Phil Knight’s Memoir ‘Shoe Dog’ Tops Bestseller Lists Following ‘Air’
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Before Ben Affleck donned an ill-fitting wig and distracting polarized sunglasses in his portrayal of Phil Knight in “Air,” the visionary Nike founder told his own life story in a 2018 memoir called “Shoe Dog.”
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In the candid autobiography — which is currently a No. 1 bestseller on Amazon, five years after its initial release — Knight traces the creation of Nike, from its early days as an intrepid start-up to its current status as one of the most iconic and profitable brands in history.
The story begins in 1962 when Knight was fresh out of business school, and with a $50 loan from his father created a a company with a simple mission: to import high-quality and low-cost athletic shoes from Japan. Knight grossed $8,000 in his first year.
Throughout the book’s 400 pages, Knight details the many risks and daunting setbacks he endured while growing that first $8,000 to a global-spanning business whose annual sales top $30 billion. Among this formative time, he best recalls his early relationships with his first employees and partners, a ragtag group of misfits and seekers who became a tight-knit band of brothers.
The confessional memoir is more about Knight’s personal journey rather than the complex business maneuvers he employed in growing his company. For that, you’d want to stream “Air” which, based on Alex Convery’s screenplay, tells the true story of how Nike ran a tense campaign to sign Michael Jordan to his first sneaker deal. Alongside Affleck as Kight, the film stars Matt Damon as Nike executive Sonny Vaccaro and Viola Davis as Jordan’s mother Deloris.
Stream “Air” on Prime Video, and buy Phil Knight’s “Shoe Dog” below:
Shoe Dog by Phil Knight
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