After dropping out of university Francis used his earnings as a Pizza Hut delivery driver to start Gymshark at the age of 19 with his school friend Lewis Morgan. The pair initially sold bodybuilding supplements before realising gym wear offered higher margins. Francis’s grandmother taught him how to sew and the garage at his family’s home served as a first factory-come-stockroom. Gymshark grew quickly by using Instagram influencers to promote their hoodies, leggings and other kit. A private equity deal in 2020 valued the Solihull-based brand at £1.1bn. Annual sales have more than doubled since then. Initially online only, Gymshark now has bricks-and-mortar stores in Dubai, Bicester Village, Stratford Westfield and on London’s Regent Street.