--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I know when the Berlin wall went down and…" description: "\"I know when the Berlin wall went down and I walked into what was East Berlin and saw two big Nike banners - that gave me a chill.\" — Phil Knight" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7bd/phil-knight-3238_berlin_i-know-when-the-berlin-wall-went-down-an_1188367.png" --- # I know when the Berlin wall went down and I walked into… ![“I know when the Berlin wall went down and I walked into what was East Berlin and saw two big Nike banners - that gave me a chill.” quote by Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7bd/phil-knight-3238_berlin_i-know-when-the-berlin-wall-went-down-an_1188367.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7bd/phil-knight-3238_berlin_i-know-when-the-berlin-wall-went-down-an_1188367.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7bd/phil-knight-3238_berlin_i-know-when-the-berlin-wall-went-down-an_1188367.png) > “I know when the Berlin wall went down and I walked into what was East Berlin and saw two big Nike banners - that gave me a chill.” [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Seeing Nike banners in former East Berlin highlighted how quickly global brands can permeate even formerly closed societies. **In simple terms:** Brands spread fast after political change. Key Takeaway Recognize the power of cultural symbols. Themes globalization branding political change Mood reflective nostalgic Type observational cultural When to use this quote - travel - marketing analysis - historical reflection - brand strategy Key Concepts cultural diffusion consumerism Questions to Reflect On - How do brands adapt to new markets? - What does this say about cultural identity? A Different Perspective The impact may be superficial without deeper local relevance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Berlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/berlin/) [Berlin wall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/berlin-wall/) [Big](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/big/) [Chill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chill/) [East berlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/east-berlin/) [Germany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/germany/) [Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two/) [Walked East](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/walked-east-3515450/) [Wall Went](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wall-went-363255/) ## Related quotes > [“The driver, who had lived in East Berlin until the wall fell in 1989, was happy to report that Berlin was currently the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-g-riddle/the-driver-who-had-lived-in-east-berlin-until-the-wall-fell-in-1989/) [A.G. Riddle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-g-riddle/) > [“The ethos of East Berlin punk infused the city with a radical egalitarianism and a DIY approach to maintaining independence-to conjuring up the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-mohr/the-ethos-of-east-berlin-punk-infused-the-city-with-a-radical/) [Tim Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-mohr/) > [I view the United States, today, much like East Berlin. And I'm off the grid. I've tried for 20 years to warn the country…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ventura/i-view-the-united-states-today-much-like-east-berlin-and-i-m-off-the/) [Jesse Ventura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ventura/) > [My first visit to West Berlin was in February 1983. The drive through East Berlin, the fact that West Berlin was surrounded by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/my-first-visit-to-west-berlin-was-in-february-1983-the-drive-through/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [I remember I went to Berlin right after the Wall came down. I first went to East Berlin, and all the buildings were old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moby/i-remember-i-went-to-berlin-right-after-the-wall-came-down-i-first/) [Moby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moby/) > [ It is advertising that enthrones the customer as king. This infuriates the socialist...\[it is\] the crossing of the boundary between West Berlin and East… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enoch-powell/it-is-advertising-that-enthrones-the-customer-as-king-this-infuriates/) [Enoch Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enoch-powell/) > [I'm from East Berlin. 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In 2008 NATO formally… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/okay-nato-expanded-to-east-berlin-and-east-germany-under-bill-clinton/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Capitalism has created the highest standard of living ever known on earth. The evidence is incontrovertible. The contrast between West and East Berlin is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/capitalism-has-created-the-highest-standard-of-living-ever-known-on/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Chocolate and candy. That's what we brought in to our friends. We worked in East Berlin with other artists who were smuggled out to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whoopi-goldberg/chocolate-and-candy-that-s-what-we-brought-in-to-our-friends-we/) [Whoopi Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whoopi-goldberg/) > [Architects thrive after massive urban disasters. The abject collapse of East Berlin gave us the only city in Europe with a mighty host of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-sterling/architects-thrive-after-massive-urban-disasters-the-abject-collapse/) [Bruce Sterling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-sterling/) > [“Langdon knew she was right and reluctantly made his way around the balcony, hugging the wall as he went.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-brown/langdon-knew-she-was-right-and-reluctantly-made-his-way-around-the/) [Dan Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-brown/) > [I went through about six or seven painting methods just to see what I didn't want to do. And then I got off the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-denes/i-went-through-about-six-or-seven-painting-methods-just-to-see-what-i/) [Agnes Denes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-denes/) ## More by Phil Knight > [A shoe dog is somebody that really loves shoes, and that was me. I was a runner... that became important to me, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/a-shoe-dog-is-somebody-that-really-loves-shoes-and-that-was-me-i-was/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [Perception can be changed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/perception-can-be-changed/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [Dare to take chances, lest you leave your talent buried in the ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/dare-to-take-chances-lest-you-leave-your-talent-buried-in-the-ground/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [“Why is it always so hard to get started?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/why-is-it-always-so-hard-to-get-started/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [Play by the rules, but be ferocious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/play-by-the-rules-but-be-ferocious/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [“Life is growth, You grow or you die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/life-is-growth-you-grow-or-you-die/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [“If my life was to be all work no play, I wanted my work to be play.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/if-my-life-was-to-be-all-work-no-play-i-wanted-my-work-to-be-play/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [“he was all the colors of an Easter egg.