90 Inspirational Kevin Plank Quotes [2024] Founder Of Under Armour

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Updated: January 20th, 2022

Kevin Plank is an American billionaire businessman and philanthropist.

He is the founder and executive chairman of Under Armour, a manufacturer of sportswear, footwear and accessories.

In 2017 Plank was awarded as an Achiever of the Year by Success Magazine, Most Creative People in Business by Fast Company and Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Famer.

We've put together an incredible collection of Kevin Plank quotes to read.

Here they are:

90 Inspirational Kevin Plank Quotes [2024] Founder Of Under Armour

List of Inspiring Kevin Plank Quotes

Be prepared to huddle. Kevin Plank

Manage the clock. Kevin Plank

Know your position. Kevin Plank

Run the huddle. Kevin Plank

Execute the play. Kevin Plank

Respect your teammates. Kevin Plank

We don't tell a 17-year-old kid that Nike sucks, because the fact of the matter is, Nike doesn't suck. They're actually very good at what they do. And the kid has a wonderful relationship with them. Kevin Plank

When they walked into the locker room [to change], they threw on their Jordans. And that's okay. We're going to get there. Kevin Plank

There's an entrepreneur right now, scared to death, making excuses, saying, 'It's not the right time just yet.' There's no such thing as a good time. I started an apparel-manufacturing business in the tech-boom years. I mean, come on. Get out of your garage and go take a chance, and start your business Kevin Plank

I loved growing up in Kensington. Summers were big games of capture the flag or kick the can. It was not far from West Side Story. Kevin Plank

[On dinner time as the youngest of five boys and the one who ate really slowly.] Firing line. Kevin Plank

[On mowing the lawn.] In the fourth or fifth grade because his brothers said it was [his] turn. Kevin Plank

I was always a good kid, but I ended up finding trouble from time to time, too. I remember overhearing my mom and dad talking one time… it was just after I had been let go from Georgetown Prep. I was upstairs and hearing my parents talking, and my mom saying, ‘What are we going to do about Kevin?’ and my dad just saying, ‘You know Kevin, he will always be OK.’ Kevin Plank

I am going to be a good student. [Going on to get a B average.] Kevin Plank

[In 2009 on being asked if he pinches himself in light of his success.] No. We do not know how it ends. Kevin Plank

[In 2010 on seeing the Under Armour logo at the top of the team’s practice shorts obscured by the oversized untucked shirts the players are wearing.] You can not see any logo – I would move it to the bottom in the future! Let’s get out to see this stuff! Kevin Plank

[On the potential for companies to get taken over when their turnover is in this range.] The time between $500 million and $1 billion is a weird time, a dead zone. It’s the Bermuda Triangle of apparel companies. Companies get caught… Kevin Plank

[On wanting to make money.] You kind of have that bug. Kevin Plank

[On naming his company Under Armour. Originally he wanted to name the company ‘Heart’ but felt it was too common. Then he thought of ‘Body Armour’ and finally his oldest brother, Bill mistakenly asked him how ‘Under Armour’ was going along.] I thought - that’s it! Kevin Plank

I was always telling people I was doing great, even if I wasn’t. It’s being bigger than you are. I couldn’t tell people I burned through $17,000 in cash and had maxed out $40,000 on my credit cards. But I had one of those moments when I thought: ‘Did I do the right thing? Did I go after the right opportunity?’ And then that day I remember coming home and checking the mail, and in the mail was a check from Georgia Tech, the first school that we’d sold, for $3,800, which had me right back in it. Kevin Plank

[In 2010] It’s no secret there is a great deal of interest in this company. Why sell [the company] to some weenie and watch them take it apart? Then we have to ask someone, ‘Can we leave now?’ No way. Kevin Plank

[In 2010] I'm going to a football game today. Tomorrow, I have a company sales meeting. Tuesday, I fly to China on commercial. I come back Saturday night to Newark, where my jet picks me up. Then I'm back for the Ravens-Colts game, and we're hosting. Kevin Plank

[To his company managers.] If you don’t love doing this, you don’t belong in this industry. It’s like Vince Lombardi said, ‘Act like you’ve been there.’ Kevin Plank

We still have plenty of opportunities to screw things up. Kevin Plank

Great brands are like great stories. And every story has a beginning a middle and an end. And our job is to make sure that every chapter of our stories makes sense to the one in front of it and make sense to the one after it. Kevin Plank

Under Armour was a company that started because I had an idea, and I didn’t have a lot to lose. Kevin Plank

I think there’s too many ideas that are sitting in a garage, or a basement or an attic somewhere that’s somebody’s holding back saying ‘Is now the right time? Should I try, should I go for it?’… Wow some football player from Maryland can start a company and actually have it work so far. Kevin Plank

I run my company much like a team. Kevin Plank

1) The ability to communicate and 2) The ability to focus. Kevin Plank

[In his 16th or 17th year of Under Armour] We grew 38% last year. We’re still a growth company. Kevin Plank

Find out if your product can sell. And if it can sell, do it faster and do it better than anyone else. Kevin Plank

We’ve evolved one chapter at a time… Kevin Plank

Hopefully there’s a room full of entrepreneurs out there. Kevin Plank

The competitive flair that built our country. Enterpreneurship is one of the most undersold resources that we have as a nation. Kevin Plank

