Shoe Dog

The iconic Nike sporting goods company started over 50 years ago as a ‘crazy idea’ in the mind of a young runner in Oregon. Shoe Dog is Phil Knight’s personal memoir of the company that started with him selling running shoes he called Tigers out of the back of his car. Along the way, he learned the importance of assembling a team of brilliant, dedicated, like-minded individuals; of focusing on people before profit; and of not being afraid to stand up to challenges and face them on your own terms. In the early days, the Nike management team, the Buttface team, identified strongly with each other and trusted each other. That spirit and ethos came to embody the entire company, where the focus has always been on the athletes and on building trust. The company’s “us against the world” approach helped them to overcome some formidable challenges: losing their main Japanese supplier, solving the problem of uneven supply and excess inventory, and even taking on the government over import taxes. Sponsoring the runner Steve Prefontaine when he was at a low point in his life gave the young company a formidable spokesman and ambassador for the brand. Deciding to maintain his memorial after his tragic death was emblematic of the people-oriented company Nike was becoming. That connection with its athletes continues to this day. The inventions of two of Nike’s iconic products—the waffle-sole running shoe and Nike Air—came from unexpected sources and went on to revolutionize the world of athletic shoes. There were disasters, too, like the much-hyped Tailwind shoe that literally tore itself to shreds. And there was controversy, particularly the allegations over the use of sweatshops in Asia. Phil Knight and Nike turned each stumbling block into a challenge to do better, to achieve more, to keep winning the race.