Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
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- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Phil Knight
- ISBN：1501135929
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Summary
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）， opening up about 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。
Young， searching， 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 more than a logo。 A symbol of grace and greatness， it’s 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。 It all begins with a classic crossroads moment at twenty-four， backpacking across the world， and wrestling with life’s Great Questions。 Rather than work for a big corporation， Knight decides he will create something all his own， something new， dynamic， different。 He details the many terrifying risks he encountered， the crushing setbacks， the ruthless competitors， the countless doubters and haters and hostile bankers—as well as his many thrilling triumphs and narrow escapes。 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 redemptive， transformative power of sports， they created a brand—and a culture—that changed everything。
Young， searching， 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 more than a logo。 A symbol of grace and greatness， it’s 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。 It all begins with a classic crossroads moment at twenty-four， backpacking across the world， and wrestling with life’s Great Questions。 Rather than work for a big corporation， Knight decides he will create something all his own， something new， dynamic， different。 He details the many terrifying risks he encountered， the crushing setbacks， the ruthless competitors， the countless doubters and haters and hostile bankers—as well as his many thrilling triumphs and narrow escapes。 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 redemptive， transformative power of sports， they created a brand—and a culture—that changed everything。
Reviews
Mo AlZahrani
，
What an amazing story！ I loved every part of it。
Alyssa Jaroudi
，
« If you’re following your calling， the fatigue will be easier to bear， the disappointments will be fuel， the highs will be like nothing you’ve ever felt »This quote summarizes what every person struggling with their dreams needs to know today。 Whether you found your calling or not， your 道 is what will lead you there。Inspiring book。
Eron
，
This is very much a memoir that reads as a list of events。 I wanted to know what it was like to found Nike， and that's what I got。 In terms of interesting behind-the-scenes scoops， I found few。 You guys drank in a bar and shared ideas？？ The curtain has been dropped。The ghostwriter must have been tasked with making Phil Knight seem interesting， funny， and not plagued with outdated thinking。 I say this because they couldn't quite manage to fully accomplish their goal。 The writing is mercifully sim This is very much a memoir that reads as a list of events。 I wanted to know what it was like to found Nike， and that's what I got。 In terms of interesting behind-the-scenes scoops， I found few。 You guys drank in a bar and shared ideas？？ The curtain has been dropped。The ghostwriter must have been tasked with making Phil Knight seem interesting， funny， and not plagued with outdated thinking。 I say this because they couldn't quite manage to fully accomplish their goal。 The writing is mercifully simple， but I hesitate to call anything humor。 There are half-jokes that might elicit a chuckle from septuagenarians on up。 There are many small conversations and details that I cannot imagine Phil Knight recalling exactly， so I gotta assume the specifics are often fabricated。 There were many moments where it felt like a good writer would have made up a truly funny or believable detail， but instead we get a completely un-funny zinger or an impossible detail （like one of the slobbish "leviathans" on his payroll lighting his own shirt on fire during a very important meeting）。The characterization of anyone who isn't a typical white man often verges into uncomfortable stereotype territory: the receptionist at the Japanese company reminds Phil of the madam of a brothel， the overweight employees are disgusting slobs who don't understand how humiliated they should be and are often the fodder of Knights' lazy attempts at humor， the employee in a wheelchair （one of the most competent and essential Nike employees described in the book） is a cause for embarrassment when the business partners come to visit the office， and his wife Penny is a doe-eyed， eyelash-fluttering， "well gee I suppose so" garnish devoid of any characterization beyond the descriptions of labor she does for her husband and sons。Phil Knight repeatedly mentions the ways he isn't responsive enough to his employees， how his wife can never be sure of the family's financial stability， and how his boys never see him。 