How your business can capitalise on Royal Wedding fever

It’s almost upon us. The event everyone is talking about, we finally have something to celebrate! Prince Harry’s wedding to the beautiful Meghan Markle is only a few days away. It will be a glorious occasion - hopefully minus the infamous British rain. But does something as infrequent as a Royal Wedding means one thing: big business?

The Royal Family are the UK’s biggest export. This brings tourism, and spending, as people up and down the country want to experience this occasion in style . After all, it’s the closest any of us will get to actually being a part of a ‘fairytale wedding’. So what can your business do to take advantage of Royal Wedding fever?

Show the event live

If your business is in hospitality then the Royal Wedding is a fantastic opportunity to broadcast the event. People all over the country will be tuned in, so it makes sense to show it. Why not spruce the place up with a royal theme?

Consider making a special royal menu; theme your drinks and most importantly get out the bunting. This is a great way to make an effort and get in the spirit of the day. It’s also worth finding out if you can set up a street party. There’s nothing that says ‘royal experience’ quite like setting up one of those long tables - plus it’s great for the kids too.

Short term rental peak

There is a real transatlantic feel to this royal wedding due to the fact that Harry is marrying an American. This brings a new dynamic to this particular wedding, which could bring even more tourists to the UK, and in particular to Windsor and the surrounding areas. There may be an unusual influx of tourists over the weekend and this could see the short term rental market experience a peak. So if your business is in rentals, then you will probably already be aware of this trend. If you have properties around Windsor, Slough or in the outer suburbs or London then the Royal wedding could be a great last minute opportunity to take advantage of the overseas interest.

Don’t believe us, well Airbnb has recently said that 42,000 tourists are expected to arrive in London over the next week, which will make the short term rental market around £12 million. This is certainly an industry that will benefit from this special weekend.

Theme your products

It’s not just tourism that could increase during the weekend. Retail is also expected to benefit. One idea could be to theme your products around this season. So what could you do? Maybe you make your own bespoke mugs and sell them online. Well why not get in the mood and make royal inspired ones to commemorate this occasion. The Four Kings Brewery in Cheshire is getting in on the act by creating a special ale to mark the event.

You might run a convenience store that sells lots of different products, rather than specialising in one thing. That’s fine. It’s important that you know what people will be looking to buy for the big day. Make sure the food and drink, that are pretty much guaranteed to sell well, such as strawberries, prosecco, cream, scones/cup cakes etc… go at the very front of the store. After all one of the three P’s is placement - so remember this.

It won’t fall on a bank holiday

The last Royal Wedding in 2011 fell in between the April and May easter bank holidays. Most of the nation were happy to be off work for another day, but for small businesses this created some problems. William and Kate’s wedding created an extra bank holiday and many businesses lost money through lack of trading during this period. No such issue this time, as Harry and Meghan will be marrying on a much more convenient Saturday and not in the middle of Easter. This could be very useful for small businesses who had to bear the brunt last time - hopefully this won’t happen this time.