Ben Francis

Before launching Gymshark, Francis developed two fitness applications, Fat Loss Abs Guide and iPhysique, which were both listed in the iOS App Store charts.[6]

While at university between 2010 to 2013, he worked for Pizza Hut as a delivery boy earning £5 an hour.[11] He left six months after launching Gymshark.[12][11]

In 2012, aged 19, he launched Gymshark in his parents' garage with school friend Lewis Morgan.[5][8] The website initially sold fitness supplements.[9] Unable to afford to buy stock or secure distribution deals with supplement suppliers, he began dropshipping supplies from other vendors and it took him six weeks to make his first sale.[13]

In 2013, Francis co-founded Manière De Voir, a unisex clothing and accessories fashion company based in the UK.[14][15] He sold his stake in the business in 2018.[14]

Gymshark began life as a supplements company.[16] In 2013, branching out from supplements, Francis began designing and selling fitness apparel on Gymshark's website.[9]

He began manufacturing the products from his parent’s garage in Bromsgrove, using a sewing machine and screen printer he bought with £1,000 of savings.[17][18] He learned how to sew from his mother.[7] Initially, he worked for Gymshark in between his university studies and job at Pizza Hut.[11] During that time, the company was making an average of £500 of sales per day.[17]

In 2013, he exhibited Gymshark's products at the BodyPower fitness trade show in Birmingham.[17] After the trade show ended, a tracksuit went viral on Facebook, generating £30,000 in sales within 30 minutes.[17][7] Francis later left university and quit his job at Pizza Hut to focus on the company full-time.[12]

As a start-up, Francis marketed the brand through partnering with social media influencers, including YouTube body builders Nikki Blackketter and Lex Griffin.[9] Gymshark was one of the first brands to make extensive use of social media influencers.[17]

In 2015, Francis stepped down as CEO of the company to become chief brand officer.[19] At the time, he said the move would allow the company "to grow even more quickly" and give him time to "work on my weaknesses and become a more rounded businessperson".[20]

In 2018, Gymshark opened a new £5 million headquarters in Solihull, West Midlands.[21][22] In 2019, Gymshark opened its own branded gym and innovation hub.[23] Since 2016, Gymshark has been listed on The Sunday Times Fast Track of fast-growing private companies.[24] The company currently sells products in 131 countries.[25]

In August 2020, Gymshark sold a 21% stake to US private equity firm General Atlantic in a deal which valued the company in excess of £1 billion.[26] Francis currently owns more than 70% of the company, which is worth £700 million.[2]

One of the company's mottos is "stay humble".[27]