Phil Knight Net Worth, Career and Achievements of Life

Philip Hampson Knight is one of the American billionaire business entrepreneurs. Nike was founded by Philip. He also served as the chairman of Nike. He also own Laika, the stop-motion film production business. He has transformed the sportswear and footwear industry.

Knight was a great sportsman at the University of Oregon. He got interested in running shoes. He got a doctorate degree in business at Stanford University due to his interest in sports shoes. Knight has donated almost $1 billion in philanthropic activities. He also wrote a book named as Shoe Dog.

Phil Knight Net Worth

Phil Knight, an American entrepreneur, sports lover, and philanthropist, has a $43 billion net worth. Nike is the main source of his net worth. He is the main stakeholder of Nike.

Phil Knight and his family members own around 300 million shares of Nike. The Swoosh family trust controls their properties. Phil Knight still has 32 million shares on his own, and his son Travis Knight directly owns 41 million shares.

He was a member of the track and field club at the University of Oregon under coach Bill Bowerman. Later, he co-founded Nike with Bill Bowerman. Knight has given hundreds of millions of dollars to all of his universities. He has given these three organizations donations of more than $2 billion.

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Phil Knight Early Life

In Portland, Oregon, Philip Hampson Knight was born on February 24, 1938. His parents are Bill Knight and Lota Knight. Bill Knight is a lawyer who then became a newspaper publisher. Knight grew up in the Portland suburb of East Moreland and went to Cleveland High School.

He later attended the University of Oregon, where he was a sports reporter for the Oregon Daily Emerald. He was also a middle-distance runner. In 1959 he graduated from college with a journalism degree.

Phil Knight Career

In 1962, Philip Hampson Knight graduated from Stanford Graduate School of Business. Then he traveled the world and came across Tiger brand running shoes in Kobe, Japan. On January 25, 1964, he gained Tiger distribution rights in the western United States and formed Blue Ribbon Sports with Bill Bowerman, which subsequently became Nike.

Knight made his first sales in a green Plymouth Valiant at track meets throughout the Pacific Northwest. He quit his job as an accountant in 1969. He then started to work full-time at Blue Ribbon Sports. Under Knight's guidance, Nike became one of the world's most successful sports clothes and shoes companies.

He formed personal relationships with sportsmen like Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan. This increased Nike's popularity and sales of Nike. Knight also helped create Nike's famous "swoosh" logo. This logo was purchased in 1971 for $35 by Carolyn Davidson, a student of graphics designing.

He left his position as CEO of Nike in November 2004, but he continued to serve as the chairman of Nike. In June 2015, Knight resigned from the position of Nike's chairman. In June 2016, he officially retired from Nike.

In addition to his work at Nike, Knight helped in the success of Laika. Laika is an animation company. In the 1990s, an animation business known as Will Vinton Studios needed external investors. In 1998, Knight bought a 15% share in the company. The son of Knight started working there as an animator.

Knight later bought Will Vinton Studios. In 2003, Knight renamed the studio as Laika. Coraline was the first movie released by Laika. It was a stop-motion animated picture. Travis Knight, son of Philip Hampson Knight is now the president and CEO of Laika.

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Phil Knight Philanthropy and other works

In 2016, he wrote a book named as "Shoe Dog". His book was published by Schuster and Simon. Knight has donated almost $1 billion in philanthropic activities. He donated $105 million to the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

He donated $500 million to the cancer center of University of Oregon Health & Science. To launch an education program, he donated $400 million to Stanford University.

Phil Knight Personal Life

He married Penelope "Penny" Parks in 1963. Knights have three children: Travis, Matthew and Christina. He met Penny Parks when he was working at Portland State University. Phil has a flying hangar and two private jets at Hillsboro Airport.

His son Matthew died due to a known heart disease during scuba diving. Phil lives in Beaverton, Oregon. Phil and his wife are the sponsors and supporters and sponsors of the sports funds of the University of Oregon.

Phil Knight Awards and Achievements

Phil and his wife, Penny Parks, have been honored many times by the institution. The institution even named the library after his mother. The Matthew Knight Arena was dedicated to their dead son in 2011. He was welcomed into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in honor of his many contributions to sports.

On February 24, 2012, Knight was named as an investor in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall. The Hall honored him as the driving force behind Nike's massive financial backing for American basketball and its players.

The Hall honored him as the man who was behind Nike's financial support for American basketball players. On September 7, 2012, he received his acceptance. American Academy of Achievement's Golden Plate Award was given to Knight in 1989.

In 2015, Knight was selected for the membership class of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. It was due to his charities and support to business.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How much was Phil Knight first investment?

 Ans: He first started start Blue Ribbon Sports with $500.

Q. Is Phil Knight still alive

Ans: Yes, he is still alive and he is 86 years old.

Q. Where does Phil Knight rank among the billionaires in the world?

Ans: Phil Knight is the 34th richest person in the world.