Presidential Election Goods Sold Out 3,000 Initial Units on Official Site Immediately
Re-released in October
With the upcoming U.S. presidential election this November, the so-called 'HARRIS-WALZ camo hat' has emerged as a popular campaign merchandise item. After Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris confirmed Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate, the hat quickly gained high popularity among supporters, recording sales of around $1 million (approximately 1.38 billion KRW) within a day of its release, selling out completely.
[Image source=Team Walz, Governor of Minnesota and U.S. Democratic Vice Presidential candidate, X (formerly Twitter) account]
According to Teen Vogue and others on the 7th (local time), the hat was launched on the Harris-Walz campaign's official website immediately after Governor Walz was announced as the Democratic vice-presidential candidate the previous day. Priced at $40, the initial batch of 3,000 units sold out within 30 minutes of release. As of that afternoon, sales had reached $1 million. Currently, only pre-orders are available, with a re-release planned for October.
The camo hat began attracting attention online and offline after a video was released showing Vice President Harris making the confirmation call to her running mate the day before. In the video, Vice President Harris asks Governor Walz, "Let's do this. Will you be my running mate?" Walz, wearing the camo hat and dressed casually in a T-shirt, sitting in a chair at his home in Saint Paul, responds, "It's an honor."
Immediately afterward, on social media, memes were created portraying Governor Walz as having the approachable comfort of a neighbor from the rural Midwest. Additionally, posts comparing Walz's camo hat to singer Chapelle Roan's 'Midwest Princess' hat appeared, dubbing him the 'Midwest Princess.' The Harris campaign quickly capitalized on this meme phenomenon, launching the camo hat with the 'HARRIS-WALZ' slogan as an official campaign product within hours.
That same night, Governor Walz posted a photo on his X (formerly Twitter) account wearing the camo hat with a suit after concluding his first joint rally with Vice President Harris in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Teen Vogue noted that Walz, a six-term congressman and successful gubernatorial reelection candidate, "whether intentionally or not, projects the image of an everyday common man," adding, "The camo hat now carries more significance than ever." Vanity Fair reported, "Harris's design team turned Walz's favorite accessory into a $1 million idea."
Notably, camo hats are commonly worn in rural areas of the American Midwest and South during activities like hunting. For this reason, various election campaigns have often introduced camo hat merchandise to appeal to voters in rural Midwest or conservative red states. Considering this, the 'HARRIS-WALZ camo hat' serves both as an element highlighting Governor Walz's down-to-earth and relatable image and as a strategic appeal to rural voters in battleground states such as Wisconsin, Michigan, Georgia, and Pennsylvania, where camo hats and hunting are familiar.
Mitch Kahn, CEO of Unionwear, the company producing the hats, told USA Today, "Given the expected demand, we will need to add second shifts and weekend work for at least the next two months."
Additionally, the 'HARRIS-WALZ camo hat' is being compared to the red MAGA hat symbolizing former Republican President Donald Trump. Fashion magazine GQ reported, "The success of the HARRIS-WALZ camo hat is even more surprising because political merchandise has long been Trump's domain." USA Today also highlighted this trend in an article titled 'HARRIS-WALZ camo hat vs. Trump MAGA hat: Who will win the meme merchandise war?'
Previously, Jared Kushner, former President Trump's son-in-law, wrote in his memoir that the MAGA hat, featuring the slogan 'Make America Great Again,' generated up to $80,000 in daily revenue during the 2016 presidential election, most of which was used for campaign expenses. However, it is unclear how many MAGA hats are currently being sold. USA Today added that most MAGA hats are believed to be sold through online marketplaces and street vendors rather than the official campaign website.
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