Raptors G Greivis Vasquez, whose signature Under Armour shoe debuts Saturday, has marketing appeal that "runs deep in Toronto, and even deeper in his native Venezuela," according to Morgan Campbell of the TORONTO STAR. Vasquez spent Thursday morning "on a media blitz" promoting his North Six shoe. His "relentless promotion comes with the responsibility of having a sneaker named after him." Those honors "usually accrue to superstars and not people like Vasquez," the Raptors’ backup PG and just the third Venezuelan player to make the NBA. His shoe "is available only" at one Foot Locker location in Toronto and at UA's flagship store in Maryland. Vasquez "sees himself as an ambassador for both Under Armour and his native country." He said, "Canada has done a great job supporting me. This is going to be my platform, my bridge. I want to prove to Under Armour that I can make things happen and the shoe is a great start." Campbell notes Vasquez "moves the needle for marketers and sports media" in Venezuela. Gatorade ads on billboards in Caracas "feature his face, while South American visitors to Raptors.com have increased" 133% since the team acquired him in December '13. His emergence "coincides with the NBA’s renewed push to reach Spanish-speaking fans in the U.S." whose strained relationship with Venezuela "can make leveraging Vasquez’ marketability a challenge." He said that if UA "were to consider selling" the shoe in Venezuela "they’d have to gear the price to purchasing power" (TORONTO STAR, 3/27).
