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TABLE OF CONTENTS

From Greek Myth to Sports and Fitness Powerhouse.............................................................4

Origins and History.................................................................................................................5
Acquisitions.............................................................................................................................6
Products...................................................................................................................................8
.............................................................................................................................................9
Headquarters.........................................................................................................................10
Nike's world headquarters are surrounded by the city of Beaverton, Oregon but are
technically within unincorporated Washington County....................................................10
Manufacturing.......................................................................................................................12
...........................................................................................................................................13
Environmental record............................................................................................................13
Marketing strategy................................................................................................................14
Kasky vs. Nike......................................................................................................................16
Advertising............................................................................................................................16
Beatles Song......................................................................................................................16
Minor Threat Ad...............................................................................................................17
Horror Ad..........................................................................................................................18
Chinese-themed Ad...........................................................................................................18
Pretty.................................................................................................................................19
Sponsorship...........................................................................................................................20
Jordan Brand History............................................................................................................22
In the Beginning................................................................................................................22
Really Not That Interested....................................................................................................22
A Legacy (and a Controversy) is Born.............................................................................23
...........................................................................................................................................24
Changes.............................................................................................................................24
...........................................................................................................................................25
Moving Out.......................................................................................................................25
Jordan Trainers. From this point on, Jordan Brand products no longer featured the Nike
name or Nike Swoosh, and their only connection to Nike,Inc is a fine print address for
Nike headquarters to be used for insurance purposes.......................................................25
The Shoes Changed the World..........................................................................................25
REUSE-A-SHOE..................................................................................................................26
Innovation.........................................................................................................................27
How Old Tread Becomes New Track...............................................................................27
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There’s An Athlete in Every One of Us

Generally speaking, I consider that people choose Nike because it's got a good reputation
for making a quality shoe and clothing. For what it's worth people are drawn to the brand
due to the athletes it endorses and overtime people feel some sort of brand loyalty.

I have chosen to debate this subject mostly because of the qualities this brand promotes.
Nike's advertisements have preached inclusiveness, merit, and spirit in a nation that doesn't
always prize those. For instance, the Tiger Woods promotions have effectively waved a
scolding index finger at country-club exclusivity in America. And these ads don't simply
say, "Shame on you." They champion the idea that false authority, exclusivity and
arrogance will get walloped by the qualities listed above. Nike Co-founder Bill Bowerman
once said, “If you have a body, you are an athlete.” For Nike, being an athlete doesn’t
necessarily mean participating in competitive sports, it means pushing the physical
limitations of your body to discover its potential. In order to promote their products, Nike
strives to visualize and inspire an active way of life for ordinary human beings so they will
discover their innate athletic identity and feel more powerful in their shoes or gear. For
example, Nike's celebration of female body parts such as big butts, thunder thighs and
tomboy knees has pleased the Women's Image Network so much they've named the brand
2006 Advertiser of the year. WIN Founder Phyllis Stuart praised Nike, saying, "Nike
advertising makes women feel good about being female. Since The WIN Awards celebrate
film, television and advertising that dispels female media stereotypes, Nike is an ideal
honoree. Their advertising has always encouraged women to participate in sports, which
significantly improves women's self-esteem and enhances their chances of success in all
areas. When women see a NIKE ad they feel more capable”.

Another reason why I consider Nike owner of a dominant position in the world of sporting
shoes,clothing and apparel is the fact that the producers understand the needs and desires of
customers and give their best in order to satisfy the consumers. In comparison to other
brands, Nike smokes the competition. They consistently create innovative, memorable
messages to promote their products or brand to a much more diverse range of
demographics. They’ve done numerous campaigns like, “enjoy the weather”, “courage”,
“my better is better”, and “play”, all offering inspiration to the masses. Other athletic
companies, like Asics or Underarmor, only appeal to the existing, serious athlete as a way
to promote their products. Nike reaches a much larger customer base since they believe that
there is an athlete in every one of us.

Nike thinks like runners. Their products are designed by people who use them so they are
always thinking of pioneering ways to better their products and us. By standing for
superiority, victory and liberation, Nike gives us the heart and soul we need in order to
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become a runner or an athlete. Physical activity is not something that comes easy to the
average person. We make excuses or lose motivation, especially around New Years. Nike
addresses the issues that slow us down, mentally and physically, to equip us with the
motivation and character that we need in order to create a way of life where quitting is not
an option. Visually speaking, Nike is like a coach, always encouraging you to push yourself
to Just Do It. As such, their strong brand presence and reputation of endorsing the best
athletes makes people believe they are buying the best gear to make them better. Besides, if
Nike didn’t make physical activity a way of life, do you really think they would be as
popular as they are?

