Nike was born in 1972, but the business of shoes with the founders had been going on for nearly 10 years before Nike made its first shoes. Blue Ribbon Sports was the original name for the company which later became Nike. BRS began by importing lower priced Japanese made running shoes and reselling them in Oregon. By 1972, Nike was producing its own Nike shoes and the brand was born.
Nike, today, is the world leading athletic footwear and apparel seller. In fact #2 and #3 do not even total the revenue that Nike shoes pulls in every year. The most respected part of Nike