US-headquartered Under Armour is planning to launch 15 new stores in India in 2020. The $5 billion-plus premium sportswear brand will be investing Rs 2-3 crore per store.
The brand exited 2019 with 10 stores, with all of the stores being franchise-owned and operated. It further plans to exit 2020 with 25 stores.
Under Armour’s new stores will be introduced in Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chandigarh and Lucknow. Its retail strategy is to unveil stores in the ground floor of premium malls as it gives the brand greater and faster visibility as people walk in.
Tushar Goculdas, Managing Director, Under Armour India, said, “We opened our largest 4,000 sq ft store on Christmas day at the Mall of India in Noida and exited 2019 with 10 stores in premier malls across Bengaluru, Chennai, Pune, Gurgaon, Noida, Surat and Guwahati. The plan is to open 15 new stores at an average size of 2,000 sq ft and exit 2020 with 25 stores. All of our stores are franchise-owned and operated and each store is set up at an investment of Rs 2-3 crore, depending on the size of the store.”
Indian debut of Under Armour
Under Armour is the world’s third largest sportswear brand after Nike and Adidas. It made its India debut on Amazon.in with an exclusive partnership in March 2017.
The brand incorporated its India subsidiary, Under Armour India Trading Pvt Ltd, in October 2018. In March 2019, Under Armour launched its first 1,900 sq ft store in Delhi at the DLF Promenade Mall.
“Interestingly, our first store in DLF Promenade, which raked in Rs 1.75 crore sales in its first month, is currently grossing the highest sales per sq ft in the world,” Goculdas stated.
The brand is also available on Myntra and Flipkart.
Globally, Under Armour owned and operated 370 stores at the end of 2019.
Specialization in sports performance wears
Under Armour, which began with a simple idea of making a sweat-wicking T-shirt over two decades ago, now specialises in sports performance wear. These include apparel, footwear and accessories for men, women and youth.
The brand is worn and endorsed by some of the world’s top athletes like Stephen Curry, Andy Murray, Michael Phelps, Lindsey Vonn and Jordan Spieth.
Goculdas said, “Our two largest sports verticals are running gear and training/workout gear; we also have golf and basketball sportswear. We will soon bring in more niche sportswear like hiking and outdoor/adventure sports, which is very big for us in the US.”
Under Armour’s target audience are the focus performers from the mid-teens to the late 30s, who play his/her sport on a regular basis, or who work out on a regular basis and is constantly training and striving to improve his/her performance.
“In the last 5-7 years, people in their 40s are taking to sport in a very big way in India; we are targeting this segment too,” he added.
