The first Lululemon Athletica store in Oregon to open outside of the Portland metropolitan area will be coming to Bend in September.

The new clothing store is scheduled to open in the Old Mill District on Sept. 19, according to Meghan Chisholm, spokeswoman for the Vancouver, British Columbia-based athletic apparel retailer.

Noelle Fredland, marketing director for the Old Mill District, said the retailer, which specializes in clothing designed for yoga and other workout regimens, has been in talks with the shopping center since 2015. Lululemon will be moving into an empty storefront on SW Powerhouse Drive that was occupied by Coldwater Creek until 2014. Since then, Fredland said the interior of the building has been divided into two storefronts, with the Bend footwear store The Shoe Inn occupying the other. She added that Lululemon will occupy 1,628 square feet.

“I think Lululemon will be a great fit in Bend and in the Old Mill District,” Fredland said.

Lululemon has shown an interest in Bend in the past. In 2010, the company opened a showroom downtown, on NW Franklin Avenue. However, the showroom, which offers a more limited selection of products than full-sized stores, closed after 17 months, according to The Bulletin’s archives.

Suzie Newcome, founder of Namaspa, a yoga studio with facilities in Bend and Redmond, said the limited selection of items worked against the showroom. She said the Franklin Avenue location primarily sold older items, meaning Bendites had to order online or travel to Portland to get the latest styles.

Darcy Davidson, owner of Barre3 in Bend, said she had spoken with the manager of the new store and said it would likely feature a mix of items, from modern athletic wear to vests and hoodies, that could be expected to do well in Bend.

“It is such a win for the Bend community,” Davidson said of the new store.

Additionally, Bend is a more favorable retail environment today than it was in 2011. In the first quarter of 2016, the retail vacancy rate in Bend stood at 4.7 percent citywide, according to a quarterly report from Compass Commercial Real Estate Services. By contrast, in the second quarter of 2011, it was 9.1 percent.

Newcome and Davidson both said having a well-known athletic brand like Lululemon choose Bend demonstrates that Bend’s growing yoga and wellness scene is gaining national attention.

“I really do think it’s a recognition that Bend is being seen as being like a Boulder, a Park City,” Newcome said, “a smaller city that’s meaningful in the athletic arena.”

— Reporter: 541-617-7818, shamway@bendbulletin.com