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Intro
Shoe Dog, the memoir of Nike co-founder Phil Knight, tells the story of Knight’s life alongside the formation of the now-iconic athletic brand. In 1962, Phil Knight, of Portland, Oregon, dreams of opening a shoe company. He believes that Japan makes great shoes, which, at the time, have yet to find their way to the United States. Knight convinces his father, Bill, to lend him money so he can go abroad and pitch his idea to a Japanese shoe seller. Bill gives him the money, and Knight travels to Tokyo, where he takes a meeting with a company called Onitsuka. To Knight’s surprise, Onitsuka fawns over his idea and gives him the right to distribute their shoes in the western United States. The only problem is that Knight does not actually own a shoe company, so he makes one up on the fly. He calls his company Blue Ribbon.
Knight returns to the United States after several months of traveling around the world. Once home, he gets to work on Blue Ribbon. Quickly, he finds that he is great at selling shoes. Before long, he puts an order in for another shipment and hires his first employee, Jeff Johnson. Johnson is an excellent employee, although he is perhaps too eager. He constantly writes to Knight about new ideas for the company and asks for Knight’s encouragement. However, Knight never gives Johnson what he is looking for. In response, Johnson continues to work harder. Before long, Johnson builds an extensive customer database and opens a retail location in Los Angeles.
Although Knight has no problem selling shoes, he does have a problem with cash flow. Wanting to expand Blue Ribbon rapidly, Knight starts taking out loans without having any money in the bank. At first, Knight’s borrowing is not a problem. However, Knight’s bank grows concerned after he starts taking out larger and larger sums. In addition to Knight’s cash-flow problem, he has a rival who also wants distribution rights from Onitsuka. Knight calls this gentleman “the Marlboro Man” because he once appeared in commercials advertising Marlboro cigarettes. In order for his business to succeed, Knight knows he needs to eliminate the Marlboro man as competition and secure his position as the sole distributor of Onitsuka shoes. Desperate to show how much he cares about his goal, Knight flies to Japan, where he secures a three-year deal granting him exclusive rights to distribute Onitsuka shoes.
While working on Blue Ribbon, Knight also takes a job teaching at Portland State University. There, he meets a woman named Penny who becomes his employee; they start dating and marry only a few months later. Around the same time, Knight starts hiring more people to work for Blue Ribbon, including Bob Woodell, a former track star who suffered an accident that put him in a wheelchair. Knight was introduced to Woodell by his former running coach and current business partner, Bill Bowerman. Although Bowerman does not take an active part in running Blue Ribbon, he provides financial support and helps develop new shoe designs.
Over the course of the 1960s, Blue Ribbon continues to develop into a significant company. However, during this time, Knight never truly fixes his financial problems. Knight knows he could have all the cash he ever needed if he took the company public, but he hesitates to do so, as he values his freedom and does not want his company to be beholden to the whims of the public. Unfortunately, Knight’s financial difficulties prove too much for Onitsuka. Onitsuka begins shopping around for a new distributor, with plans to cancel their current contract with Knight. Knight learns about Onitsuka’s plans and starts an offshoot of Blue Ribbon, which he calls “Nike.” Knight does everything he can to keep Nike under the radar, but as it grows, Onitsuka finds out about it and is outraged.
Onitsuka sues Blue Ribbon, and the two entities fight a vicious legal battle. Ultimately, Blue Ribbon prevails, and Onitsuka has to cut an extensive settlement check. Without Onitsuka holding him back, Knight is free to expand Nike, which he does. Knight gets several athlete endorsements and expands Nike into a full apparel line. Eventually, Nike becomes a mainstream name and directly competes with Adidas. However, despite Nike’s success, Knight still has a cash-flow problem. Once more, though he contemplates taking the company private, he ultimately decides against it.
Then, in 1977, Nike receives a letter from the U.S. Customs Office claiming Nike owes them $25 million. Knight discovers that the only reason Nike owes so much money is that the government has decided to enforce an archaic law after Nike’s competitors lobbied for them to do so. Knight gathers political allies, fights back against the U.S. Customs Office, and convinces them to settle for $9 million.
After his legal battles are over, Knight finally ends his cash flow problems by taking Nike public. He discovers that he can issue bonds in such a way that he and his board will still have control over Nike without worrying too much about public interference. On December 2nd, 1980, Nike goes public, and shortly after, Knight racks up a net worth of $178 million.
Years later, in 2007, Knight finds himself talking with Bill Gates and Warren Buffet about bucket lists. He thinks about what he still has left to do in his life. By 2007, Nike has already accomplished a lot. It is the world’s biggest sports brand; millions of athletes wear their clothes worldwide, including celebrity endorsers such as Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods. Although Nike is not a perfect company, Knight insists that it does its best to operate ethically and push for better labor conditions in the countries where it operates. He believes Nike will continue to grow and evolve, and as long as that is the case, he feels he still has plenty left to do.