There’s a saying that was attributed to the Chairman of Sony several years ago. - Perfection is the enemy of innovation. Kevin Plank

Great brands are like great stories. Kevin Plank

We have not yet built our defining product. Kevin Plank

There is no such thing as an overnight success. Kevin Plank

Best merchants are the ones who dictate cool, not those who try to predict it! Kevin Plank

There's no such thing as a good time. Kevin Plank

[In March 2009] When I look back at what made Under Armour so successful, it is my ability to put a team together. Kevin Plank

Let’s go make some money. Kevin Plank

You need to put your hands around the throat of your business, and you need to run it. There’s no other way. Kevin Plank

One door closed, and another opened. Kevin Plank

I was always the guy who was good at putting a group of people together to believe in one common vision or idea… Kevin Plank

I’ve always had a pretty big motor. Kevin Plank

[As the youngest of five brothers.] Waiting for your underwear to rip was never fun. Kevin Plank

You have to get up and put your work boots on every single day. Kevin Plank

We don't tell a 17-year-old kid that Nike sucks… Kevin Plank

I was always a good kid, but I ended up finding trouble from time to time, too. Kevin Plank

[On drawing the first Under Armour shirt.] I figured it out, I am going to make a T-shirt. Kevin Plank

I was always telling people I was doing great, even if I wasn’t. Kevin Plank

The companies that win are the ones that communicate the best. Kevin Plank

We’re all on the field at the same time. Kevin Plank

You’re not going to win the battle of public opinion in a courtroom. Kevin Plank

We are always smart enough, to be naïve enough, to not know what we can accomplish. Kevin Plank

Why not us? Why not me? Why not you? Kevin Plank

We don’t want to hear loser talk. Kevin Plank

How can you leverage the platform? Kevin Plank

How can we leverage our great brand name into the greatest ideas in the world? Kevin Plank

My first goal was getting athletes to believe in the fact that they needed an alternative to a basic cotton T-shirt. The way you do that is with a great product. Kevin Plank

It was all about making yourself bigger than you were Kevin Plank

[On an Under Armour mock turtleneck being featured when Jeff George was on a front-page photo in USA Today] I remember thinking it’s going to be a big day. The phone rang three times. One was from my mother telling me I still had to get this stuff out of my room at home. It taught me that there is no such thing as an overnight success. You have to get up and put your work boots on every single day. Kevin Plank

[In 2009] Not too many companies out there with north of 93 percent of their business based in the United States can look at launching into a category that'll be a 100 percent allocated, where we have commitments that'll actually be sold for us. Kevin Plank

[In October 2011 in front of 1,000 Under Armour employees.] Boy, there’s a lot of talk out there. Well, let me be the first to tell you guys today, we are not selling this company! Kevin Plank

We are not going to do ourselves any favors by buying into what's printed in newspapers. We control our destiny. We control what this company is going to do. Kevin Plank

[In October 2011] If I ever was offered an amount of money that was larger than what I believed I could get the company to, I would be obligated to sell. Kevin Plank

[On his job offer after finishing college from Prudential Life Insurance.] I would have killed myself. Kevin Plank

I never knew exactly what [the company] was going to look like, but more important, I got up every single day and never believed it couldn't happen. Kevin Plank

[In October 2011] We have a young, beautiful workforce. These were the cool kids in school. Kevin Plank

One person at a time, one resource at a time, one network at a time. Kevin Plank

[On putting together a great team.] It’s about the chemistry, and ultimately that chemistry is what builds your culture. Kevin Plank

Our company culture happens to be built much like a team. Kevin Plank

Our company operates still like a team. Kevin Plank

You’ve got to be thoughtful with your team… Their success or their failure is always a reflection on the culture that we build, the team that we have, and the parameters we put in place in order to build our team. Kevin Plank

[A number one evaluation item on entrepreneurs.] What is the likelihood of these entrepreneurs to be able to attract and retain great talent? Kevin Plank

Listen more than you talk. Kevin Plank

Underpromise and overdeliver. Kevin Plank

Walk with a purpose. Kevin Plank

Dictate the tempo. Kevin Plank

We don’t want to hear loser talk. We’re all dealing with the same hurdles and obstacles. We’re all dealing with the same issues. It’s all about our ability, right now to build a great team. Kevin Plank

[In 2009] I don’t think there’s ever been a better time to start a company than today. Kevin Plank

What’s the problem I can solve? Kevin Plank

It begins with one entrepreneur and one idea and… their ability to communicate and their ability to build a great team. Kevin Plank

You have to be ready to grow. Kevin Plank

[In 2009] It’s not so much about the 2010 plan for us, as much as it’s about the 2020 plan. Where are we headed?… What will be the defining products that we take us there? Kevin Plank

Hockey players actually work out harder after a game than they do during a game. They are worried about getting the lactic acid out of their legs… Kevin Plank

Innovation, innovation, innovation. Kevin Plank

Get out of your garage and go take a chance, and start your business. Kevin Plank

Just Focus! Kevin Plank

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Pat Walls

I'm Pat Walls and I created Starter Story - a website dedicated to helping people start businesses. We interview entrepreneurs from around the world about how they started and grew their businesses.

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