Elliott Hill
President and chief executive of Nike, Inc. since October 2024
Elliott Hill is the president and chief executive of Nike, Inc., a role he took up in October 2024 after returning from retirement. A Nike veteran of more than 30 years who began as an intern in 1988, he matters because he is steering the world's largest sportswear company through a reset of its product, marketing and wholesale strategy.
| Role | President and CEO, Nike, Inc. |
|---|---|
| Since | 14 October 2024 |
| Joined Nike | 1988, as an intern |
| Previous senior role | Head of commercial and marketing operations for Nike and Jordan Brand, until 2020 |
| Predecessor | John Donahoe |
Who is Elliott Hill?
Elliott Hill is the president and chief executive officer of Nike, Inc. He was named to the role in September 2024, succeeding John Donahoe, and took office on 14 October 2024. Nike's corporate leadership page lists him as President and CEO, working alongside executive chairman Mark Parker.
Career
Hill joined Nike as an intern in 1988 and spent more than 32 years at the company. Over that period he held a series of sales, marketing and general management roles across several geographies, including North America and Europe. Before he retired in 2020, as president of consumer and marketplace, he oversaw the commercial and marketing operations for both the Nike brand and the Jordan Brand, one of the most senior commercial positions in the company.
His appointment as chief executive in 2024 brought him back to Nike after roughly four years away. The choice of an insider with long experience in retail partnerships and athlete marketing was widely read as a signal that the board wanted to restore the company's traditional strengths.
Influence on the fashion business
Nike sits at the centre of the global sportswear and sneaker market, so its strategic choices shape the wider industry. Since Hill's arrival, trade press has reported a focus on business fundamentals:
- building out a new leadership team
- rightsizing classic footwear franchises that had become over-distributed
- rekindling relationships with wholesale partners after years of prioritising direct sales
- reorganising the company more closely around individual sports
For retailers and brand partners, the renewed emphasis on wholesale is particularly significant, because it reverses part of the direct-to-consumer push that defined Nike's strategy in the years before 2024.
Elliott Hill and technology
Under Hill, Nike's public priorities have shifted away from some of its earlier digital experiments. Retail Dive reported in July 2025 that Nike had shut down RTFKT, the virtual products company it acquired in 2021, at the start of that year, that its vice president of AI had left, and that the company had not mentioned virtual or artificial intelligence efforts on its four most recent earnings calls. Nike's .Swoosh platform remained in operation at that time.
Why it matters
Hill's tenure is a test of whether a heritage brand can regain momentum by returning to product, sport and partner relationships rather than leading with new channels and technology. Because Nike's decisions on distribution, pricing and wholesale terms ripple through the entire sporting goods supply chain, his strategy is closely watched by competitors, retailers and investors across the fashion and footwear business.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Elliott Hill?
Elliott Hill is the president and chief executive of Nike, Inc. He took office in October 2024 after a career of more than 32 years at the company that began with an internship in 1988.
What has Elliott Hill changed at Nike?
Trade press has reported that Hill has focused on rebuilding the leadership team, rightsizing classic footwear franchises, rekindling wholesale partnerships and reorganising around sports. Nike also shut down its virtual products unit RTFKT in early 2025.
