Kevin Plank

Kevin Audette Plank (born August 13, 1972) is an American billionaire businessman and philanthropist.

Plank is the founder and executive chairman of Under Armour, a manufacturer of sportswear, footwear and accessories, based in Baltimore, Maryland.

As of October 2021, his net worth was estimated at US$1.8 billion.

Plank, a Roman Catholic, grew up in Kensington, Maryland, a suburb outside of Washington D.C., the youngest of five brothers born to William and Jayne (née Harper) Plank.

His father was a prominent Maryland land developer.

His mother is a former mayor of Kensington, who went on to direct the Office of Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs at the United States Department of State under President Ronald Reagan.

Plank grew up playing youth football with the Maplewood Sports Association; a Maplewood team has appeared in Under Armour commercials.

He left the prestigious Georgetown Preparatory School, a Catholic school, due to poor academic performance and behavioral issues, then went on to graduate from another Catholic school, St. John's College High School, in 1990.

Afterward, he played football at Fork Union Military Academy for a year, trying to get the attention of NCAA Division I schools.

He was not recruited by the top-tier collegiate football programs.

However, he went to University of Maryland, College Park and walked onto the team there.

He graduated in 1996 with a bachelor's degree in business administration.

His roommate at Maryland was football player and professional wrestler Darren Drozdov.

In 1996, Plank finished his first year selling shirts with $17,000 in sales.

Following a 1999 in-ring accident which left Drozdov quadriplegic, Plank personally financed his customized wheelchair.

While at University of Maryland, Plank launched Cupid's Valentine, a seasonal business selling roses on Valentine's Day.

Cupid's Valentine earned $3,000, which Plank used as seed money for Under Armour.

He continued to use the "Cupid" name when he later launched his Cupid's Cup competition.

The idea that led to Under Armour was sparked while playing for the Maryland Terrapins; Plank said he was the "sweatiest guy on the football field".

Frustrated by his cotton T-shirts' inability to keep him dry and comfortable, he searched for a material that would wick the sweat from his body.

After graduating from Maryland, Plank searched for synthetic materials that would keep athletes dry.

Using a mix of his own cash, credit cards, and a Small Business Administration loan, he launched the business.

Plank tried several prototypes before deciding on the one he wanted to use.

Plank originally sought to call his new sportswear company Heart, but he could not trademark it.

He also attempted to name his company Body Armor, but efforts to trademark that name were also unsuccessful.

One day, his brother asked him, "How's that company you're working on … Under Armor?"

The name stuck.

Plank said he chose the British spelling "armour" because he "thought the phone number 888-4ARMOUR was much more compelling than 888-44ARMOR".

Plank initially ran the business from his grandmother's townhouse in Georgetown.

Under Armour's first shirt was the #0037, which Plank sold from his car.

He also asked his former teammates to try on the shirts, claiming that his alternative to a cotton T-shirt would enhance their performance on the field.

As his friends moved on to play professionally, he would send them T-shirts, requesting that they pass them out to other players in their locker rooms.

His first big team sale was to Georgia Tech.

A turning point for him came late in 1999, when Plank used nearly all of Under Armour's money, and employees agreed to go without pay for a few weeks, so the company could take out a $25,000 advertisement in ESPN The Magazine.

The ad resulted in $1 million in direct sales for the following year, and athletes and teams began buying the product.

Plank's company reached $1 billion annual revenue for the first time in 2010, and Plank became a billionaire in 2011, when his net worth was estimated at $1.05 billion.

Between 2014 and 2016, Under Armour spent close to $1 billion to acquire makers of activity- and diet-tracking mobile apps.

Many long-term employees questioned Plank's strategy and whether the company would produce a return on their investment.

Plank spent hours in one-on-one conversations to try to persuade those employees.

"It was important", Plank said, "that this not just be my decision.” The strategy was a success, earning the company the world's largest digital health-and-fitness community, with 150 million users. A few years later, some of these acquisitions would be divested by the next CEO.