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Footwear company Sketchers premiered a racy commercial featuring Kim Kardashian during Super Bowl XLV last year.
"Kim got us more attention than we ever dreamed," said Leonard Armato, president of Skechers Fitness. "However we have to establish Skechers as more than a lifestyle company," he continued.
In a move meant to do that, the reality television star has been dropped and replaced with a French Bulldog for Sketchers's Super Bowl XLVI commercial. The bulldog star, named Mr. Quiggly, will be shown wearing the new Sketchers GOrun sneakers and racing Greyhounds around a track. Presumably he’s going to win the race, since even though Greyhounds are notoriously fast, these new Sketchers sneakers are designed to enhance running.
After the decision was announced, many polls could be found around the Internet asking which star people preferred. Mr. Quiggly was widely the unanimous winner.
Though not in everyone’s eyes. The animal rights group Grey2K USA has stated that they want the ad pulled because they are concerned with the quality of life for the Greyhounds used at Tucson Greyhound Park, the location used for filming.
Sketchers has maintained that the point of the ad is not to glamorize dog racing, but to be a David and Goliath type metaphor.
Image: Sketchers
