Dr. Martens sets Portland debut

PORTLAND — Dr. Martens is going for the heart of Nike.

The British shoemaker is opening its first U.S. store in downtown Portland, not far from one of the first Nike stores and just a suburb away from Nike headquarters.

The 2,000-foot-square Dr. Martens AirWair USA store also will put the company's retail foot down near the U.S. headquarters for Adidas, the German shoe and athletic-clothing giant.

Dr. Martens already had made Portland its U.S. headquarters, but officials said the company wanted a retail outlet to boost its visibility and test consumer demand for new versions of its chunky shoes, boots and accessories.

David Reimann, president of the U.S. subsidiary, said Dr. Martens considered larger cities for its first U.S. retail rollout Aug. 15 but "wanted to make a splash in our hometown."

Reimann said Dr. Martens plans to operate retail stores in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.