Mediocre athletes switch to business, and selling shoes in the trunk opens the way to entrepreneurship.
Born in 1938, Knight was a long-distance runner when he was young, but his grades were always average. 1962, 24-year-old phil knight didn't find a stable job after graduating from Stanford University. The young man who is keen on running is struggling mentally while exercising vigorously with his body. It can be said that Stanford's experience changed Knight's life. More precisely, it was a course that changed Nate's life.
In that class, the teacher assigned an assignment: imagine a small company, describe its goals and make a marketing plan. Knight's thesis is entitled: "Can Japanese sports shoes companies challenge German sports shoes like Japanese cameras challenge German cameras?" In this article, he envisions using cheap labor in Japan at that time to produce high-quality sports shoes, which is expected to beat the German sports shoes that dominate the market. At that time, many famous athletes and ordinary athletes actually had the same goal: to beat Adidas. Knight later recalled that this course was a key. "I remember after finishing that paper, I said to myself,' This is what I really want to do.' "
He is obsessed with Japanese-made Onitsuke Tiger sneakers and sells Onitsukeiger in his hometown regardless of his parents' opposition. This is an extremely humble beginning, just like the common roadside stalls selling shoes in China-
He drove his own small broken car alone, put dozens of pairs of sports shoes in the trunk and took them out at the sports ground.
Finally, according to his inner call, he decided to leave for Japan, which laid the foundation for Knight's career. He and Ballman, the coach of university long-distance running, each invested $500 to set up Blue Ribbon Company (the predecessor of Nike), and signed an agency contract with Tiger Brand, a Japanese sports shoe brand, to become its distributor in the United States.
At that time, running was not as popular as it is now. In the extremely deserted consumption environment of sports shoes, Knight bravely brought the well-made and low-priced Ghost Tiger to the United States, and gradually gained market recognition. In the first year, the sales of his small company was $8,000; Five years later, it grew rapidly to $300,000 in 1969, and the Cavaliers sold one million pairs of sports shoes made in Japan with the blue ribbon trademark.
Founded Nike, once on the verge of bankruptcy.
197 1 year, the sales of blue ribbon company has exceeded 6 million dollars. Hu Guijie once proposed to buy 5 1% of the company's shares, and occupied 2 of the 5 directors. If he doesn't agree to this request, he will stop supplying immediately. Ballman and Knight flatly rejected this unreasonable request. It was also at the end of this year that Knight and Ghost Evening Primrose parted ways completely and resolutely founded a new brand "Nike". Nike's brand LOGO is a hook-shaped pattern "like a trace left in the air with a whoosh", which has almost become a representative symbol of American culture after half a century.
At that time, the sports shoes market was already a red sea, and many well-known brands like Puma, New Balance and Spalding appeared. It is no exaggeration to say that Nike was on the verge of bankruptcy from the beginning, and Knight almost failed many times. In the next two months, Knight wrote letters and sent financing documents to many investors, but he didn't receive a reply or a phone call.
In desperation, Nate began to borrow money from his friends, who all avoided him. Just when he was at a loss, his good friend, the first employee, Woodall, knocked on his door. Woodall told Knight that his parents were willing to lend him money, so Knight had the cheek to accept the couple's life savings of $8,000.
Ten years later, Nike went public, and that $8,000 became 654.38+0.6 million, a full 200 times return. Knight personally told the news to the old lady, who kept shaking her head in surprise: "I still don't understand what happened."
Start "outsourcing" production
As early as 1970s, Knight designed the strategy of virtual production for the company. Nike does not set up a factory, but uses the design ability and trademark to carry out mass production of products in low-cost labor-intensive areas in an authorized way. All other resources are focused on studying the needs of athletes, designing products and marketing. Nike's "outsourcing" method of concentrating advantages and saving management costs was later imitated by the industry and even the whole business community.
