History Archives

Blue Ribbon Sports: How Nike Got Started

Nike founder Phil Knight started his shoe career selling imported Japanese shoes from the company Onitsuka, not by manufacturing his own. His original company was called Blue Ribbon Sports. He sold his first shoes at track meets out of the trunk of his car, and their design and quality become a hit. Over time, frictions with Onitsuka over distribution rights, slow shipments, and creating new shoe designs forced him to found Nike. If they’d kept their partnership amiable, Phil might have kept working with Onitsuka, and Nike might never have happened. This is the story of Blue Ribbon Sports before

Young Phil Knight: The Nike Founder’s Early Life

Phil Knight, the founder of Nike, started what would later become Nike in the 1960s when he was in his mid-20s. What was young Phil Knight like? How did he come upon the idea of Nike, and how did he build it into the world’s most recognizable athletic brand? Let’s start at the beginning of Phil Knight’s young life.

What You Can Learn From André Trocmé’s Showdown with the Nazis

Who was André Trocmé? And what can we learn from him about finding the advantages of disadvantages? André Trocmé was a French pastor who preached pacifism and saved thousands of Jews during the Nazi occupation. We’ll cover why André Trocmé and the townspeople of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon had the courage to stand up to the government, and what you can learn from his life story.

Jeff Johnson and Nike: A Key Early Employee

In 1965, Nike founder Phil Knight hires his first full-time employee, a fellow Stanford runner named Jeff Johnson who will sell shoes in Los Angeles. Jeff Johnson has a messianic view on running—believing running done right is akin to enlightenment—and Phil hasn’t met anyone with his passion for running. This is the story of Jeff Johnson and Nike, from Phil Knight’s book Shoe Dog.

Rob Strasser: Early Nike Employee, then Traitor

Rob Strasser was an attorney on a critical lawsuit between Nike and Onitsuka. He did such an impressive job that Phil Knight hired him to be in-house legal staff. Later, Strasser signs Jordan to Nike and creates the Air Jordan brand. But he gets a bit too ambitious and leaves Nike for their rival Adidas, a move that Nike founder Phil Knight never forgave.

Nike and Onitsuka’s Painful Relationship (Shoe Dog)

Before Nike, Phil Knight started his shoe career selling imported shoes from the Japanese company Onitsuka, not by manufacturing his own. He sold his first shoes at track meets out of the trunk of his car, and their design and quality become a hit. Over time, frictions with the Japanese company over distribution rights, slow shipments, and creating new shoe designs forced him to found Nike. If they’d kept their partnership amiable, Phil might have kept working with Onitsuka, and Nike might never have happened. Learn the history of Nike and Onitsuka’s painful business relationship, from the beginning of Nike.

The Talleyrand-Napoleon Alliance: 7 Lessons for Keeping Power

Who was Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord? And how did the aristocrat manage to remain a powerful French diplomat and politician after the French Revolution brought down the monarchy? In particular, what can we learn by analyzing the Talleyrand-Napoleon relationship? The Talleyrand-Napoleon relationship was a complex one. Napoleon didn’t trust Talleyrand, but Talleyrand was too good an aide to give up. We’ll cover the 7 lessons about maintaining power we can learn from analyzing the Talleyrand-Napoleon relationship and Talleyrand’s canny diplomacy strategies.

The Origin of Nike’s Name: Not What You Expect

How did Nike gets its name? It’s not what you expect. Founder Phil Knight didn’t come up with the name. In fact, when he first heard the name “Nike,” he didn’t like it! Learn the origin of Nike’s name here, as well as the names that came before.