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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to think it is inappropriate for Party Pieces to sell goods to celebrate the Royal Wedding?

53 replies

ACL · 05/03/2011 08:29

Party Pieces actually terms the collection of goods as British Party.

Maybe they need help to fund their daughter's wedding?!

OP posts:
tribpot · 05/03/2011 10:26

I like the VC article and feel very sorry for Kate that her entire life has been a sham so they could sell a few yards of bunting at her expense Wink

If they were selling limited edition, signed-personally-by-Kate-and-Wills tat then, yes, that would be cashing in. If they had rushed the line out the day after the engagement was announced, having had 'insider info' on the story, that would be cashing in.

As an aside, I'm assuming Kate's hen night is not going to involve her wearing a plastic tiara.

edam · 05/03/2011 10:30

How vulgar. Am surprised so many people are relaxed about the Middletons cashing in. It stinks.

monstermissy · 05/03/2011 10:39

I think they would be doing their customers a diservice not to sell them tbh. They are an established business and would be the only party website not selling wedding related stuff.

pointydog · 05/03/2011 10:49

The business is party accessories. Lots of people are planning Royal Wedding Parties. They would be incredibly incompetent at their business if they didn't sell Royal Party goods.

pigletmania · 05/03/2011 10:49

Edam Kates parents run a business, so they have to do what they have to do to keep it running. They are like any other party business, not the only ones doing this so what! So Easter is a Christian festival, Christ rising from the dead, so party business owners who are Christian should not sell Easter stuff as they are cashing in!

GwendolineMaryLacey · 05/03/2011 10:55

Edam, don't be absurd.

NorthernGobshite · 05/03/2011 11:00

Who cares? I think the whole wedding is over rated bullshit. The royals are a defunct concept.

Hulababy · 05/03/2011 11:05

chasingsquirrels - I agree. O'd have thought they'd have made more of it. Let's face it - many businesses do make more of a fuss if one of their family (in a family business) or staff have something special going on. And it isn't every day your daughter marries royalty.

edam · 05/03/2011 11:06

No-one is forcing them to exploit their daughter's wedding. They are making a choice.

Hulababy · 05/03/2011 11:07

edam - Party Pieces have always had GB type collections on their site. This has not just suddenly appeared because of the wedding.

GwendolineMaryLacey · 05/03/2011 11:09

They are not exploiting it, it's their business. Why is that so difficult for you to grasp?

edam · 05/03/2011 11:11

Gwendoline, how hard is it for you to grasp that I choose to disagree with you? It is allowed, you know. You aren't God. Unless there's something you aren't telling us.

Hula, didn't realise that. Still looks rather vulgar though - if they wanted to avoid accusations of cashing in, they'd have dropped those lines until afterwards.

edam · 05/03/2011 11:13

Btw, I have my own business and it would be entirely possible for me to exploit ds - other people in my field do. I choose not to because it would be a bit shitty IMO.

edam · 05/03/2011 11:13

(other people exploit their own children, I mean, not my ds!)

BaroqueAroundTheClock · 05/03/2011 11:14

Why on earth would an established business drop (or not run) a line that every other competitor of theirs will be selling and making good money out of? I would be questioning their business sense if they didn't have a line for it tbh

Hulababy · 05/03/2011 11:15

As a business they'd be stupid to drop the line though. A business's job is to make money. The royal wedding is a good source of income through additional street parties that have been planned. Their financial advisors would have been incompetent if they had suggested they drop a potential good source of money for the business.

Also, there would have been critics that would have commented on them not running a line/theme to coincide and they would have then been sceptics asking why they weren;t, were they disapproving of the match, etc.

Hulababy · 05/03/2011 11:16

I am sure that Kate does not feel exploited. TBH if I was Kate I'd rather my family ran a party line than the competitors.

edam · 05/03/2011 11:18

They aren't about to go bankrupt. It's a very successful business. They could afford to put manners ahead of making money on this specific line.

GwendolineMaryLacey · 05/03/2011 11:20

Don't be so fucking patronising. You haven't given one good reason for your 'opinion' yet. When you do, I'll take you seriously.

PlasticLentilWeaver · 05/03/2011 11:20

edam read the Victoria Coren article that Stevie links to further upthread.

I would absolutely agree with you if they were stocking things covered in grinning mugshots of the happy couple, but why on earth should their business (employing I don't know how many in a time when many businesses are cutting employees) remove what is likely to be a very popular line in the next few weeks, just to avoid a few people thinking they are 'cashing in'? They are normal, everyday sort of people, who have worked hard to do well from their business, making a decision from the perspective of that business. I suspect that actually the day-to-day business decisions may well not even be made by them any more, but they'd be right to be pissed off if the person who does made a poor business decision based on their 'connections'.

meditrina · 05/03/2011 11:20

I suppose some might say it's vulgar for a Royal to marry into "trade" at all.....

chopchopbusybusy · 05/03/2011 11:21

Don't see the problem. They just call it British street party on their website. Not even any mention of the royal wedding that I can see. Odd to call it exploitation IMO.

Hulababy · 05/03/2011 11:22

Will have to agree to disagree edam. I personally don't think they are doing anything wrong.

I think their England and British ranges should remain. I also thing their generic princess range - which at the moment could also be seen in the same light after all - should also remain.

Hulababy · 05/03/2011 11:23

I would feel differently i think if they had stuff plastered with the images of kate and William though.

But not about generic British designs.

BaroqueAroundTheClock · 05/03/2011 11:25

if they were running a line like \link{http://www.partyrama.co.uk/mcp/The_Royal_Wedding.html\this one} then I could understand people being Hmm - even their front page is emblazened with Royal Wedding stuff.