Shoe Dog | Phil Knight

Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike | Phil Knight

How did a risky startup selling shoes out of a car trunk become a global empire? Phil Knight investigates his journey in the bestselling memoir Shoe Dog.

About the Book:

In this instant and tenacious New York Times bestseller, Nike founder and board chairman Phil Knight “offers a rare and revealing look at the notoriously media-shy man behind the swoosh” (Booklist, starred review), illuminating his company’s early days as an intrepid start-up and its evolution into one of the world’s most iconic, game-changing, and profitable brands.

Bill Gates named Shoe Dog one of his five favorite books of the year and called it “an amazing tale, a refreshingly honest reminder of what the path to business success really looks like. It’s a messy, perilous, and chaotic journey, riddled with mistakes, endless struggles, and sacrifice. Phil Knight opens up in ways few CEOs are willing to do.”

Fresh out of business school, Phil Knight borrowed fifty dollars from his father and launched a company with one simple mission: import high-quality, low-cost running shoes from Japan.

Selling the shoes from the trunk of his car in 1963, Knight grossed eight thousand dollars that first year.

Today, Nike’s annual sales top $30 billion.

In this age of start-ups, Knight’s Nike is the gold standard, and its swoosh is one of the few icons instantly recognized in every corner of the world.

But Knight, the man behind the swoosh, has always been a mystery. In Shoe Dog, he tells his story at last.

At twenty-four, Knight decides that rather than work for a big corporation, he will create something all his own, new, dynamic, different. He details the many risks he encountered, the crushing setbacks, the ruthless competitors and hostile bankers—as well as his many thrilling triumphs.

Above all, he recalls the relationships that formed the heart and soul of Nike, with his former track coach, the irascible and charismatic Bill Bowerman, and with his first employees, a ragtag group of misfits and savants who quickly became a band of swoosh-crazed brothers.

Together, harnessing the electrifying power of a bold vision and a shared belief in the transformative power of sports, they created a brand—and a culture—that changed everything.

About the Author:

Phil Knight: Chairperson of Laika

Philip Knight is an American businessman magnate and philanthropist. He was born in 1938 in Oregon and is a graduate of the University of Oregon and Stanford Graduate School of Business. He is the co-founder and former chairman and CEO of Nike, Inc.

His memoir entitled Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike, is a New York Times bestseller.

Bibliographic Data:

• Full Title: Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
• Author(s): Phil Knight
• Publisher & Imprint: Simon & Schuster UK (Distributed internationally across regional catalogs under Scribner/Simon & Schuster Ltd imprints)
• Publication Date: April 26, 2016 (Original text release date)
• Book Binding: Paperback
• Condition: Pre-Owned / Very Good
• Edition: Trade Paperback
• Print Length: 400 Pages
• Language: English
• ISBN-13: 9781471146725
• ISBN-10: 1471146723
• Library of Congress (LCCN): 2016012674
• Primary Genre (BISAC): BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Businesspeople
• Sub-Genres (BISAC): BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Entrepreneurship; SPORTS & RECREATION / Running & Jogging
• Dimensions: 5.12 x 0.94 x 7.8 inches
• Weight: 11.4 oz (approx. 0.71 lbs)

Frequently Asked Questions About Shoe Dog:

• Q: Does this book focus on the modern corporate giant Nike or its early startup struggles?
  A: It focuses almost entirely on the early days. The narrative covers the raw, year-by-year history of the company from its initial founding as a tiny shoe-importing venture named Blue Ribbon Sports in 1962 up until its initial public offering (IPO) in 1980. It does not cover modern eras like the Michael Jordan partnership or current corporate structures.
• Q: Did Phil Knight write this memoir completely by himself?
  A: No. While the personal stories, memories, and corporate archives are entirely Phil Knight's, the book was officially ghostwritten by J. R. Moehringer—the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and legendary memoir collaborator who also famously worked on Andre Agassi’s Open and Prince Harry’s Spare.
• Q: What are the primary business roadblocks and sources of conflict in the book?
  A: The book reads more like a corporate thriller than a dry business text. The primary friction points center around Knight's constant, terrifying cash-flow crunches, his combative relationships with hostile commercial bank lenders, intense legal battles with his original Japanese manufacturing suppliers, and navigating the extreme logistics of keeping a fast-growing startup alive.
• Q: Who are the key real-world figures that shape the story alongside Phil Knight?
  A: The core of the memoir relies heavily on the "band of brothers" who built the brand. This includes his irascible former Oregon track coach and Nike co-founder Bill Bowerman (who famously ruined his wife's waffle iron trying to invent a new shoe sole), alongside Jeff Johnson—Nike's eccentric, fanatical first employee who single-handedly came up with the name "Nike" in a dream.
• Q: Is this book heavily preachy, or does it offer realistic value for entrepreneurs?
  A: It is widely praised for being refreshingly candid and humble. Legendary business leaders like Bill Gates named it one of their favorite books, specifically noting that Knight opens up about his personal flaws, early management mistakes, family sacrifices, and deep regrets in a way very few modern CEOs are ever willing to do.

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