by Brendan Dunne
"We began as an apparel company from the outside looking in", Under Armour CEO and founder Kevin Plank told us from the red carpet at the 2014 Footwear News Achievement Awards.
Since the brand's beginnings in 1996, they've trended closer and closer to the center of the sportswear universe. This year had them passing another important milestone, as analysts reported UA's overtaking of adidas as the #2 sports brand in the U.S. Their taking of that spot is especially impressive when you consider the relative lifespans of UA and adidas - the latter had a 72-year headstart. At the helm of the Under Armour enterprise is Plank, a man whose achievements were celebrated this week with a Person of the Year nod at the FNAAs. Here, he talks about giving back to the Maryland community that raised him, his aspriations to win the Triple Crown, and more.
The first business I started was me shoveling snow. After that, selling bracelets, mowing lawns, selling shirts, selling flowers in college, and then Under Armour. I’ve been practicing for this my whole life.
My sports hero growing up was Bo Jackson. I liked Bo Jackson and Bryan Bosworth to be honest with you. I like attitude. Bos and Bo, I think those guys are the architects of offense and defense. In high school I was a football player so I love the game, I love guys with attitude.
Under Armour's best design of the past five years was the Speedform Apollo.
My biggest "aha" moment was recognizing that no one had ever addressed what athletes wore beneath their uniforms. And wondering why people just wore a short sleeve cotton tee in the summer and a long sleeve cotton tee in the winter. Going “Oh my gosh, there is nobody in this market.”
My place I go to unwind is Sagamore Farm, 17 miles north of Baltimore City. It’s a 530 acre horse farm that was owned by Alfred Vanderbilt for 50 years. I purchased it in 2007 and I’ve got about 100 horses, 40 of which are in training with the mission statement of going to win the triple crown.
I am happiest when my kids smile.
The athlete who most embodies the Under Armour spirit, it’s hard to remember but I believe it’s an athlete like Tom Brady.He was virtually one of the last picks of the draft, overlooked, underdog, never thought he could make it. This guy went on to become one of, if not the, greatest quarterbacks of all time. We’ll see, he’s got a lot of career left to play.
I could be better at golf, empathy, patience...I got a long list there.
Some of my favorite travel destinations are the mountains of Utah and the Amalfi Coast. I’ll do 235,000 miles this year, so I get to see a lot.
My legacy will be building a great company and all the things that will unlock from that. We’ll be able help our community and help build a new Baltimore, which is something that’s very important to us.
I knew UA would be successful when we started making shoes.
The next big athlete that we have our eye on is Jordan Spieth. He just won the Australian Open, he’s 21 years old and he’s the next big story in golf.
