Nike

White text and "swoosh" symbol on an orange background

Nike, Inc. started as Blue Ribbon Sports on January 25, 1964, founded by Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman. Bill Bowerman was the track coach at University of Oregon and Philip Knight was a track athlete. The company’s name eventually changed to Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, on May 30, 1971. Shortly after the company’s name change, the highly recognizable “swoosh” symbol, designed by Carolyn Daivdson, was launched and patented. The company is based in Beaverton, Oregon, and employs over 44,000 people throughout the world. Although the company specialized in track shoes when it was first founded, they now manufacture a variety of athletic clothing and equipment. Nike has sponsored numerous athletes throughout the years, but also has been endorsed by certain athletes. The first endorser of Nike products was the famous distance runner Steve Prefontaine, who was coached by Bowerman. Furthermore, the date that is found on this button, 1984, corresponds with the signing of Michael Jordan as a promoter of Nike products. Michael Jordan was a very popular element to the advertising of Nike commercials, like this example from 1987 found here.