He talks about these issues so much that I assumed a redemptive arc was coming， or that they would at least be dealt with。。。but he just moves on and continues talking about how Nike is his business child and he will do anything to see it succeed。 That's perhaps the only unvarnished truth in the book - time and again， when he is given a chance to demonstrate his priorities， he returns to his true mistress: the vague notion of "Nike success" （despite never defining what that means）。 When he has the choice to behave ethically or not， he charts his course based on what Nike needs。 Lying to every business associate he has and committing fraud is the path when he believes they will benefit Nike。 When he needs to pay a supplier that is very important to Nike， he chooses to drain all his accounts and his employees checks bounce。 When playing it straight and being honest has a better chance of serving his interests， he does that， like when the government is investigating。 Morality doesn't enter the equation - pragmatism and nourishing his business child win the day every time。At the end of the day， I have no idea why I continued reading this book other than the ease of reading and a misguided faith that something would change in the dark narrative。 I wanted to hear about Nike， but I regret doing so from this source。 I was continually reminded of a scene from the show "Parks and Recreation" where city government employee Leslie Knope needs a favor from an old， crusty， longtime politician: she sits there and has to pretend to enjoy the BS to get through it， even going so far as accepting his offer to eat a bite of his soggy overdressed caesar salad from a tupperware container。 And if I could have learned a lesson from what comes next on the show: he doesn't end up helping her out， but she still has the taste of that disgusting caesar salad in her mouth。 Phil Knight didn't teach me anything。 I should have read a third-party account of Nike's founding。The hidden gift delivered with every copy of this book: permission to dislike Nike for what it always has been， in addition to what it is today。 I am forever liberated from any folksy backstory anyone would like to tell me about Bowerman and his waffle iron。 That is true， but that's a small detail in what is ultimately the ascendance of a privileged guy into a market that was ripe for the picking。 It's like reading the story of the sperm that made it and fertilized the egg。 It has no idea what factors truly accounted for its success - it just remembers swimming as fast as it could towards its goal。2。5/5 because any easily-readable tale of success is interesting enough to get through。 。。。more
Adrian Ramirez
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One of the best books I have ever read。 What is your favorite quote from the book？I enjoyed this book very， very much！ It is not as "technical" as the others on the reading list。 As it states in the cover， it is a memoir。 Phil does a great job on taking the reader through a journey on his fortunes and misfortunes in the years before Nike became a mammoth。 He talks little about Nike's vision or the culture。 But paints you a pretty picture on the people that are Nike。 My favorite quote is: "The co One of the best books I have ever read。 What is your favorite quote from the book？I enjoyed this book very， very much！ It is not as "technical" as the others on the reading list。 As it states in the cover， it is a memoir。 Phil does a great job on taking the reader through a journey on his fortunes and misfortunes in the years before Nike became a mammoth。 He talks little about Nike's vision or the culture。 But paints you a pretty picture on the people that are Nike。 My favorite quote is: "The cowards never started， and the weak died along the way。 That leaves us" A close second place is "Don't tell people how to do things， tell them what to do and let them surprise you with the results" Really liked this book， I would never in a million years consider reading a memoir of the creator of Nike， very glad I did。 This should be a mandatory read to everybody in college。 I know I will give it to my kids to read when they are close to graduation。Which coworker would you recommend this book to？I am recommending the heck out of this book。 Already bought it for my father as a present。 It is very entertaining and uplifting。 My dad loves to run， so I know he will enjoy and relate to this book very much。 Again， it is not as "work related" as the other I've read on the list。 But it is very fun to read。 I definitely recommend itWhat is a specific real world application that you will be able to make from what you learned in this book？Never give up on your dreams。 And to surround yourself with people that share your passions， dreams， etc。 