Under Armour Named Ad Age's 2014 Marketer of the Year

Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank does not mince words when asked about the company's first attempt at attracting women. "We stunk," he said, conceding that the original clothing line in the early 2000s was "made by a bunch of dudes." It was so bad the company sent the first batch, worth $600,000, straight to an incinerator.

But lately the company's sales—not its clothes—are on fire, thanks to a groundbreaking women's campaign, smart PR and a take-no-prisoners approach embodied by Mr. Plank, a feisty former University of Maryland football player whose goal is to topple Nike and become the world's...