{"id":1054164,"date":"2022-04-13T12:29:33","date_gmt":"2022-04-13T17:29:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.snkrsday.com\/?p=1054164"},"modified":"2022-04-14T16:50:57","modified_gmt":"2022-04-14T21:50:57","slug":"interview-with-former-nike-cmo-greg-hoffman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.snkrsday.com\/interview-with-former-nike-cmo-greg-hoffman\/","title":{"rendered":"Interview With Former Nike CMO Greg Hoffman On His New Book, Emotion By Design"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

We got the privilege to chat with Greg Hoffman<\/strong>, former Nike Chief Marketing Officer on his new book, Emotion By Design<\/strong>. We talked about his start at Nike as an intern and climbing the ranks to become CMO, campaigns he’s worked on, and what he wants readers to get out of the book. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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NK: So what prompted you to start writing the book and how long was the process?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

GH: So what prompted me to start writing the book is I had seen the power of creativity and a creative culture and creative teams within a business that was Nike and how powerful that was in terms of how it connects to people and communities in an emotional way and at the same time, how that ability also led to some of the most groundbreaking campaigns and movements to create positive social impact in the world. And that is something that we need more of. And I think brands large and small and leaders, whether you\u2019re a leader of one or a leader of many, have an opportunity to play a bigger role in the world. And I wanted to offer up a playbook that I\u2019ve been thinking about for a while now. And the best way I could do that is to illustrate these principles through my own experience within one of the world\u2019s coolest and most influential brands. And as far as time, again, I\u2019ve always written down my thoughts and musings and created principles and manifestos about design and marketing. And I had a catalog of these ideas, and that\u2019s where the process started. And over about a year and a half, that began to take shape in narrative form and become what is now is Emotion By Design<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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NK: Can you tell us about your history with Nike and how you got your start there?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

GH: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I had two huge passions growing up as a kid, art and sport. I shared a small bedroom with my two brothers. There was not a lot of room, and besides our three beds, there was my drafting table, where I drew every day, a sand-filled weightlifting set right in the middle, and then my parents took one of the walls in the room and put a wood frame around it. That became my art mural. And basically, I would draw sports logos on the wall and superheroes because I was really into comic books at the time. And so that\u2019s where that passion for both drawing and branding came from. And then, of course, all the sports I played growing up and the obsession with that. I always thought I would have to make a decision in terms of what path I would take as a career. Would it be within the world of sports or the world of art and design? And lo and behold, I didn\u2019t have to choose because I was lucky enough to get an internship out of college at Nike. At the time, I had no idea there was a headquarters or office in Portland, Oregon.But what I did have was the Wings poster of Michael Jordan in my apartment in college. So every day, I would come home, open up the apartment door, and there was Michael Jordan staring at me with the William Blake quote underneath that said, \u201cNo bird can soar too high if he soars with his own wings.\u201d Now, imagine looking at that poster and not knowing that a year later, you were actually going to be working for the guy that designed it, Ron Dumas. Like a lot of college kids, I was pretty broke with no transportation, but my parents ended up borrowing me their van. That Ford van had the airbrushed panels on the outside and everything. And I drove the van 27 hours from Minneapolis to Portland. And I drove right to the Nike headquarters because that\u2019s the only address I had. The problem was that the internship didn\u2019t start until the following Monday. So I slept in the van in the parking lot for 3 to 4 nights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NK: Something about Nike and vans, it just goes hand in hand.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

GH: It\u2019s so true. And you know what? There were even poker tables and, like, curtains in that van. And so, as much as I was a bit embarrassed about it, it ended up being a huge part of what ultimately got me there and also showed the support that my parents always had for me. They didn\u2019t have a lot, resource-wise, but they always fueled my passion for sport and art.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NK: You kind of talked about it just now, but what was your relationship with the brand before you started your internship? Sneakerhead culture wasn’t really a thing back when you started and social media wasn’t around so what was your relationship with Nike before jumping on board there?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

GH: My first pair of Nike sneakers were the Air Force 1 Highs I got in 1984 for freshman basketball and just absolutely loved them. That same year, a big turning point was when I saw the Nike \u201cI Love LA\u201d ad during the LA Olympics. I was a young track athlete and was inspired by the Olympian Carl Lewis, featured in the ad. And so here\u2019s this commercial on TV, where you have this musician, Randy Newman, driving a convertible down the streets of LA singing I Love LA, and all these sports superstars appearing, like Mary Decker Slaney, Pedro Guerrero, and as the car goes through Santa Monica, all of a sudden Carl Lewis flies into frame and jumps into the sand. It just blew me away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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