GBGH (지비지에이치), a Korean sports-fashion company that operates the US premium luggage brand BRIEFING and a joint venture with Under Armour, launched the premium performance gym-wear brand ROCKPLATE (락플레이트) in February 2025, targeting professional athletes and fitness enthusiasts.

Within less than a year, in January 2026, the company announced it was withdrawing the brand, ending its operations as competition intensified across a gym-wear market that domestic and imported sports brands, SPA labels and athleisure brands had all crowded into.

Entering a saturated activewear market with a premium newcomer means betting on differentiation that a crowded field rarely rewards — ROCKPLATE folded within a year.

GBGH launched a premium performance gym-wear brand in February 2025, arriving late into a market already crowded with domestic and imported sports brands.

SPA and athleisure labels had also entered the gym-wear market, leaving little room for a new premium entrant to stand out.

As the fitness boom cooled and competition intensified, the young brand could not build enough scale to survive.

Entering a saturated activewear market with a premium newcomer means betting on differentiation that a crowded field rarely rewards — ROCKPLATE folded less than a year after launch.

GBGH (지비지에이치), a Korean sports-fashion company that operates the US luggage brand BRIEFING and a joint venture with Under Armour, launched the premium performance gym-wear brand ROCKPLATE in February 2025, targeting athletes and fitness enthusiasts with functional fabrics and three body-fit lines. Within less than a year, in January 2026, the company withdrew the brand, citing fierce competition: domestic and imported sports brands were joined by SPA and athleisure entrants, and the fitness boom had cooled. ROCKPLATE's operations were ended after a short market run.

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The sources

  1. News1 — ROCKPLATE exits its brand within a year: fierce gym-wear competition (Jan 2026) news1.kr
  2. Apparel News — GBGH launches premium performance gym-wear brand ROCKPLATE (Feb 2025) apparelnews.co.kr