Under Armour is One of America's Best Companies

My Background in Under Armour

As someone who has been a student-athlete my entire life, my interest in the clothing and products I wear has changed over the years.  As a young athlete I wore what was given to me, or what my parents could afford. Most of my attire on the soccer field consisted of a mix of brands from Umbro to Adidas. 

As I grew and became more involved in the sport so did my clothing.  As I started to play for better teams and academies I was directed as to what I could wear. The clothing and equipment began to get better with research and development.  When I began my tenure at the University of Maryland I was presented with a variety of clothing and equipment from the brand Under Armour.  

The Evolution of Under Armour:

Under Armour was developed by Kevin Plank, a UMD alumni.  It is a unique company that is one of America’s best.  Plank came up with the idea when he was a football player at UMD and became tired of cotton shirts becoming sweaty.  Under Armour has continued to evolve over the years and turn into a billion-dollar company.  

Plank began his design by maxing out his credit cards to nearly $40,000 and set up a company is his grandmother’s basement in Washington D.C. After a year he made his first team sale to Georgia Tech.  

Other Division 1 teams followed quickly, along with two dozen NFL teams.  The company soon moved its headquarters to South Baltimore where it developed its now-famous gearlines, which included HeatGear, ColdGear, and AllSeasonGear. 

Tim Ahner, UMD’s Athletic Department’s Head Equipment Manager for 13 years, stated in an interview, “The gear that was here when I first started 13 years ago to now has come leaps and bounds.  They are definitely putting the research and development into many things. We get to see everything first hand because they are 40 miles up the street through testing the equipment, and that goes a long way to telling us how the Under Armour brand continues to grow and get better.” 

Under Armour has been featured in movies such as "Any Given Sunday" and "The Replacements", and in 2003 the brand launched its first television commercial, which introduced a cry for athletes that would change the face of sports in three words: “Protect This House.” 

Under Armour makes the world’s most innovative footwear, apparel, and accessories for a variety of different sports, which is what makes it so unique. It is also available all over the world, and on the brands website. Under Armour’s unique capability to fit athletes of all sports has dressed elite ones such as Cam Newton, Tom Brady, Bryce Harper, Lauren Cheney, Stephen Curry, Misty Copeland, the Welsh Rugby Union, and more.

Ahner discusses how “Under Armour started making football shoes and uniforms and as the years have come on they have gotten a lot better there, especially in the shoes.  They started as an ‘under clothes base layer’ company, and obviously now they’re into everything. So they’ve made leaps and bounds from when they first started.” 

What Makes Under Armour Different?

Under Armour is known best for their innovative Moisture Transport System.  Under Armour apparel works to pull sweat and moisture from your body as your work, and pass it through material where it quickly and easily evaporates. The end result is you and your clothes stay dry, even when you sweat. Under Armour’s "Performance DNA" is sewn into every stitch of its apparel, and is designed to conquer any condition in any game for every athlete.  

The DNA is made up of ten different strands.  First, it has a strategic ventilation that is built into garments at key points where the body dumps heat, and keeps athletes cool in hot conditions. Number two is it’s 4-way stretch which improves mobility and accelerates dry time.  Three is its moisture transport, which keeps the body dry. Next is its odor control due to the fact that the fabric is treated with antimicrobial agents. 

The DNA has ultraviolet protection which shields your skin from the sun’s harmful rays and inhibits premature aging. Modular Protection Zones offer durable, lightweight protection at key contact points without sacrificing compression support. 360 degree reflectivity is a high visibility solution for training safely during low light conditions. 

The gear is wind resistant which blocks wind from penetrating to the body. This helps to regulate core body temperature.  The armourgrip locks gear in place using a tactified compound that prevents slippage. Finally, the Flatlock Seaming is specialized seaming that feels smooth against the skin and prevents chafing.

Under Armour’s distribution of products is very similar to Nike and other athletic brands, most sales come through wholesalers. What makes Under Armour unique is its international sales. Under Armour has extended its presence outside of North America in the past years and has nearly doubled its percentage of international revenue.  

Because Under Armour is a much smaller growth company, it has a great chance of growing sales of its products in other countries. Compared to Nike, Under Armour has been growing at a rapid pace the past few years. Both companies are putting up solid numbers in growth, but “Under Armour’s average of about 30% in both sales and earnings is impressive.” (Nike vs. Under Armour: Which is the better Sportswear Play?) 

Under Armour’s success could be tailored to it being vastly smaller than Nike, and it did imitate Nike’s growth strategy through recruiting athlete sponsorships and started as an athletic-shoe division back in 2006.

Aside from their unique materials and smaller growth schema, Under Armour is a lot different than other brands.  According to Ahner a lot of the differences have to do with the customer service side of things. “Under Armour is very customer service, very athlete driven. Under Armour is trying to get into everything, every sport. That’s the biggest difference I’ve seen, is the customer service on the team side of things. It’s absolutely amazing, we get monthly visits from our customer service representative and we didn’t get that from other brands.”

 This is no surprise as Under Armour states, “If you are not 100% satisfied with your gear, return it for a full refund. Anytime. Any Reason. Guarenteed.”

Under Armour’s Growth as a Company

http://seekingalpha.com/article/737571-under-armour-earnings-preview

It seems each year Under Armour is growing more and more popular in a variety of different sports, and is set for shocking growth over the next decade. “The company is on pace to reach a staggering $20 billion in revenue by 2025, up from nearly $4 billion this year,” according to Morgan Stanley analysts. This graph depicts Under Armour's Revenue and Net income between 2008 and 2011. 

Under Armour continues to grow at an even faster pace than Nike, as well as Adidas (the two biggest sportswear companies in the world). 

Two thirds of Under Armour’s growth over the next couple decades is expected to come from international sales and the company’s digital fitness apps.  “The much younger company has looked to its older rivals as a guide for what works and what doesn’t as it expands into new international markets.  This has already helped UA avoid mistakes and probably allow it to continue growing faster,” 

Plans to expand Under Armour’s operations are already under way.  “The company is aiming to move its global footwear offices to Portland, Oregon near the home of rival Nike by the end of 2016, having leased larger office space there and committing %5.5 million in donations to city parks as a demonstration of goodwill.” There are also plans to open a new manufacturing facility in its home base of Baltimore.

There is still some room for improvement as the company continues to grow.  Ahner states that, “They still have a way to go with shoes. They’re good right now but they are still growing. Their base layer is really good. Their every day wear is good. The one place I would love to see them grow is the outer wear. As far as heavy coats and that type of thing.  That is something that comes with a growing company. It’s not what they excel at, but I would love to see that come a long way.”

 Under Armour plans to continue to research and develop new apparel as their company continues to grow. My only hope is that I am still at University of Maryland to see the product continue to evolve into the best athletic apparel out there.