In his book Shoe Dog (the art of victory)Phil Knight reveals his lessons in resilience and tells how he managed to build a benchmark empire in the world of sport. He talks about, among other things, the different obstacles he had to face and how he managed to build a legendary brand like Nike.
Nike’s initial idea was to sell low-cost products, imported from Japan and marketed to the American market. The book chronicles the adventures of Phil Knight from the moment he managed to convince the first Japanese manufacturers to produce his shoes, until the IPO of Nike. The brand was launched with a starting capital of $8,000, but still had to overcome a lot of challenges. It’s hard to imagine, but before becoming a successful brand, Nike experienced numerous financial and organizational difficulties (bounced paychecks, loan application refusals, lawsuits, fines, etc.).
The company owes its phenomenal success today to the determination of its founder. Focus on the lessons of resilience that Phil Knight had to adopt to sustain his project.
Combine your passion with a market need
Entrepreneurial success consists of linking your passion to a market need and looking for a way to generate sustainable income thanks to this project. The greatest entrepreneurs in history, like Steve Jobs, Warren Buffet and even Bill Gates, have followed this same principle of life. Phil Knight is no exception to this rule: he was passionate about running and always dreamed of being an entrepreneur. At the same time, the American market needed better quality running shoes. This is how the idea of going to Japan to produce shoes became obvious to him. “Passionate about the business world, I knew that Japanese cameras had revolutionized this market, until then dominated by the Germans. So I had argued that Japanese running shoes could do the same thing.” he pointed out in his book.
During his trip to JapanPhil Knight signs a partnership with the directors of the famous Onitsuka company. This is when the importation of sports shoes into the United States began under the Blue Ribbon Sports brand, the brand we know today as Nike. The young entrepreneur made his first sales from the trunk of his car. The relationship between Blue Ribbon Sports and the Japanese brand was certainly chaotic, but the partnership lasted around ten years.
Surround yourself well when starting out
The success of the iconic brand is not just down to one man. For his debut, Phil Knight called on his former sports coach, Bill Bowerman, for his expert opinion on shoes. He ends up helping and advising him throughout his entrepreneurial journey to find the ideal shoes, the lightest and most ergonomic model possible. He even brought more credibility to the image of the Nike brand by becoming, a few years later, one of the most famous coaches in the United States.
Furthermore, the company’s first employee Blue Ribbon Sports is one of Phil Knight’s best friends. He believed in his project and supported it from start to finish. He even went to the other side of the country to promote the brand’s image.
Nike also used celebrities and athletes as ambassadors to increase the company’s visibility during its debut. In 1977, Phil Knight visited the tennis tournament, Wimbledon, to target new budding talents. This relevant strategy has borne fruit in the long term.
Listen to your teams
Phil Knight’s management methods are based on his following quote: “Don’t tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results. »
Phil Knight has always been available and attentive to all of his teams. Its management method, which consisted of putting forward their initiatives and ideas, is anchored in the company’s DNA. The name of the Nike brand was actually the idea of one of his closest collaborators. It refers to the goddess of victory. Phil Knight wanted to call it “Dimension Six”. The fact of finding an idea not convincing enough was not a reason to censor it or not adapt it. In the same way, the idea of the Nike logo did not initially convince Phil Knight, who nevertheless adopted it out of respect for the work of a young Californian artist. The famous comma, or famous Swooshhas today become one of the most famous symbols in the world.
In summary, Phil Knight has always given free rein to the creativity and proposals of his teams. He is far from being a tyrannical leader. It is thanks to this strategy that he succeeded in mobilizing people invested in the development of his company and passionate about their work.
