Nike said Friday its downtown Portland store is headed for renovations early next year, and that a move to the nearby Pioneer Place mall will be temporary.
The apparel and footwear giant said it plans to temporarily close its Nike Portland store at 638 S.W. Fifth Ave. as it works to “renovate and enhance our store experience for consumers.”
The announcement suggests Nike’s retail commitment to its hometown isn’t diminishing, which was feared given the space inside Pioneer Place is smaller than the roughly 26,000-square-foot space Nike occupies across the street today.
“To best serve downtown Portland, we are in the process of opening a temporary store in nearby Pioneer Square so consumers can still shop the brand they love,” the company said in an email to The Oregonian/OregonLive.
A permit application filed with the city on Wednesday disclosed that the Washington County company planned to build out a two-level space at Pioneer Place, located at 700 S.W. Fifth Ave.
The proposal calls for demolishing walls to build a sales area, fitting rooms, stockroom, bathrooms, closets, a sitting room, a back-of-house area and breakroom, among other features associated with a new storefront.
Plans filed with the city and obtained by The Oregonian/OregonLive through a public records request show Nike plans to move into the space formerly occupied by J. Crew, which will be extended to include some additional space on the second floor. The finished space will be a little more than 11,000 square feet.
The company said little, however, about the renovation plans for its current location.
For decades, having a retail store in Portland has been a point of pride and convenience for the sportswear giant. When the company opened the original NikeTown at the corner of Southwest Sixth Avenue and Salmon Street in 1990, Nike officials said it “puts the company’s best foot forward.” A Nike executive at the time described the space as both a shopping destination and a “research and development lab.”
While Nike’s flagship stores are now in global shopping destinations like New York City, it has continued to use its Portland store to develop new technologies, including new features on the company’s shopping apps.
--Kristine de Leon, kdeleon@oregonian.com; Matthew Kish, mkish@oregonian.com