From Greek Myth to Sports and Fitness Powerhouse

Nike, Inc is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United
States. The company is headquartered in Beaverton, near the Portland metropolitan area of
Oregon. It is the world's leading supplier of athletic shoes and apparel and a major
manufacturer of sports equipment with revenue in excess of $18.6 billion USD in its fiscal
year 2008 (ending May 31, 2008). As of 2008, it employed more than 30,000 people
worldwide. Nike and Precision Castparts are the only Fortune 500 companies
headquartered in the state of Oregon, according to The Oregonian.

The company was founded on January 25, 1964 as Blue Ribbon Sports by Bill Bowerman
and Philip Knight, and
officially became Nike, Inc.
in 1978. The company takes its
name from Nike (Greek Νίκη
pronounced [NI-KEY]), the
Greek goddess of victory. Nike
markets its products under its
own brand as well as Nike Golf,
Nike Pro, Nike+, Air Jordan,
Nike Skateboarding and
subsidiaries including Cole
Haan, Hurley International,
Umbro and Converse. Nike
also owned Bauer Hockey (later renamed Nike Bauer) between 1995 and 2008. In addition
to manufacturing sportswear and equipment, the company operates retail stores under the
Niketown name. Nike sponsors many high profile athletes and sports teams around the
world, with the highly recognized trademarks of "Just do it".
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Origins and History

Nike, originally known as Blue Ribbon Sports, was founded by University of Oregon track
athlete Philip Knight and his coach Bill Bowerman in January 1964. The company initially
operated as a distributor for Japanese shoe maker Onitsuka Tiger, making most sales at
track meets out of Knight's automobile.

The company's profits grew quickly, and in 1966,

BRS opened its first retail store, located on Pico
Boulevard in Santa Monica, California. By 1971, the
relationship between BRS and Onitsuka Tiger was
nearing an end. BRS prepared to launch its own line
of footwear, which would bear the newly designed
Swoosh.

The first shoe to carry this design that was sold to the
public was a football shoe named "Nike", which was
released in the summer of 1971. In February 1972,
BRS introduced its first line of Nike shoes, with the
name Nike derived from the Greek goddess of
victory. In 1978, BRS ,Inc. officially renamed itself
to Nike, Inc.Beginning with Ilie Nastase, the first
Bowerman. How Nike is born professional athlete to sign with BRS/Nike, the
sponsorship of athletes became a key marketing tool for the rapidly growing company.

The company's first self-designed product was based on

Bowerman's "waffle" design. After the University of
Oregon resurfaced the track at Hayward Field,
Bowerman began experimenting with different potential
outsoles that would grip the new urethane track more
effectively. His efforts were rewarded one Sunday
morning when he poured liquid urethane into his wife's
waffle iron. Bowerman developed and refined the so-
called 'waffle' sole which would evolve into the now-
iconic Waffle Trainer in 1974.
IlieNastase(left)
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By 1980, Nike had reached a 50% market share in the United States athletic shoe market,
and the company went public in December of that year. Its growth was due largely to
'word-of-foot' advertising (to quote a Nike print ad from the late 1970s), rather than
television ads. Nike's first national television commercials ran in October 1982 during the
broadcast of the New York Marathon. The ads were created by Portland-based advertising
agency Wieden+Kennedy, which had formed several months earlier in April 1982.

Together, Nike and Wieden+Kennedy have created many indelible print and television ads
and the agency continues to be Nike's
primary today. It was agency co-
founder Dan Wieden who coined the
now-famous slogan "Just Do It" for a
1988 Nike ad campaign, which was
chosen by Advertising Age as one of
the top five ad slogans of the 20th
century, and the campaign has been
enshrined in the Smithsonian
Institution. San Franciscan Walt
Stack was featured in Nike's first
"Just Do It" advertisement that
debuted on July 1, 1988. Throughout
the 1980s, Nike expanded its product
line to include many other sports and
regions throughout the world.

Acquisitions

• As of November 2008, Nike, Inc. owns four key subsidiaries: Cole Haan, Hurley
International, Converse Inc. and Umbro.

• Nike's first acquisition was the upscale footwear company Cole Haan in 1988.
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• In February 2002, Nike bought surf apparel company Hurley International from
founder Bob Hurley.

