Knight came up with the idea for what would become a leading athletic shoe company while he was still taking up his master’s degree in Stanford University. When asked to write a term paper about starting a small business on something that he knew well, the track star – with no second thoughts – chose running. He drafted a plan for breaking the iron grip Adidas had on the athletic shoe industry by utilizing low-cost Japanese labor in manufacturing cheaper and better-quality running shoes.
Not long after he graduated, Knight decided to concretize his plans, flew to Japan, and paid the folks from Onitsuka Tiger Co., a visit. He introduced himself to the producers of Adidas rip-offs as the CEO of Blue Ribbon Sports, a shoe manufacturing company that he made up. Knight told the Tiger executives that his company was the best choice they have if ever they decide to import their shoes in the United States. He somehow convinced the Tigers to send him some shoe samples and promised to place an order right after his made-up “partners” assessed them.
He flew back to United States, borrowed money from his dad to pay for the shoe samples, and sent a pair to his tracking Coach, Bill Powerman, who approved of the shoes and almost instantaneously became Knight’s business partner. Shelling out $500 each, Knight and Bowerman officially created the Blue Ribbon Sports and bought 200 pairs of shoes from Tigers which Knight started selling at the back of his car during interschool track meets all over the Pacific Northwest.
Sales reached a whopping $3 million by the 1970’s and soon enough, Knight decided to cut off their ties with Tiger and started designing their own shoes. In 1972, Blue Ribbon created its Nike line, derived from the name of the Greek goddess of triumph. Adorned with a “swoosh” logo designed by an art student for a mere $35, the shoes boasted of waffle soles that provided better traction with smaller amount of weight. Needless to say, sales boomed and by 1986, Nike reached $1 billion in sales.
Knight stepped down as the CEO of his company yet remains to be a chairman of the board up to this very day. He is the 30th richest man in the world with a net worth of almost 10 billion dollars.