Agency says criticism over price of Winnipeg merch is fair

Images of the different items offered as part of the new campaign. (Source: Twitter/Economic Development Winnipeg)

The agency involved in the merchandise for Winnipeg’s new branding said the criticism over the price point is fair.

Earlier in the week, Economic Development Winnipeg announced the city’s new place brand, which centres on the slogan ‘Winnipeg: Made from What’s Real.’

As part of this launch, Economic Development Winnipeg launched branded merchandise including Coal and Canary candles, Far From Ordinary clothing and Kilter Brewing Co. beer.

Some Winnipeggers have been critical of the price of the products, including a $149 hoodie, saying the items are not accessible to everyone.

In an interview on Friday, Dayna Spiring, president and CEO of Economic Development Winnipeg, said the criticism is fair.

“The products that we have initially for our launch were made in Canada. They were done by a company that’s fairly fashion forward and those products are fairly expensive,” she said.

Spiring added that as the agency moves forward, it’s going to be working with a number of Winnipeg companies to provide different merchandise for the brand. She encourages people to stay tuned as there is more coming in the future.

LOCAL COLLABORATIONS

Spiring said when launching the new brand, the agency wanted to collaborate with local businesses.

“Part of our brand is to showcase what’s real in Winnipeg and we’ve got some great local companies here that are making spectacular products,” she said.

Spiring said Economic Development Winnipeg is proud to be showcasing Winnipeg companies.

“We wanted to take Winnipeg businesses who were doing interesting things and who had a lot of followers or who had some different perspectives,” she said.

- With files from CTV’s Mason Depatie.