By Ylan Q. Mui
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, November 5, 2007

To get inside Under Armour's new store in Annapolis Mall, you have to walk through the tunnel.

The concrete entrance is modeled after the walkway onto the playing field at football stadiums, the inspiration for Under Armour's slogan: "Click-clack."

So maybe in this case the sound comes from the heel of a reporter's boots rather than the muddy cleats of a burly NFL player, but the tunnel is part of the Baltimore company's attempt to make the brand's story come to life in its first retail store.

"When you come in here, you kind of forget that you're in the mall," said Chris Hufnagel, Under Armour's senior director of retail development. "And that's the goal."

The 4,500-square-foot store opened Thursday as part of a redevelopment of Annapolis Mall that includes 60 new retailers and restaurants. It also marked Under Armour's first serious foray into a mall; most of its products are sold at sporting-goods stores. Hufnagel said the store will provide a testing ground for merchandise and help the company better understand its customers' tastes and shopping habits.

Under Armour's story has become something of a local legend. Former Terrapin football player Kevin Plank designed the first form-fitting, moisture-wicking Under Armour shirt for his teammates while at the University of Maryland before graduating in 1996. The concept took off and got buzz after some of his friends sported the gear in the NFL. The rest is history: Last week, Under Armour announced a third-quarter profit of $20 million, up 25 percent from the third quarter last year.

One of the first shirts that Plank created -- style 0039 -- is displayed in a glass case at the end of the tunnel. The store is filled with local touches that the company hopes will resonate with the high school and college athletes, who make up its core customers. A Maryland state flag hangs from the ceiling, and management made sure to stock apparel in maroon and royal blue, the school colors of nearby Annapolis High.

In the middle of the store is a not-that-much-larger-than-life statue of Plank's longtime friend Eric "Big E" Ogbogu, who played for the University of Maryland and later in the NFL, and starred in Under Armour's early commercials. Even the mannequins in the store are modeled after the 6-foot-4, 285-pound Ogbogu. The company felt traditional mannequins were too scrawny to show off its compression gear. So Big E traveled to Los Angeles a few years ago to have his body cast into a mold for the mannequins, Under Armour spokesman Rick Anguilla said, and now impressions of his muscular chest ripple under the close-fitting clothes on display.

And what about the ladies? Or, as the company jokes, the "Big She"? The female mannequins were cast from Heather Mitts of the U.S. national soccer team.