Nike Chairman Phil Knight, who turned a business selling shoes out of the back of his car into the world’s most valuable sports brand, has announced plans to step down as company chairman.

Knight, 77, was a middle distance runner in college who began the company in a handshake deal with Oregon coach Bill Bowerman in 1964, with each putting up $500. With shrewd marketing campaigns built around celebrity endorsers like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods, he made the swoosh one of the most recognizable logos around the globe.

That phenomenal growth also landed Knight on Forbes magazine’s list of 50 richest people in the world, with a net worth estimated at $24 billion.

“For me, Nike has always been more than just a company — it has been my life’s passion,” Knight said in a statement.

Knight said he wants Nike President and CEO Mark Parker, who has held those positions since 2006, to succeed him. No specific date was set for Knight’s departure, though he said he plans to stay involved in the business. Nike Inc. said it expects to name a new chairman in 2016.

Knight sold his first pairs of shoes out of an old Plymouth Valiant while traveling the same Pacific Northwest track circuit on which he once competed. The company was originally named Blue Ribbon Sports, but changed in 1978 to Nike — the winged goddess of victory in Greek mythology — on the advice of a friend.

Knight said at the time, “I don’t love it, but it will grow on me.”

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