How Phil Knight made Nike a leader in the sport industry: examining the success factors

Abstract

Phil Knight is the founder of Nike, Inc., a multinational sporting goods company and leading manufacturer in the sports industry. Through his innovative way of thinking and relentless pursuit of success, Nike grew from the ground up to the global household name it is today. While several factors led to the success of Nike under Knight’s leadership, he also confronted some critical controversies and challenges. This paper, therefore, examines the various success factors of the company and how Phil Knight addressed and overcame the obstacles he faced. The company’s iconoclastic marketing and branding strategies were the most important driving forces of its success. Along the way to success, Knight was challenged with various social and environmental issues. His strategies to overcome challenges are also noted, which eventually helped the company to become a global leader and industry standard.

Keywords:

• Entrepreneurship
• marketing
• branding
• innovation
• sustainability

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

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4 Nike, 2017 Form 10-K.

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6 Ibid.

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12 Ibid.

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14 Ibid., 29.

15 Ibid., 43–72.

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22 Ibid.

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25 Lane, “You Are What You Wear: Nike’s Phil Knight isn’t Selling Shoes. He’s Selling Attitude’.”

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29 Lane, “You Are What You Wear: Nike’s Phil Knight isn’t Selling Shoes. He’s Selling Attitude’.”

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32 Nike. 2015. “40 Years of Prefontaine.” last modified June 1. https://news.nike.com/news/40-years-of-prefontaine

33 Ibid.

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35 Kurt Badenhausen. 2013. “How Michael Jordan Still Earns $80 Million A Year.” Forbes, February 14. https://www.forbes.com/sites/kurtbadenhausen/2013/02/14/how-michael-jordan-still-earns-80-million-a-year/#56cf41d736a7.

36 Daniel Kaplan. 2015. “Nike Commits $6.2B to Sports Deals.” SportsBusiness Journal, August 3. https://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2015/08/03/Marketing-and-Sponsorship/Nike.aspx

37 Eric Harrison and Bruce Horovitz. 1990. “Nike Feels Heat, Sets Minority Goals.” last modified August 18. http://articles.latimes.com/1990-08-18/business/fi-648_1_operation-push

38 Ibid.

39 Stuart Wasserman. 1990. “Nike’s Hometown Ignores Boycott Call.” last modified August 25. http://articles.latimes.com/1990-08-25/business/fi-1017_1_boycott-call

40 Rick Telander. 1990. “Senseless: In America’s Cities, Kids are Killing Kids Over Sneakers and Other Sports Apparel Favored by Drug Dealers. Who’s to Blame?” Sports Illustrated Vault, May 14. https://www.si.com/vault/1990/05/14/121992/senseless-in-americas-cities-kids-are-killing-kids-over-sneakers-and-other-sports-apparel-favored-by-drug-dealers-whos-to-blame

41 Nike, 2017 Form 10-K.

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45 Dana Canedy. 1997. “Nike’s Asian Factories Pass Young’s Muster.” The New York Times (New York), June 25.

46 E. J. Dionne Jr. 1998. “Bad for Business.” The Washington Post (Washington, DC), May 15.

47 Tim Connor. 2001. “Still Waiting for Nike To Do It: Nike’s Labor Practices in the Three Years Since CEO Phil Knight’s Speech to the National Press Club.” Global Exchange, 1–2.

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50 Nike. 2015. 2015 Nike Sustainable Business Report. Beaverton, O: Nike, Inc.

51 Ibid., 52.

52 Nike, 2015 Nike Sustainable Business Report.

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54 Nike. 2014. “A Look Inside Nike’s Sport Research Lab.” last modified September 8. https://news.nike.com/news/a-look-inside-nike-s-sport-research-lab.

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57 Nike. 2018. “Nike Uses Power of Sport to Stand Up for Equality” last modified January 14. https://news.nike.com/news/equality.