• In July 2003, Nike paid $305 million to acquire Converse Inc., makers of the iconic
Chuck Taylor All Stars.

• On March 3, 2008, Nike acquired sports apparel supplier Umbro, known as the
manufacturers of the England national football team's kits, in a deal said to be worth
£285 million (about $600m).
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• Other subsidiaries previously owned and subsequently sold by Nike include Bauer
Hockey and Starter.

Products
Nike produces a wide range
of sports equipment.
Their first products
were track running
shoes. They currently
also make shoes, jerseys,
shorts, baselayers etc. for a
wide range of sports
including track & field,
baseball, ice hockey,
tennis, Association
football, lacrosse, basketball
and cricket. The most recent
additions to their line are the
Nike 6.0, Nike NYX, and
Nike SB shoes, designed for
skateboarding. Nike has recently introduced cricket shoes, called Air Zoom Yorker,
designed to be 30% lighter than their competitors'. In 2008, Nike introduced the Air Jordan
XX3, a high performance basketball shoe designed with the environment in mind.
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Nike sells an assortment of products, including shoes and apparel for sports activities like
association football,basketball, running, combat
sports, tennis, American football, athletics, golf
and cross training for men, women, and children.
Nike also sells shoes for outdoor activities such as
tennis, golf, skateboarding, association football,
baseball, American football, cycling, volleyball,
wrestling, cheerleading, aquatic activities, auto
racing and other athletic and recreational uses.

Nike is well known and popular in youth culture,

chav culture and hip hop culture as they supply
urban fashion clothing. Nike recently teamed up
with Apple Inc. to produce the Nike+ product
which monitors a runner's performance via a radio
device in the shoe which links to the iPod nano. While the product generates useful
statistics, it has been criticized by researchers who were able to identify users' RFID
devices from 60 feet (18 m) away using small, concealable intelligence motes in a wireless
sensor network.

In 2004, they launched the SPARQ Training

Program/Division. It is currently the premier
training program in the U.S. Some of Nike's
newest shoes contain Flywire and Lunarlite
Foam. These are materials used to reduce the
weight of many types of shoes.

In the video game Gran Turismo 4 there is a car

by Nike called the NikeOne 2022, designed by
Phil Frank.
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Headquarters

Nike's world headquarters are surrounded by the city of Beaverton, Oregon but are
technically within unincorporated Washington County.

This distinction, according to The Oregonian, has been a source of contention between the
city of Beaverton and Nike since the company purchased 74 acres (0.3 km²) of nearby
Beaverton land that soon fronted the Jared Co-operation. When Nike proposed expanding
their headquarters in that direction, Beaverton at first wanted them to build housing near the
MAX station and criss-cross the property with two public roads, expectations defined by
the zoning already in place when Nike bought the land. Beaverton's request was mostly
consistent with Metro's transit-oriented development plans for the region. After a year,
which included a threat by Nike to move 5,000 jobs out of the state, Beaverton backed
down from the requirement for housing, but the lack of accommodation was something that
Nike did not forget.

The annexation
standoff soon led
Beaverton to
attempt a forcible
annexation. That led
to a lawsuit by Nike,
and lobbying by the
company that
ultimately ended in
Oregon Senate Bill
887 of 2005. Under
that bill's terms,
Beaverton is
specifically barred
from forcibly
annexing the land
that Nike and Columbia Sportswear occupy in unincorporated Washington County for 35
years, while Electro Scientific Industries and Tektronix get that same protection for 30
years.
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The world headquarters is situated on approximately 200 acres (0.81 km2) of land. The first
phase of construction was completed in 1990, followed by expansions in 1992, 1999, 2001
and 2008. There are 17 buildings, together providing approximately 2,000,000 square feet
(190,000 m2) of office space. Each building is named for a legendary coach or athlete who
has had a long affiliation with Nike, including Tiger Woods, Lance Armstrong, Mia Hamm,
Michael Jordan, Pete Sampras, Joan Benoit Samuelson, John McEnroe and several others.

