Armour

Sports apparel maker Under Armour said yesterday that it will open its first full-priced retail store at Westfield Annapolis Mall as a new front in expanding its marketing and branding prowess. The company, which makes athletic wear that wicks sweat from the body to help maintain temperature, disclosed this month that it would be entering the retail business but didn't disclose the location. Under Armour currently operates only outlets, selling discounted merchandise; it sells its apparel and footwear mostly through major sporting-goods retailers.

Under Armour Inc. Shares of the Baltimore-based maker of body-hugging athletic clothes fell $3.95, or 6.2 percent, to $60.10 after UBS Securities LLC lowered its rating on the stock because of slowing sales growth.

Under Armour shares soared nearly 11 percent yesterday to reach an all-time high after the company raised its financial outlook for the year. The stock rose as high as $64.75 during the day before it finally settled to close at $61.24. The company said its improved forecast, which it announced during a scheduled release of second quarter earnings, came after a better-than-expected first half of the year as sales increased across the business in the women's, men's and youth categories.

Baltimore-based Under Armour Inc. is planning to add 350 employees at a site in walking distance of its waterfront headquarters, significantly increasing its city work force at a time when it is aggressively expanding into new markets. The sports apparel company expects to open offices in a building now used as a warehouse and freight terminal in Locust Point. Baltimore developer Struever Bros. Eccles & Rouse has a contract to purchase the 7.2-acre property, between Beason Street and Key Highway, and wants to do a $14.2 million renovation if it can get zoning approval.

NATIONAL Anti-pollution suits fall Lawsuits against polluters have fallen by more than half under the Bush administration, and penalties and investigations of environmental crimes are also down, according to a new report. pg 3a Body of missing soldier found A body recovered by Iraqi police from the Euphrates River south of Baghdad yesterday was identified as one of three American soldiers abducted in an ambush claimed by al-Qaida, relatives and officials said. A second body was also found in the area but there was no immediate word if it was also one of the missing soldiers.

POTOMAC -- The most significant logo on Rich Beem's golf bag is "Odyssey." It is for the putter he uses and, perhaps, for the road this 28-year-old rookie has traveled from obscurity to the spotlight here in the $2.5 million Kemper Open. It could also describe what happened to him in yesterday's third round at Avenel.Beem recovered from a shaky start that saw his lead cut to one shot after two bogeys on the first three holes. He made three straight birdies and a fourth on the par-4 10th to build his lead back to three and his score to 11-under.

Second-year reserve defensive tackles Lional Dalton and Martin Chase are both getting set to play in Sunday's game against the Cleveland Browns after starter Tony Siragusa missed practice yesterday because of swelling and soreness in his left knee.Near lunchtime yesterday, Siragusa walked into the locker room and said he had been ordered to get a magnetic resonance imaging by team trainers. But that decision was changed, and Siragusa is listed as questionable."We were looking at the possibility of doing an MRI, but not now," said Ravens trainer Bill Tessendorf.

Having judged stage one of the Edwin Mulitalo experiment a success, Ravens coach Brian Billick said the rookie has earned the chance to make his second start at left guard in Cincinnati on Sunday.Billick added that he will go with the same offensive line unit that faced the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, with Everett Lindsay starting at right tackle.Mulitalo, a fourth-round pick who has overtaken veteran James Atkins on the depth chart, took every snap of Sunday's 6-3 loss, against the top-ranked defense in the NFL."

Coach Brian Billick points to a list of reasons why the Ravens have stumbled through the first half of the 1999 season with one of the weakest passing attacks in the NFL.The Ravens have turned to three different quarterbacks, and each change affects the chemistry between passer and receiver. Injuries on their offensive line have affected the team's ability to protect the quarterback at times. And the Ravens continue to lack the single threat -- that "go-to guy" -- that can put weekly pressure on opposing defenses and set the tone for the rest of the receiving corps to succeed in specified roles.

CLEVELAND -- Qadry Ismail said he sensed throughout last week's practices that a breakout game for the Ravens' offense, specifically its wide receivers, was at hand."

Shares of Baltimore sports apparel company Under Armour fell more than 11 percent Tuesday over concern that sales would be soft for the rest of the year as the company deals with a weak economy and faces increased expenses from beefing up its innovation team. There were also worries about the company's earnings next year; Under Armour officials said they didn't expect the company to make a profit in 2010 from footwear, a category that has been a major driver of the company's growth in recent years.

