Nike opens Serena Williams Building at its world headquarters

Nike has unveiled the Serena Williams Building, a one million-square-foot space at the company’s world headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon.

The structure houses 200,000 square feet of lab space for Nike’s Consumer Creation teams to test new ideas and develop products.

“The whole building takes your breath away. Every element, everywhere you go, is an opportunity to be inspired. I hope this building encourages people to bring out the best of themselves and to dream bigger than they thought possible,” Serena Williams said in a statement.

Tennis great @SerenaWilliams's name will now also be associated with an architectural legacy.

Take a tour of the @Nike campus' newest building: https://t.co/0VhP2wVZ8s

— Architectural Digest (@ArchDigest) April 27, 2022

The Serena Williams Building also includes 140,000 square feet of showrooms and workspace, a footwear materials library, a color lab and a 140-seat Olympia Theater, named after Williams’ daughter.

Per Architectural Digest, which toured the space in 2021, Skylab, a Portland-based firm, designed the Serena Williams building in collaboration with Mark Parker, current executive chairman of Nike, Inc.

Intentional choices were integrated into the build to make it an environmentally-conscious project. The building features 648 solar panels, recycled content and resources to help preserve the federally protected wetland next to the structure.

“Architecture has long been a creative catalyst for Nike,” Nike chief design officer John Hoke said. “A manifestation of form and function following footprint, this building embodies Serena’s legacy as a force for positive change.”