Two of the buildings are child development centers, named for Joe Paterno and C. Vivian
Stringer, that together provide daily child care for approximately 500 children of Nike
employees. A man-made lake, fed by a natural spring, covers 6 acres (24,000 m2) and is
adjacent to a protected wetland area that runs through the center of the campus. The dirt
from the lake was deposited around the perimeter of the grounds to create a 14-foot (4.3 m)
tall, sloping berm that helps create a campus-like feel. Approximately 5,000 employees are
based at the world headquarters, with another 2,000-2,500 in additional buildings in office
complexes nearby.
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Manufacturing

Nike has contracted with more than 700 shops around the world and has offices located in
45 countries outside the United States. Most of the factories are located in Asia, including
Indonesia, China, Taiwan, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan, Philippines,and Malaysia.
Nike is hesitant to disclose information about the contract companies it works with.
However, due to harsh criticism from some organizations like CorpWatch, Nike has
disclosed information about its contract factories in its Corporate Governance Report.
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Environmental record
The consistently growing textile industry often negatively impacts the environment.
Because Nike is a large participant in this manufacturing, many of their processes
negatively contribute to the environment. One way the expanding textile industry affects
the environment is by increasing its water deficit, climate change, pollution, and fossil fuel
and raw material consumption. In addition to this, today's electronic textile plants spend
significant amounts of energy, while also producing a throw-away mindset due to trends
founded upon fast fashion and cheap clothing. Although these combined effects can
negatively alter the environment, Nike tries to counteract their influence with different
projects. According to a New England-based environmental organisation Clean Air-Cool

Planet, Nike ranks among the top 3 companies (out of 56) on a survey conducted about
climate-friendly companies. Nike has also been praised for its Nike Grind programme
(which closes the product lifecycle) by groups like Climate Counts.
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In addition to this, one campaign that Nike began for

Earth Day 2008 was a commercial that featured Steve
Nash wearing Nike's Trash Talk Shoe, a shoe that
had been constructed in February 2008 from pieces of
leather and synthetic leather waste that derived from
the factory floor. The Trash Talk Shoe also featured a
sole composed of ground- up rubber from a shoe recycling
program.

Nike claims this is the first performance basketball

shoe that has been created from manufacturing waste, but
it only produced 5,000 pairs for sale. Another project
Nike has begun is called Nike's Reuse-A-Shoe program.
This program, started in 1993, is Nike's longest-running
program that benefits both the environment and the
community by collecting old athletic shoes of any type in
order to process and recycle them. The material that
is created from the recycled shoes is then used to
help create sports surfaces, such as basketball
courts, running tracks, and playgrounds.

Marketing strategy
Nike's marketing strategy is an important component
of the company's success. Nike is positioned as a
premium-brand, selling well-designed and
expensive products. Nike lures customers with a
marketing strategy centering around a brand
image which is attained by distinctive logo and the
advertising slogan: "Just do it". Nike promotes its
products by sponsorship agreements with celebrity
athletes, professional teams and college athletic
teams. However, Nike's marketing mix contains
many elements besides promotion. These are
summarised below.
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From 1972 to 1982, Nike relied almost exclusively on print advertising in highly vertical
publications including Track and Field News. Most of the early advertising was focused on
a new shoe release, essentially outlining the benefits of the running, basketball or tennis
shoe. In 1976, the company hired its first outside ad agency, John Brown and Partners, who
created what many consider Nike's first 'brand advertising' in 1977. A print ad with the
tagline "There is no finish line" featured a lone runner on a rural road and became an
instant classic. The success of this simple ad inspired Nike to create a poster version that
launched the company's poster business.

In 1982, Nike aired its first national television ads, created by newly formed ad agency
Wieden+Kennedy, during the New York Marathon. This would mark the beginning of a
remarkably successful partnership between Nike and W+K that remains intact today. The
Cannes Advertising Festival has named Nike its 'advertiser of the year' on two separate
occasions, the first and only company to receive that honor twice (1994, 2003).

Nike also has earned the Emmy Award for best commercial twice since the award was first
created in the 1990s. The
first was for "The
Morning After," a
satirical look at what a
runner might face on the
morning of January 1,
2000 if every dire
prediction about Y2K
came to fruition.[37]
The second Emmy for
advertising earned by
Nike was for a 2002 spot
called "Move,"
which featured a series of
famous and everyday
athletes in a stream of
athletic pursuits.

In addition to garnering awards, Nike advertising has generated its fair share of
controversy.
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Kasky vs. Nike

Consumer activist Marc Kasky filed a lawsuit in California in 2002 regarding newspaper
advertisements and several letters Nike distributed in response to criticisms of labor
conditions in its factories. Kasky claimed that the company made representations that
constituted false advertising. Nike responded that the false advertising laws did not cover
the company's expression of its views on a public issue, and that these were entitled to First
Amendment protection. The local court agreed with Nike's lawyers, but the California
Supreme Court overturned this ruling, claiming that the corporation's communications were
commercial speech and therefore subject to false advertising laws.

