Under Armour Has Sights Set On Massive Opportunity

The company has its sights set on what it believes is an absolutely massive opportunity.

Some companies are simply not content to rest on their laurels. Typically, these trailblazing companies have already found massive success with one of their product lines, and the enterprising leadership team has its thoughts on the company’s next big thing before the cash registers ever stop ringing. According to the Motley Fool, that’s the case with Under Armour, and the company has its sights set on what it believes is an absolutely massive opportunity.  

Under Armour has grown from its humble beginnings as the brainchild of a student at the University of Maryland to one that anticipates net revenues of nearly $5 billion in 2016. That doesn’t happen by accident, and company founder Kevin Plank is still the man in charge. Plank came up with the idea for Under Armour signature products while a football player at the school, and from there a business was born. Initially run out of his grandmother’s basement at the time of its founding in 1996, the company is now headquartered in Baltimore, and business is obviously booming. 

Not content to simply be a major player in the athletic gear space, the company is preparing to unveil a new line of sportswear that could be a massive game-changer for the company - and the world of sportswear in general. Under Armour Sportswear will be a slight departure from the brand’s signature athletic apparel lines, but it will place a whole new world of consumers on the menu for the company.   



“Our two competitors claim that their sportswear businesses are somewhere between 20% to 30%, so the aggregate number there is roughly $50 billion, so we assume there's about a $15 billion market opportunity that today Under Armour is playing just a few percentage points for overall growth," Plank said in a recent earnings call. 

This is not just about tackling market share either, as the company is going all in for the new line. The company has tapped designer Tim Coppens of Adidas and Ralph Lauren fame to help them create this segment, and a sneak peek at the line was unveiled during New York Fashion Week. 

"UAS is not just a category play or a distribution play, it's about bringing a new consumer into the Under Armour brand. UAS will bring a young, fresh, and modern voice to sportswear and reflects the insights we've gained as a performance brand now applied to the everyday wardrobe," Plank explains. 

Based on Plank’s previous revolutionary success, competitors in the sportswear industry would be well-advised to sit up and take notice. 

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