Nike to close Arizona factory

Nike is set to close a factory in Goodyear, Arizona. The factory was originally supposed to be the main factory for the Nike Air shoe line, but coronavirus put a damper on those plans and Nike's financial situation. Nike originally acquired the factory in 2019 with plans to turn it into their Air Manufacturing Innovation facility. This project cost the company 184 million dollars and was expected to create 500 full-time jobs.

After seeing the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, Nike has decided to close the facility. “We are experiencing unprecedented times and due to the Covid-19 impact we will no longer be investing in our Goodyear facility,” the company said in a statement Tuesday. “We are repositioning our resources to further invest against our biggest opportunities and Air MI will continue to be an important part of Nike’s growth strategy.”

Nike hasn't said how many jobs will be lost or if they plan on selling the factory. The company still has job cuts planned, so they can focus more on investing their resources in selling direct-to-consumer. Nike still has other Air Manufacturing Innovation facilities across the U.S., including one in Oregon and another in Missouri.

photo: via Nike Newsroom