Early in 1984, Nike was a struggling shoe company. 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 in order to appeal to another segment of the market. At the same time, rookie player Michael Jordan was already endorsing several products, but Nike hoped that his appeal would generate sales. While Jordan, himself, 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. 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." With those four words, the Air Jordan legacy was born. The introduction of the Air Jordan I turned the athletic shoe industry upside down. Before the AJ I, most basketball shoes were white, but the bold black and red styling of the Jordan I flouted this convention. 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, of course, was more than happy to pay these to keep the shoes on Jordan's feet and in the public eye. 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. Air Jordan Shoes were a part of the Nike, Inc. family until late in 1997 Nike unveiled a new marketing plan and Jordan became its own sub-brand of Nike. To mark this change, the new Jordan Brand released the Air Jordan XIII, Air Jordan Team, and Air Jordan Trainers. From this point on, Jordan Brand products no longer featured the Nike name or Nike Swoosh, and their only connection to Nike,Inc is a fine print address for Nike headquarters to be used for insurance purposes.
