Royal Baby Already A Trendsetter In Britain
The royal baby is still in delivery after Kate Middleton was admitted to a London hospital early Monday, but the eventual heir to the British throne is already having a big effect on the small island.
Analysts expect the royal baby to create an infusion of energy to the British economy, with the Centre for Retail Research estimating the baby will have a $370 million economic impact during the course of July and August.
A large amount of that will come from new parents who want to have the same gear that Kate Middleton and Prince William have for their little one.
“The people selling baby wear and nursery equipment — to them it’s very, very exciting,” said Joshua Bamfield, director of the Centre for Retail Research. He noted that after David and Victoria Beckham bought a stroller from iCandy for their daughter Harper, the company saw a large boost in sales.
Many parents with babies born in 2013 will run out to purchase gifts to commemorate being born in the same year as the royal baby, Barnfield notes.
“There’s a category of people where their babies are born in 2013, and the parents, grandparents, those people have told us they expect to buy souvenirs for the infant,” he says.
It will be more than new parents who will help the economic boost. All over Britain there are royal baby viewing parties, with excited fans waiting to learn the baby’s sex, weight, and time of birth. There are pools to guess the baby’s name, and some betting websites have even put out odds of the most common names (from Alexandra at 3-to-1 odds to Psy at 5,000-to-1 odds).
It’s not just Britain getting excited over the Kate Middleton and Prince William’s baby. There are celebrations planned across the globe including royal baby showers as far as Central Florida.
