Selling Obama at the DNC
CHARLOTTE—The American economy may or may not be a victim of weak demand, but this week's Democratic National Convention has highlighted the existence of a booming local market in Obama-branded, well, everything.
If you can print an image of Obama's face on it, someone has, and they've brought it to Charlotte. I've seen buttons, mugs, calendars, posters, newspaper covers, framed photos, keychains, and a seemingly endless array of T-shirts.
And what's especially wonderful is that it's all for sale: Everywhere you walk around the convention area, you see commerce driven by Obama's celebrity and proximity. After the jump, a brief tour of the Obama-branded stuff for sale at the DNC.
Most of the shirts for sale feature prominent images of Obama's face. But a few focus on his name. I don't think I've seen a single shirt that could be described as subtle.
Obama is the focus. But his entire family gets the T-shirt treatment as well:
For those who aren't content to simply wear presidentially branded clothing, there are calendars and children's books:
And although it's not an Obama-branded product, the "99 Percent Granola" I found at a for sale at a snack table does show a certain genius for audience-specific marketing:
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No graven images unless Obama gets a cut.
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Hey, man. That's no way to talk about the First
WookieeLady... oh, you said "cut". -
What a vile cult of personality.
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Um, um, um...Barack Hussein Obama...
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They really buffed Malicia up for that T-shirt photo.
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Barf.
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Disgraceful!
Fucking capitalist pigs!
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Just checking in here real quick.
Barf.
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They didn't build that!
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99% granola? What's the other 1%?
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Barf.
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Sawdust
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Pine nuts
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Who's the Chinese guy on the calendars? And why does that little kid's reflection in the mirror look like Grimace?
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the "99 Percent Granola" I found at a for sale at a snack table
At first I misread that as snark table.
But alas, not.