Phil Knight, 76, will step down as chairman of Nike and wants acting president and CEO Mark Parker to succeed him in that role. Knight, of course, co-founded the company back in 1968 and has acted as director since that time. He plans to step down from his role as chairman in 2016.
This news is confirmed today following earlier reports that Knight planned to transfer $13.88 billion worth of his Nike stock into a new LLC entitled “Swoosh,” which turns out to be factual. It’s said that Knight will stay involved with the company. Mark Parker made this statement today with regards to Knight stepping down – “Phil founded Nike to serve athletes. That vision and inspiration continues to drive our success today around the world. I have been privileged to work with Phil for over 35 years, and Nike’s exceptional management team and I are committed to building on Phil’s vision to drive the next era of growth for Nike.”
Stay tuned for more news on this new development at Nike.
Source: AP
