Skechers' Shape-Ups For Girls Called Out By Internet (VIDEO, PHOTO)

Clarification: Sitrick And Company, which represents Skechers, contacted us to point out that no parenting groups, per se, have come out against the shoes. aMomEntrepeneur.com allows any member to post commentary and change.org allows anyone to put up petitions.

Previously: As if Skechers Shape-Up shoes weren't frightful enough -- not only to look at, but by falsely claiming (according to the American Council on Exercise) to sculpt wearers' legs and butts -- the brand has introduced sizes for girls, Jezebel reports.

An animated commercial for the footwear shows a series of lanky tweens singing, "Heidi's got new Shape-Ups, got everything a girl wants. She's got the height, got the bounce. She's lookin' good and havin' fun 'cuz Heidi's got new Shape-Ups." At one point, "Heidi" is chased by a trio of scruffy, cartoon dudes dressed as a cupcake, hot dog and ice cream cone.

Of course, parents aren't having any of it. Tammy Jones writes on aMomEntrepeneur.com, "This disturbs me to my core...Shame on you skechers. I'm switching brands."

A petition on change.org reads, "Women have plenty of time to be targeted for their weight throughout their lives. By not only marketing a shoe line to young girls, but also not even having an equivalent for boys Skechers is sending a clear message to girls and women: you're never too young to start hating your body."

Premature-self-loathing issues aside, Chiropodist Hillary Brenner told the Daily Mail that she "wouldn't recommend these for growing feet."

What do you think?

Quick Poll

Shape-Ups for girls:

Totally UNACCEPTABLE!

Entirely HARMLESS!

Unsure.

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WATCH:

(Yes, that says "Preschool and Grade School.")

Comments

[BasilG]

01:29 PM on 05/25/2011

In addition to the highly problematic body-image issues, Skechers has persistently marketed Shape Ups with highly sexualized campaigns (Kim Kardashian feigning orgasm etc). To suddenly announce that this highly-sexualized product is now available for young girls is shameful and completely unacceptable. Also, showing young girls being pursued in a somewhat lecherous fashion by boys in the commercial propagates more than one untoward message.

[Julie Hardy Alecci]

04:34 PM on 05/16/2011

I would just like you to know. That I am 45 years old,an I wear a size 1 in youth. I think that it is about time that there is a shoe in my size or close to it for women in the same situation that I am in. Parents should be happy about this, you can purchase them for your daughters gym class and she will have comfort knowing this is the proper shoe to wear. Parents should also think of these as helping your daughters stay healthy.....

[French Toast]

12:09 PM on 05/13/2011

It's not that I think targeting overweight girls is wrong. It's that their product is a lie and promises results that aren't real. They should be sued for false advertisement.

[DSevere]

11:52 PM on 05/12/2011

My last word on this subject:

Study Suggests 86 Percent of Americans Could be Overweight or Obese by 2030

Most adults in the U.S. will be overweight or obese by 2030, with related health care spending projected to be as much as $956.9 billion, according to researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine... rest of article at http://www.jhsph.edu/publichealthnews/press_releases/2008/wang_obesity_projections

Wake up people, your protests are misdirected!

[andshelly]

06:12 PM on 05/12/2011

To the ladies that keep blaming men for how we as women feel about ourselves: Women are far more cruel to each other that men are to women. It is women that pass along their own insecurities to their daughters. It starts with not allowing little girls to be little girls. Stop caving in to everything that your children want! If you say no and to are consistent you will gain your child’s love and respect.
Teach your children how advertising works, sit down with them and talk to them about the images that they see. Since my children were young as we were viewing a television show or reading a magazine, I would remind them that some of the images that they see are not real: Fake boobs, fake teeth, fake hair, botox, I went out of my way to explain to them that these images are unattainable for most women (and undesirable for some). I always make certain that when they see some of the “teen stars” that we go google the “teen stars’” real age, which is usually a 19-25 yr old playing a 15 yr old. Parents talk to your children. BE A PARENT! Protect, correct, nurture, love and be present!
I always tell my children that they have 18 years to enjoy their childhood and the rest of their lives to be an adult. We need to give our children the gift of childhood!

[AMG1977]

09:37 AM on 05/12/2011

New Facebook Group: Moms (& their Friends) Against Sketchers Shape-Ups for Girls.

[DSevere]

10:29 AM on 05/12/2011

How about a better one: People Against Producing Fat Diabetic Lethargic Kids Who Don't Get Any Exercise.

There are so many worthy causes in the world, I can't believe people are putting energy into campaigning against sneakers. What is wrong with you?

[AMG1977]

10:42 AM on 05/12/2011

It's not about sneakers. It's about the message they are sending to young girls - you must be thin to be happy and you should want to attract boys at a young age. These shoes are not going to prevent fat, diabetic or lethargic kids. They are not going to encourage girls to exercise. The whole premise of the shoes is that they tone you without having to exercise. They don't even work. I support several causes/charities.

[artrox4k]

12:26 PM on 05/16/2011

I agree with AMG1877; the problem here is that this ad does not in any way encourage exercise. "Heidi" has glam and bounce in a mini skirt--hardly the image of a girl running out in her new sneakers to be active. Instead, like the adult version of shape ups, Heidi's going to be able to do even less work than before to look super skinny.

