The shoe was a failure, and Onitsuka returned to the design stage to focus on the way basketball players started and stopped on the floor.

After attending Oregon, Knight continued his studies at Stanford University, where he wrote his MBA thesis on the marketing of athletic shoes.

After receiving his degree, Knight travelled to Japan where he contacted Onitsuka Tiger Co. Ltd, and convinced the company that their product had a market in the US.

In 1963, Knight received his first shipment of Tiger shoes, and later he and Bowerman invested $500 each to form Blue Ribbon Sports (later known as Nike, Inc.).

Jeff Johnson was the manager, and he attended many Amateur Athletic Union meets and high school cross country races, where he sold Onitsuka brand shoes.

In 1972, sportswear companies GTO, Jelenk, and Onitsuka combined their financial and athletic positions to build a regional sales office near Hokkaido for the 1972 Winter Olympics.

In 2003, Uma Thurman wore gold-colored Onitsuka Taichi sneakers with black stripes with her yellow outfit in the movie Kill Bill.

[14] Since Onitsuka Tiger was incorporated in 1949, shoes have been created for football, running, martial arts, basketball, cheerleading, volleyball, cross-training, track and field, wrestling, golf, cricket, fencing, and tennis.