Business Ethics and Social responsibility (An Ethical Analysis of Essay

Business Ethics and Social responsibility (An Ethical Analysis of (Nike) ) - Essay Example Nike has also become one of the world’s leading sportswear and equipment providers with revenues exceeding 18.6 billion in supplies for athletic shoes (Yu). Although based in the US, the company continues to provide excellent quality products to its customers and to maximize its profits all over the globe, with the swoosh becoming one of the most iconic brand symbols of all time. In 2009, Nike was employing 30,000 people in different 52 countries all over the world (Yu). Nike began as a small retail outlet in the car of Phil Knight in January 1964. Its founding fathers, Bill Bowerman and Phillip Knight, were initially disappointed by the sales that they were making. They paid a university student to make a logo for their products that would help to attract more recognition to the brand (Yu). Over the past five decades, the company has risen to remarkable fame, and the UK marketing manager for Nike attributes this fame and success to the firm and resolute vision of the company. He observes. â€Å"Absolutely everything we do is motivated by the fact that we’re here to enable athletes to be even better. We know who we are. We know what we want to achieve and we go for it 100 per cent of the time† (Yu). Nike has several brand names such as Nike Pro, Nike Air Max and Nike Football, and works with subsidiary names such as Umbro, Cole Haan and Converse. Along with producing sports gear and equipment, Nike also operates widely in retail stores under the ‘Nike Town’ profile. Many high profile athletes have benefited from Nike sponsorships deals promoting the ‘swoosh logo’ and ‘just do it’ trademarks. According to the Global Alliance report on the factories making Nike products in Indonesia, about 58% of the employees are young adults aged between 20 and 24 years. Moreover, 83% of the labour is female. Half of the