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I’m not sure when I became aware of Nike � maybe sometime around the millennium? Certainly not before that. I was therefore astounded to learn that the company had been founded in the early 1970’s, with the aim of producing and selling sports shoes. In fact, the co-founder (and major driving force), Phil Knight, was a runner in college and his driving goal was to produce top class running shoes. We first catch up with Phil, a native of Oregon, in the late 60’s when he’d already secured an MBA at Stanford and had decided to travel the world. Off he went on his voyage of discovery � and what a journey it was. In listening to an audio version of this book I was pretty much captivated from the very start. This wasn’t at all the book I’d anticipated it to be - it was much more literary than the account I’d expected. The descriptions of time and place and people and events transported me directly there. I was stood beside him, drinking it all in.

When visiting Japan Phil came across the Tiger brand of running shoes and he decided to set up a business importing the shoes and selling them in America. His his old college running coach, Bill Bowerman, became a trusted adviser and then a partner. Along side this, Knight also took up a job in an accounting firm, eventually gaining a full accounting accreditation. In fact, these early days were a real struggle for his infant business, there were many challenges to overcome and it often seemed inevitable that the enterprise would fail. The author comes across as a bit of a romantic � he really wanted to produce the perfect shoe and worked tirelessly with Bowerman and his Japanese supplier to evolve their offering � but also as a workaholic, super-ambitious businessman not prepared to let any challenge stop him.

Eventually, however, the challenges of working with his supplier did wear him down and as it became inevitable that he’d lose the ability to import their shoes he decided to start producing his own. So was the company that became Nike born. The details of his struggles are compelling as are his descriptions of the people he met along the way. At one point he describes a tough looking businessman he’s just met thus: light seemed to bounce off him differently. No, rather light didn’t bounce off him - he absorbed it like a black hole.

Nike started to grow steadily, but Phil was in the habit of spending every last cent the company could raise on producing more stock. He knew this was a dangerous strategy but he was convinced it was the only way to ensure growth. He operated very close to the edge � in fact sometimes way over the edge - but still he continued to do things his way. It brought him perilously close to ruin, but (as we know) the business survived and went on to become the leviathan it is today. If it was fiction it’d be a great story, but as non-fiction it comprises a tale of almost unbelievable tenacity in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds.

The account of his business adventures is wound up at the point the company is floated (at the same time as Apple) in 1980, by which point Nike had attained a 50% market share in the American athletic shoe market. The final section of the book comprises Knight’s reflections on his life and updates on the key figures featured in the book.

What I like most about this book is the way the story is told. The author gives much credit for his successes to others � people he worked with through the years � and he explains not just what he did but also his motivations for taking the actions he did. Sometimes these seemed counterintuitive, and he acknowledges this, but he took them all the same. He is humble and self-deprecating in his portrayal of himself throughout. I grew to like him a lot. I can’t recall when I’ve enjoyed a memoir as much � maybe I never have. It was a joy and an inspiration to spend time with Phil Knight and to learn his story.

NB: I was running in the early 70's when the leading brand of shoe in the UK seemed to be New Balance (the shoes I wore). I then played many other sports (soccer, tennis, badminton) again never wearing Nike but trying out Puma and Addidas amongst others. Later I ran again, this time buying Asics, Mizuno, Brooks and Hoka. Just as as was despairing of the fact that I'd never bought a pair of Nike shoes I spotted my current golf shoes in the garage - yes, you've guessed.