Under Armour store to close in downtown Detroit

Nearly five years after opening in downtown Detroit, the Under Armour store is closing its doors.

An Under Armour spokesperson confirmed Wednesday that the athletic apparel retailer's store at 1201 Woodward would close Jan. 15, as first reported by Crain’s Detroit Business.

The closure was not an easy decision, the company said in a statement Wednesday.

“As part of our normal course of business, we consistently evaluate our store footprint and make decisions according to our retail strategy…” the statement read. “Following a detailed evaluation of our multi-year direct-to-consumer strategy, we determined that this location no longer aligns with our long-term plans. We thank our Detroit-based teammates and customers for their loyalty and remind customers that they can continue to shop on UA.com.”

It is unclear how many employees would be impacted by the store’s closure.

The Under Armour store opened in April 2017 and occupies the basement, first and second levels of the nine-story Kresge Building. It joined retailer Nike, which arrived on Woodward in 2016. Other retailers including H&M and Madewell followed its arrival.

Dan Gilbert’s Bedrock owns the building, which sits across the street from the company's mixed-use Hudson’s site project slated for completion in 2024. Bedrock and Under Armour announced plans for the 17,000-square-foot store's opening in November 2016.

 "Just like Under Armour’s hometown of Baltimore, Detroit is currently experiencing an unprecedented wave of momentum, and we can’t wait to be part of their exciting success story,” the companies said in a joint statement then.

The shutdown of the Woodward store will leave Under Armour with stores in Auburn Hills, Birch Run, Byron Center and Howell, according to the company's website. 

The closure comes as retailers large and small reassess their store footprint amid the growth in online shopping spurred further by the COVID-19 pandemic.

It also follows the sudden shutdown this past weekend of Michael Symon's Roast restaurant at the Westin Book Cadillac after 13 years. 

cwilliams@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @CWilliams_DN