History of Nike

By selaverty

  • Blue Ribbon Sports

    After failing to convince shoe companies to fabricate their ideas on running shoes, Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman join forces, create Blue Ribbon Sports, purchase 300 tiger shoes and experiment with them.

  • Jeff Johnson

    Both Knight and Bowerman had full time jobs so they hired Jeff Johnson who became the first full time employee of Blue Ribbon Sports.

  • Nike Gets its Name

    Jeff Johnson came up with the name "Nike" and a graphic design student at Portland State University named Carolyn Davidson, created the Nike "swoosh"

  • Prefontaine Endorses Nike

    Blue Ribbon Sports hired the track legend, Stephen Prefontaine, to endorse their new Nike line of shoes. Like the founders of the company, Pre was also from Oregon.

  • Nike Completes IPO

    Nike completed its IPO (Initial Public Offering) and becomes a publicly traded company in the stock market.

  • Michael Jordan

    The debut of a new shoe for NBA Rookie, Michael Jordan, helped boost Nike's bottom line of shoes.

  • Bo Jackson

    Nike's cross traing shoe sales "explode" thanks to the endorsement "Bo Knows" with two-sport athlete Bo Jackson.

  • Niketown

    Potrland, Oregon became the firts home of Niketown. This new retail experience won multiple architectural design and retail awards. It also sparked many other Niketown locations in the U.S. and around the world.

  • 90's Endorsement

    Nike signed many legendary athletes during the 90's including the entire World Cup-Winning Brazilian team in 1995 and began designing the team's uniform. Nike also signed a young and talented golfer named Eldrick "Tiger" Woods, who was trying to make a name for himself in the PGA

  • Nike in the NFL

    Nike became the official sponsor of the NFL (National Football League)

  • Nike Lives On

    Nike continues to flourish throughout the beginning of the new millenium. The company still designs and experiments new, game-changing athletic products and technology. With high hopes of decending out of the recession, Nike increased its fiscal 2015 revenue target to $28-30 billion from the $27 billion target.