Dive Brief:

• Under Armour launched “UA Shop” Tuesday, its first mobile shopping app that uses information from more than 170 million customers worldwide to make shopping suggestions.

• The fitness retailer is aiming to provide a highly personalized experience to its customers by integrating data from the shopping app and its "Connected Fitness" platform on purchases, workouts, search, and location.

• Customers who have UA Record and MapMyFitness accounts can now sync existing account information to the UA Shop, and integration with its weight loss tracker MyFitnessPal and “personal training” app Endomondo apps are next. 

Dive Insight:

Under Armour’s description of its shopping app, available now for iOS and soon for Android, sounds like the next wave of personalization for retailers, taking advantage of customers' high use of their mobile phones to vacuum up data. And not just data on past purchases, which have often led retailers to clumsily suggest the same (already bought) item or competing item again, but more robust, three-dimensional information that allows for recommendations that will actually resonate.

For example, as the company’s press release notes, a consumer living in a warmer climate logging several runs through their MapMyRun app might get a recommendation for UA’s “CoolSwitch” apparel. Meanwhile, a customer in the Northeast who likes to hike might see recommendations for base layers and outerwear.

Anyone wondering why Under Armour was investing so much in its content and digital efforts can clearly see why now, given how much rich data each of its fitness apps can bring its shopping app. Under Armour currently receives 50% of its e-commerce traffic from mobile, so it only makes sense that the company builds a specific channel for shopping. 

Building a more personalized experience might also help Under Armour avoid the common consumer behavior many retail apps are seeing: a shopper downloads the app, then never uses it.

"UA Shop is the next step in our connected fitness evolution as Under Armour becomes a true Math House," Under Armour SVP of revenue Jason LaRose said in a statement. "This app was created to maximize our digital platform and complement our existing in-store experiences by bringing consumers a way to find the products they want, when they want it. We are now able to provide custom experiences across our various categories specific to our diverse customer base."