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/he-was-all-the-colors-of-an-easter-egg/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [“what I knew that morning in March 1977 as we settled around the conference table. I wasn’t even sure how these guys reached us,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/what-i-knew-that-morning-in-march-1977-as-we-settled-around-the/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [“When you make something, when you improve something, when you deliver something, when you add some service or product to the lives of strangers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/when-you-make-something-when-you-improve-something-when-you-deliver/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [“It’s possible that we were never closer, maybe because our relationship had been reduced to its primal essence. He was my dad, I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/it-s-possible-that-we-were-never-closer-maybe-because-our/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [“Oneness—in some way, shape, or form, it’s what every person I’ve ever met has been seeking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/oneness-in-some-way-shape-or-form-it-s-what-every-person-i-ve-ever/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [We wanted Nike to be the world's best sports and fitness company. Once you say that, you have a focus. You don't end up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/we-wanted-nike-to-be-the-world-s-best-sports-and-fitness-company-once/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [“You tell yourself that you’re running toward some goal, chasing some rush, but really you run because the alternative, stopping, scares you to death.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/you-tell-yourself-that-you-re-running-toward-some-goal-chasing-some/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) > [“I wanted to win. No, that’s not right. I simply didn’t want to lose. And”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/i-wanted-to-win-no-that-s-not-right-i-simply-didn-t-want-to-lose-and/) [Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) [Explore all 120 Phil Knight quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/) ## More Berlin quotes > [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [I did a concert... in September with the Berlin Philharmonic... They're great musicians, and there's always something to learn from them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecilia-bartoli/i-did-a-concert-in-september-with-the-berlin-philharmonic-they-re/) [Cecilia Bartoli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecilia-bartoli/) > [The fall of the Berlin Wall makes for nice pictures. But it all started in the shipyards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lech-walesa/the-fall-of-the-berlin-wall-makes-for-nice-pictures-but-it-all/) [Lech Walesa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lech-walesa/) > [The music changed. We had Irving Berlin and Gershwin and Lerner and Loewe and Cole Porter. Great music. Now we have 'Rent.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyd-charisse/the-music-changed-we-had-irving-berlin-and-gershwin-and-lerner-and/) [Cyd Charisse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyd-charisse/) > [My works are dear to me, each in its own way, I shall have to answer for them on the Day off Judgement. God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-chagall/my-works-are-dear-to-me-each-in-its-own-way-i-shall-have-to-answer/) [Marc Chagall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-chagall/) > [I'm not a prophet, but I always thought it was natural for dictatorships to fall. I remember in 1989, two months before the fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-not-a-prophet-but-i-always-thought-it-was-natural-for/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [The church of St. Peter at Berlin, notwithstanding the total difference between them in the style of building, appears in some respects to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-philipp-moritz/the-church-of-st-peter-at-berlin-notwithstanding-the-total-difference/) [Karl Philipp Moritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-philipp-moritz/) > [...what happened in New York and Washington is the same thing that England and America did to Berlin every day for three years during…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemmy-kilmister/what-happened-in-new-york-and-washington-is-the-same-thing-that/) [Lemmy Kilmister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemmy-kilmister/) > [I am in Paris. Yes ma'am , I made it back. I came up from Berlin, stopped here ten days, fought a losing battle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-anne-porter/i-am-in-paris-yes-ma-am-i-made-it-back-i-came-up-from-berlin-stopped/) [Katherine Anne Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-anne-porter/) > [God bless America, land that I love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-berlin/god-bless-america-land-that-i-love/) [Irving Berlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irving-berlin/) > [I wouldn't want to live in Berlin. It's bombed out and there's a lot of techno.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sloane-crosley/i-wouldn-t-want-to-live-in-berlin-it-s-bombed-out-and-there-s-a-lot/) [Sloane Crosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sloane-crosley/) > [Berlin is still a very edgy place, a very cosmopolitan place. It's a place where completely different ideas and cultures come together and clash…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-bremmer/berlin-is-still-a-very-edgy-place-a-very-cosmopolitan-place-it-s-a/) [Ian Bremmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-bremmer/) > [Berlin would be a great place to have no cell phone, I think. Especially if you were able to live in a central location.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-ebert/berlin-would-be-a-great-place-to-have-no-cell-phone-i-think/) [Alex Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-ebert/) > [Those who have ever valued liberty for its own sake believed that to be free to choose, and not to be chosen for, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaiah-berlin/those-who-have-ever-valued-liberty-for-its-own-sake-believed-that-to/) [Isaiah Berlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaiah-berlin/) > [The toughest thing about success is that you've got to keep on being a success. Talent is only a starting point in this business.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-berlin/the-toughest-thing-about-success-is-that-you-ve-got-to-keep-on-being/) [Irving Berlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irving-berlin/) [Browse all 438 Berlin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/berlin/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I know when the Berlin wall went down and I walked into what was East Berlin and saw two big Nike banners - that gave me a chill.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Phil Knight" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/i-know-when-the-berlin-wall-went-down-and-i-walked-into-what-was-east/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Berlin" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/i-know-when-the-berlin-wall-went-down-and-i-walked-into-what-was-east/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7bd/phil-knight-3238_berlin_i-know-when-the-berlin-wall-went-down-an_1188367.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7bd/phil-knight-3238_berlin_i-know-when-the-berlin-wall-went-down-an_1188367.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7bd/phil-knight-3238_berlin_i-know-when-the-berlin-wall-went-down-an_1188367.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I know when the Berlin wall went down and I walked into what was East Berlin and saw two big Nike banners…” — Phil Knight", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Phil Knight", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I know when the Berlin wall...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/i-know-when-the-berlin-wall-went-down-and-i-walked-into-what-was-east/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/i-know-when-the-berlin-wall-went-down-and-i-walked-into-what-was-east/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```