Have you ever wanted to get a behind-the-scenes glimpse into how Nike was created? In his book,  Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of NIKE, Phil Knight talks about how he turned his ‘Crazy Idea’ into a multi-million global business.

 

 

PART ONE

Phil’s memoir starts in 1962. He has a ‘Crazy Idea’. The ‘Crazy Idea’ was to import running shoes from Japan. He had noticed how the Japanese had grown their market share of the camera market and thought they could do the same in relation to running shoes. At the time German companies, Adidas and Puma, ruled the running shoe world. He worked hard on the paper, none of the other students were interested, but his lecturer said his idea had merit.

Having finished his degree, Phil was now a free man and he wanted to go to Japan, to pitch his ‘Crazy Idea’ and see if it was possible to make it come true. As you know, Phil was able to turn his ‘Crazy Idea ‘into a reality, but in his memoir Phil goes into detail about how he turned it into a reality.

In these early days Nike wasn’t Nike, but Blue Ribbon. Phil shares how he came up with Blue Ribbon, how he secured his first deal with a Japanese manufacturer and how he got Bill Bowerman to agree to be his business partner.

Phil talks about how he worked alongside building Blue Ribbon, how he grew the team and falling in love. All whilst keeping up a daily habit of running.

The book doesn’t just show all of the highlights, Phil is honest about the difficulties – everything from stock arriving late, the wrong stock arriving and the heated discussions with banks. Blue Ribbon was growing at a phenomenal rate, but that means there were cash flow problems. The company had very little equity for the loan amount Phil was requested. A trend that carried on for years.

 

 

PART TWO

Part Two of Shoe Dog covers 1975 to 1980. Whilst this may be fewer years than the part one it is still full of great stories. Early on in this section, you learn how in 1976 Blue Ribbon became Nike, Inc.

Then in 1977 a letter from the US Custom Services threatened to bankrupt the company. The memoir talks about how that one letter came into Phil’s life and changed everything, and the impact it had in the following months.

If there is one common theme between Part One and Part Two of Shoe Dog it is that capital was still an issue. Repeatedly the conversation about going public was raised. However, Phil was really against it for years until he was introduced to the idea of class A and class B stocks that they finally decided to go public.

This revelation results in Part Two culminating with the company going public (in the same week as Apple) for twenty-two dollars per share. This meant overnight Phil Knight was worth $178 million.

 

NIGHT

Fast forward to 2007. Phil is now worth $10 billion and after watching a movie with his wife spots Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. This section shares how live has been since 1980 and shares why he decided to write this memoir.

 

 

FINAL THOUGHTS

Overall I loved this book. I didn’t really know much about Phil Knight, other than the fact he was the founder of Nike, before reading the book. I had heard great things about the book, but it had sat on my to-read list for a while.

Firstly, Phil is a wonderful writer and storyteller, which makes the book really easy to read. It is so clear through the book that Phil is super passionate running and him getting originally into the shoe business (and then apparel) was based on him wanting to help others be the best athletes (pro or amateur) that they could be.

Whilst it is a book about business, it is also about following your dreams, overcoming obstacles, building a team, being a great leader and ultimately not stopping until you succeed.

If I have one negative comment it would be that I wish more have been included what happened between 1980 and 2007. I would love to have heard more about Nike from the time I was alive.

 

 

WHO I WOULD RECOMMEND SHOE DOG: A MEMOIR BY THE CREATOR OF NIKE TO

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is thinking of getting into business or already has a business. This book isn’t going to tell you how to be a successful business owner or entrepreneur, but it should hopefully inspire. And even if you don’t have your own business, but you have a passion or idea that you want to bring to the world I encourage you to read it. Phil built Nike in a world that seems so far away from the world we know today. If he could build Nike then, I’m sure you will see how much easier it is for you to make your ‘Crazy Idea’ come true today.

If you like the sound of Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike by Phil Knight you can buy a copy for yourself by clicking here.