Under Armour Launches Ad Campaign Targeting Female Consumers

Vonn Appearing In Under Armour's New "Protect This House. I Will" Campaign

Under Armour today unveiled a new ad campaign targeting female consumers, titled "Protect This House. I Will." The online campaign, consisting of multiple 30- and 60-second spots and a dedicated Facebook page, features skier Lindsey Vonn, WPS Boston Breakers F Lauren Cheney and sprinter Monica Hargrove. These three Under Armour athletes also appear in a 60-second spot with swimmer Michael Phelps and Bucks G Brandon Jennings. The videos debuted today on Under Armour's YouTube page, and "Protect This House. I Will" banner ads appear across a variety of websites (Under Armour). In N.Y., Elizabeth Olson notes Under Armour is "aiming to win over a new audience -- active young women." Under Armour Chair & CEO Kevin Plank said, “Women’s apparel some day will be larger than our men’s apparel business, which is our goal.” Olson notes this is not the brand's "first attempt to court women," but Under Armour Senior VP/Brand Steve Battista recalls that “its first major effort eight years ago flopped.” UA’s newly designed line includes “compression shorts, a sports bra, shorts, footwear and other training gear." The campaign, a joint effort between Under Armour and Shilo, N.Y., “builds on the company’s successful we’ll-tough-it-out-together theme that it started for its men’s gear.” Olson notes a 60-second TV ad will appear through the end of the Christmas holiday period on ESPN, CW and MTV. The digital portion of the campaign will appear on MTV.com, Facebook and other “teenage-oriented outlets, video sites like Hulu and CW and the high school sports site MaxPreps” (N.Y. TIMES, 9/1).