American sports clothing company Under Armour has shown a remarkable profit in their quarterly sales. The success has been instrumented by the endorsement of NBA star Stephen Curry and golfer Jordan Spieth, for their new shoes and apparels.
US no 2, Under Armour’s sports and outdoor apparel sales have also improved by 20 per cent at $666.6 million by March 31. The rise was driven by the demand of clothes for training and golf purpose.
Footwear have also seen a rise of 64 per cent accounting for $264.2 million, because of the strong demand in Speedform Apollo running shoes, Curry One and Curry Two basketball shoes and Drive One golf shoes.
To sum up, the company has forecasted its full year sales to rise up to $5.0 billion from about $4.95 billion. Its net income has jumped to $19.2 million, or 4 cents per share, from $11.7 million, or 3 cents per share, a year earlier.
Analysts on average expected 2 cents on revenue of $1.04 billion; Thomson Reuters released a statement.
The Inception
Under Armour was founded in 1996 by former University of Maryland football player Kevin Plank. It is the poineer of performance apparel designed to keep athletes cool, dry and light throughout the course of a game, practice or workout. The technology behind Under Armour’s diverse product assortment for men, women and youth is complex, but the program for reaping the benefits is simple: wear HeatGear® when it’s hot, ColdGear® when it’s cold, and AllSeasonGear® between the extremes.
The company started with a simple design to make superior T-shirts, that would provide compression and wicked perspiration off your skin rather than absorb it. A shirt that worked with your body to regulate temperature and enhance performance.
Kevin Plank
In 1996, Kevin Plank, a 23-year-old former University of Maryland special teams captain, turned an idea born on the football field into a new industry that changed the way athletes dress forever. Back in his playing days, Plank hated having to change his sweat-soaked cotton T-shirts over and over again during two-a-days. Knowing that there simply had to be something better, he set out to create a solution.
Plank named his new company Under Armour, and after extensive research on the athletic benefits of synthetic fabrics, he designed the first Under Armour HeatGear® T-shirt, which he named the #0037. Engineered with moisture-wicking performance fibers, the shirt helps keep athletes cool, dry, and light in the most brutally hot conditions.
Working from his grandmother’s basement in Washington DC’s Georgetown neighborhood, he traveled up and down the East Coast selling his revolutionary new product out of the trunk of his car. By the end of 1996, Plank made his first team sale, and Under Armour generated $17,000 in sales.
In 1997, Under Armour introduced the now-famous ColdGear® fabric, which keeps athletes warm, dry, and light in cold conditions, and then the AllSeasonGear® line, which keeps athletes comfortable between the extremes.
By the end of 1998, Under Armour outgrew grandma’s basement and moved to an all-new headquarters and warehouse in Baltimore.
The Growth
Under Armour began its journey with Warner Brothers in 1999, as they ordered UA outfits for two of its feature films – Oliver Stone’s Any Given Sunday and The Replacements. Taking advantage of the release of Any Given Sunday, Plank purchased an advertisement in the ESPN which generated a revenue of $750,000 in sales.
Nine years after establishing the company, Plank put himself on payroll.
Part of Under Armour Headquarters located in Locust Point, Maryland. Under Armour became the first outfit manufacturer of the new XFL football league, as it gathered even more attention during the league’s debut on national television. In 2003, the company launched its first television commercial, which centered on their motto, “Protect this house.” In late 2007, Under Armour opened its first full-line full-price retail location at the Westfield Annapolis mall in Annapolis, Maryland.
The Expansion
Under Armour has opened several specialty stores and factory outlet locations in Canada, China, and 39 states including the opening of its first Brand House in Baltimore in 2013 and second Brand House in Tyson’s Corner, Virginia. The brand’s first store outside of North America is located in Edinburgh, Scotland and is run and owned by First XV, the rugby store situated next door. It is planning to make a grand entry in India but as of now, it is only in talking terms.
