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Nike is one of the biggest companies in the world and a leading producer of sneakers. Read on for an overview of who founded Nike along with more of the brand’s backstory.
Who Founded Nike
Nike was founded by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight. Initially called Blue Ribbon Sports in the 60s, their company was rebranded as Nike in 1971.
One of the first sneakers produced by
Nike featuring the iconic waffle sole
Knight ran track for the University of Oregon and Bowerman was his coach. Bill Bowerman was into tinkering with running shoes for optimal performance. After graduating and going for his MBA, Knight returned, and in 1964 they formed a shoe company called Blue Ribbon sports.
Bowerman designed the Cortez model in 1965 and partnered with the Tiger company (today known as Asics) to release it. In 1967 the sneaker came out and was a success. The relationship soured between the companies though and lawsuits would eventually follow. Ultimately, both Tiger and Blue Ribbon were allowed to produce versions of the shoe.
Blue Ribbon would rebrand to Nike in 1971. Bowerman, inspired by a waffle he was eating, came up with the idea for what would become the Waffle Trainer. The shoe was the companies first solo hit, and the rest is history!
What Inspired The Name “Nike”
Nike is the Goddess of Victory in Greek mythology. The story goes that Nike’s first employee Jeff Johnson got the inspiration to use the name in a dream.
Jeff Johnson was hired to help sell Blue Ribbon’s shoes in 1965. He also helped come up with the name “Nike” for the company.
The Swoosh logo is a design by graphic design student Carolyn Davidson. The Goddess Nike, known as the Winged Goddess, inspired the logo, which represents the swoosh of the wing. This in turn symbolizes speed, motivation and power. Apparently, Davidson was paid $35 for the swoosh design at the time. Eventually, she was awarded shares in Nike as well.
Nike’s Early Innovations
Besides the waffle sole, Nike was the first company to use Air technology, which would go on to help popularize a number of their classic models.
The first model to use Nike Air
technology in it’s midsole
The Air Tailwind was the first sneaker to utilize an Air unit in the midsole in 1979. Air technology would go on to be a part of many innovative and popular models from the brand.
The Air Force 1 for example, continued on from the Tailwind’s example by featuring an even fatter midsole containing an Air unit. This expanded the tech’s use from running to basketball.
In 1987, Tinker Hatfield would innovate the Air bubble by making it visible to the outside world with the Air Max 1. Visible Air units would make their way over to Jordan brand with the Air Jordan 3, although the tech was tied in with Michael Jordan’s shoes since the inception of the line.
What Brands Nike Owns
Nike owns it’s own sub-brands such as Jordan brand, Nike Skateboarding, Air Max, etc. Their subsidiaries include Hurley and Converse.
Cole Haan brand joined Nike in 1998, while Hurley was added in 2002. Converse became part of the Nike family in 2003. Nike also owns the Exeter Brands Group which includes Starter (AKA the maker of the most sought-after jackets when I was in grade school).
Nike’s Current Owners
John Donahoe is the current CEO of NIKE, Inc. Nike’s founder Phil Knight stepped down as CEO in 2004 but still owns more shares of Nike than anyone.
Although Knight stepped down as CEO, he retains a chairman role. Nike is a publicly traded company, so technically no one “owns” the entire company. However, Phil Knight does have a large amount of shares, more than anyone else out there currently.
According to Nike’s executives page, John Donahoe became CEO in 2020 and had served on the Board of Directors since 2014. He used to be CEO of eBay!
How Much Of Nike Michael Jordan Owns
Technically Michael Jordan does not have shares in Nike, however Jordan brand makes up a good percentage of Nike’s overall business. Their endorsement deal is still enormously lucrative for both Nike and Michael Jordan.
The Jordan line has been largely successful
for both Nike and Michael Jordan
While MJ earned less than $100 million from his stint on the Chicago Bulls, his net worth remains over $1 billion thanks to his Nike deal and majority ownership stake in the Charlotte Hornets.
Interestingly enough, MJ almost didn’t sign with Nike. He wanted to sign with Adidas, as Nike was relatively new to the basketball shoe world. However, part of the deal with Nike was that Jordan would get his own brand, and he eventually decided to go with them.
When the Air Jordan 3 was in the process of being made, MJ was already considering jumping ship. However when he saw the Jumpman logo front and center on the tongue of the shoe, it sealed the deal for many years to come.
Conclusion
While Nike was originally founded as Blue Ribbon and focused mainly on track shoes, it eventually grew into a powerhouse of a sneaker company. Not only is Nike a company with some of the most sold shoes in the world, it’s also a huge corporation spanning multiple brands such as Starter, Converse and Hurley. In many cases, they were the upstart when they entered a sport, and became the most popular brand.
For example, Nike’s foray into skateboarding was initially met with resistance. However, the SB Dunk rose to prominence and has become one of the most desired and collectible sneakers to this day! Similarly, many early basketball players rocked Converse on-court. When Nike first entered the basketball arena, they had to compete with the existing popularity of Converse, among other brands. Now, they own the competition!