For its long-term buy-and-hold shareholders, (NYSE: NKE) stock has been a true wealth builder. A small $1,000 investment into the sportswear and sneaker company 40 years ago would have been worth almost $1 million at the stock's peak a few years ago. However, Nike's slowing growth has been a drag on the stock's performance in recent years. The shares have returned just 40% since 2018.

There is a high correlation between a stock's long-term performance and the underlying company's revenue growth over many years. Nike was a high-growth brand a few decades ago, but not so much today. It's challenging for any company to keep growing at high rates when its annual revenue -- $51 billion in Nike's case -- already represents a large share of its total market.

By contrast, finding and investing in smaller, fast-growing brands before they go mainstream can lead to spectacular returns. Here are two rising stars I would buy over Nike now in a heartbeat.

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Source Fool.com