⚡ Get All Content for 20% Off ⚡

#AlexFromTarget Likely Not a Marketing Scheme So Much as a Good Old-Fashioned Meme A beta startup called Breakr is now back peddling from its initial claims that it was responsible for the viral spectacle.

By Geoff Weiss

entrepreneur daily

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Apologies, conspiracy theorists: recent revelations would seem to suggest that Alex From Target, the shaggy-haired heartthrob who shot to instantaneous viral stardom, is not the product of an enigmatic marketing machine but rather an upshot of good old-fashioned teen dreaming -- combined with the Internet's own bewildering penchant for populating memes.

In a CNET report yesterday, a beta startup called Breakr, which says it helps rouse and rally online fandoms, confoundingly claimed responsibility for Alex's ascent -- including his now roughly 50,000 Twitter followers and a recent appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

"We wanted to see how powerful the fangirl demographic was by taking a unknown good-looking kid and Target employee from Texas to overnight viral internet sensation," Breakr founder Dil-Domine Jacobe Leonares wrote in a blog post on LinkedIn.

Related: How These Brilliant Digital Billboards Are Delivering a Hair-Raising Message

Leonares said that one of the company's UK-based fangirls, Abbie (@auscalum), was the first to post the picture of Dallas-based Alex, whereupon Breakr mobilized its other social influencers to hop on the #AlexFromTarget bandwagon.

There's just one problem: Abbie claims to have no knowledge or affiliation with Breakr, adding that she simply found the photo on Tumblr and retweeted it. Alex also noted -- via Twitter, naturally -- that he and his family have nothing to do with Breakr. All this despite Leonares' initial claims to CNET that the company owns its buzzing fandoms and manages the idols they subsequently worship.

Now, Leonares is stepping back from those initial claims, telling BuzzFeed that the phenomenon was "all a chain reaction that Breakr happened to be a part of."

Related: Is Charitable Crotch-Grabbing Stunt #FeelingNuts the Next ALS Ice Bucket Challenge?

He also updated his blog post to state: "Abbie (@auscalum) and Alex Lee (@acl163) were never employed by Breakr. A side from Abbie being a follower and tweeting the photo, we jumped on it with the hashtag #AlexFromTarget."

Target, for its part, while tickled by the strange spectacle, also says it is not affiliated with Breakr and had nothing to do with spinning Alex into a viral star.

"Let us be completely clear," the company said in a statement, "we had absolutely nothing to do with the creation, listing or distribution of the photo. And we have no affiliation whatsoever with the company that is taking credit for its results."

Related: Why Ello Suddenly Went Viral

Geoff Weiss

Former Staff Writer

Geoff Weiss is a former staff writer at Entrepreneur.com.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Side Hustle

The Remote Side Hustle a 43-Year-Old Musician Works on for 1 Hour a Day Earns Nearly $3,000 a Month: 'All From the Comfort of Home'

Sam Ziegler wanted to supplement his income as a professional drummer — then his tech skills and desire to help people came together.

Marketing

Ever Wonder Why Certain Websites Rank Higher Than Yours? This SEO Expert Reveals The Secret to Dominating Search Results

It's often the smart use of SEO, now supercharged with AI, particularly in keyword optimization.

Business News

AI Is Impacting Jobs. Here Are the Gigs Affected the Most, According to an Analysis of 5 Million Upwork Postings

The researcher said in the report that freelance jobs were analyzed first because that market will likely see AI's immediate impact.

Franchise

The Top Franchise Brands Growing Globally

While our main Fastest-Growing Franchises list focuses on North American growth, more and more brands are looking to grow worldwide. These are the 25 that had the greatest franchise growth outside the U.S. and Canada from July 2022 to July 2023.