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In 1962 Bowerman and Knight formed a partnership. Legend has it that they each kicked in $500, shook hands and started importing. Truth is, it was probably closer to $550 each. Pretty soon, shoes from Onitsuka Tiger started showing up on American feet, brought into the U.S. by some nobody company named Blue Ribbon Sports (BRS). Jeff Johnson joined Knight and Bowerman's Blue Ribbon Sports company as its first full-time employee, selling shoes out of the back of his van at high school track meets in 1965. In 1966 Johnson opened the company's first retail outlet in a narrow building at 3107 Pico Blvd., in Santa Monica, California. Johnson is credited with giving Nike its name.
Kitmeout - Today's Fashion Online