Sham WOW

If I say the name Vince Shlomi, you probably have no idea who I’m talking about. But, more than likely you’ve seen him on TV in a popular commercial. Better known as “the Sham Wow guy,” Shlomi is the up-in-your face endorser of the product that maintains an-almost-yelling voice for the entire commercial. Despite his current reputation, Shlomi does have affiliations other than the Sham Wow. He made a movie that received horrible reviews by critics, and struggled to sell it until he was inspired by the success of Girls Gone Wild. After he put the film on an informercial, it sold 50,000 copies.

Shlomi is now doing the same with the Sham Wow. The commercial has earned a spot on humor websites and I place this product is on my list of “ridiculous items”—ones that I actually find humorous and can’t believe that people buy—along with the Snuggie, and that thing that claims to pop the dents out a car. Despite the laughing, the commercial has sparked huge sales for the makers of Sham Wow.

Shlomi has recently gained some attention aside from his outrageous infomercial. It was reported in the news that he hired a prostitute (No-No #1) and when he attempted to kiss her, she bit his tongue and would not let go. Sham Wow guy then punched her several times until she let go, causing multiple facial fractures and lacerations (No-No #2). His previous reputation as a popular marketer (or so he calls himself) may be ruined. Will Sham Wow cut all ties to avoid public affiliation with an accused assaulter? Even more so, will the incident destroy Shlomi’s career or cause sales to decline? We have seen it happen before. Just recently, Michael Phelps lost sponsorships and promotional contracts were terminated after he was caught smoking weed. And Chris Brown is expected to lose a huge fan base and see a drop in record sales after being arrested for beating up girlfriend, Rhianna. Many radio stations are even refusing to ever play his music again. But we can only wait to see if Vince Shlomi’s case has gotten enough media exposure to elicit a hurtin on the Sham Wow.