Under Armour to Bring 1K Jobs to Sparrows Point

SPARROWS POINT, MD — The former site of Bethlehem Steel will become a distribution center for Under Armour. The sportswear company announced its plan Tuesday to open a 1.3 million-square-foot warehouse in Baltimore County to meet the demand for e-commerce.

Under Armour intends to hire 1,000 people from Baltimore and surrounding areas to work at its new distribution center, according to a statement from the company.

"The new distribution house will be a top-notch service engine for our e-commerce business to deliver the right product, to the right place at the right time to our growing consumer base and athletes around the world," Under Armour Founder and CEO Kevin Plank said in a statement.

The Sparrows Point distribution house is expected to open in 2018 and ultimately have 1,000 workers at the site where Bethlehem Steel, which ceased operations in 2012, used to employ thousands.

The firm Tradepoint is the owner of the former Bethlehem Steel Mill site. Its 3,100-acre Tradepoint Atlantic development also includes FedEx Ground and Pasha Automotive as tenants.

"Under Armour will play a big part in this site's resurgence to a center of economic activity and trade," Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said in a statement. "Under Armour is a true Maryland success story, and this new e-commerce center is another way they are showing their commitment to our state and to the Baltimore region."

Plank, who was born in Maryland and is a University of Maryland graduate, started Under Armour in 1995. He headquartered the company in Locust Point shortly thereafter, and lives in northern Baltimore County.

County government played a role in winning over Under Armour, which was reportedly looking in Ohio, Tennessee and Indiana as well as Maryland for its latest distribution center.

“Baltimore County proactively put key pieces in place to make Tradepoint Atlantic’s Sparrows Point site attractive to business," said Will Anderson, director of the Baltimore County Department of Economic & Workforce Development. "We initiated creation of the Chesapeake Enterprise Zone, established a foreign trade zone to facilitate global commerce and set up training systems for distribution operations workers."

The Sparrows Point distribution center will be the fourth for Under Armour, which operates centers in Curtis Bay, MD; Mount Juliet, TN; and Rialto, CA.

Specifically, the distribution center will focus on e-commerce; The Baltimore Sun reported that online sales increased by 44 percent in the second quarter of this year for Under Armour.

Rendering provided by Baltimore County government, courtesy of Under Armour.