Phil Knight, the co-founder and chairman of Nike, Inc., has written a memoir. Simon & Schuster Inc. told the Associated Press the book, currently untitled, is scheduled for Spring 2016.
As reported, the 77-year-old Knight, who announced in June that he will step down as chairman next year.
“For a long time, I have had requests – from a couple of
prominent publishing houses and many diverse individuals – to write the
story of how Nike began,” Knight said in a statement from Simon & Schuster given to the AP. “I had neither the time nor the
inclination – until the last couple of years. Giving up more and more
daily responsibility, I have found the time and the perspective. Or said
another way: If I didn’t do it now, it wasn’t going to be done at all.”
Financial terms were not disciosed. Scribner, an imprint of Simon & Schuster putting out the book, described the memoir is “candid, humble, gutsy and wry.”
The book is expected to explore controversies as working conditions at factories overseas but a particular focus will be placed on the early years.
“Those from the early days at Nike were part of, and contributed to, an industry going through a revolution, and a world changing so dramatically, it is not likely a story like this will ever be told again,” Knight said in his statement.
“The lessons learned might be helpful to others – about life, business, resilience and risk. One way or another, everybody has a start-up.”
The Associated Press article is here: http://www.seattletimes.com/business/nike-chairman-phil-knight-writes-memoir-due-next-spring/
