A Titanic printing error has left traders left with tonnes of merchandise they can’t sell after rafts of memorabilia for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee were messed up by the overseas manufacturer.
A plaque which should have read ‘To Commemorate the Platinum Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II’ actually states ‘To Commemorate the Platinum Jubbly of Queen Elizabeth II’, in a classic ‘made in China’ mistake which made national news. So widespread was said news that it makes us wonder – given the legendary British sense of humour – whether a new market in lubbly jubbly merchandise might actually prove to be a wild card hit for whoever has stock!
Traders are now in a fix as thousands of commemorative plates, mugs, cups and other souvenirs are now feared to be worthless. The gaffe by Changzhouint Merchandise mars a smiling portrait of HRH Queen Elizabeth with the royal coat of arms and her 1952 date of accession to the present day to mark her 70 years as monarch.
Dorset company Wholesale Clearance has stepped in to try and turn the flawed crockery into limited edition collectible items in the hope they will appeal to the British sense of humour – and Only Fools fans. Managing Director, Karl Baxter, is offering anyone willing to take on stock a 90% discounted price on a job lot of 10,800 pieces for £32,400. The stock would have been worth £323,892 if the word Jubilee had not been misprinted and Mr Baxter still thinks it could offer a potentially great profit of £291,492 to anyone willing to take a punt on Jubbly.
The slip-up on the merchandise was spotted soon after the shipment arrived at Southampton docks from China. On his website it states: “You will notice this is probably more at home on the shelf next to Peckham Spring as these are in fact celebrating the Queen’s Platinum Jubbly! These are, as you say, the Creme de la Menthe! So if you are a fan of the Queen and Del Boy … two birds with one stone.
“If you fancy owning a unique piece of Jubilee history or want to follow in Del’s footsteps and get stuck with 10,600 items of Platinum Jubbly stock please use the ‘Buy It ASAP’ button.” On the website it is described as a ‘small typo’.
Mr Baxter commented: “Previous royal occasion memorabilia is often sought after by collectors, as it’s a great excuse to go out and buy a piece of history which will increase in value over time. Besides, what could be more unique than our limited-edition misprinted crockery? This could be your chance to get your hands on a novelty souvenir for a fraction of the price!”
Previous royal merchandise gaffes have included a picture of Prince Harry on mugs instead of Prince William to mark his wedding to Kate Middleton in 2011, whilst Ed Sheeran appeared on plates created to celebrate Prince Harry’s marriage to Meghan Markle in 2018.
