Tapout Inc. is an American
multinational corporation
A multinational company (MNC), also referred to as a multinational enterprise (MNE), a transnational enterprise (TNE), a transnational corporation (TNC), an international corporation or a stateless corporation with subtle but contrasting senses, i ...
that designs and manufactures
sports clothing, casual apparel, and accessories headquartered in
Grand Terrace,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
. It was the largest distributor of
MMA
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incor ...
merchandise in the world by 2007, and became one of the dominant brands in activewear and fitness culture.
Tapout was registered in 1997 in
San Bernardino County, California
San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 2,181, ...
, by
Charles Lewis, Jr. and Gary Fields. Selling the merchandise during a period where MMA solely reached a niche market, Lewis and Fields branded the company around the sport, distributing the merchandise in cities where the sport was prevalent. However, following the
growing popularity of mixed martial arts in the United States, and its later nationwide mainstream acceptance, the company became the largest MMA-related merchandise company in the world, accruing
revenue
In accounting, revenue is the total amount of income generated by the sale of goods and services related to the primary operations of the business.
Commercial revenue may also be referred to as sales or as turnover. Some companies receive rev ...
s of over $22.5 million in 2007.
In March 2015, the company was relaunched following its joint-ventured acquisition by pro-wrestling company
WWE, and development firm
Authentic Brands Group.
The venture saw the former MMA-related brand transformed into a more general "lifestyle fitness" one. The apparel, for men and women was released in spring of 2016. Throughout 2015, WWE marketed the brand through various products, including beverages, supplements and gyms.
WWE will hold a 50% stake in the brand, and so will advertise it regularly across all its platforms, hoping to give it one billion
impressions a month, and attempting to rival sports-clothing giant,
Under Armour. All employees and students of the
WWE Performance Center
The WWE Performance Center is the official professional wrestling school system of the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. The promotion currently operates two Performance Center locations, which serve as training facilities for WWE ...
will also wear the clothing.
History
Origins, initial success and sale
Tapout was founded by
Charles Lewis, Jr. and
Gary Fields
Gary Sheldon Fields (born October 1, 1946) is an American economist, the John P. Windmuller Professor of International and Comparative Labor and Professor of Economics at Cornell University. Fields has performed extensive research in labor economi ...
in 1997
in
San Bernardino.
The idea for the company occurred when both men noticed the lack of
mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incor ...
merchandise. Later that year, Lewis took on some new partners in
Dan Caldwell
Dan Caldwell is an American entrepreneur. He was a co-founder of Tapout, and is president of the company. He produces and appears in movies, television series, and documentaries.
Career
Caldwell, along with Charles Lewis and Tim Katz, founded ...
, Tim Katz and Bobby Razak who founded Tapout Films and the media portion of the company. The majority of their initial sales were made at underground MMA fights,
and their revenue reached about $29,000 in 1999.
Lewis and Fields later began to distribute the merchandise in other cities where the then-niche sport was prevalent. However, due to the growth of popularity and acceptance of mixed martial arts in the United States in the following years, the company would continue to grow. Due to this rapid rise, Tapout was able to officially sponsor various high-profile fighters, including
Rashad Evans,
Dan Hardy,
Thiago Alves and
Chael Sonnen.
This rapid growth led to the company becoming the largest distributor of MMA merchandise in the world, recording revenue of about $200 million in 2009.
On June 3, 2007, Lewis created and produced the
reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1 ...
series ''
Tapout
Tap out or Tapout can refer to:
* Tap out, submission in combat sport
* Tapout (clothing brand)
* ''Tapout'' (TV series)
* '' UFC: Tapout'', a video game
* Tap-Out ''(Transformers)'', the name of two fictional characters
* "Tapout" (song), a 20 ...
''. The show followed him as he searched the United States for up-and-coming
mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incor ...
fighters. It aired for two seasons on cable channel
Versus, before being cancelled. It also gave birth to a short-lived radio show, and was the official apparel brand for ''
The Ultimate Fighter
''The Ultimate Fighter'' is an American reality television series and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Pilgrim Media Group currently airing on ESPN+. It previously aired for fourteen s ...
'' during its run on
Spike.
On March 11, 2009, Charles Lewis Jr.
died in a high-speed car crash in
Newport Beach
Newport Beach is a coastal city in South Orange County, California. Newport Beach is known for swimming and sandy beaches. Newport Harbor once supported maritime industries however today, it is used mostly for recreation. Balboa Island draws ...
,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
. Lewis's
Ferrari 360 Challenge Stradale collided with an unidentified 1977 Porsche before hitting a light pole. It is also presumed that the two vehicles were traveling alongside one another at high speed, with Lewis being declared dead at the scene. Lacy Lynn White, a twenty-three-year-old female occupant of Lewis's Ferrari, was ejected from the vehicle and was taken to a hospital, suffering a fractured elbow and lacerations. The driver of the Porsche, Jeffrey David Kirby of Costa Mesa, was arrested for "alcohol-related gross vehicular manslaughter".
As a tribute to his contributions to
UFC, Lewis was posthumously inducted into the
UFC Hall of Fame at the
UFC 100 Fan Expo, as well as his name being made a permanent feature on the inside of the door to the Octagon. Katz and Caldwell, as well as the fans in attendance, held a minute's silence for Lewis. Following his death, the remaining founders decided to sell Tapout, which was bought by
Authentic Brands Group in 2010.
Relaunch with ABG, in conjunction with WWE
Following ABG's absorption of Tapout, the firm looked to re-brand the company. The firm reached out to wrestling entertainment company
WWE in attempts to form a working relationship. WWE, who deal primarily in professional wrestling, came to an agreement with ABG in March 2015 to relaunch Tapout as a joint-venture.
The venture saw the former MMA-related brand transformed into more general "lifestyle fitness" apparel and was released in 2014.
WWE marketed the brand through various products, including beverages, supplements and gyms.
See also
*
Mixed martial arts clothing
References
External links
*
{{Sports equipment brands
1997 establishments in California
2010s fashion
Authentic Brands Group
Clothing brands of the United States
Clothing companies established in 1997
Companies based in San Bernardino County, California
Joint ventures
Manufacturing companies based in Baltimore
Manufacturing companies based in Greater Los Angeles
Sporting goods manufacturers of the United States
Sportswear brands
WWE