Under Armour adds Baltimore as import gateway

Sportswear company redirected cargo from Port of Long Beach to the East Coast in the aftermath of the labor strife at West Coast ports that caused massive cargo backlogs.    Sports apparel maker Under Armour will use an Asia-United States East Coast all-water container service from Evergreen to feed its import distribution center in Baltimore, rather than continue to use the Port of Long Beach and move the Asian-made goods across country by rail, according to the Baltimore Sun.
   A company official made the disclosure at a meeting Tuesday with the Maryland Port Administration and business leaders.
   Under Armour is headquartered in Baltimore.
   The development is another example of shippers taking a second look at their supply networks in the aftermath of the labor strife at West Coast ports that caused massive cargo backlogs and permanently shifting deliveries to East Coast ports.
   During Under Armour’s April 21 earnings call, Brad Dickerson, the company’s chief operating office and chief financial officer, said the port congestion and bad weather dinged overall net revenues by 1 to 2 percent in the previous quarter. Gross margins were trimmed by 0.6 percent because of airfreight costs the company incurred to avoid the congestion and get merchandise to stores.
   Under Armour is planning for higher airfreight expenses in the second quarter as well, while the Port of Long Beach and other ports look to improve operational efficiency.