Shoe Dog

A Memoir by the Creator of Nike

By: Phil Knight

Narrated by: Norbert Leo Butz, Phil Knight - introduction

In this candid and riveting memoir, for the first time ever, Nike founder and CEO Phil Knight shares the inside story of the 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.

In 1962, fresh out of business school, Phil Knight borrowed fifty dollars from his father and created a company with a simple mission: import high-quality, low-cost athletic shoes from Japan. Selling the shoes from the trunk of his lime-green Plymouth Valiant, Knight grossed $8,000 his first year. Today, Nike's annual sales top $30 billion. In an age of start-ups, Nike is the ne plus ultra of all start-ups, and the swoosh has become a revolutionary, globe-spanning icon, one of the most ubiquitous and recognizable symbols in the world today.

But Knight, the man behind the swoosh, has always remained a mystery. Now, for the first time, in a memoir that is candid, humble, gutsy, and wry, he tells his story, beginning with his crossroads moment. At 24, after backpacking around the world, he decided to take the unconventional path to start his own business - a business that would be dynamic, different.

Knight details the many risks and daunting setbacks that stood between him and his dream - along with his early triumphs. Above all, he recalls the formative relationships with his first partners and employees, a ragtag group of misfits and seekers who became a tight-knit band of brothers. Together, harnessing the transcendent power of a shared mission and a deep belief in the spirit of sport, they built a brand that changed everything.

©2016 Phil Knight. All rights reserved. (P)2016 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"Narrator Norbert Leo Butz...infuses his delivery with drama and suspense, keeping the listener engaged with each chapter. Knight claims to be a shy introvert, but Butz isn't fooled, portraying the chairman as a straight-shooting, no-nonsense leader who keeps winning because he's relentless in his pursuit of success...." (AudioFile)

Epic book - absolutely loved it!!

As an entrepreneur, I identified with this book like no other that I've read - the well written narrative makes reading this book like living the experience moment to moment - wow.

I'm going to buy me some Cortez Nikes!!!

Love the story from beginning to end. It's currently on replay now. Mr. Knights highs and lows equal total motivation. Thank You.

Raw and Genuine Memoir

This is a well written book. It took a little bit of patience on my part as I felt it started off slowly but it then captivated me. I listened to the entire book in just a couple of days because I couldn’t get enough of his honest recount of his life, loves, career and feelings I could literally feel his frustrations, joy and pain. Thanks for sharing your inspiring passions with us Phil.

Awesome

I loved this book. It was soooooooo good. A must. It was funny and thought provoking. I didn't want it to end.

Mixed feelings

I'm left with mixed feeling about Phil Knight and his telling of Nike's history. There's SO MUCH that has been left out. But I'm not sure including it would have been interesting enough.

When it comes to Phil himself I give him kudos for being pretty open and honest about how he treated his early employees. It's not flattering. I also give him credit for being honest with us about his "only 10% better than his dad" parenting of his two sons.

He spends almost no time in the book on his children. Which he admits is reflective of the actual time he spent with them in real life. He worked a lot and travelled a lot. He also played a lot, drank and had fun a lot, and did it while his kids sat at home in Oregon.

Reading between the lines I think he may have been a worse dad then he even realizes. A not uncommon trait of hard driving entrepreneurs.

I got bored with his story and the lack of details about 2/3 through. By the end of the story I can say that based on this book along I consider Phil Knight to probably be a self centered arrogant jerk. He might se a sociopath. He's like that guy who you meet who seems interesting at first but after a while you dong care about the amazing stories any more and judg want to get away.

Must Read!

Beautifully written with raw authenticity! I really could not stop listening! I highly recommend this book!

Must read for entrepreneurs

If you’re into biographies and business, this is a must read. Being an entrepreneur is full of blood, sweat, and tears. Most people want to be successful but this takes us to understand the trials and tribulations of what it takes to get there. I thoroughly enjoyed the brilliantly written book.

absolutely great n now 1 of my favorites of all

the End of the book was the best part summed up beautifully but can't wait to hear 1 more chapter

Loved it

What a great story! As I literally finished the book I went to a donut shop and looked at the feet of four customers in front of me all wearing Nikes. I don’t think I’ll ever see the symbol again and not remember this story.

Hoping for a Sequel

So well-written that as I read (and listened) I thought of Andre Agassi's auto-biography, Open, that was co-written by J.R. Moehringer who would not allow his name to appear on the cover. I was not surprised to find Knight's thanks to Moehringer in his acknowledgements at the end of the book. Not sure how much he aided Knight, but the book shows his touches; it is descriptive, engaging, poignant, and even suspenseful.