Nike, Inc.

HISTORY

Nike was founded on January 25, 1964 by University of Oregon track athlete Phil Knight and his celebrated track and field coach Bill Bowerman.

When Nike was founded, it was known as Blue Ribbon Sports and operated as a distributor for Japanese shoe maker Onitsuka Tiger (now ASICS),

The first Nike store opened under the moniker Blue Ribbon Sports in Santa Monica, California, in 1967.

In 1971 Blue Ribbon decided it wanted a name change. Knight wanted to call the company Dimension 6, while others favored Bengal. Employee Jeff Johnson preferred Nike, a name which had come to him in his sleep.

Blue Ribbon officially became Nike, Inc. on May 30, 1971. They decided on their new name in honor of Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, either in war or in an athletic contest. She is the frequent subject of sculpture, often shown as a winged figure, as in Nike of Samothrace.

The Nike "swoosh" logo was created in 1971 by a graphic design student Carolyn Davidson and was purchased by Blue Ribbon for $35. The intention was to convey motion in its design. The Swoosh was first used by Nike on June 18, 1971.

A waffle iron was behind Nike's first major innovation; the soles on one of Nike's first shoes were made using Bowerman's wife's waffle iron in 1974, after Bowerman was inspired at the breakfast table.

Early in his career, NBA Legend Spencer Haywood chose $100,000 upfront over a 10% stake in Nike. Had he accepted the original offer, his holdings in Nike would be worth a whopping $8.62 billion.

In 1992, Nike made a Super Bowl commercial where an animated Bugs Bunny played basketball with a real-live Michael Jordan. The ad was so successful that Warner Brothers decided to turn it into a whole movie (Space Jam).

Nike has been criticized for contracting with factories (known as Nike sweatshops) in countries such as Cambodia, Vietnam, Indonesia and Pakistan. A 1997 report from America revealed that factories in Vietnam making Nike brand shoes paid their workers an average of only $US1.60 per day and that working conditions are appalling.

During the 1990s, Nike faced criticism for the use of child labor in Cambodia and Pakistan in factories it contracted to manufacture soccer balls.

In 1998 a group of Californian lawyers filed a lawsuit in San Francisco Superior Court accusing Nike of wilfully misleading the American public about working conditions in the Asian factories producing the footwear. Responding to charges that it exploits its Asian employees, Nike Inc., announced improved working conditions for the 500,000 people who at the time made its products. Nike added it would  raise the minimum age of footwear and clothing workers to 18 and 16 respectively.

Nike's first "Just Do It" advertisement debuted on July 1, 1988. Nike ad agency executive Dan Wieden credits the inspiration for the slogan as being the last words spoken by convicted murderer Gary Gilmore before being shot to death by a firing squad in Utah in 1977.

NIKE TODAY

Nike is the world's biggest brand of sports shoes, clothes and equipment.

Nike has approximately 62,600 employees worldwide as of 2015.

Nike's World Headquarters are in Beaverton, Oregon.

Nike sells its products under its own name as well as Nike Golf, Nike Pro, Nike+, Air Jordan, and Team Starter.

Michael Jordan makes more money from Nike annually than all of the Nike factory workers in Malaysia combined.

A pair of Nike Air Jordan I basketball shoes. By Trios2007 - Wikipedia

Nike also owns the brands Bauer, Cole Haan, Hurley International, and Converse.

The world's largest Nike store is in Oxford Street, London; it's got three floors of athletic apparel and measures about 42,000 square feet.

Sources Europress Encyclopedia, Popsugar.com, Mentalfloss.com