Swoosh : the unauthorized story of Nike, and the men who played there / J.B. Strasser & Laurie Becklund Hardcover – 1 Jan. 1991

Great book, written in a very informal/easy to read style detailing the stories of the beginning and history of Nike, starting with who Phil Knight is and his connection to Bill Bowerman (the coach with the waffle iron) and the people who became magnetised to the steam train.Even if you're a Nike fan then this is a great read, although it's difficult to take this as full facts - it's almost comedic the manner (not a bad thing) in which the stories are told of how Nike danced with all their problems and still managed to arrive where they are now.

I enjoyed reading this more than Shoe Dog, by Phil Knight. A good read of How Knight got BRS of the ground and built the nike empire with the people he employeed. Loads of stories of things going right and wrong up until 1990 when this book finishes. Power struggles, in-fighting and a game of snakes and ladders to the top.

Brilliant - a great read and insight into another world - corporate life on the edge.

Read the Shoe Dog by Phil Knight, very similar but good to get a different perspective. Knight did not speak much about the problems that Nike faced with staff product development and the threat of Reebok, which is very well highlighted in this book.

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