It’s easy to misunderstand the big picture as two founders having luck and starting their operation of a not-yet-matured market. Key takeaway #1: understanding market demand drives growth Nike's sales peaked at $270 million by the end of the 1970s. However, unlike today's air-cushioned shoes, it was not yet visible as the technology innovation was built into the inside of the sole of the shoe. The Air Cushioning technology was first used by the brand in 1979 in its Tailwind Stride. Her work was recognized 12 years later by Nike when it awarded Carolyne Davidson an undisclosed amount of stock and a diamond ring with the Nike logo she designed. The amount paid out would be worth about $234.80 today because the cumulative inflation rate between 19 is a whopping 570.9%. It was designed by a student at the Portland Graphic Arts University for only $35. It was also in 1971 that the brand's logo, the Swoosh, was born. Nike is the god of victory in Greek mythology, hence the inspiration. Originally, Knight wanted to rename his company "Dimension 6", but at the end (thankfully) an employee's idea, Jeff Johnson, prevailed. The organization adopted the name Nike in 1971. By 1972, it had 45 employees and sales of nearly $2 million. Within two years, it had 250 employees and sales of $4.8 million, thanks to the Waffle Trainer shoe's market success. With 20 employees, the company had revenue of $300,000 by 1969. In the years following, Nike expanded rapidly across the country, opening store after store. Their first warehouse was opened in Santa Monica, CA, in 1966. He then poured hot rubber into the oven to make the soles of the first Nike running shoes (and probably bought a new oven for the kitchen.) Bowerman and his wife were eating breakfast when he exclaimed over the waffle iron: Eureka! No, that probably didn't happen, but Bowerman was reportedly inspired by his wife's waffle iron. For the shoe soles, the brand's co-founder found inspiration in a rather odd way. In 1967, he created the famous "Marathon" model from nylon. As a first step, he tried making the uppers lighter. The Nike Swoosh and the first sneakerįrom the beginning, Bowerman was obsessed with shoe development. By the end of the year, the company sold all 200 pairs of shoes, had one full-time employee, and a sales volume of $20,000, resulting in a profit of $3,240. Knight sold Tiger shoes at local and regional athletic competitions in his spare time for the first two years out of the trunk of his car. The launch was financed by $500 each raised by Knight and Bowerman. The company's seed capital was just $1,200.Īfter successful negotiations, Tiger shoes began exporting to the United States the following year - the first shipment consisted of 200 pairs of shoes. Knight was so surprised to be treated as a serious negotiating partner by the Japanese that he coined the name Blue Ribbon on the spot. So he traveled to Japan that year to negotiate with Kiharchiro Onitsuka (later the founder of Asics). Knight had the idea of marketing Japanese-made running shoes in America: An academic paper he wrote demonstrated his belief that the distribution of cost-effective, high-quality Japanese running shoes would be profitable in breaking the German monopoly. The brand, or its predecessor Blue Ribbon, was founded in 1964 by Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman. The famous logo, the iconic models from the Air Force to the Air Max generation, the countless collabs are all pointing towards one direction, even though the founders had no clue back then how powerful a brand they have created.ĭid you know that the company wouldn't be called that if it had been up to its founder? Or that the sole of their first running shoe was made in a waffle iron? If you're interested in how the brand's story began and how Nike has made it to become the market leader in sports apparel today, read on to find out. Nike is one of the most famous sneaker brands in the world.
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