From Michael Jordan fan to head designer: the Swiss who pulls the strings at Nike

The Vitra Design Museum in southern Germany is presenting the first-ever museum exhibition on Nike’s design history. Martin Lotti, a Swiss national, works as head of design for the sportswear giant. What was the first-ever Nike product that Martin Lotti bought? A pair of Air Max 180 sneakers - and a poster of basketball legend Michael Jordan. That was all the Swiss 16-year-old, then an exchange student in the United States, could afford. The poster hung above his bed for years. Today, Lotti is head designer at Nike. He has met Michael Jordan in person several times and designed collections with him. “That was a surreal moment,” says Lotti. The Americans in Weil am Rhein Nike is the world's leading sporting goods manufacturer. The company has an annual turnover of $50 billion (CHF44.2 billion). How did Nike become so successful? One reason is the design, which has played a decisive role in shaping sneaker culture as we know it today. An exhibition at the Vitra Design Museum in Weil ...