In the beginning

Early in 1984, Nike was a struggling shoe company. cheap Jordan shoes The running shoe phenomenon that has fueled their sales in previous years was slowly dying and they needed a way to revitalize and reinvent themselves cheap Jordan shoes in order to appeal to another segment of the market. cheap Jordan shoes At the same time, cheap Jordan shoes rookie player Michael Jordan was already endorsing several products, but Nike hoped that his appeal would generate sales. Jordan, though, had other ideas. He had always preferred Adidas or the Converse shoes endorsed by North Carolina Coach, Dean Smith, cheap Jordan shoes and hoped to sign on with either company. Converse, cheap Jordan shoes with Larry Bird and Magic Johnson on board as spokesmen, were not interested in offering a better deal than Nike, cheap Jordan shoes and Adidas wasn't interested at all at the time; perhaps due to Kathe Dassler's death the same year. cheap Jordan shoes While Jordan, himself, cheap Jordan shoes did not initially see the significance of Nike's offer, his agent, David Falk, saw a golden opportunity in Nike's offer to create a new line of shoes called "Air Jordans." and urged him to give Nike a chance.    Really Not That Interested

At that time, cheap Jordan shoes there was not a tremendous impact from a shoe endorsement, cheap Jordan shoes and few companies were willing to risk so much of their marketing budget to bet on one athlete to promote their products. An athlete as paid for wearing the products but little else resulted from an endorsement. cheap Jordan shoes It's possible that Jordan's reluctant attitude stemmed from this fact as much as his allegiance to Converse and Adidas products.

Nike saw something special in Michael Jordan, though. cheap Jordan shoes They saw a chance, an opportunity. He was a champion with personality, cheap Jordan shoes charisma, and heart, and they were willing to put the company on the line. They knew from the beginning that he would be a star and wanted to help him get there. Finally, cheap Jordan shoes after much persuasion from his manager and parents, the reluctant rookie agreed to fly to the Nike headquarters in Portland, cheap Jordan shoes Oregon to view a special video presentation and proposal though he later stated in retrospect that he went with no intention of signing with Nike cheap Jordan shoes.

cheap Jordan shoes The video presentation featured slow-motion clips of Jordan's college career and some of his high-flying Olympic moves with a background of then hit music "Jump" by the Pointer Sisters. Nike Head Designer, Peter Moore presented sketches of AJ1 shoes, cheap Jordan shoes jumpsuits, and sports apparel, all in black and red. Michael's remarks upon seeing the designs were less than enthusiastic. He is reported to have said, cheap Jordan shoes

"I can't wear that shoe, those are Devil colors"  Throughout the entire meeting Jordan was reported to seem disinterested and bored, but as he and Falk left the meeting, Jordan said to his agent, "Let's make the deal." cheap Jordan shoes

A Legacy (and a Controversy) is Born ,With those four words, the Air Jordan legacy was born. Nike signed Jordan to a $2.5 million deal for 5 years, cheap Jordan shoes plus royalties and other fringe benefits. Peter Moore created the first AJ Logo with a basketball with wings lifting it. cheap Jordan shoes The introduction of the Air Jordan I turned the athletic shoe industry upside down. cheap Jordan shoes Before the AJ I, most basketball shoes were white, but the bold black and red styling of the Jordan I flouted thisconvention. The NBA banned the shoe from the league in response, but Jordan wore them anyway, racking up serious fines of up to $5000 a game. Nike, cheap Jordan shoes of course, was more than happy to pay these to keep the shoes on Jordan's feet and in the public eye. cheap Jordan shoes All this controversy and Jordan's spectacular numbers that year served to put the Air Jordan line on the road to becoming a household name.