Long before its swoosh logo became a widely recognized symbol, Nike's early sales came from Phil Knight driving a green Plymouth Valiant from one track meet to another with a trunk full of Japanese running shoes. This is how the company that would become Nike really started, and its filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission show the business grew substantially. According to Nike's SEC filing for fiscal year 2009, the company reported $19.2 billion in revenue, a scale of growth many people who have simply worn Nike running shoes might never have considered.
A meeting that turned into a business
The company that would become Nike was born from a conversation, not a business plan. Phil Knight, a former middle-distance runner at the University of Oregon, had studied at Stanford and concluded that Japanese manufacturers could produce better running shoes at a fraction of the price of Germany's heavily marketed wares. In January 1964, he met his old college track coach, Bill Bowerman, and laid out his plans. According to Nike, Knight and Bowerman met for lunch on January 25, 1964, and shook hands about an hour later; Nike's account does not say Blue Ribbon Sports was formally established that same day. Each reportedly put in a few hundred dollars to get started. Bowerman had spent years tinkering with shoe design in his garage, from dismantling pairs of sneakers to shaving ounces from many components. His involvement brought more than money; it also gave the company credibility in athletic footwear.
