Manchester United
We all know a Red Devil nutcase. The one who already has the shirt, the scarf, the mug, but still needs ‘something’ for their February birthday or Christmas in December or the anniversary of some meaningless night in 1999 they will not stop talking about for weeks. Buying for them can be difficult. Not because they’re hard to buy for, but because all the predictable stuff they already own is cluttering up their kitchen cupboards.
That was the problem we wanted to solve. We’re not interested in creating a catalogue of everything that manufacturers thinkiologyardium red on it. There’s enough of that around and chances are they’ll forget they own it as soon as they rip off the wrapping paper. We wanted the shortlist. The stuff that matters to someone who bleeds red, that earns a genuine reaction rather than a grunt of thanks.
Anything we included had to pass one test. Would a UNITED supporter want this? Not ‘need’ it or ‘have to accept this’ but genuinely want it. Own it. Catch our drift? We scrapped a few things that were superbly made and looked great but would fit just as nicely in the home of a Chelsea, Liverpool or Spurs fan. Stuff that wasn’t specifically for United supporters didn’t make the cut.
Certain things here are nostalgia fueled because United’s history is bonkers and deserves celebrating. Other gifts are simpler, things a supporter will use over and over that will be noticed every time. And some are just downright thoughtful, the kind of present you pick when you really want to nail it.
There’s a reason Old Trafford fills to capacity of over 74,000 on Champions League nights. UNITED supporters know what it feels like to be a part of that. Don’t phone it in with their gift. They deserve you putting as much care into picking something as they do lining up for a 3pm game on a Saturday. We tried our best to do just that.