At the same time, Nike also brought the greatest innovation in the history of sports shoes-air cushion shoes. "Running in the air" was undoubtedly a crazy idea in the 1970s, but now Nike's air sports shoes are almost all over the world. Knight devoted his life to improving the comfort of sports shoes. "Air cushion shoes" is undoubtedly a great feat that makes him proud. Today, it is still a revolutionary product.
By the end of 1970s, Nike had a powerful research team of nearly 65,438+000 members and developed more than 65,438+040 products with different styles, many of which were the most novel and technologically advanced in the market. These products with different styles, different prices and diverse uses have attracted thousands of runners, making them feel that Nike is the most comprehensive running shoe manufacturer. From 65438 to 0979, Nike's market share reached 33%, and it squeezed into the "iron triangle" composed of Adidas, Puma and Tiger in one fell swoop, realizing the seemingly unreachable dream of "beating Adidas".
Picasso in advertising industry
Washington post once commented that creative marketing was initiated by Nike and phil knight.
1985 Nike signed NBA star Michael Jordan as its brand spokesperson, and launched a new brand "Air Jordon" with the help of Jordan. Many people think that Knight's move is too risky, even an almost stupid behavior.
However, the maverick Knight is undoubtedly an excellent marketing promoter. Jordan embodies superb competitive level and inspiring sportsmanship, and is full of individualistic heroism. In the first year of its launch, Tengfei Jordan achieved sales of 1 billion dollars. Jordan made Nike famous, and the sneakers named after Jordan alone brought Nike huge profits of nearly $2.5 billion. This is not only the success of the advertising war, but also the victory of the brand war. Before retiring, Jordan once sincerely lamented: "Fernet and Nike turned me into a dream."
1986, Nike's advertisement once again made a new breakthrough: in the advertisement, Nike adopted the famous song Revolution played by The Beatles, and in the rebellious new rhythm and melody, a group of Americans wearing Nike products were madly moving ... This advertisement accurately catered to the new revolutionary wind and new trend of the times in the fitness field, which was refreshing.
In 1988, the popular advertisement just do it invited 80-year-old long-distance runner Walter Stark to star. Once launched, it also caused a sensation in the advertising industry. Now, the short and powerful slogan "Just Do It" is as well-known as Nike's hook logo and has become a representative slogan of Nike.
Under Knight's leadership, Nike advertising has become a classic again and again. At the moment when Liu Xiang won the title of track and field 1 100 meter hurdles in the Greek Olympic Games in 2004, the forward-looking Nike launched a series of new advertisements "Laws are for breaking" to China.
It can be said that Knight subverted the rules of sports marketing and made celebrity endorsement a classic model of sports marketing. With these big-name sports stars doing live advertisements, Nike sneakers are no longer just sneakers, but idols and social status symbols.
With a strong sense of market smell and unique marketing techniques, Knight brought sports shoes into the fashion field and pushed Nike's brand culture to the world. At the same time, he was also called "Picasso in advertising" by American media.
A brave adventurer, a persistent dreamer
During the half century in charge of Shuaiyin, Knight announced his retirement three times and handed over the scepter to his successor, but both times he returned. In 2000, Nike's performance continued to decline. Knight fired the CEO he personally appointed and quickly rebuilt the team, leading Nike to achieve double-digit growth again. In 2003, Nike announced the acquisition of the bankrupt big brother Converse, which once occupied 90% of the basketball shoe market in the United States in the 1960s. With the help of Nike, converse regained its vitality and became a potential growth factor for Nike.
And this is precisely the adventurous spirit that Knight advocates. For such a founder who has unique personal charm and brought the company to an unparalleled height during his pioneering period, Knight's entrepreneurial gene is so powerful that he has become the soul and spiritual leader of the company.
2065438+On June 30th, 2006, after more than half a century in charge of the company, Knight announced his formal retirement. Today, Nike has become a sports kingdom with a market value of $86 billion. Its production and operation activities are spread over six continents, and the total number of employees has reached 22,000. The number of service personnel such as suppliers, shippers and retailers who cooperate with the company is close to 1 ten thousand.