In 1971 Carolyn Davidson was a design student at Portland State University doing freelance work for a small Oregon shoe importer, Blue Ribbon Sports. The company needed a mark for its own line of shoes. Davidson drew a curved stroke that became known as the Swoosh, and billed for her time. Asked about it years later, she put the fee at "about $35" and said she couldn't remember the exact figure. "I billed them and they paid it."
Phil Knight's reaction, as he has told it, was lukewarm: "I don't love it, but maybe it will grow on me." What happened next is less famous and more useful: the company filed for the logo and for the name NIKE on the same day.
The Record
| Reg. No. | Mark | Filed / registered | Class | Owners on record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 977,190 | Swoosh design (no words) | Jan. 31, 1972 / Jan. 22, 1974 | 25 (footwear and clothing) | BRS, Inc. → Nike, Inc. |
| 978,952 | NIKE | Jan. 31, 1972 / Feb. 19, 1974 | 25 | BRS, Inc. → Nike, Inc. |
Both were still registered and renewed in the USPTO's records at the end of September 2026, more than fifty years later. By then Nike, Inc. and its IP-holding affiliate Nike Innovate C.V. were the current owners of about 227 live U.S. registrations.
Look at the applicant: "BRS, Inc." — Blue Ribbon Sports. The company that filed for NIKE wasn't called Nike yet. The registrations moved to Nike, Inc. later, and the record shows the chain.
What the Designer Said
In 1984 Davidson talked to Portland State's alumni magazine about the logo. She didn't sound like someone who felt cheated. The company "started me in business and they've been so loyal to me," she said; "I can't think of any reason to hold a grudge."
She also described what Nike did once the logo was famous: its president took her to lunch and gave her a gold and diamond Swoosh ring, some company stock, and a joking certificate blaming her for the company's problems. "They didn't have to do that," she said. Later retellings add details — a date, an amount of stock — that we couldn't confirm, so we've left them out.
Why the Logo Filing Mattered
A word mark and a design mark protect different things. The NIKE registration covers the word however it's written. The Swoosh registration covers the curve itself, with no word attached — which is what lets the company put the shape alone on a shoe and still have a registration behind it.
Filing both on day one, before either was well known, meant neither depended on the other. Fame came later and built on top of registrations that already existed. Under U.S. law, a mark that becomes truly famous can also be protected against dilution, even outside its own market — but fame has to be proven, mark by mark, and the registration is where that proof starts.
What This Record Teaches
- File the logo separately from the name, and early. Blue Ribbon Sports filed both in January 1972. A design mark is examined on its own: in our analysis of USPTO data, design-only marks filed in the first half of 2025 drew at least one Office Action 52.6% of the time, against 46.1% for plain word marks — so a separate logo filing is a separate review to plan for.
- A design's price isn't its value — use is. The Swoosh cost about $35. Its registration has been renewed for more than half a century because the company kept using it, consistently, on the goods it covers.
- Get the ownership right as the company changes. The applicant was BRS, Inc.; the owner today is Nike, Inc. If a business renames itself or moves its brands to a holding company, the change needs to be recorded against each registration.
- Make sure you own the design you're paying for. A logo drawn by a freelancer is a copyrighted work as well as a potential trademark. A short written agreement that transfers the rights avoids questions later.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who designed the Nike Swoosh and how much was she paid?
Carolyn Davidson, then a Portland State University design student, in 1971. She later put her fee at about $35, saying she didn't remember the exact amount.
Did Carolyn Davidson ever get more than $35?
Yes. By her own 1984 account, Nike's president took her to lunch and gave her a gold and diamond Swoosh ring and some Nike stock.
Is the Swoosh a registered trademark?
Yes. The Swoosh design alone is U.S. Registration No. 977,190, filed January 31, 1972 by BRS, Inc. (Blue Ribbon Sports) and registered January 22, 1974 for footwear and clothing. The NIKE word mark, Reg. No. 978,952, was filed the same day.