Final Post

I have very much enjoyed learning more about the Under Armour brand and company. This company is very passionate and I think I would love working for them. I have actually contemplated applying before, but I don't think my husband would be up for moving. I really don't have any advice for them as I think they are making good decisions. Especially since right now our country is in a recession, but they are showing record sales. I have followed stock price intermittently and would recommend as well as invest in them myself. They still have a lot of room to grow and I feel are making the strategic decisions to take advantage of the market.

Forbes video

The link below is to a video posted on the Forbes website that centers on Under Armour breakthough into the sports apparel industry and the mentality and mindsets it has instilled in a younger generation.
http://video.forbes.com/fvn/sportsmoney/yes-sm-under-armours-brand?partner=email

Post Workout Recovery Suit = NEAT!

Today while looking through videos on You Tube I found the one below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kL8by1IZjCU

I had heard about this recovery suit in passing but never looked for any information on it. This technology seems awesome. The suit is meant to be worn for approximately 24 hours after your workout and uses compression to keep your muscles from swelling and promote quicker rebuilding and recovery. For someone who is active it isn't really that expensive (top is $100 and bottoms are $90) for the recovery it offers.

Kevin Plank, CEO and founder of Under Armour

Kevin Plank comes from a middle class family in Maryland. He is the youngest of five and loved football. In college while playing for the University of Maryland he became frustrated with the heaviness of his cotton t-shirts soaked in sweat and would often change multiple times to keep them from weighing him down. According to friends and family he was always tinkering in new businesses and concepts and decided to go to a fabric store to see if there was a material that would work better than cotton. He found a synthetic material that wicked the moisture away from the skin keeping the shirt weightless and athlete cool. He then marketed these shirts to pro-football player friends and convinced them to hand them out in the locker rooms.

From a Sports Illustrated article on the story of Under Armour, "The company says its operations steer toward the unconventional. Unlike many other firms, all campaigns and creative design are done on the property. No contract agencies are involved in business operations. There are also no grand facilities to wear-test products, except for a turf area to test some aspects of shoe performance. The company says it prefers to use real-world conditions, including terrain differentiation and weather factors, while receiving feedback from various running clubs and their stable of athletes."

Although I have found no formal designation of centralized or decentralized structure I would lean towards decentralized. Several places I have read that the corporate culture is that of an athletic team. That team meetings are referred to as huddles and employees are treated as teammates instead of subordinates. These types of descriptions seem to create an environment where input is encouraged from all levels.

A note on partnerships....

Here are a few partnerships Under Armour has undertaken.

Most recently UA has partnered with IMG Performance to develop a comprehensive athletic training program called "Combine 360". IMG is an institute that offers athletic training and schooling to all ages. Their goal is to establish a global measurement standard for improved sports performance, health and fitness.

UA partnered with Unlimited Sports Group (USG) in 2007 to manage the distribution of UA products in Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg.

Ripken Baseball Inc. and UA formed a five-year business alliance in April of 2009 for Under Armour to have an increased presence at Ripken's baseball properties. Ripken has a long-time relationship with NIKE that ended last year.

For those MMA fans....

For those mixed martial arts fans GSP just signed a multi-year contract to be the face and body of Under Armour. MMA is growing and has been growing in popularity very rapidly. I think George St-Pierre will resonate with many people that Under Armour may have not previously touched. http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Under-Armour-Throws-KnockOut-prnews-2037676487.html?x=0&.v=1