Simone Biles’ leotards ignite sales of made-in-America brand

Simone Biles won four more medals during the Paris Olympics, making her the most decorated American gymnast ever. All that attention has also helped push a company that produces American-made apparel into the spotlight. 

GK Elite, which has a factory in Reading, Pennsylvania, makes the leotards worn by Biles and fellow US gymnasts such as Suni Lee, who took home three medals. The exposure helped sales from this Olympics top the games three years ago in Tokyo in just a few days. Those gains have been powered by purchases of replica uniforms that Team USA promoted before going to France.

“You have all these kids that want to wear the same thing as Simone and Suni,” said Matt Cowan, chief executive officer of the brand’s parent company, Elite Sportswear LP, which is majority owned by New York-based private equity firm The Riverside Company.

GK Elite was started about 45 years ago by Sallie Weaver, who took advantage of a gap in the market: gymnasts at the time tended to wear dance leotards because specialized clothing wasn’t available. The company is now the dominant provider of gymnastics apparel worldwide, spanning leggings to men’s shorts and accessories like backpacks. It has collections with US Olympians including Biles, Lee and Jade Carey.

While GK Elite has partnered with US gymnastics for more than two decades, it used to only supply apparel for larger Olympic sponsors such as Under Armour. That changed in Tokyo when the GK Elite logo debuted on Team USA’s leotards. Having branded uniforms at the Olympics sparked a more than 800% jump in social-media followers, Cowan said.

The CEO has helped grow GK Elite by applying lessons learned from the basketball industry — he previously worked at AND1 and Reebok — where fans support their favorite team or player by wearing their jerseys.

Roughly two weeks before the Paris Olympics, GK Elite helped stage an unveiling event with Biles and her teammates for its new competition leotards — a first for US Gymnastics. The idea was to sell replica uniforms — priced at about $90 on the brand’s website — that fans could wear while watching the team compete.

The Olympics — where the gymnastics events are among the most-watched — also represent an opportunity to win over first-time buyers. In the run-up to Paris, GK Elite struck a deal with Dick’s Sporting Goods, the largest US sports gear chain, to sell its products. Its goods are also sold at retailers Target and Amazon.

For Cowan, it’s a way to get in touch with parents whose children want to try out the sport after watching Biles on TV this summer.

These customers won’t necessarily know GK Elite, “but they will say let’s go to Dick’s or Target or Amazon and see what they have,” the CEO said.