One of Donald Trump’s new campaign email pitches offers Trump donors a chance to buy a MAGA hat, the purchase of which will automatically enter its new owner into a sweepstakes with a chance to win another MAGA hat — this one signed by the former President.
The email — which purports to come directly from “Donald J. Trump” — also exuberantly declares that a MAGA hat purchased this week might enjoy even greater significance by marking a sales milestone.
“We’re about to sell what might be our 3 MILLIONTH MAGA HAT IN HISTORY,” the email claims.
Trump first wore the now iconic hat nearly a decade ago in July of 2015 during a Laredo, Texas visit to the US-Mexico border. Though it has been purchased mainly in red, Trump recently took a page out of the classic marketing books and offered a brand extension — a black version of the MAGA hat endorsed by Tony Stark manque Elon Musk.
Elon posted his MAGA hat which uses the Fraktur font, popular in nazi Germany. He wore this at a rally meant to evoke the 1939 nazi rally at Madison Square Garden.
— Alejandra Caraballo is on Bluesky/Threads (@Esqueer_) October 28, 2024
He's telling you who he is. pic.twitter.com/TJzyBF0MLk
The 3 million units sold is relayed by Trump as a boast, and it is — as far as political campaign swag goes — a significant mass of merch to have moved.
Yet at the same time, this total — “in history” as Trump declares — may seem to be a surprisingly small number for a country grown accustomed to seeing so many photos in the news featuring Trump supporters wearing the red hats. While it’s an impressive number from one perspective, someone accustomed to seeing the hats since 205 might reasonably ask: there are only 3 million of them?
Given the slim profit margins on hats, as a pure business venture the MAGA hat machine may of may not win a lot of offers on, say, Shark Tank. But, of course, selling hats is not Trump’s main business — he’s into selling Bibles and gold sneakers and other items as a supplement to his political brand.
Below are some figures that lend perspective to the MAGA hat sales of almost 3 million units over a decade. The first two items on the list — firearms and Taylor Swift — do represent a level of sales that can be translated as a movement.
- Guns: 16.7 million firearms were sold in the U.S. in 2023 alone; Americans bought 60 million guns between 2020 and 2022
- Music: Taylor Swift‘s first album, released in 2014, has sold 15 million copies
- Sneakers: in 2016 the Jordan brand produced $2.8 billion in revenue; in 2023 that number was $6.6 billion
- Hats: This Nike golf hat sold 3,000+ units last month on Amazon alone
- Burgers: An estimated 550 million Big Macs are sold each year in America
- Books: Don Quixote, by Miguel Cervantes, is said to have sold 500 million copies
- Toys/Games: More than 500 million Rubik’s Cubes have been sold since its introduction 50 years ago in 1974
