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Who says there’s only one way to make a sports shoe?

Athletic shoes are typically made by cutting material into appropriately shaped pieces and then stitching them together. With the Flyknit, Nike completely reconceived shoe manufacturing by finding a way to knit the shoe in one piece (it’s actually more like a thick, flexible sock) rather than assembling it. This innovation is especially bold, given that Nike owns half the running shoe market and 92 percent of the basketball shoe market.20

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Who says a candy store is only meant for kids?

At a time when celebrities and officials are campaigning to ban sugar, candy veteran Jeff Rubin is making a fortune with his brainchild, IT’SUGAR—the fastest-growing retail candy chain in the world. As if the name of the store were not contrarian enough, Rubin’s concept is aimed at adult customers rather than children, selling everything from pink marshmallow Peeps to edible underwear in a cheeky environment designed to appeal to twenty-somethings.21

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Who says ultrasound equipment is just for hospitals?

The only place to find an ultrasound machine has traditionally been a hospital or clinic. But GE Healthcare challenged that orthodoxy by creating ...

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