Back in November 2010 when Prince William and Kate Middleton announced their engagement, analysts quickly spoke up about the money the royal wedding could bring to the U.K. retail sector. Early estimates predicted that royal wedding-related merchandise revenue could reach more than $40 million.
Now, the Royal Wedding is upon us and merchandise with Prince William and Kate Middleton imagery or related messaging is flooding the market. Following are some particularly creative (i.e., strange) products featuring the future king and queen’s likenesses:
Beer
One bottle of the special Royal Virility Performance Beer from Britain’s BrewDog brewery contains one-third of the amount of a prescription Viagra dosage. If that’s not enough to get your libido going, Royal Virility Performance Beer also includes chocolate and Horny Goat Weed–two ingredients known for their aphrodisiac powers.
Don’t worry. If you don’t need a Viagra boost, there could still be a Royal Wedding-related beer for you such as Adnams Royal Wedding Ale which lists honey as a key ingredient (according to the Adnams website, honey beers have been used to celebrate weddings for years–hence the term “honeymoon”).
Another option, Kiss Me Kate, comes from England’s Castle Rock Brewery.
Condoms
Crown Jewels aren’t just any condoms. As the tagline says, these are “condoms of distinction.” These condoms come in a souvenir heirloom collector’s box and include a collectible portrait of the royal couple.
Sick Bags
Royal Wedding not your thing? Feeling ill from all the media attention? Try the Throne Up Royal Wedding Sick Bags — available in red or blue.
Toilet Seat Covers
So the Royal Couple can be with you at all times, try the Royal Wedding commemorative toilet seat cover!
Refrigerator
You can break away from the royal nuptials for a snack and still see the Royal Couple’s smiling faces in gigantic size on your refrigerator doors with the GE/GDHA royal refrigerator.
I guess it’s not surprising that the Lord Chamberlain’s office issued guidelines for Royal Wedding merchandise in December. The Royal Wedding is big bucks and retailers aren’t going to miss their chance to cash in.
What’s your favorite Royal Wedding merchandise? Leave a comment and share your thoughts.
Susan Gunelius is the author of 10 marketing, social media, branding, copywriting, and technology books, and she is President & CEO of KeySplash Creative, Inc., a marketing communications company. She also owns Women on Business, an award-wining blog for business women. She is a featured columnist for Entrepreneur.com and Forbes.com, and her marketing-related articles have appeared on websites such as MSNBC.com, BusinessWeek.com, TodayShow.com, and more.
She has over 20 years of experience in the marketing field having spent the first decade of her career directing marketing programs for some of the largest companies in the world, including divisions of AT&T and HSBC. Today, her clients include large and small companies around the world and household brands like Citigroup, Cox Communications, Intuit, and more. Susan is frequently interviewed about marketing and branding by television, radio, print, and online media organizations, and she speaks about these topics at events around the world. You can connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Google+.