When David W. McCreight took over as president of Under Armour more than a year ago, he came to a company that in many ways was the polar opposite from where he was working at Lands' End. Lands' End was nearly a half-century old with roots in the catalog business and looking for ways to revive, grow and stay relevant. Under Armour was an up-and-coming, vibrant company with marketing campaigns that resonated with the younger generation and plans to expand its line of athletic wear. "It was really sort of a once-in-a-generation sports brand opportunity," said McCreight, 46, who said the job allows him to combine his passion for sports with that of running a company.

The Baltimore sports apparel company Under Armour is introducing a line of mouth gear that it says will not only protect the jaw from hits but will reduce stress to improve athletic performance. UA Performance Mouthwear was developed by Bite Tech Inc., a Minneapolis company that has researched mouth products for athletes. The mouthpiece is for noncontact sports such as baseball, running, golf and tennis, and costs $495. The mouthguard for football, hockey, lacrosse and other contact sports costs $450.

Sports apparel company Under Armour is rethinking the pricing and technology of its running shoe as it looks to revamp its footwear strategy and improve sales. Executives at the Baltimore-based company revealed plans for footwear during a conference call Tuesday with analysts to discuss second-quarter earnings. The call came a week after the company announced a shake-up in leadership at its footwear division with the hiring of Gene McCarthy, the head of Timberland. The company said that the push for change was not a sign that the running shoe launch wasn't successful.

Affordable housing planned after luxury condo financing fell through A plan to build luxury condominiums on Baltimore's west side that has stalled amid the recession is being reborn as an affordable housing project, M.J. "Jay" Brodie, president of the Baltimore Development Corp., said Thursday. Brodie said Washington, D.C.-based Oak Street Developers Ltd. presented revised plans to the BDC's project committee and plans to proceed with new housing at North Howard and Madison streets, across from Maryland General Hospital.

Many athletes train by the old concept of "no pain, no gain," and now sports apparel company Under Armour thinks it has a way to make that pain go away a little faster. The Baltimore company is introducing a first of its kind, two-piece body suit this summer that it says will help athletes and exercise enthusiasts recover more quickly from the aches and pains caused by tiny tears in the muscles that follow a strenuous workout. The fitted, long-sleeved suit, which covers the body from chest to foot, is to be worn for 24 hours after a workout and pushes excess water from the muscles and into the bloodstream to reduce swelling and help the micro tears heal more quickly.

Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank told shareholders Tuesday morning that he wasn't going to give them a lecture about how bad the economy is for business. Instead, he chose to focus on the future of the company and how it could succeed despite the financial situation. He said the 13-year-old company will focus on launching new products, such as a bodysuit that helps athletes recover from injuries quicker, and controlling costs with measures such as slowing down its international expansion and implementing a global tax restructure.

Consumers are cutting back on most discretionary spending, but plenty were willing to dish out a hundred bucks or more to buy Under Armour's new running shoe this year. The Baltimore sports apparel company said Tuesday that its first-quarter earnings beat analyst expectations thanks mostly to strong sales of the shoe, which it introduced in January. The results came as several analysts had downgraded their ratings on the company recently because they questioned whether consumers would continue to buy pricey goods during a recession.

A baseball legend shook hands Wednesday with an athlete-turned-clothier, sealing a business deal they hope will benefit both. Cal Ripken Jr., the Orioles Hall of Famer who heads the marketing firm that bears his name, announced a five-year partnership with Under Armour Inc., the Baltimore-based performance apparel giant run by Kevin A. Plank, a former football player at the University of Maryland. Under Armour will outfit the minor league Aberdeen IronBirds as well as the 10 domestic teams taking part in the Cal Ripken World Series this summer.

Two of the best-known sports brands in Maryland - Ripken Baseball Inc. and Under Armour - are forming a business alliance that will be unveiled at a news conference Wednesday at the Sports Legends Museum at Camden Yards. Ripken Baseball is a marketing and sales company headed by Orioles Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. Under Armour is a global sports apparel and equipment company whose chief executive officer, Kevin Plank, is a former University of Maryland football player. While details of Wednesday's announcement were not disclosed, sources familiar with the new partnership said Under Armour will have a substantial presence at Ripken's baseball properties, which include three minor league franchises, in Aberdeen, Augusta, Ga., and Port Charlotte, Fla., and perhaps more importantly, at two youth training facilities in Aberdeen and Myrtle Beach, S.C. The Under Armour brand is particularly appealing to the youth market, the source said.