Life is a long journey， sometimes fun， sometimes it can be heavy。 But the fun parts are even more fun when you get to share them with people that want you to do well， and the heavy parts are that much more easy to bear when you have those same people in your corner。 This book made me think about my close circle of friends， and made me grateful for them。 And also even though I have been in the company for a short period of time， made me feel very grateful for my job as I love the way we are conducting business， I feel I am a place where I can make a difference。 I am not writing this because I know you will read it Michael， but I also like your leadership， I respect you as a leader。What is the one thing that you think you will do differently or think differently about since you read the book？I need to start running again！ I don't like it， but I enjoy the high after the run。 Also helps clear my mind。 I also need to map out a 5 year plan。 a 10 year plan。 Right now I am at a place where I need to pick up the pace a little bit。 The pandemic stopped a lot of things， but the light at the end of the tunnel is in sight。 I need to hit the ground running。 Sorry for being so crass， but this book lit a fire up my @$$。What is one point you disagreed with， or at least questioned， in this book？I would have loved to hear more about the company itself。 I've been a Nike "fan" for a long time。 Prefer wearing Nike's over Reebok， adidas， etc。 I fell in love with the brand watching Michael Jordan play。 I loved wearing Jordan's I really thought they upped my basketball game。 It was a sad day when I realized that's called marketing。 I also need to look up and understand better how when a company is doing so well can be so close to being broke。。。。 Made me feel anxious through the book。How does something you learned from this book tie into one of the core values of the company？The giver's game。 Create value。 This guy created not only value， I think he created a culture。 And at Matterform I think we are creating value one customer at a time。 Also you can't help but to compare two small companies finding its way。 Where will the journey take you？ It is very exciting and I for one are very much on board and looking forward for the ride 。。。more
ANDRES
，
It is the most entertaining and inspiring story of passion， commitment and hard work I have ever read。 Phil Knight and the Nike history is an example of what life is， what it means to be a businessman， and it teaches how human the world is or should be。 It is definitely a must-read for everyone！！。
Daniel Powell
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Inspiring story behind the iconic brand。
Srkn
，
A masterpiece。
Edward
，
Fantastic book and insight in to a global brand powerhouse of the modern era
Suman Sadhukhan
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A must read book。。。"The cowards never started and the weak died along the way。 That leaves us， ladies and gentlemen。 Us。"What an inspiring life story from Phil Knight。 A must read book。 A must read book。。。"The cowards never started and the weak died along the way。 That leaves us， ladies and gentlemen。 Us。"What an inspiring life story from Phil Knight。 A must read book。 。。。more
Mia
，
the book is charming and i know it's meant to be inspiring but i'm left gasping。 there's a bit in the book where he talks about him and his close circle having to overcome serious odds: woodell's accident， hayes' weight， johnson's inability to function in a 9 to 5， and knight being cut from the baseball（？） team。 it was a weird insert， and not a stirring story to explain some great american come up--or perhaps it's the perfect one， riddled with the irony that the best， most virtuous entrepreneurs the book is charming and i know it's meant to be inspiring but i'm left gasping。 there's a bit in the book where he talks about him and his close circle having to overcome serious odds: woodell's accident， hayes' weight， johnson's inability to function in a 9 to 5， and knight being cut from the baseball（？） team。 it was a weird insert， and not a stirring story to explain some great american come up--or perhaps it's the perfect one， riddled with the irony that the best， most virtuous entrepreneurs resemble knight in （middle） class， （obsessive/exploitative） spirit， and （no） struggle。 idk。。 i hate billionaires on principle。 it's not knight that i'm focusing on but moreso this impossible to replicate story that we're peddled as the achievable american dream （achievable if we work hard enough or are lucky enough or find the thing we're most passionate about but never anything about those other circumstances that might make success more possible） which hushes the undertones of exploitation it takes to get there。 。。。more
Vicki
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4。5
Jennifer
，
This book MUST be listened to on audio。 It was excellent！ Required reading for any sports fan。
