Ben Francis, the 29-year-old British entrepreneur who co-founded Gymshark in 2012, and his private equity supporters have started discussions with investment banks and potential institutional investors about a possible public offering, according to Sky News. The talks are said to be in a preliminary stage. There is no certainty that an IPO will follow, considering the bearish market conditions that recently led iFIT Health & Fitness to drop its own plans to go public. Gymshark, which sells its fitness apparel exclusively online in more than 130 countries, got a valuation of more than £1 billion (€1.18bn-$1.36bn) in the summer of 2020 when General Atlantic acquired a 21 percent stake in the company. Its strong growth is said to have continued, thanks especially to its investments in the U.S., which has become Gymshark’s largest market, contributing to a 50 percent increase in sales to £400 million (€471m-$545m) in the financial year ended in July 2021. Francis, who recently replaced Steve Hewitt as CEO, reportedly indicated in a recent discussion with Goldman Sachs executives that he wanted his DTC brand to broaden its presence in the fitness market beyond the supply of apparel.

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