How Nike Became the Biggest Brand in Sports
Nike — it’s perhaps the most iconic and most prolific brand of the modern era. On any given day, swooshes adorn the feet of more people on earth than any other footwear company — by a long shot.
If you read Shoe Dog or watched Air, you may think you know its history. But Shoe Dog ends in 1980, and Air… well let’s just say it’s an enjoyable piece of fiction. And it turns out (as always) that the real story is filled with far more drama, twists and business lessons than either of those works.
We’ve been wanting to cover Nike for a long time, and thanks to our LPs who voted to choose this episode it’s finally here. So lace up your Vaporflys, Air Maxes, Dunks or Jordans (or your Monarchs, hey we don’t judge), head out for a long run or walk and enjoy!
More on the episode
Carve Outs
- Marc Andreessen on Lex Fridman and on Ben Thompson
- Speak Now (Taylor’s Version)
corrections
- Phil Knight wasn’t a journalism major at Oregon, but rather a business major. We can’t be too upset about making a mistake here though, since one of the books we used for research had it wrong!
- Carolyn Davidson’s grant of 500 shares came in 1983, not at IPO. This means that the stock has split 6 times — not 7 — between then and now.
- Americans (including us) all pronounce “Onitsuka” incorrectly. Here’s the real pronunciation.
- Michael Jordan got a royalty from ALL shoes in the Nike Air line, not just basketball shoes.
- Uber’s “toe stepping” principle did not refer to “stepping a toe over the line.” Rather, it was the idea that employees shouldn’t be afraid to “step on other people’s toes” within the organization.