Kristian Burgess
，
Way better than Peter said。 Deserves 5 stars。
Or
，
The story of Nike intertwined with the story of Phil Knight， Nike's co-founder。I am not that into sports but growing up at some point I would only wear Nikes， not for any technological superiority but because I thoght they looked nicer （maybe also because Nike Air Max were more comfortable）。 I came to this book mostly because of the good reviews then and a slight interest in company success stories。 The story is pretty interesting even if there isn't anything too spectacular about it， but it is The story of Nike intertwined with the story of Phil Knight， Nike's co-founder。I am not that into sports but growing up at some point I would only wear Nikes， not for any technological superiority but because I thoght they looked nicer （maybe also because Nike Air Max were more comfortable）。 I came to this book mostly because of the good reviews then and a slight interest in company success stories。 The story is pretty interesting even if there isn't anything too spectacular about it， but it is told very well。 Even though I know Nike succeeded， when listened to the stories about trying to get funds or legal battles I felt like I wanted them to succeed。The narration was very good too。In the final chapter some scandals were mentioned and interesting arguments of defense are provided which I found somewhat convincing。 。。。more
Nayan
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Good book with lots of learning for young entrepreneurs。However the last chapter is drag。I wanted a chapter on how Jordon came onboard but the same missing & left a feeling of incompleteness。
Adrien Mogenet
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Fun and thrilling story， really enjoyed learning more about Knight's passion and personality。 Fun and thrilling story， really enjoyed learning more about Knight's passion and personality。 。。。more
Stephan Ledain
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Phil goes into the weeds of nike's seemingly meteoric rise to success。 He used a self-aware， people-centred lens on this story， exploring the highs and tragedies alike。 Phil goes into the weeds of nike's seemingly meteoric rise to success。 He used a self-aware， people-centred lens on this story， exploring the highs and tragedies alike。 。。。more
Girish Nerkar
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It’s a great book to learn about Nike’s beginnings and the Middle Age。 But the book falls short of providing any insight into the failings of the company or its people。The book tracks the beginning of Nike up until 1980 and during the period it talks about the struggles of the founder and the company。 While insightful it also seems one sided， meaning everyone who tried to stop the rise of Nike is painted as a villain for obvious reasons。 But their reasons for doing so are not mentioned in detail It’s a great book to learn about Nike’s beginnings and the Middle Age。 But the book falls short of providing any insight into the failings of the company or its people。The book tracks the beginning of Nike up until 1980 and during the period it talks about the struggles of the founder and the company。 While insightful it also seems one sided， meaning everyone who tried to stop the rise of Nike is painted as a villain for obvious reasons。 But their reasons for doing so are not mentioned in detail。 It’s like you are either with us or against us。 Overall it’s an entertaining book but it’s written by Phil Knight so it will be from his perspective and it will be subjective。 Read it for the story and not for any lessons。 。。。more
Yenny
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Fascinating！
Carlo D'Agnolo
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Absolutely brilliant。 Looking forward to the inevitable movie to relive this incredibly inspiring story。 To think that some characters are actually human， better than fiction sometimes。
Urvashi Jain
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"Don't tell people how to do it。 Tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results。" "You are remembered for the rules you break。""Don't stop。 Just keep going。 Whatever comes， just keep going。"Shoe Dog is an inspiring and a passionate story of the early days of Nike。 It tells you about the challenges and struggles that Phil faced while starting his company from just an idea。 What I loved the most about the book is that how it inspires you to keep going， keep following your dream， "Don't tell people how to do it。 Tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results。" "You are remembered for the rules you break。""Don't stop。 Just keep going。 Whatever comes， just keep going。"Shoe Dog is an inspiring and a passionate story of the early days of Nike。 It tells you about the challenges and struggles that Phil faced while starting his company from just an idea。 What I loved the most about the book is that how it inspires you to keep going， keep following your dream， your passion， no matter what the hurdle is。 When you are following your passion， everyday is going to be a struggle。 Tomorrow is going to be harder than today。 But when you are following your calling， the hardship will become a little easier to bear。 Even if that hardship is fighting your government！ 。。。more
