Gymshark was founded in 2012.
Ben Francis has stated that he has big goals for Gymshark, including becoming the United Kingdom’s answer to sportswear giants like Nike, Lululemon, Under Armour, Adidas and Puma.
Ben Francis has been propelled to a status that just 0.35% of people in the world share, that of a billionaire, after establishing a firm just 11 years back. The 30-year-old founder, who built the Gymshark brand while attending college and working as a pizza delivery boy, is one of the youngest billionaires in the world and the youngest in the UK. The Solihull-based fitness wear company is currently valued at £1.25 billion ($1.5 billion). After receiving a sewing machine from his grandmother, Francis founded the business in his family’s house. He now controls 70% of the business after selling around 21% to General Atlantic for $300 million.
The billionaire’s path to founding one of the most well-known fitness businesses in the world began when he was still a student. During his time at Aston University, he developed the original version of the Gymshark website. Ben Francis earlier focused on dropshipping sales of supplements. However, he realised there was a lack of comfortable workout wear and the company decided to go a different path. The entrepreneur was inspired by the discovery to start a clothing business that combined European tapering patterns with American bodybuilder attire. Within two years, Ben Francis personally created the products using a sewing machine and a screen printer with the assistance of his grandma.
Francis’ brand became well-known after making an appearance at a physical fitness expo in the United Kingdom. The company’s revenue increased from $400 per day to $50,000 in just 30 minutes, forcing the creator to leave college and devote all of his time to building the brand. Francis initially left his position as CEO in 2015 but he kept working in a variety of positions, such as chief technology officer, chief marketing officer and chief product officer. He took over as CEO once more in August 2021. Gymshark has continued to gain popularity and is worn by A-list celebrities.
Ben Francis has stated that he has big goals for Gymshark, including becoming the United Kingdom’s answer to sportswear giants like Nike, Lululemon, Under Armour, Adidas and Puma. He also thinks the company can go global, with North America providing half of its income in the future. With the release of the Gymshark Conditioning App, Gymshark has already gone beyond clothes and has aspirations to create more interactive items.
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