The United States Supreme Court agreed to review the case

(Nike v. Kasky) but sent the case back to trial court without
issuing a substantive ruling on the constitutional issues. The
parties subsequently settled out of court before any finding on
the accuracy of Nike's statements, leaving the
California Supreme Court's denial of Nike's immunity
claim as precedent. The case drew a great deal of attention
from groups concerned with civil liberties, as well as anti-
sweatshop activists.

Advertising

Beatles Song
Nike was the focus of criticism for its use of the Beatles song "Revolution" in a 1987
commercial, against the wishes of Apple Records, the Beatles' recording company. Nike
paid $250,000 to Capitol Records Inc., which held the North American licensing rights to
the Beatles' recordings, for the right to use the Beatles' rendition for a year.
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According to a July 28, 1987 article written by the Associated Press, Apple sued Nike Inc.,
Capitol Records Inc., EMI Records Inc. and Wieden+Kennedy advertising agency for $15
million. Capitol-EMI countered by saying the lawsuit was 'groundless' because Capitol had
licensed the use of "Revolution" with the "active support and encouragement of Yoko Ono
Lennon, a shareholder and director of Apple."

According to a November 9, 1989 article in the Los Angeles Daily News, "a tangle of
lawsuits between the Beatles and their American and British record companies has been
settled." One condition of the out-of-court settlement was that terms of the agreement
would be kept secret. The settlement was reached among the three parties involved: George
Harrison, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr; Yoko Ono; and Apple, EMI and Capitol Records.
A spokesman for Yoko Ono noted, "It's such a confusing myriad of issues that even people
who have been close to the principals have a difficult time grasping it. Attorneys on both
sides of the Atlantic have probably put their children through college on this."

Nike discontinued airing ads featuring "Revolution" in March 1988. Yoko Ono later gave
permission to Nike to use John Lennon's "Instant Karma" in another ad.

Minor Threat Ad
In late June 2005, Nike received criticism from Ian MacKaye, owner of Dischord Records,
guitarist/vocalist for Fugazi & The Evens, and front-man of defunct punk band Minor
Threat, for appropriating imagery and text from Minor Threat's 1981 self-titled album's
cover art in a flyer promoting Nike Skateboarding's 2005 East Coast demo tour.
On June 27, Nike Skateboarding's
website issued an apology to Dischord,
Minor Threat, and fans of both and
announced that they tried to remove and
dispose of all flyers. They state that the
people who designed it were
skateboarders and Minor Threat fans
themselves who created the ad out of
respect and appreciation for the band.
The dispute was eventually settled out of
court between Nike & Minor Threat. The
exact details of the settlement have never
been disclosed.
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Horror Ad
In this ad, a parody of horror films, Olympic runner Suzy Favor-Hamilton is running a bath
in a remote wilderness cabin when a chainsaw-wielding masked killer appears. Hamilton is
obviously in much better shape than the would-be killer and, thanks to her Nike gear,
sprints away. The final shot shows the killer out of breath, limping away and ends with the
tagline, "Why Sport?" which is quickly answered with "You'll live longer."

First aired during the opening ceremony of the 2000 Summer

Olympics (Friday), the ad titled "Horror" generated roughly
200 complaints (according to NBC) that caused the network to
pull the ad by Sunday. ESPN followed suit, but the ad
continued to air with little or no controversy on several other
networks, including FOX, WB, UPN and Comedy Central.

Protesters argued that the ad made light of violence against

women, while others claimed it was just too scary to watch,
especially for children who enjoy watching the Olympics. Nike
spokespeople retorted it was meant to be humorous, and to
satirize the typical horror flick where a helpless woman was
destined to be slashed. Hamilton herself stated the ad was
inspirational, since it is the woman who defeats the man.

Suzy Favor Hamilton

Chinese-themed Ad
In 2004, an ad about LeBron James beating cartoon martial arts masters and slaying a
Chinese dragon in martial arts offended
Chinese authorities, who called the ad
blasphemous and insulting to national
dignity and the dragon. The ad was later
banned in China. In early 2007 the ad was re-
instated in China for unknown reasons.
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Pretty
In the run up to the 2006 U.S. Open, Nike began running Pretty, a television advertisement
featuring Maria Sharapova.The
ad was a popular and
critical success, and went on to
win several of the industry's
top awards, including two
Cannes Gold Lions.