Pavel Hanuska
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Inspiring story， well written and interesting how many problems he had to overcome in order to reach his/company's full full potenitial。 Inspiring story， well written and interesting how many problems he had to overcome in order to reach his/company's full full potenitial。 。。。more
Nic
，
What a wonderful memoir full of fascinating characters。 Well written， engaging， surprising， funny， and at one point sad。 Prior to picking up this book I had never heard of Phil Knight and had zero interest in Nike， yet I remained engaged from start to finish。If you haven't read it - just do it！"The thought crossed my mind that some of the hardest things ever said in our lifetimes are said softly。" （p175）"Beating the competition is relatively easy。 Beating yourself is a never-ending commitment。" What a wonderful memoir full of fascinating characters。 Well written， engaging， surprising， funny， and at one point sad。 Prior to picking up this book I had never heard of Phil Knight and had zero interest in Nike， yet I remained engaged from start to finish。If you haven't read it - just do it！"The thought crossed my mind that some of the hardest things ever said in our lifetimes are said softly。" （p175）"Beating the competition is relatively easy。 Beating yourself is a never-ending commitment。" （p313） 。。。more
Maria
，
Nu m-am conectat la lectura decat la sfarsitul cartii。 Poate perioada si valorile fondatorului nu rezoneaza cu mine : mega absenta in familie， tacut si iar tacut。。。A incheiati frumos cartea in schimb nu asa in stil american ci frumos cum trebuie 🤪
Abishek
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Blue Ribbon Sports to Nike - An entertaining chronicle of an 18 year long journeyShoe Dog is a term that refers to people “who devoted themselves wholly to the making， selling， buying or designing of shoes”， says Phil Knight， the founder of Nike， and the author of this impassioned account of an entrepreneur’s journey in creating one of the most successful brands in sport-shoes and sport-wear today。 The book sequentially chronicles the events from 1962 to 1980， which were the key initial year Blue Ribbon Sports to Nike - An entertaining chronicle of an 18 year long journeyShoe Dog is a term that refers to people “who devoted themselves wholly to the making， selling， buying or designing of shoes”， says Phil Knight， the founder of Nike， and the author of this impassioned account of an entrepreneur’s journey in creating one of the most successful brands in sport-shoes and sport-wear today。 The book sequentially chronicles the events from 1962 to 1980， which were the key initial years that set the path for Nike to become an international brand。Just reading the first couple chapters brings out the author’s sheer passion for running。 He believed that if everybody ran a few miles， the world would be a better place！ Being a runner myself， I felt I could relate to his zeal。 These first few chapters with the author’s elaborate descriptions of his travel experiences in Milan， East/West Germany， ancient Greece， Philippines， Hong Kong， Turkey， Israel， India， Vietnam， China and Japan were most riveting！At the tender age of 24 after multiple unsuccessful attempts at selling encyclopedias， Knight recalls his trip to Japan in vivid detail where he signs a deal with Onitsuka Tiger， one of the bigger Japanese brands of shoes in the 60s and 70s。 In his mind， he’s got this cool moonshot project of creating a company in the US， which would be the sole distributor of Tiger shoes。 The name of his company would be Blue Ribbon Sports。 The book gradually takes the reader through all the toil and stumbling blocks he faced in the process。 The whole narrative about hiring his close friend Jeff Johnson， as the first employee to sell for Blue Ribbon was most engaging and funny at times。 The author’s appreciation for Johnson was heartfelt。 He dedicates a whole sub-section to describe Johnson’s emails and relentless follow-up letters to him to emphasize the single-minded tenacious mentality of a great salesman。 I seemed to enjoy these sections of the book the most。 Johnson， the company’s first employee kept track of how many shoes he sold in a week， how many shoes he sold in a day， who-wore which-product in what-high-school-race， and in what place they finished。 