Under Armour Stock

Under Armour, Inc. (Under Armour) engages in the development, marketing and distribution of branded performance apparel, footwear and accessories for men, women and youth.

The company’s performance products are engineered in many designs and styles for use in nearly every climate and are worn worldwide by athletes at all levels, from youth to professional, on various playing fields around the globe and by consumers with active lifestyles.

The company generates net revenues from the sale of its products globally to national, regional, independent and specialty wholesalers and distributors. The company also generates net revenue from the sale of its products through its direct-to-consumer sales channel, which includes its owned Brand and Factory House stores and e-commerce websites. The company plans to continue to grow its business over the long-term through increased sales of its apparel, footwear and accessories; growth in its direct-to-consumer sales channel; and expansion of its wholesale distribution. The company’s digital strategy is focused on supporting these long-term objectives, emphasizing connection and engagement with its consumers through multiple digital touchpoints.

Products

The company’s product offerings consist of apparel, footwear and accessories for men, women and youth. The company markets its products at multiple price levels and provide consumers with products that are superior to non-performance-oriented athletic products. The company’s products are primarily designed for athletic and active occasions, though many of its products can be worn or used in casual occasions.

Apparel

The company’s apparel is offered in a variety of styles and fits to enhance comfort and mobility, support active movement, regulate body temperature and improve performance regardless of weather conditions. The company’s apparel is engineered to replace non-performance fabrics in athletics and fitness applications with innovation and technologies designed and merchandised with various techniques and styles. The company’s apparel comes in three primary fit types: compression (tight fit), fitted (athletic fit) and loose (relaxed fit).

The company’s apparel products, include COLDGEAR, COLDGEAR INFRARED, HEATGEAR, UA Iso-Chill, UA RUSH, UA SMARTFORM and UA STORM.

Footwear

Footwear includes products for running, training, basketball, cleated sports, recovery and outdoor applications. The company’s footwear is built with the mindset of making athletes better through differentiated and industry leading cushioning technologies, such as Charged Cushioning, UA Flow, HOVR and UA Micro G. These cushioning platforms provide athletes with plush underfoot and improved ground feel, enhanced responsiveness and lightweight solutions. The company also incorporates advanced materials and innovative consumer-centric constructions to enhance performance.

Accessories

Accessories primarily includes the sale of athletic performance gloves, bags, headwear, socks and sports masks. Some of the company’s accessories include the technologies mentioned above and are designed with advanced fabrications to provide the same level of performance as its other products.

License

The company has agreements with licensees to develop certain Under Armour apparel, footwear, accessories and equipment. To maintain consistent brand quality, performance and compliance standards, the company’s product, marketing, sales and quality assurance teams are involved in all steps of the design and go-to-market process. As of March 31, 2023, the company’s licensees offered collegiate apparel and accessories, baby and youth apparel, team uniforms, socks, water bottles, eyewear and other specific hard goods equipment that feature performance advantages and functionality like its other product offerings.

Marketing and Promotion

The company focuses on marketing its products to consumers primarily for use in athletics, fitness, and training activities, emphasizing its ability to support the needs of its athletes at all moments of their day. The company seeks to drive consumer demand by building brand awareness that its products deliver advantages to help athletes perform better.

Sports Marketing

The company’s marketing and promotion strategy begins with providing and selling its products to high-performing athletes and teams at the high school, collegiate and professional levels. The company executes this strategy through outfitting agreements, professional, club and collegiate sponsorship, individual athlete and influencer agreements and by providing and selling its products directly to teams and individual athletes. The company also seeks to sponsor and host consumer events to drive awareness and brand authenticity from a grassroots level by hosting combines, camps and clinics for young athletes in a variety of sports. As a result, the company’s products are seen on the field and the court, and by various consumer audiences through the internet, television, magazines and live sporting events.

The company is the official outfitter of athletic teams in several high-profile collegiate conferences and professional sport organizations, supporting the athletes on and off the field. The company sponsors and sells its products to international sports teams, which helps drive brand awareness in various countries and regions worldwide. Further, the company leverages its relationships with athletes, teams, leagues and youth experiences in its global and regional marketing and promotions.

Media

The company features its products in a variety of national digital, broadcast, and print media outlets. The company also utilizes social media to engage consumers and promote connectivity with its brand and products while engaging with its consumers throughout their day.

Retail Presentation

A key component of the company’s strategy to secure prime floor space within its major wholesale accounts is the design of Under Armour point of sale displays and concept shops, which enhance its brand’s presentation by creating a shop-in-shop approach using dedicated space—including flooring, lighting, walls, displays and images—exclusively for its products through which the company creates an exciting environment for the consumer to experience and learn about its brand.

