Gymshark co-founder launches High Court claim against AYBL's Edgerton brothers

Lewis Morgan, co-founder of Gymshark, has brought a High Court claim against AYBL co-founders Reiss and Kristian Edgerton over the circumstances of his departure from the women's sportswear group.

The Times first reported the case on 29 May, based on court documents, with AYBL confirming it would "defend robustly" against the claim.

Morgan, who grew up with the Edgerton brothers in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, and attended the same school, invested in AYBL in 2021 when the business was valued at £50 million. He took on the role of Executive Chairman, overseeing company strategy while the brothers served as joint CEOs.

The claim centres on Morgan's removal as a director in January 2026, following tensions over a proposed IPO, a share sale and his separate Dubai-based energy drink and supplements venture, Ownkind.

According to The Times, the Edgerton brothers and fellow director Sir Robert Pound voted at a board meeting to remove Morgan and terminate his employment. Morgan alleges the outcome was "elaborately planned" and took place in "wholly contrived and abusive circumstances". He accused his former classmates of attempting to "punish" him by seeking to expropriate his shares at the lowest possible price after designating him a "bad leaver".

The Times said a buy-out proposal in January valued AYBL at £81.3 million and Morgan's stake at £15.6 million. Morgan declined the offer.

The Edgerton brothers said Morgan was removed because Ownkind was in "direct competition with Aybl", highlighting Morgan’s alleged failure to sufficiently disclose his work with Ownkind and argue that efforts to use company resources for his personal business interests constituted a breach of his duties. They claimed Morgan had been given the option to fold Ownkind into AYBL but refused.

In a joint statement, Reiss and Kristian Edgerton said: "While this was a personally regrettable situation and one that we never thought we would get to, it was absolutely necessary to protect the company. We will continue to act in the best interests of Aybl Group by defending ourselves against this unfounded claim."

Companies House records show Morgan was appointed as a director on 26 October 2021 and terminated on 30 January 2026. Filings from August 2025 show changes to share rights and articles of association, which align with Morgan's claims that amendments were introduced to enable "good" and "bad" leaver provisions.

AYBL, founded in 2018 in Bromsgrove, reported turnover of £72.36 million and net assets of £18.39 million for the year ended 30 June 2025.