Decades in the game, 23 Grand slam titles and still standing, tennis icon Serena Williams has been honoured with her very own building at Nike’s headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon, said to be the tallest building on campus, cementing her great legacy.
The Serena Williams (SW) Building designed by Portland-based Skylab Architecture in collaboration with Mark Parker, Executive Chairman of NIKE, Inc., is the largest office building on Nike’s campus; a 1 million square feet edifice incorporates 140,000 square feet of showrooms and workspace; a footwear materials library; a color lab; and a two-story, 140-seat theater named after her daughter Olympia, 150 conference rooms, 4 restaurants, and more.
Explaining the whole experience of the honours was a childhood dream, an overwhelmed Serena said:
“The whole building takes your breath away. Every element, everywhere you go, is an opportunity to be inspired. I hope this building encourages people to bring out the best of themselves and to dream bigger than they thought possible.”
Since 2003 Williams has been signed as a Nike athlete and she’s ever grateful.
Reminiscing she shared a video of her new building, in the caption she wrote, “There is something to be said about setting goals… When I was just a kid I visited the @nike campus and I saw that athletes get buildings! After that visit I knew I wanted two things; to be a Nike athlete and to have a building. I set my goals high.”
“I knew I would have to be elite, and not only the best, but someone that changes the course of sport. And now, here we are – officially unveiling the Serena building at the Nike campus. Blood sweat and many tears, many trophies – it is beyond an honor, giving me chills. I am so grateful to Nike and the Nike team. Can you believe it? I have a BUILDING Y’ALL!!! This is CRAZY!!!” she further wrote.
Serena also sent a message through the latest Nike video. “Everything that Nike has done in this building is so amazing and so cool. I hope that people that work here are just inspired to dream bigger, and jump higher, and do more,” she said in the video.
“Architecture has long been a creative catalyst for Nike,” said John Hoke, Nike’s chief design officer, in the press release. “A manifestation of form and function following footprint, this building embodies Serena’s legacy as a force for positive change.”
