Sports, fitness and apparel brand Gymshark has announced that it has secured investment from private equity firm General Atlantic in a deal that values the company at more than £1 billion. The investment will see General Atlantic take a 21% stake in the business, and Melis Kahya Akar, head of consumer for EMEA at General Atlantic, taking a seat on the Gymshark board. While founder Ben Francis has increased his stake in the company to over 70%. 

The valuation sees Gymshark join an exclusive list of fewer than 25 British companies to have secured 'Unicorn' status since 2001, achieving the feat in just eight years. It is also only the second British company to have reached this milestone without previous support from external investors

In a statement, Ben Francis said: "I’m incredibly proud of what Gymshark has achieved to date from our roots in Birmingham, but it’s all about looking forward. I firmly believe Gymshark has the potential to be to the UK what Nike is to the US and Adidas is to Germany, and today is a significant step to realising that."