Under Armour founder Kevin Plank was honored at an event at the company’s “Make you Famous” wall on Wednesday and talked about the days when he was less than famous.
In fact, he was broke when he started a 20-year-old company that he says will make almost $5 billion in revenue this year.
“Like any small business, the key to your business is cash. It was the hardest part of starting our business,” said Plank, before receiving the inaugural Hall of Champions award on Wednesday from the Small Business Administration. The award is for companies that started with SBA help.
How broke was Plank at the start?
He said he had little more than $2,000 in the account for the fledgling sports apparel company in about 1997, but had written $6,000 in checks. So he headed for a blackjack tournament in Atlantic City hoping to make up the difference.
“The mindset of the entrepreneur is I’ve got to cover payroll, I’ve got to cover the checks that I have outstanding. I took my $2,000 and I turned it into $6,000. And then like all entrepreneurs I got sucked in,” he said.
Plank said he played too long, lost the money and then encountered a toll bridge on the drive home.
“It’s one thing to be broke. It’s another thing to be the kind of broke where like you don’t have enough money in your change drawer in your car to pay for the last toll booth going over the Delaware Memorial Bridge,” he said.
“What they do is they get out, they embarrass you, they take your driver’s license, they look at your license plate," Plank said. "They basically shame you into never wanting to feel that again.”
Plank said he soon received a $7,000 check for an order from Georgia Tech and was back in business — and more confident.
Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake appeared with Plank and SBA Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet at the event. It was held in front of the 10-feet tall, 20-feet wide video board at Under Armour headquarters showcasing the brand’s athletes and accomplishments.
During a panel discussion, the mayor said the city is eager to provide aid to emerging small businesses “so people like Kevin, circa 1997, don’t have to go to Atlantic City to meet their payroll.”