"There's not a more fairy-tale story in business. Nike CEO Elliott Hill began as an intern. Worked about every job imaginable at the company. Was passed up as a fave for the CEO role in 2020 when John Donahoe was brought in from Bain. And then, finding himself retired, and charter member of a silver fox baseball league in Austin, the swoosh boomeranged in from the clouds and Hill hitched a ride back to Beaverton."
"Now, after a year at the helm, Hill's still dealing with Nike's COVID hangover, brought about (at least in part) by Donahoe, who bolstered profits by selling waves of retro sneakers to people at home, all while reorganizing the core innovation team structure that had made Nike successful for decades. When Hill showed up in 2024, Nike revenue was down 10% yoy. This year, it's down 9.8%, and Trump's tariffs took a $1.5 billion bite out of Nike's net profits."
Elliott Hill rose from intern to CEO after being passed over for the role in 2020 when John Donahoe was hired, briefly retiring before returning to lead Nike. Hill inherited a COVID-era hangover tied to heavy retro-sneaker sales and a reorganization of the core innovation teams. Nike revenue fell about 10% year-over-year when Hill returned in 2024 and is down roughly 9.8% this year, with tariffs reducing net profits by $1.5 billion. The Beaverton campus shows signs of renewed energy, leadership remains long-tenured, and new product lines appear more promising.
Read at Fast Company
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]