Nike paid $35 for Swoosh logo, then gifted designer stock and gold ring

Carolyn Davidson, the graphic design student who created Nike’s iconic Swoosh logo for just $35 in 1971, received a gold ring featuring the Swoosh and 500 shares of Nike stock from co-founder Phil Knight in 1983.According to Portland State University, where Davidson studied graphic design and Knight taught accounting, she initially worked with Knight on charts and graphs before being asked to design a stripe for a new running shoe.How Carolyn Davidson met Phil KnightDavidson’s association with Nike began in 1971, when Knight was running Blue Ribbon Sports, an Oregon-based business that distributed Japanese Onitsuka Tiger running shoes in the United States. Knight and his business partner, University of Oregon track coach Bill Bowerman, were preparing to launch their own line of footwear and needed a distinctive logo.Davidson was a graphic design student at Portland State University.