NIKE'S BEGINNING

In the mid 1960s, the ancestor of Nike, the “Blue Ribbon Sports” store was founded. It was initially a distributor of a Japanese shoe making company that is now known as Asics. The company officially became Nike in the year of 1971. The company was founded by a track-and-field coach, Bill Bowerman and a middle-distance runner from Portland, Phil Knight. They only had twelve hundred dollars in the bank when they started the company. The name Nike originated from the Greek goddess of victory. It is Jeff Johnson, Nike’s first employee, came up with that name. The first Nike shoe was actually made in inside a waffle iron. As Bowerman was having breakfast, the sight of the waffle machine gave him the idea for the shoe. A student at Portland university, Carolyn Davidson, for just 35$. She now owns a stock that is now worth over 640,000 dollars. The slogan of “Just Do It” was inspired by the final words from Gary Gilmore, a serial killer, moments before he was executed. A big break through for the Nike company was the contract they had with Michael Jordan to release the line of Jordan Shoes. It is the biggest Nike endorsement deal in history.


ADIDAS' ORIGINS

The Adidas company originates from a company created in 1924 by Adi Dassler called “Gebruder Dassler Schuhfabrik”. His goal was to offer all athletes the best athletic gear he could make. In 1949, Adi Dassler restarted from scratch with a new company that he registered under the name of “ Adi Dassler adidas Sportschuhfabrik”. He worked with 47 other employees, and registered the first shoe with the known 3 band logo. In the 1954 world cup, the German national team was wearing Adidas shoes which apparently helped them win the finals. That moment made adidas a household name on soccer pitches. Many years later and to this day adidas has evolved in many different sports and has more than shoes.