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Back to #418 Phil Knight: Founder of Nike, with David Senra.

Why Did Phil Knight Teach at Portland State?

David Senra says Phil Knight taught at Portland State because Blue Ribbon could not pay its co-founder a salary. Five years after he started the company, sales were on track to double for a fifth straight year, and Blue Ribbon still could not afford him full time.

Teaching was the day job that paid the bills in fewer hours and left more time for the shoe company. He applied to Portland State University and became an assistant professor. His father hated the choice and said he had not sent him to Stanford to be a teacher, and certainly not a teacher at Portland State. In 1969, right before his 31st birthday, Blue Ribbon was doing well enough to pay its founder. Knight quit Portland State, went full time, and paid himself $18,000 a year.

Grokipedia·David Senra·Phil Knight

Transcript

#418 Phil Knight: Founder of Nike ·

Founders

More from this episode

  1. Why Did Phil Knight Ignore His Father's Advice?David Senra says Phil Knight ignored his father's advice to stop selling shoes, and Senra calls that one of the most important decisions Knight ever made.
  2. How Did Phil Knight Start Nike?David Senra says Nike started when one Japanese company sent Phil Knight 12 pairs of running shoes to sell in Oregon. About a year later, the shoes arrived.
  3. How Long Did Phil Knight Keep His Day Job?David Senra says it takes like seven years for underfunded Blue Ribbon to afford Phil Knight quitting his day job, and he thinks Knight spent like 14 hours a…
  4. How Did Bill Bowerman's Jogging Book Grow Nike?David Senra says Bill Bowerman's book Jogging sold millions of copies and grew the market for Nike by celebrating running, at a time when people did not go…
  5. What Was the First Nike Store Like?David Senra says the first Nike store was a sanctuary for runners.
  6. What Happened to the $8,000 Loan When Nike Went Public?David Senra says Phil Knight converted an $8,000 loan from an employee's parents into Nike stock worth $1.6 million.
  7. What Happened When Onitsuka Found Out About Nike?David Senra reads Phil Knight's account of the day Onitsuka found out about Nike and cut the company off earlier than he was ready.
  8. Why Did Phil Knight Feel Guilty as a Father?David Senra says Phil Knight felt the guilt was palpable, because every minute spent on Nike came at the cost of his family.
  9. Should I Settle for a Career in My Mid-20s?David Senra, reading the close of Phil Knight's Shoe Dog, says men and women in their mid-20s should not settle for a job, a profession, or even a career.

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