Their first big break came 10 months later, in 2013, when they rented a booth at BodyPower, Europe's largest bodybuilding expo. “We were inundated with people who wanted to meet the athletes, wanted to see the product—and [we] sold out at the event,” says Francis.
They began handing out free gear to weightlifting influencers on social media, sending Gymshark’s daily sales volume soaring from $450 worth of merchandise a day to $45,000. Francis then embarked on a guerrilla marketing campaign that relied on paying small amounts to fitness stars with intense online followings, handing out as little as $500 a month to influencers who would flaunt Gymshark clothes in their videos.
In 2018, Gymshark left the garage behind and opened its headquarters in Solihull. Francis then started organizing popups called"We Lift This City" in cities around the world where fans could snag exclusive gear. That same year, Francis was named to30 Under 30 Europe List. Sales exploded once again, growing at an average of 62% each year since 2018.
“When Apple started, it was adopted by architects, creatives and other sorts of cool kids,” Francis says. “Our fans count their macros and know how to do a proper deadlift.”