Phil Knight
Phil Knight
Philip Hampson "Phil" Knightis an American business magnate and philanthropist. A native of Oregon, he is the co-founder and chairman emeritus of Nike, Inc., and previously served as chairman and CEO of the company. In November 2015, Forbes named Knight the 15th richest person in the world, with an estimated net worth of US$28.1 billion. He is also the owner of the stop motion film production company Laika...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionEntrepreneur
Date of Birth24 February 1938
CityPortland, OR
CountryUnited States of America
They have done great things within what you would call established American sports. Freddy has the potential to bring soccer almost for the first time into the public's consciousness. Soccer in the United States isn't really part of the culture. What it needs, I think, is a superhero, and he clearly could be it. Now, that's putting a lot of pressure on him, but the kid's got all the potential to do that.
Ultimately, we wanted Nike to be the world's best sports and fitness company. Once you say that, you have a focus. You don't end up making wing tips or sponsoring the next Rolling Stones world tour.
I believe that continued strong consumer acceptance of our products at retail and the strengthening of our organization will enable us to manage through the challenges in our U.S. footwear business and lay the foundation for another round of growth,
It doesn't matter how many people you offend, as long as you're getting your message to your consumers. I say to those people who do not want to offend anybody: You are going to have a very, very difficult time having meaningful advertising.
Perception can be changed
We wanted Nike to be the world's best sports and fitness company. Once you say that, you have a focus. You don't end up making wing tips or sponsoring the next Rolling Stones world tour.
I still get real nervous when I go in front of more than two people.
Up until the time I was 14 years old, I was sure that I was going to be a big-league baseball player. But that dream came to a rude awakening when I got cut from my high school baseball team.
I truly believe the American consumer doesn’t want to buy products made under abusive conditions.
My job is to listen to ideas, maybe cook up a few of my own, and make decisions based on what's good for the shareholders and for the company.
Now we understand that the most important thing we do is market the product. We've come around to saying that Nike is a marketing-oriented company, and the product is our most important marketing tool.
Make history or be a part of it.
You can't explain much in 60 seconds, but when you show Michael Jordan, you don't have to. It's that simple.
The trouble in America is not that we are making too many mistakes, but that we are making too few.