Hot! Under Armour

Under Armour is an American sports clothing and accessories company. The company is a supplier of a wide range of sportswear and casual apparel mainly focussing on hi-tech sportswear for professional athletes. It has now broadened its horizons and Under Armour began offering footwear in 2006, it continues to expand its offerings. In Fall of 2010, Under Armour began offering its first line-up of basketball shoes.

History

The company was founded on January 26, 1996 by Kevin Plank , a former football team. Plank and co-founder Jordan Lindgren, also a former University of Maryland Football player, began their business from Plank's grandmother's basement in Washington, DC.

Plank, who got tired of having to change out of the sweat-soaked T-shirts he wore under his jersey, noticed that his compression shorts stayed dry. This was the inspiration to make a T-shirt using moisture-wicking fabric for athletic performance.

By 1996, Under Armour had generated $17,000 in revenue purely by word of mouth. In 1997, Plank had $100,000 in orders to fill and found a factory in Ohio to make the shirts. People began to take notice of the brand when a front page photo of Oakland Raiders quarterback Jeff George wearing an Under Armour mock turtleneck. Following that front page, Under Armour's first major sale came when an equipment manager from Georgia Tech asked Plank for 350 shirts. The deal with Georgia Tech opened the door to a contract with Oliver Stone movie Any Given Sunday , in which Willie Beamen, played by Jamie Foxx , wore an Under Armour jockstrap. Plank sent samples of his products to the costume designer. Leveraging the release of Any Given Sunday, Plank purchased an ad in ESPN The Magazine . The ad generated close to $750,000 in sales, and three years after starting the company, Plank finally put himself on the payroll.

Headquarters

Under Armour's global headquarters is located in Baltimore, Maryland . Its European headquarters is located in Amsterdam's Olympic Stadium; additional offices are located in Denver , Hong Kong , , and .

Military

Many soldiers serving in Afghanistan wear Under Armour for some relief in the hot climate, but parts of the U.S. Military and other NATO forces have banned clothing such as Under Armour in combat situations because polyester fuses to the skin when exposed to flame or intense heat, resulting in severe burns. A new, non-synthetic moisture-wicking garment line called Flame Resistant Organizational Gear has been issued by the Department of Defense that does not share Under Armour's vulnerability to fire.

Retail operations

In late 2007, Under Armour opened its first retail location, at the Annapolis, Maryland . In May 2008, Under Armour also opened a larger 6,000-square-foot (560 m2) store at in . Under Armour has opened several other stores in 2008. Under Armour recently opened their first store outside of North America. This is located in Edinburgh, Scotland, and is run and owned by First XV, the rugby store situated next door.

Athletic teams

Under Armour expanded to other sports worldwide and has supplied such sports as:

Soccer

Since the 2008 2009 season of the Hannover 96 were the first German football club to wear Under Armour shirts. Since the 2010 season of the Deportivo Toluca and Estudiantes Tecos are the first Mexican football clubs to wear Under Armour shirts. Since the 2010-2011 season of the Since the 2011-2012 season of the Israeli Premier League , Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. is the first Israeli football club to wear Under Armour shirts. Once Caldas is the first Colombian football club to be sponsored by Under Armour. will become the first club to have their kit and apparel manufactured by Under Armour in a 5 year deal reported to be worth up to 10m a year, starting in the 2012-2013 season.

Since the 2010 season champion , ASM Clermont Auvergne is the first French rugby club to wear Under Armour uniforms. Under Armour has provided strips for the since 2008.

Colleges

Boston College Eagles

Hawaii Warriors

Maryland Terrapins

South Carolina Gamecocks

South Florida Bulls

Southern Illinois Salukis

North Texas Mean Green

High Schools

Goose Creek Gators

Summerville Greenwave

Winter Park Wildcats

Houston Defenders Select (AAU)

The Maryland Terrapins are considered Under Armour's flagship athletic program.

Miscellaneous

On April 22, 2009, Under Armour and baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. formed an alliance under which the performance apparel, footwear, and equipment company would have significant presence at several venues and events under the auspices of Ripken Baseball, including providing uniforms for the minor league Aberdeen IronBirds and youth teams participating in the Cal Ripken World Series this summer.

Individual athletes

The company also has merchandising deals with individual athletes as well as teams.

American football

Miles Austin (Dallas Cowboys )

Anquan Boldin (Baltimore Ravens )

New England Patriots )

Houston Texans )

San Francisco 49ers )

AJ Hawk ( )

(Baltimore Ravens )

Cincinnati Bengals )

Santana Moss ( )

Cam Newton (Carolina Panthers )

Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie ( )

( )

Ice Hockey

Columbus Blue Jackets )

Boston Bruins )

Golf

Gary Woodland

Lacrosse

Paul Rabil (Boston Cannons )

Mixed Martial Arts

Georges St-Pierre

Basketball

Milwaukee Bucks )

Memphis Grizzlies )

Kemba Walker (Charlotte Bobcats )

Baseball

Jose Reyes (New York Mets )

( )

San Francisco Giants )

Matt Wieters (Baltimore Orioles )

Clayton Kershaw (Los Angeles Dodgers )

Association Football

Paul Robinson (footballer born 1979) (Blackburn Rovers FC )

Product recalls

On April 29, 2009, the United States Consumer Products Safety Commission announced a voluntary recall of all Under Armour brand athletic cups. The cups, which were manufactured in China, may break when struck, posing a risk of serious injury to the athlete. They were sold from January 2006 through March 2009.

Awards

2008 Billie Award in Breakthrough and Innovation for Boom Boom Tap

References

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Barnett, Gigi (2008-05-04). .

Terry, Robert J. (2005-09-23). . Bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2010-04-19.

. Under Armour. February 20, 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-10.

Salter, Chuck (2007-12-09). .

Holt, Stephen (April 10, 2006). .

. Military.com. Retrieved 2010-04-19.

. mirrorfootball.co.uk. 2010-03-09. Retrieved 2010-03-09.

Dime Mag. October 2010.

. Under Armour. 2009-04-29. Retrieved 2009-10-29.

. prnewswire.com. 2008-04-16. Retrieved 2008-04-16.