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Under Armour Unveils UA PDX, a 70,000 sq ft Innovation Center

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Under Armour opens its doors to a new campus for footwear innovation.

With new Under Armour shoes like the Curry 4 taking the brand’s design language in a different direction, we can expect even greater change in the future as Under Armour prepares a new environment for design. Today, the Baltimore-based company unveiled its brand new UA PDX campus located in Portland, Oregon.

According to Portland Monthly, the UA PDX campus was designed by architecture firm Bora (formerly Broome, Oringdulph, O’Toole, Rudolf & Associates), which took care of the core and shell work, and Lever Architecture, which designed the interiors.

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The UA PDX office will house the design, development, and innovation teams (about 100 Under Armour employees), that are working on the brand’s next generation basketball, running, training, golf, sportstyle, and outdoor footwear. According to Under Armour, it was created to condense and accelerate the footwear and apparel design process by connecting designers and developers with innovation teams and performance analytics.

Originally scheduled to open at the end of summer 2017, the campus has opened right on time — a week before autumn officially begins. It fills the shell of a former YMCA that was left abandoned for years, and in keeping with the spirit of the athlete, UA even kept the YMCA’s old race track intact.

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According to a reliable source, when Under Armour first arrived in Portland it tried to keep its presence and designs secret in a small, unlabeled office. When legendary designers like E. Scott Morris started rolling through, it became difficult to stay invisible in the footwear mecca Portland has become.

Now, the vast new office, which encompasses over 70,000 square feet and sits next to the recently refurbished Duniway Park, will serve as a global innovation center dedicated to footwear research and development.

“Footwear is a key driver of our long-term growth and success,” said Peter Ruppe, Sr. Vice President for Footwear at Under Armour, in a statement. “We’ve established a strong foundation, and now UA PDX represents a considerable leap forward towards creating leading performance footwear designed to make athletes better.”

It will be interesting to see what Under Armour cooks up in its sprawling new space. The company has both made its presence felt in the footwear industry and faced recent challenges, so success in the design and innovation department could go a long way in Under Armour’s pursuit of proving people like Kevin Durant wrong.

Let us know what you think of Under Armour’s latest unveiling in the comments below.

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Source: Under Armour, Portland Monthly

2 comments
  1. Seems like a desperate move to stay relevant by opening a branch where Nike and Adidas already are. It’s like following the cool kids around school. Maybe they’re hoping to also poach some talent. If UA wants to stay around Id keep stuff out of Kohls and focus on higher end performance. This fall I want UA to be more about football season kick-off and playoff baseball rather than back-to-school. It may be too late to right the ship but it’s not impossible

    1. Nike and adidas have product inside of Kohls. There is nothing wrong having a lower tier line that is affordable and obtainable for those that are unable or unwilling to put out for the premium priced items.

      Pensole is in located in PDX. Poaching talent and being available for new talent are two different things. If you want the real deal insider news… nobody was poached. Former Nike employees are willingly going to work for adidas and UA because of what they’ve got brewing.

      Never understood the hate towards brands like this. Like or dislike a particular product. That’s normal. To bash on an entire brand without knowing any actual intel or insight is just… strange.

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