How did they start? With low-cost running shoes imported from Japan. Nike began at a time where American track and field athletes had a demand for running, but there was little supply. With an inexpensive product imported from Japan, the founders were able to fill this shortage. Many opportunities were seized during Nike's development into its present status. Read on to learn about Nike's initiation as a company called Blue Ribbon Sports.

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          Nike, Inc. has its origins in a company called Blue Ribbon Sports, founded by Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman. Bowerman was track coach at the University of Oregon, where Phil Knight ran from 1955 to 1959. As a coach, Bowerman used some unique methods for coaching his teams, which paid off with the numerous championships his teams won. Phil Knight was never the top runner during his career, but running was not just a casual part of his life. Both men have had a true dedication to the sport of track and field. Then, it is not hard to believe they could responsible for one of the most popular sporting goods manufacturers in the world.
          Running shoes had been produced prior to Nike's inception, so why is this company so special? In Germany, adidas (it is supposed to be lowercase) was producing quality running shoes. Bowerman resorted to buying racing spikes from adidas, but the prices were too high. And American brands did not provide what he wanted. Thus, he devised some of his own shoes for his runners. This ingenuity was coupled with Phil Knight's business know-how. After graduating from the University of Oregon, he entered the Stanford School of Business. Like in his running career, Knight was not a stand out at Stanford, either. On the other hand, he was certainly not a loafer. It was here that he came up with the idea to import shoes from Japan.

          By selling imports of cheaply produced Japanese shoes, one could provide an inexpensive alternative to the existing running shoes. Knight planned on selling the shoes to Bill Bowerman and other track coaches. This remained simply an idea from an assignment at Stanford until one day he began to travel.
          While traveling around the world, Phil Knight ended up in Japan in 1962. He learned some of the language and some of the customs. He also learned that the Onitsuka Co. produced imitation adidas shoes. Knight made an oral agreement with Kihachiro Onitsuka, promising that Blue Ribbon Sports would sell Onitsuka's Tiger Shoe brand in America. (At the time, Blue Ribbon Sports was nothing more than a name.) Onitsuka was looking to expand business into America at that time, which was lucky for Knight.
          Back in America, he overcame some obstacles in having Onitsuka keep his part of the bargain. There was very little competition in this venture. However, a man on the East Coast, Bill Farrell, had been Tiger's exclusive American dealer (in wrestling shoes) for years. With help from Doug Houser, a related lawyer, Phil Knight was able to fend off Farrell. Onitsuka was persuaded once again to deal with Knight, with the help of some exaggerated financial backing. Thus, Knight was lucky in a few respects: his fortunate timing, the people he knew, and Tiger Shoe's falling for Knight's deceptions.
          Blue Ribbon Sports did more than to simply import shoes. Bill Bowerman, who had been a financial supporter of Knight from the beginning, also contributed his shoe making knowledge. Bowerman had been making lighter, better fitting, yet ugly, shoes for his runners prior to the Blue Ribbon venture. He experimented with different materials, like nylon, to achieve the speed and comfort he desired. These ideas were passed on to the Tiger Shoe Co., who developed some of his products.

          The transition from Blue Ribbon Sports to the Nike of today is made up of a long history, and is beyond the scope of this site. The above sections gave a fairly detailed description of Nike's beginnings, which serves to explain the mindset behind the company. What follows is some important people and events that contributed to Nike's development.
          Jeff Johnson was Blue Ribbon Sports' first employee (1965). Having a middle distance runner background, Johnson fit in with the two owners. What Johnson did was to sell the shoes in the California area. What this meant for BRS was a large increase in growth. Johnson worked hard for his boss, whom he seldom saw, and some of what he did exemplifies what Nike does today. He put the Tiger name on T-shirts and eventually expanded into other merchandizing markets. (This was fairly rare at the time). He also got the Tiger name associated with as many elite athletes as he could. For example, giving T-shirts out to the winners of big races.
          Bob Woodell was tragically paralyzed in a college accident, but he has handled it braver than most would. He also was a runner (and jumper) at the University of Oregon. Having been a member of Bowerman's team turned out to be to his benefit. He was offered a job working for Blue Ribbon Sports (1968), where he became Operations Manager in 1969. His importance lies in the organization he brought to the company.
          Bill Bowerman continued to make improvements to existing Tiger shoes. Not too many shoes on the market provided sufficient support, so he dismembered shoes and came up with better combinations. At the advice of medical studies at the time, he put in a raised heel for their training shoes. Others, like Jeff Johnson, had been also making improvements based on common sense and customer demands.
          As conflicts with Onitsuka (which I have not gone into) were escalating, the company started to take on its current identity by selling football shoes imported from another manufacturer. They had their trademark, designed Carolyn Davidson, and they had a name, thought up by Johnson. Nike is the mythological Greek goddess of victory, which explains a lot of Nike's corporate attitude.

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1971: The Nike name is devised, along with a T-shirt to market it.

1972: Bill Bowerman creates first Waffle sole by pouring rubber into his waffle iron. It is first used for football, proving to provide improved traction.

1973: Steve Prefontaine is the first reknowned track athlete to endorse the Nike brand.

1974: Bowerman puts his Waffle sole on a running training shoe.

1975: The Elite shoe is developed, reflecting innovations in spike technology.

1979: Nike develops AIR-SOLE, which provides advanced cushioning. It is applied first to the Tailwind shoe.

1980: Nike opens its Sport Research and Development Lab.

1982: Nike introduces its Nike Air brand in basketball and tennis shoes.

1985: As a rookie for the Chicago Bulls, Michael Jordan starts endorsing Nike.

1987: Nike develops Air-Max, once again providing state-of-the-art cushioning.

1988: Nike increases shoe stability in the sole with its Footbridge device. It also introduces its "Just Do It" campaign, which it still continues today.

1991: Their running shoe design is improved further with the Huarache Fit technology.

Up through today, Nike has continued to bring about many innovations in sports shoes. This has always been complemented by equally important marketing strategies.

For additional information, visit the Nike History located at www.nike.com.

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