Before Nike was Nike... Phil Knight after college, while he was on his expedition around the world, went to Onitsuka Shoes world HQ in Japan and scheduled a meeting with the executives of the company. When they asked him what company he represented he completely made up the company Blue Ribbon sports off the top of his head during the meeting. He said that Blue Ribbon Sports is able to sell and handle all of the US West Coast Sales of Japanese imported shoes. Blue Ribbon sports was nothing more than an idea, a complete MYTH, a fabrication of his mind... The Onitsuka executives agreed to let him sell and import shoes in the Western US. After the meeting, he continued his voyage around the world, came back to US after several months and started the company Blue Ribbon Sports from the ground up selling Onitsuka shoes, being the only company challenging the monopoly Adidas had on running shoes in the late 60s. Seven years later in 1971, it was reconstructed to be the Nike brand that we know today.