Deckers Outdoor Corp. CEO Angel Martinez said the comapny's new headquarters in Goleta will help the company become more efficient.

Construction has begun on Deckers Outdoor Corp.’s 152,000-square-foot headquarters in the Cabrillo Business Park.

Chairman Angel Martinez, officials from the city of Goleta and top executives were on hand for the Dec. 7 groundbreaking on land adjacent to the Santa Barbara Municipal Airport property.

When it opens in spring 2013, the headquarters campus will accommodate about 400 employees who will be able to move from building to building along natural paths and protected wetlands. “This is going to be great,” said Martinez, who has built Deckers into a $4 billion market capitalization company that dominates the near luxury niche for women’s boots with its Ugg brand.

The Deckers buildings will give a shot in the arm to the Cabrillo property, which developer Sares Regis has been hoping to position as a technology and corporate headquarters locale. “They fit exactly the profile of what we hoped for,” said Russ Goodman, who with partner Steve Fedde labored for a decade to get the park’s master plan approved.

Deckers Chief Financial Officer Tom George said that in building the new headquarters, the company would benefit from a number of efficiencies, including having all of its brand managers at close range. Martinez said the new headquarters also would include an events center to bring in customers from around the world and a 4,000-square-foot retail store for local residents.

“All of our brands will be represented” in the store, he said.

Goleta City Manager Dan Signer said he was hopeful that the Deckers headquarters could spur more interest in the South Coast for companies that are design oriented.  The area already has a regional and national reputation for its technology, software and services companies, he said, adding that many of them are spinoffs from research at UC Santa Barbara.