Champion opens first Philadelphia store

By

Gabriella Lacombe

Published
Mar 22, 2019

After celebrating its 100-year anniversary earlier this year, Champion Athleticwear has opened its first Philadelphia store in Center City, located on 1507 Walnut Street. 

The new location, which will hold its grand opening on Saturday, marks the brand's fifth specialty retail store in the United States, joining locations in Los Angeles, New York, Boston and Chicago. 

Spanning 3,040 square feet, the Philadelphia location is Champion's first two-floor store concept in the U.S., with the entire second floor dedicated to customization. There, shoppers will be able to personalize their Champion items through selected colors, fonts and patches.

The store's product offering will include the brand's signature reverse weave sweatshirts, hoodies and joggers, as well as Champion's Spring 2019 collection and a Champion Philadelphia capsule collection. According to the brand, customers can also expect to see national and local collaborations make periodical appearances at the Walnut Street locale. 

Like its other U.S. stores, the Philadelphia Champion outpost celebrates its new home through artistic collaborations, including a mural by Alloyius Mcilwaine and a yard-bombing installation by Ishknits, both local artists belonging to Philadelphia artistic collective, Tiny Room for Elephants. Mcilwaine will further collaborate with the brand on a limited edition t-shirt design available only at the Philadelphia location. In addition, the first 500 shoppers to arrive on the store's opening day will receive a custom tote painted by the artist. 

The brand said the Philadelphia store will host monthly in-store activations and events, such as live screen printing, to keep local customers engaged.

"The Center City location is the perfect place for our brand to build an impactful connection with the city for years to come as we look to further enrich the community through events and unique products," said David Robertson, director of Champion brand marketing, in a release. "We’re creating an immersive hub of activity that helps us to genuinely connect with our customers beyond our quality Champion products.”