![]() ![]() The Co-Founder and CEO of MapMyFitness then became Under Armour’s first Chief Digital Officer. ![]() The Company acquired MapMyFitness, an app with 20m users that uses GPS to track runners and cyclists workouts and shared the results with friends online, for $150m. In 2013, Under Armour took its first step into the digital fitness space. However, by 2013, competitors had largely duplicated its sweat wicking technology and Under Armour had to consider other product adjacencies to maintain a strong competitive advantage in the fitness retail space. Under Armour turned down these offers and instead focused on organic growth and pursued an IPO. The Company also received several acquisition offers – including one from Columbia Sportswear (outdoor apparel and footwear manufacturer). Under Armour faced increase competition from Nike (63% market share in 2005), Adidas (20%) and Reebok (13%) who all had a national and international presences. However with this increased national recognition, came challenges. Since its founding in 1996, Under Armour quickly gained national recognition and achieved $281m of revenue and $35.8m of net income by 2005. ![]() This prototype became the foundation for Under Armour’s initial product – sweat-wicking, base layer shirts. Upon graduation in 1996, Plank created a prototype of a base layer with sweat-wicking technology called HeatGear. Once he was dubbed the “sweatiest player on the team”, he knew that there had to be a better alternative. Plank became increasingly frustrated with the cotton t-shirts that he and his players wore under their football protective equipment. Under Armour was founded by Kevin Plank after his frustration as a football player on University of Maryland’s football team. Under Armour’s Journey to a Data Driven Company: With 2017 sales at $4.98bn and only up 3% over the year prior, will his bet pay off? His view was that data-driven technology would lead Under Armour to generate up to $7.5bn of revenue by fiscal year end 2018. In 2013, Kevin Plank, Founder and CEO of Under Armour, took a huge bet on the wearable technology and fitness tracking industry. If you thought Under Armour was solely a sports apparel company selling athletic gear and sneakers, then I would think again! Under Armour, the third largest sports retailer by sales, is leading among sports retailers in the digital fitness space. ![]()
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