"The most impressive thing about Taylor is her diversity - whatever you are going through in life, there is a Taylor Swift song that feels perfect for you.

"When you add that to the positively electric, girl power, sparkling, inner child healing atmosphere of her show it’s no wonder people all over the globe are trying to grab tickets."

- Jennifer Clows Guevin, shop owner, Florida & Massachusetts

“I got picked on for loving her first debut songs, but just played them louder.

“She's consistent with a style she's made her own. It makes me smile seeing how far she’s come.”

- Josie Sainsbury

"I was a bit of an “edgy” teenager and refused to listen to her until I went through a bad break up soon after 1989 came out- that and Red became my albums.

"The amount of healing she allowed me to process was monumental - especially Clean, I can feel those songs in my bones."

- Victoria Lamb, Depop Community Experience Agent, Newcastle

"Taylor’s songs relate to me as we have experienced similar things with guys and friendships.

"I recently lost my baby girl at 17 weeks and her songs helped me through so much.

"I am attending Wembley on my own as an 'I can do it' year, I'm just excited for all of it and I know there will be tears.

"I always talk to the children I teach about Taylor."

- Charlotte Simms, Teacher, Staffordshire

"I love Taylor Swift because she remained true to her style and her music without over-sexualizing herself or her lyrics; something really hard to find nowadays."

- Nancy Gazaway, Houston, Texas

"I wouldn't admit that I liked her music as a kid, then Speak Now came into my life & proved me utterly wrong as it just encapsulated all the stupid messy feelings about being a teenager.

"I have so many memories of singing her songs with my friends, at my 22nd birthday, at the Reputation Tour etc. & I'm so excited for Wembley cos it'll just be so much BIGGER & to be surrounded by people who love it all as much as I do & I'm ready to trade all the friendship bracelets & take the moment and taste it!" 

- Katiee Liz- exams administrator, West Yorkshire

Swift’s celebrity and music is evidently something that is celebrated with fervour in the moment.

According to other academics and retailers, it is a holistic experience about far more than money-making and economy-boosting.

Sarah Montano, professor of retail marketing at the University of Birmingham suggested, like Psyllou, that the setbacks of the pandemic are key in ‘Swifties’’ motivation to seek holistic experiences.

These are evident not just in concerts but also in high-street retailers, for example branches of Primark with cafes, or Greggs with selfie mirrors.

She said: “The vast majority of consumers have disposable income, and these tours are part of experimental marketing in that escapism translates as commodification of experience and community.

“To an extent The Eras Tour is a part of popular culture of the moment, it’s like Live Aid from 1985, people still talk about it.

“Taylor is one of the best artists right now, people can criticise her for many things, but I don’t think you can criticise her for a lack of talent, this will be the event of 2024.”

Back on the subject of money-making, Montano also described the buying of Swift’s Tour merchandise akin to buying souvenirs on holiday as a tangible reminder of a memory, concluding that retail, though often judged pejoratively, is not merely transactional.

Above: Spreading joy- 'Swifties' in unison , Liverpool, Anfield.

Regarding the ’Love Story’ within ‘Swiftonomics,’ Dr Peter Brooks, chief behavioural scientist at Barclays, said: “Whoever came up with the phrase 'money can’t buy happiness' clearly wasn’t a ‘Swiftie.’

“When it comes to cultural icons like Taylor Swift – like we saw with Elvis and Beatlemania in the 50s and 60s – supporters have such a strong connection to the artist and to the rest of the fandom that the desire to spend becomes even more powerful.”

There are of course 'Swifties' who cannot afford to spend and spend, or simply didn't win the chance to get knocked off the ticket waitlist.

Such is their passion and dedication, some will do something called Taylor-gating or Tayl-gating (an unoriginal global trend involving loitering outside the stadiums for a second-best live experience).

I decided to investigate, specifically on June 22- Swift's second night at Wembley.

I hadn't been lucky enough to secure tickets at Wembley myself, but I was pleasantly surprised by the atmosphere, which I can only describe as joyful and wholesome.

I compiled an informal, but in my opinion essential, check-list of what to do at the venue, filming also the murals Mayor Sadiq Khan revealed in London's welcome message to Swift.

So music may be about money-making in an already weakened economy (since the pandemic and Brexit at least), but I wouldn’t agree with Spencer that we’re poorer for realising this, at least not figuratively.

We can gain value for all we spend if we make the most of it, which the ‘Swifties’ seem to be doing just fine, certainly in London anyway.

Spending on the heels of the Taylor Swift Effect will obviously create demand, and of course London’s hospitality and retail industries are going to capitalise on that.

They’d be mad not to.

Header: Photo by Alfonso Scarpa on Unsplash

According to hotel rates on booking.com on June 19, the sudden surge in demand corresponding with Swift’s August London Tour dates- 15, 16, 17, 19, and 20- particularly for a room at The Hilton in Wembley, is alarmingly significant.

Note that prices listed at The Hilton are either King or Queen rooms with little price difference, likewise for The Fox & Goose Hotel in Ealing for a double or twin room, also for Treehouse London and Four Seasons at Park Lane hotels for King rooms.

All graphs created in Flourish by Ina Pace.

