Under Armour Leveraging Celebrity Endorsements

Kevin Plank created the initial Under Armour product out of a need he experienced while playing football. He developed a shirt football players could wear underneath their equipment that would wick away the sweat and enhance performance. Kevin had developed many relationships/contacts throughout his football playing days and knew that would be the network with which he could begin to expose his product to. He used a gentle approach when he appealed to the NFL players he knew. Rather than asking them to wear his shirts, he appealed to their pride in their performance. That is, wearing Kevin’s shirt could improve their performance. Kevin also encouraged the players to give one to their locker neighbour if they liked the shirt. At a certain point, Kevin faced the challenge between whether it was worthwhile to give away the product for free, or stand his ground and ask for a fair price for the product. Athletes started asking Under Amour to be paid to wear their product before they were ready to do so. Once they established a stronger consumer business, it became more important, and made more sense, to pay athletes for endorsements. Especially as they expanded into new categories, such as footwear, the value of the endorsement became clearer. The athlete endorsements reinforced that Under Armour was an authentic brand that was built for play on the field. Under Armour has been very strategic with its athlete partnerships. They signed NFL star quarterback Tom Brady in November 2010 to a deal that is unique in that it includes equity in the company. Kevin has done this because he wants their biggest partners rooting for Under Armour. They like to have their athletes help drive product innovation as well. Once they launch into a new category, such as football cleats, or basketball shoes, they try to get it right as soon as possible. The way endorsements work has changed over the years. You would put the athlete in an ad or hoped that the logo would be visible on televised games. Athletes now are building their own brands and they look for brands that reflect their lifestyle and values. With the growth of social media, it gives Under Armour many more ways to tell their story and Under Armour has adapted to this and will continue to adapt as the world of social media and the endorsement business continue to evolve.

I don’t have much to critique about this article because I am a fan of Under Armour and think what they have done to build their brand in the face of competition from Nike and Adidas has