Nike sells its product to more

than 25,000 retailers in the
U.S. (including Nike's own
outlets and "Niketown"
stores) and in approximately
160 countries in the world. The
company also has a program
called NIKEiD at nikeid.com,
which allows customers to
customize designs of some
styles of Nike shoes and
deliver them directly from
manufacturer to the consumer.
Nike sells its products in
international markets through
independent distributors,
licensees, and subsidiaries.
 20

Sponsorship

Nike has signed top athletes in many different

professional sports to endorsement deals in
order to further promote their products.

Nike's first professional athlete endorser was

Romanian tennis player Ilie Năstase, and the
company's first track endorser was distance
running legend Steve Prefontaine. Prefontaine
was the prized pupil of the company's co-
founder Bill Bowerman while he coached at
the University of Oregon. Today, the Steve
Prefontaine Building is named in his honor at
Nike's corporate headquarters.

Besides Prefontaine, Nike has sponsored many

other successful track & field athletes over the
years such as Carl Lewis, Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Sebastian Coe. However, it was the
signing of basketball player Michael Jordan in 1984, with his subsequent promotion of
Nike over the course of his storied career with Spike Lee as Mars Blackmon, that proved to
be one of the biggest boosts to Nike's publicity and sales.

During the past 20 years

especially, Nike has been one of
the major clothing/footwear
sponsors for leading tennis
players. Some of the more
successful tennis players
currently or formerly sponsored
by Nike include: James Blake,
Jim Courier, Roger Federer,
Lleyton Hewitt, Juan Martín del
Potro, Andre Agassi, Rafael
Nadal, Pete Sampras, Marion
Bartoli, Lindsay Davenport, Daniela Hantuchová, Mary Pierce, Maria Sharapova, Serena
Williams
 21

Nike is also the official kit sponsor for the Indian cricket team for 5 years, from 2006 to
2010. Nike was awarded the contract for US$43 Million.

Nike also sponsors some of the leading

clubs in world football, such as Arsenal,
Manchester United, FC Barcelona, Inter
Milan, Juventus, Porto, Steaua, Borussia
Dortmund, Red Star, Aston Villa, Celtic
and PSV Eindhoven. Nike will also
sponsor Dundee United from summer
2009.

Nike sponsors several of the world's top

golf players, including Tiger Woods,
Trevor Immelmen and Paul Casey.

Nike also sponsors various minor events including Hoop It Up (high school basketball) and
The Golden West Invitational (high school track and field). Nike uses web sites as a
promotional tool to cover these events.
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Jordan Brand History

In the Beginning
Early in 1984, Nike was a struggling shoe
company. The running shoe phenomenon that
has fueled their sales in previous years was
slowly dying and they needed a way to
revitalize and reinvent themselves in order to
appeal to another segment of the market. At the
same time, rookie player Michael Jordan was
already endorsing several products, but Nike
hoped that his appeal would generate sales.
Jordan, though, had other ideas. He had always
preferred Adidas or the Converse shoes
endorsed by North Carolina

Coach, Dean Smith, and hoped to sign on with

either company. Converse, with Larry Bird and
Magic Johnson on board as spokesmen, were
not interested in offering a better deal than Nike,
and Adidas wasn't interested at all at the time;
perhaps due to Kathe Dassler's death the same year. While Jordan, himself, did not initially
see the significance of Nike's offer, his agent, David Falk, saw a golden opportunity in
Nike's offer to create a new line of shoes called "Air Jordans." and urged him to give Nike a
chance.

Really Not That Interested

At that time, there was not a tremendous impact from a shoe endorsement, and few
companies were willing to risk so much of their marketing budget to bet on one athlete to
promote their products. An athlete as paid for wearing the products but little else resulted
from an endorsement. It's possible that Jordan's reluctant attitude stemmed from this fact as
much as his allegiance to Converse and Adidas products

Nike saw something special in Michael Jordan, though. They saw a chance, an opportunity.
He was a champion with personality, charisma, and heart, and they were willing to put the
 23

company on the line. They knew from the beginning that he would be a star and wanted to
help him get there. Finally, after much persuasion from his manager

and parents, the reluctant rookie agreed to fly to the Nike headquarters in Portland, Oregon
to view a special video presentation and proposal though he later stated in retrospect that he
went with no intention of signing with Nike.