Sales and Distribution

The majority of the company’s sales are generated through wholesale channels, including national and regional sporting goods chains, independent and specialty retailers, department store chains, mono-branded Under Armour retail stores in certain international markets, institutional athletic departments and leagues and teams. In various countries where the company does not have direct sales operations, it sells its products to independent distributors or engage licensees to sell its products.

The company also sells its products directly to consumers through its global network of Brand and Factory House stores and e-commerce websites. Factory House store products are specifically designed for sale in the company’s Factory House stores and serve an important role in its overall inventory management by allowing it to sell a portion of excess, discontinued and out-of-season products, while maintaining the pricing integrity of its brand in its other distribution channels.

The company’s primary business operates in four geographic segments: North America, comprising the United States and Canada, Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), the Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. These geographic segments operate predominantly in one industry: developing, marketing and distributing branded performance apparel, footwear and accessories.

Corporate Other consists primarily of operating results related to the company’s MapMyFitness digital platform, which includes MapMyRun and MapMyRide (collectively MMR), and other digital business opportunities.

North America

The company sells its apparel, footwear and accessories in North America through wholesale and direct-to-consumer channels.

The company’s direct-to-consumer sales are generated through its Brand and Factory House stores and e-commerce website. In North America, the company has Factory House stores primarily located in outlet centers and Brand House stores throughout the United States and Canada. Consumers can also purchase the company’s products directly from its e-commerce website.

In addition, the company earns license revenues in North America based on its licensees' sales of collegiate apparel and accessories, as well as other licensed products.

The company distributes the majority of its products to its North American wholesale customers and its own retail stores and e-commerce channels from distribution facilities it leases and operates in California, Maryland and Tennessee. In addition, the company distributes its products in North America through third-party logistics providers with primary locations in Canada, New Jersey and Florida. In some instances, the company arranges to have products shipped directly to customer-designated facilities from the factories that manufacture its products.

EMEA

The company sells its apparel, footwear and accessories in EMEA primarily through wholesale customers and independent distributors, along with e-commerce websites and Brand and Factory House stores it operates within Europe. The company also sells its branded products to various sports clubs and teams in Europe. The company generally distributes its products to its retail customers and e-commerce consumers in Europe through a third-party logistics provider in the Netherlands and a bonded warehouse in the United Kingdom. The company sells its apparel, footwear and accessories through independent distributors in the Middle East and Africa.

The Asia-Pacific

The company sells its apparel, footwear and accessories products in China, South Korea, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand through stores operated by its distribution and wholesale partners, along with e-commerce websites and Brand and Factory House stores that it owns and operates. The company also sells its products to distributors in New Zealand, Taiwan, Hong Kong, India and other countries in Southeast Asia where it does not have direct sales operations. The company distributes its products in the Asia-Pacific through third-party logistics providers based in Hong Kong, China, South Korea, Australia and Singapore.

The company has a license agreement with a partner in Japan, which produces, markets and sells its branded apparel, footwear and accessories. The company’s branded products are sold in this market to large sporting goods retailers, independent specialty stores, professional sports teams and licensee-owned retail stores. The company holds a non-controlling stake in its partner.

Latin America

The company sells its apparel, footwear and accessories in Mexico through wholesale and direct-to-consumer channels. In countries where the company no longer has direct sales operations, such as Chile, Argentina, Colombia and Brazil, it distributes its products through independent distributors, sourced primarily through its international distribution hub in Panama.

Intellectual Property

The company’s major trademarks include the UA Logo logo.jpg and UNDER ARMOUR, both of which are registered in the United States, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Japan, China and numerous other countries. The company also owns trademark registrations for other trademarks, including, among others, UA, ARMOUR, HEATGEAR, HOVR, COLDGEAR, PROTECT THIS HOUSE, I WILL, and many trademarks that incorporate the term ARMOUR, such as ARMOUR FLEECE and ARMOUR BRA. The company also owns registrations to protect its connected fitness branding, such as MapMyFitness and associated MapMy marks. The company owns domain names for its primary trademarks (most notably underarmour.com and ua.com) and holds copyright registrations for several commercials, as well as for certain artwork.

Competition

The company’s direct competitors include, among others, NIKE, Adidas, Puma and lululemon athletica.

History

Under Armour, Inc. was founded in 1996. The company was incorporated as a Maryland corporation in 1996.