Further he expressed interest to Phil in wanting to expand his sales territory， suggested to place ads in magazines and also open a retail store in Santa Monica， Los Angeles， which would later become the first Blue Ribbon Store。 Eventually， this lead to initial successes for Blue Ribbon Sports， earning them the executive distribution rights in the entire West Coast！At this point， it was not in Phil’s interest to be a cautions prudent entrepreneur， instead he wanted to take best advantage of the situation， and put the pedal to the metal。 Using his simple home schooling learnings like - “Don’t tell people how to do things。 Tell them what to do and let them surprise you。”， and consistently delivering on commitments， the business scaled from selling shoes worth $150，000 in the year 1968， to about $300，000 in 1969。 Further， chapters in the first half of the seventies decade talk in elaborate length about some painful meetings and experiences with a Japanese counterpart， Blue Ribbon’s journey in getting its popular celebrity and sportsmen endorsements， a lawsuit between Onitsuka and Blue Ribbon and a few other setbacks in the business， one of which resulted in renaming the brand from Blue Ribbon Sports to Nike - named after the winged Greek goddess of victory - something that was stuck in Phil’s mind for a long time since his travel to Greece。Considering that running is a part of so many people’s lives today， and common injuries like the runner’s knee and the ITB syndrome are known well， it was indeed quite Interesting to learn that nobody knew anything about running or running injuries in the 1960s and 1970s。 Running was so un-popular that this so-to-speak fringe sport， was enjoyed only by a few extremely fit and focussed individuals aiming for Olympic gold！ It was fascinating to me that the Boston Marathon in 1965 had just 447 participants。 Today over 30，000 take part every year！ In the 1970s， with the televising of the Olympics， and the popularization of the health benefits of running， both men and women started to take up jogging as a mechanism to stay healthy。 With this flourishing trend， there was a thriving shoe and athletic-gear industry that sprung out of nowhere to feed this huge demand for amateur athletes。 Nike was already around， and tennis players / other sportsmen were already wearing Nike shoes at that time。 It was just a matter of time for Nike to create customized shoes and gear with more celebrity endorsements before seeing a rapid growth in sales and the brand itself。 All of a sudden， running became a cool sport。Nike went public in December 1980 and the rest is history。 The book is quite well organized into several chapters， each of which chronicles one year of Nike’s journey in the 1962-1980 time frame。 The period from 1962 to 1966 was definitely the most gripping part of the whole story to me。 。。。more
Eckar
，
Biografía sincera y muy entretenida que abarca la historia de NIKE， su fundación， evolución y sobre todos habla de las personas que crearon un imperio comercial a partir de unos orígenes realmente humildes， todo desde la perspectiva de su fundador， importante， eso si， que se lea entendiendo que Los acontecimiento sucedieron en una época muy diferente， a la actual， donde valores como la igualdad y diversidad no estaban dentro de lo importante en el funcionamiento de las empresas。
Jash Mehta
，
Don't expect it to be inspirational or motivating。 It's a biography of Phil Knight the founder of Nike。 Phil Knight nicely pens down the story of how he created Nike at age of 24 and what all struggles did It went through to become one of the leading athletics brand in the world。 This book is soo well written not a single chapter is banal and as Warren Buffett well said， that Phil is a gifted storyteller。 I found this book very fascinating， often when your read the about the products that you co Don't expect it to be inspirational or motivating。 It's a biography of Phil Knight the founder of Nike。 Phil Knight nicely pens down the story of how he created Nike at age of 24 and what all struggles did It went through to become one of the leading athletics brand in the world。 This book is soo well written not a single chapter is banal and as Warren Buffett well said， that Phil is a gifted storyteller。 I found this book very fascinating， often when your read the about the products that you consume in your day to day life you become more attached to the brand because everytime you use that product or brand you will remember the story behind it。 Like how the brand was created， what hardships did it went through and I feel that is something fascinating。 。。。more
Ariana
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Such an epic story about the creation of Nike and its founder。 Kept me fascinated until the end。 Equal parts inspiring and terrifying。 A must read。
Matt Brown
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