My New Favorite Commercial

K-Swiss has a new commercial that I stop to watch whenever it airs (quite a feat considering I buffer most shows so I can fast-forward through ads). Here it is:

Aside from how jaunty and fun it is, I love that K-Swiss is giving triathletes mucho love in this commercial. My favorite moments:

• The triathlete warming up his arms before the swim
• The K-Swiss-clad dude sprinting with a bad-ass look on his face
• The swimmers emerging from the water, with one sporting a cheeky shark fin attached to his back
• The pack of triathletes busting it out on their bikes, with the guy in red passing a group and looking behind him before turning back with a wry little smirk on his face (so adorable)
• And, of course, Chris Lieto coming down the chute towards the finish, pointing up towards the sky and starting his victory celebration. My heart swells and I get a lump in my throat every time I see this part as I think about my (hopeful) finish at Ironman Canada this summer.

I think this ad is a great branding effort by K-Swiss to show consumers that they offer a vast array of apparel and footwear aside from standard tennis shoes (which is what I thought they primarily specialized in). Showing tennis players, runners, triathletes, young people having fun and looking stylish, and other scenarios mixed in paints K-Swiss as a fun company that can help you train hard, have fun, and look good. So far I’ve taken the bait — I’ve bought a pair of blue Ironman running shoes (the K-Ona S) that are pretty awesome, and I want to follow suit with these bad boys (Jas already has a pair — I call them his ruby red slippers).

So good on ya, K-Swiss. Way to give triathletes some love and make yourself look like a fun, energetic company. You’ve done what few commercials have accomplished nowadays: busted through my formidable DVR.