Under Armour is exploring opening a West Coast design center, with Portland and Los Angeles among possible locations, according to a report in the Portland Business Journal.
The business magazine, citing e-mail exchanges it received, said officials in Portland, which employs about 100,000 activewear employees at firms such as Nike, Adidas and Columbia Sportswear, are looking to recruit Under Armour in hopes that firm may want to tap the local talent base.
But the article also indicated that Under Armour does not appear to be aggressively pursuing the effort. UA's top executives rejected an offer to meet with Portland Mayor Sam Adams to discuss a possible Portland design center. The report also said Under Armour gave a "lukewarm reception" when Greenlight Greater Portland, the area's private economic development group, sent two executives to Under Armour's headquarters in Baltimore. The report also noted that e-mail messages said an Under Armour executive visited Los Angeles in July to explore its options there.
Brad Dickerson, Under Armour's chief financial officer, downplayed the notion of any large presence outside of Baltimore. Dickerson pointed to Under Armour's recently unveiled 140,000-square-foot Tide Point building as example of the company's commitment to growing locally. Around 300 Under Armour employees will occupy the space by the end of January. In total, there is room for 450 workers.
"Anything else we do would be on a very small scale," Dickerson added.
He did acknowledge that the the company is constantly scouring for real estate opportunities and pockets of the country where top talent may be located.
"We're always looking for things," said Dickerson, downplaying the notion of any large presence outside of Baltimore. "It doesn't mean we're always serious."