The video presentation featured slow-motion clips of Jordan's college career and some of
his high-flying Olympic moves with a background of then hit music "Jump" by the Pointer
Sisters. Nike Head Designer, Peter Moore presented sketches of AJ1 shoes, jumpsuits, and
sports apparel, all in black and red. Michael's remarks upon seeing the designs were less
than enthusiastic. He is reported to have said, "I can't wear that shoe, those are Devil
colors".

Throughout the entire meeting Jordan was reported to seem disinterested and bored, but as
he and Falk left the meeting, Jordan said to his agent, "Let's make the deal."

A Legacy (and a Controversy) is Born

With those four words, the Air Jordan legacy was born. Nike signed Jordan to a $2.5
million deal for 5 years, plus royalties and other fringe benefits. Peter Moore created the
first AJ Logo with a basketball with wings lifting it. The introduction of the Air Jordan I
turned the athletic shoe industry upside down. Before the AJ I, most basketball shoes were
white, but the bold black and red styling of the Jordan I flouted this convention.

The NBA banned the shoe

from the league in response, but
Jordan wore them anyway,
racking up serious fines of
up to $5000 a game. Nike, of
course, was more than
happy to pay these to keep
the shoes on Jordan's feet
and in the public eye. All
this controversy and Jordan's
spectacular numbers that
year served to put the Air
Jordan line on the road to
becoming a household
name.
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Changes
After winning 1986-87 Slam Dunk competition at Seattle Coliseum, the Jordan logo
changed to the familiar Jumpman logo of today, but when it came time to talk about the

Air Jordan III, Michael was ready to bolt. Reaction to the Air Jordan II, due in part to the
high retail price, hadn't been stellar and designers Peter Moore and Rob Strasser had left
Nike to start their own company. They began to court Jordan, hoping to develop the
business around him This was a turning point for the line; a make-it-or-break-it moment.

It was at this time that Tinker Hatfield stepped in to help the struggling shoe line.
Immediately, Hatfield did something completely new and unheard of. His first instinct was
to sit down and talk with Michael one on one and ask for his input about the design.
Hatfield has stated that this was a very tense time. No one had ever approached the business
of designing a shoe like this and Jordan had never had anyone ask his opinion until that
time. Ultimately, though, it was the good advice of Michael's father that saw it through. It's
reported that he advised his son to stay with the people who had done a good job for him.

Eventually the process of designing the

shoes and matching apparel drew
Jordan in and helped reinforce his
commitment to Nike. At Jordan's
request, the Air Jordan III was a three-
quarter cut basketball shoe made of
high quality, lighter than average
materials. This non-standard approach
to the process of designing basketball
shoes led the Air Jordan III to rocket
off the charts with its popularity, and
Tinker went on to design all the Jordan
models up to the Jordan XV. With the
release of the Air Jordan XV and
Jordan's second retirement, both
Hatfield and Jordan stepped back from
the Jordan line and other designers
took the reigns to continue to the
legacy.
 25

Moving Out
Air Jordan Shoes were a part of the Nike, Inc. family until late in 1997 Nike unveiled a new
marketing plan and Jordan became its own sub-brand of Nike. To mark this change, the
new Jordan Brand released the Air Jordan XIII, Air Jordan Team, and Air

Jordan Trainers. From this point on, Jordan Brand products no longer featured the Nike
name or Nike Swoosh, and their only connection to Nike,Inc is a fine print address
for Nike headquarters to be used for insurance purposes.

The Shoes Changed the World

Air Jordan shoes have consistently
been among the best selling
basketball shoes since their
creation in 1985. The Jordan brand
is a household name and people of
all ages and social strata line up
eagerly for the release of the latest
model. Some of this success can be
attributed to the fact that the shoes,
from the Jordan III to the most
recent model, have always started
with their namesake, Michael
Jordan. The designers take his
ideas, hobbies, and life into
account and incorporate these
feelings into the shoes. A number
of Jordans have been designed after Jordan's cars and some of the more recent models, like
the Jordan XXI (Jordan 21) on the way, some wonder when the Air Jordan line will be
retired while others speculate that, in honor of the man, the last Air Jordan will be the
Jordan XXIII (Jordan 23).

