Anyone who works in marketing has had to deal with print deadlines. Inevitably, some overworked publicist like myself will forget to send an updated bio when you’re trying to print a program, or your executive director will loose the ad she was supposed to approve two weeks ago under a pile of coffee-stained papers. Thank goodness, then, for YouSendIt, rush fees, and overnight delivery.
Not since Gutenberg invented the printing press in 1440, however, has there been a greater Materials Miracle than the one found in this new venture from US speedskater Apolo Ohno. He announced “8zone”–“the complete supplement for the complete lifestyle”–today on his Twitter feed. Ohno won his 8th Olympic medal on February 26, 2010, and one week later has a URL, sweatshirts and packaging for his pills? He (” “) writes on the 8zone site:
I just won my 8th Olympic medal. Want to know how?
– I’m stronger – I have less body fat – I’m more focused and have more energy
– I feel better than I’ve ever felt before… And you can too!
My sister has pointed out that he probably exercised a little as well.
I wondered aloud on Twitter if his team had everything ready to go for “7zone” and “9zone,” and someone said that he had this company–and that it was called “8zone”–before the Vancouver Olympics. I just don’t believe that. If he had won 9 medals, there’s *no way* the company would have been called “8zone.” Also, I just read through the materials on the site, and the number eight isn’t referenced anywhere except when the medals are mentioned.
So as I see it, one of three things happened:
- Ohno had sets of different “zone” numbers printed, so there are a lot of “More Than 8zone” sweatshirts in a fireplace or Michael Phelps’ garage.
- Eight is just Ohno’s lucky number. (Not. Likely.)
- Ohno threw the Olympics for the sake of his future career as a supplement distributor.
In a New York Times article dated February 20, 2010, Greg Bishop wrote:
Soon, Ohno will move to other ventures, acting and mentoring, and
owning a nutritional supplements business called 8 Zone. Soon, the
United States will be without the skater Chun described as “United
States short track history.”
So we’re down to options 2 and 3. Thoughts?
I am also annoyed that on some pages of the site this Phenomenon is called “8zone” and on other pages it’s called “the 8 Zone.” I guess things have to be done quick and dirty when you launch a product in a week.
The good news is that 8zone/the 8 Zone and the Philadelphia Orchestra seem to have used the same Whites Only stock photo site:
Hmm… I think it’s an honest coincidence. According to the FAQ on his site, the product is based upon dividing your day into three 8 hour cycles or zones (labeled red, white, and blue. Cute).
From the FAQ on the website:
“How do you take 8zone?
8zone is taken three times a day at the beginning of each eight-hour zone. You take two capsules first thing in the morning for the Red Zone, two capsules after work for the White Zone and two more capsules an hour before bed for the Blue Zone.”
8zone is just a reference to the 3 8-hour ‘zones’ in a day and has nothing to do with the Olympics.
I would just like to point out that the reason the product is called “8zone” is because there are three zones (red, white, and blue) that you take eight hours apart in the three zones of a twenty-four hour day; not because Apolo has won eight medals. I honestly believe it’s merely a coincidence.
Also, Apolo was raised by his Japanese-born father. Therefore, I don’t believe it was his intent to use whites only stock photos because that would be discriminating against his heritage. I don’t think that it is his character to buy photos from a site that intentionally cuts out Asians, as you pointed out in one of the photos from the Philadelphia Orchestra.
8 hour cycle blah blah. Amanda’s suggestions are funnier.
I see from her Twitter feed that commenter Sarah Banks has ordered her 8zone (or her The 8zone)! The Kool-Aid has been drunk.
Additionally, there’s no way Apolo himself picked the stock photos.
Sarah Cahill: Yes, I have ordered the product because it is something I believe in. Trust me, I am not one to follow celebrity fads. I researched the product before I bought it, which was actually before Apolo won his eighth medal. I’m wouldn’t put a product in my body that’s useless or potentially harmful.
Thank you, Amanda, for pointing out the “8zone” vs “the 8 Zone” discrepancy. I find your attention to such matters deeply satisfying and bolstering.