Nike Shoes

Nike shoes were introduced in the early 1971 when Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight split from Onitsuka Tiger with the intent to create shoes that were better designed for athletes. In 1972 Nike employee Steve Prefontaine helped launch them into the world spotlight by wearing Nike shoes to the Olympic games. The Swoosh design helped Nike sell over 2 million pairs in their first year and in 1974 Bowerman created the Waffle Trainer, which was the first of many groundbreaking designs from Nike. Nike Air cushioning was added for the first time in 1978 and has continued to be one of the most trusted cushioning systems in all of performance athletic sneakers, and continually making Nike shoes some of the most desirable available. In the late 70s and early 80s, Nike began creating shoes for other sports besides running. Basketball shoes, tennis shoes, and eventually training shoes, continued to make Nike shoes the shoe of choice for superstar athletes like John McEnroe, Michael Jordan and Bo Jackson. World-class athletes have proven the performance aspects of Nike shoes since the company's beginnings and this approach continues to be the focal point of new designs and new technology developments. In 1988 however, Nike introduced a slogan that would help them take things to a whole new level. "Just Do It" is one of the most widely known brand slogans ever. It has helped establish Nike shoes as for the athlete, but it was with this slogan and the arrival of the Nike Air Jordan line, that Nike shoes became as important as casual shoes as they were for sports. The Just Do It saying still represents the brand, and the list of athletes that help develop some of the most well engineered athletic shoes in the world has certainly grown. The focus of Nike shoes, both casual and performance, remains the same as it did back in the early 1970s, helping athletes perform at their best both on and off the field.