"I’ve drifted in and out of the fandom over the years but I feel as though I’ve grown up with her.

 "So many of her lyrics resonate and allow me to process and reflect on my life.

"She truly is an extraordinary woman and a role model for all young girls out there!"

- Bryony Ford, Midwife Sonographer, Nottingham

Independent three star hotel The Fox and Goose also demonstrates notable fluctuations that coincide with Swift’s Tour dates in Wembley, demonstrating that higher demand for hotels is still prevalent further away from the venue.

A spokesperson for The Fox and Goose said: “Our rates are fluctuating due to demand of bookings, we haven’t made any changes nor is it affecting our business, it is just another busy weekend.”

Significantly, room rates surge again on August 25 at The Hilton and The Fox & Goose, though not quite to the same degree as those over the course of Swift’s concert dates.

This is likely due to All In London, by All Elite Wrestling, the single biggest event in international wrestling history taking place in Wembley Stadium that night.

All In London is likely to have attendance records of at least 50,000, much like the UEFA Champions Final, which took place at Wembley Stadium on June 1 with 86,212 spectators.

Swift’s Tour at Wembley is expected to receive more than 80,000 spectators per show, further evidence that her concerts can be rightfully considered among the most popular global culture events.

Fluctuating room rates are only one business move however and hardly innovative.

Interestingly, as depicted in the final two graphs below, some luxury London hotels are barely changing their rates at all.

"I've been a fan since I was 15. I'm now 33 - It's been incredible to grow up through her eras and look at them as my own eras too.

"For me, Fearless was heartbreak, Speak Now was the era I got married and had my first child, and Reputation was my era where I felt like I found my footing as an adult.

"She truly does create experience for us, her song writing is so descriptive, and it bleeds into reality.

"The Friendship bracelets, the cardigans, The Black Dog... It's something our world has never seen before and may never see again.

"My family are travelling from Ohio- It will be a trip we remember forever!"

- Rebecca Cook, photographer, Ohio, US

"I’ve always loved Taylor’s music, but when I had my first baby in lockdown, her albums Folklore and Evermore got me through some really difficult times."

- Natalie Wylie, Portsmouth

A more recent place of interest for Swift is pub The Black Dog in Vauxhall, allegedly sharing its name with a typically intense ballad on her latest album The Tortured Poets Department (TTPD), released in April.

The Black Dog’s business immediately surged after TTPD’s release, with customers queuing out the doors.

Almost two months on, I went to get a literal flavour of the fervour- still very much present- and in doing so also discovered the pub’s embrace of experience economy.

The pub has a mural depicting the song’s lyrics, painted by commissioned artist Chris Lloyd, and there’s also a lyric-inscribed blackboard outside, up for which Swifties were queuing for selfies.

I was served a beer and a burger, in the very pub where Swift’s ex allegedly forgot to stop their location-sharing.

The menu was temporarily renamed upon TTPD’s release in April, so I ate what was formerly known as the Swift Burger, along with the Swift Half to drink.

These [very ordinary but delicious] items weren’t named after Swift anymore, but it was fun to know they had been, and had probably tasted all the better to ‘Swifties’ for it.

Having eaten my first pub meal for months, I gathered vox pops from the ‘Swiftie’ customers, who were hardly scarce.

Some London Swifties were bonding on first dates whilst others had flown in from Chicago, coming out of their way in London just to visit the now famous pub.

Furthermore, since April the pub has launched newer business in the form of a merchandise line, including hats and pint glasses.

Kirsty Savoury, head of communications at The Black Dog, emphasised that although the pub will always welcome the Swiftie community, they are still at heart just a local pub.

Savoury said: “We love the Swifties, but we respect our neighbourhood.

“We are very grateful for this attention and increase in business that the Taylor Swift Effect has brought, but first and foremost we want to keep its essence and make sure it's still a place where the neighbourhood can come to relax.”

Savoury asserted that bookings were ramping up for Swift’s Tour dates, and that they have hired extra staff to accommodate the increase. 

 

 

London's major sectors are set to capitalise on the Taylor Swift Effect, but amid the waves of this forceful tide are also small businesses drifting in the shallows, at least in the same direction.

It’s up to Londoners to keep their cultural and economic assets afloat, and utilise Swift’s bestowed ‘foundation’ for long-term prosperity, as economists are currently advising.

It may take time, but it appears that taking time for the smaller and simpler joys can bring about big results, those joys being happiness in holistic experience, human connection and escapism, which are all unified by the power of music.

Not only does the economy surge as a result, but local efforts are encouraged.

London is one of many places in the world in its Eras era; Swift’s Tour is solidifying the city’s international status as a key venue for entertainment and global culture, likely encouraging further investment in infrastructure and tourism.  

Taylor Swift has made history in 18 years since her debut.

Considering I have followed that ‘rule’ of the same name through this article, without direct explanation, you might even believe it.

Header photo: Entrance to Wembley Stadium, June 22. Credit: Ina Pace.

Quiz created in Flourish by Ina Pace.

"Taylor’s life mirrored mine at certain stages, and when my friends or my goals or my confidence wasn’t there for me, her music always was."

- Hilary Kieffer

TIME FOR TAYLOR-TRIVIA!