No matter what happens to the signature Air Jordan line, it's a good bet that the brand and
its tradition of quality, high-fashion basketball and athletic shoes will continue long after
Air Jordans have retired.
 26

REUSE-A-SHOE
Nike company has started an innovative program of recycling called Reuse-A-Shoe in order
to reduce its environmental impact that has provided material to nearly 300 sport and
playground surfaces, collecting 22.840.412 pairs of shoes since 1990.

To create these surfaces,

Nike partners with top-
quality surfacing
companies, providing them
with Nike Grind materials
and working together to
develop innovative
products usually containing
between 10 and 40 percent
Nike Grind:

• Outdoor Basketball
Courts – Rebound
Ace and Atlas
Track & Tennis use
Nike Grind Foam in
outdoor basketball
courts.
• Indoor Basketball
and Volleyball
Courts – Nike
Grind Foam and
Upper are used to
create cushioning
beneath these
surfaces.
• Tracks – Atlas
Track & Tennis
mixes Nike Grind
Rubber with virgin
rubber to create
synthetic indoor and outdoor running tracks.
• Soccer and Football Fields – Turf companies use Nike Grind Rubber granules as the
infill – the “soil” – of a synthetic field.
 27

• Playgrounds – Playtop creates impact-absorbing safety surfacing for playgrounds

using Nike Grind Rubber.
• Interlocking Flooring Tiles – Using around 90 percent recycled rubber, Training
Ground creates interlocking tiles for use in home gyms. It incorporates more than 25
percent pre-consumer Nike Grind Rubber, which gives it a colorful look as well.

Innovation
Waffle-iron track spikes. Air Jordans. Nike Shox. Innovation has been at the heart of Nike's
philosophy since the start. It's what has allowed it to create iconic, game-changing products
– time and again.But today, Nike innovation is about more than product performance. It's
about innovation for a better world.

That's where Reuse-A-Shoe and Nike Grind come in. Part of Nike's Considered design
ethos, these programs are helping it on the journey towards its vision of a closed loop
business – where waste at different stages of our operations, from its contract factories to
transportation and eventually the product at the end of its life, can be recycled – as much as
possible of it back into new Nike product.

Today your worn-out sports shoes can already live on in something new: a track, a
basketball court, a playground. Tomorrow, its goal is that sports shoes, apparel and
equipment will also be recycled into new Nike products. This way the materials being used
will go through many cycles of design, manufacture and use. Just like bottles, cans and
paper do now.

How Old Tread Becomes New Track

Exactly how do your old kicks - and manufacturing waste - get turned into Nike Grind
material? It depends which of the next two facilities processes them:

-Wilsonville, Oregon:

Opened in 1993, the Wilsonville facility uses a “slice-and-grind” technique, where each
shoe is cut into three slices - rubber outsole, foam midsole and fabric upper. These slices
are then fed through grinders and purified. Once purified, these substances become three
unique types of Nike Grind:
 28

• Nike Grind Rubber, made from the shoe's outsole, is used in track surfaces,
interlocking gym flooring tiles, playground surfacing and consumer products, such
as new footwear outsoles and trim items like buttons and zipper pulls.
• Nike Grind Foam, made from the shoe's midsole, is used as a cushion for outdoor
basketball and tennis courts, as well as futsal fields.
• Nike Grind Upper, made from the shoe's fabric upper, is used in the creation of
cushioning pads for indoor basketball, volleyball courts and equestrian surfacing
products.

-Meerhout, Belgium:

The Belgium facility, which opened in 2005, grinds shoes up whole, then passes the
material through a series of complex separators. This also produces Nike Grind Rubber,
Nike Grind Foam and Nike Grind Upper.

No matter how your shoes are processed, the end result is the same - three high-quality
materials ready to be put back in the game.
 29

REFERENCES
Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make The Leap... and Others Don’t .
Jim Collins.(2001);
Out of Nowhere: The Inside Story of How Nike Marketed the Culture of Running
by Geoff Hollister;
Just Do It: The Nike Spirit in the Corporate World by Donald R. Katz (1995);
Bowerman and the Men of Oregon: The Story of Oregon's Legendary Coach and
Nike's Cofounder by Kenny Moore (2007);
Swoosh: Unauthorized Story of Nike and the Men Who Played There by J. B.
Strasser (1993)
The Story of Nike (Spirit of Success) by Scott Hays (1999)\
Sole Provider: Thirty Years of NIKE Basketball by Robert "Scoop" Jackson (2002)
Who's Afraid of Niketown?: Nike-urbanism, Branding And the City of Tomorrow
by Friedrich Von Borries
Nike by Nicholas Flokos