Brand Evolution – Nike
Founded in 1964, Nike began its life as Blue Ribbon Sports and was originally a distributor of Onitsuka Tiger, a Japanese brand of trainers. In 1971, Blue Ribbon Sports ended its relationship with Onitsuka Tiger and went on to produce Nike, their athletic shoe. The 1971 logo used for the shoe was designed for just $35 and built the basis for a brand logo that would be globally recognised and remain relatively unchanged.
Named after the Greek goddess of victory, the success of the ‘Nike’ resulted in Blue Ribbon Sports renaming itself Nike in 1978. To enhance the name of this new brand, the text was pulled out of the logo to sit clearly on top of the Nike tick in a bolder typeface, perhaps a nod to the accomplishments of the brand to that point.
In 1985, the red box was introduced, making a visual statement in a market that was becoming increasingly competitive with rival brands. Through its consequent success and gaining recognition and reputation as a leading brand, the company name was dropped from the logo and the red colour was adopted, making it more simplistic and memorable and lending itself to use across all product ranges accordingly.
Coming tomorrow….. Brand Evolution – Volkswagen
If you missed yesterday’s Blog for Brand Evolution – Pepsi, click here!