[Sarah Marie Nardolillo]

09:24 AM on 05/12/2011

"A petition on change.org reads, "Women have plenty of time to be targeted for their weight throughout their lives. By not only marketing a shoe line to young girls, but also not even having an equivalent for boys Skechers is sending a clear message to girls and women: you're never too young to start hating your body."
Whoever wrote this is wrong in so many ways. I being someone who works out to stay healthy not skinny, I would be skinny regardless how much I work out. I think fastfood/junkfood commercials are to blame for making kids hate their body. They aren’t making you hate your hate your body but promoting you to LOVE your body by keeping it healthy! It disturbs me to see that there are parents out there who are so blind to the big picture. Obesity is a major problem in kids these days and we all need to do something about it. What you look like isn’t always the problem but being overweight causes serious health risks! I think these sneakers are one of the best ideas I’ve ever seen, it’s giving the younger generation the ambition to get up from sitting in front of the computer or TV and take a walk. We need to teach our children the importance of good nutrition, and it’s sickening to know there are parents who want their kids unhealthy.

[irishdoc]

02:43 PM on 05/12/2011

But why then aren't these marketed to little boys? Don't they also deserve to "LOVE your body by keeping it healthy!" D

[aychrist]

05:22 PM on 05/12/2011

I'm the one who wrote this, and I'm curious as to why you think it's wrong. The diet industry, which this product is clearly a part of, is not about being healthy or fit. It's not about teaching people the value of good nutrition, or getting them to exercise so that they can live longer. It's about preying on people (predominantly women) by making them insecure about their bodies and capitalizing on that.
It IS possible to be overweight and healthy. Just like you say you could eat junk and still be thin, there are plenty of people who are overweight who eat well and work out. These sneakers do nothing. They don't burn calories, they don't teach good nutrition, they simply throw you off balance to make your legs hurt. It's snake oil sales, just like the rest of the industry.

[sillyblueness]

12:06 PM on 05/13/2011

Fanned! Well put. I love the idea of helping kids be active...but I am not supportive of this tactic of compromising self esteem and lying to them.

[stephenmiller]

03:36 PM on 05/11/2011

there's nothing wrong with shaping up these little girls. so many of them are fatties, it's nice to see a few taking an interest in how they look. it'll help in getting that boyfriend that she's after, mom.

[Rodger Wonker]

03:40 PM on 05/11/2011

We cant have another generation of fatties. These hos today so lazy they cant even finish their damn song. Im glad these shoes cam along cause I was putting shin splints in my girls to keep them tone

[shadow1310]

04:03 PM on 05/11/2011

i say we start making shape ups for toddlers. go after them extra early

[Rodger Wonker]

03:26 PM on 05/11/2011

Does anyone know where i can get a pair of 5 in stilletoes for a 6 year old?

[CRMurray]

03:21 PM on 05/11/2011

When I saw the commercial I immediately tweeted "Shape up for girls? What exactly are we shaping?"

Horrible idea that got outside the thinking room.

[Rodger Wonker]

03:29 PM on 05/11/2011

ITs never too early to get em ready for life on the pole. The rock says know youre roll and laying the smackdown!

[aychrist]

03:12 PM on 05/11/2011

My name is Augusta, and I'm the feminist blogger that started the petition. I was excited by this article and the others that have appeared on the subject, but somewhat disappointed by the community response that I saw in the comments. I've replied to these comments here: http://stfusexists.tumblr.com/post/5396607377/response-to-criticisms-of-the-skechers-shape-ups-for#post-notes
Please feel free to contact me with any comments or questions at [e-mail].

[stephenmiller]

03:39 PM on 05/11/2011

i'm sorry you weren't part of the cool-girls clique. i know that hurts. but there's no reason to take out your anger on these girls who are just trying to look good so they can get dates with older guys. let people have their fun.

[Rodger Wonker]

03:41 PM on 05/11/2011

You gotta learn these girls young or else they get all lippy. Imma get you some sketchers.

[hava lee]

09:01 PM on 05/12/2011

@stephenmiller if you think walking like an idiot for the rest of their life is fun then yes let them have their fun

[DSevere]

04:41 PM on 05/11/2011

I'm sorry, my central point remains. An entire generation of kids is drowning in their own fat. They're going to be dead of heart attacks by the time they're 40. If you can make them want shoes to exercise in, THAT'S A GOOD THING!

[aychrist]

10:18 PM on 05/11/2011

These shoes have been proven to do NOTHING. And as far as I know "drowning in one's own fat" is not a medical condition. These shoes are yet another "get thin quick" scam, which I think girls can stand to do without past age 7.

[Thanks4Watching]

02:58 PM on 05/11/2011

The only thing unacceptable about this is how ugly the shoes are.

That aside, having dated many a girl in junior high and high school with a donk, I, for one, would be perfectly happy with more of them around.

[Monday Morning]

11:54 AM on 05/11/2011

$75.00 for a pair of sneakers for 10 year olds?

[Cassandra45]

03:35 PM on 05/11/2011

Thank you for the reality check!

[Rachelvis]

02:07 PM on 05/12/2011

Haha, come on. Parents these days buy their ten year olds IPHONES. 75 bucks is pocket change.

[contactdawn]

10:19 AM on 05/11/2011

So, I watched this and what I got out of it was that Sketchers shape ups give girls more energy and height than regular sneakers. And the girl in the end wasn't being 'chased' by the boys, they were lagging behind because they didn't have these 'magically awesome' Sketchers shape ups to help them keep up as evidenced by the exhausted looks on their faces and in their stance. The message in the lyrics wasn't 'you're never too young to start hating your body,' more than it was just stating the shoes are 'fashionable(-ly ugly), pretty (ugly) and apparently have a 'flubber-like' effect on the feet - you need these shoes. To me, it was a commercial enticing girls to want to own a pair of super expensive, unattractive sneakers. Seriously, there are so many more offensive products out on the market for tweens and teens, like thongs (yes, I saw them in a popular department store), push-up trainers (bras) and the new, higher cut jean shorts that are every pedophile's dream to see on a 13-year old.

[softscultpor]

10:04 AM on 05/11/2011

America is overweight. Why is this so bad? At least they aren't hooker boots...