empire. For more interesting stories about
today's biggest companies, don't forget to subscribe to our channel!
