A kid wrote a letter asking a toy company to make a stuffed animal based on his favorite animal.
Clark Neily has grown up. When he was in second grade, he was obsessed with aardvarks. He explained in a tweet that he wrote a report about them for school, and the research hooked him. He saw some stuffed animals created by Possum Trot in a store one day. The lack of aardvarks disappointed him.
Clark wrote the company and gave a well-researched argument on why the mammal should be included in their lineup. He did such a good job convincing them, that they manufactured it within six months. What made it even better is that the company named the toy “Clark.”
As a result of the letter, Clark the Aardvark made his debut
Clark explained in his letter that he had been a fan of the company for some time, and recently visited a store that sold their stuffed beavers. He “fell in love” with it “immediately.” But he wanted another toy.
“I was wondering if you could make an Aardvark,” he wrote. “This animal is often confused with anteaters. It’s no big deal, what’s the difference? ”
“There is a real difference. Anteaters have shaggy tails, longer snouts, and shorter ears,” he said. “Let me draw you a picture.”
As Clark sketched booth animals, he reminded the manufacturers not to “get mixed up” if they manufactured the toy. He also asked the company to write back with its answer either way.
Possum Trot ended up responding that summer.
A representative apologized for the delay in responding. Clark the Aardvark made his debut as well.
“We are looking forward to your approval of our aardvark. We have taken your letter very seriously. Fans like you are important to us, and we hope you will continue to tell us what you think of our toys.”
To this day, Clark still has his aardvark. The story remains one of his favorite childhood memories.
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