The COVID-19 pandemic is behind the cancellation of many events worldwide, and the Sydney Royal Easter Show is just one of them.
The popular event, first held in 1823, was scheduled to run at the Sydney Showground for two weeks in April, however, was cancelled when the government ruled out non-essential gatherings of over 500 people. It’s the third time the event has been called off, with the only other two instances being the Spanish Flu pandemic and the Great Depression.
Since the show usually has a crowd of around 900,000 — a crowd that would typically purchase around 1.6 million showbags. The effects of the cancellation would certainly have been felt by small businesses.
Now, though, Woolworths has announced it will begin selling 12 beloved showbags in its stores, including Barbie, Friends, Harry Potter, Paw Patrol, Pokemon, and Stranger Things-themed bags, each for $30.
“With familiar traditions more important than ever during this challenging time, we wanted to do something special for those that have been left disappointed by the Sydney Royal Easter Show’s cancellation,” Woolworths NSW general manager Michael Mackenzie said.
Recently, it was announced that many of the event’s beloved showbags would be available for purchase and home delivery in an Australia-wide online shop run by showbag company Chicane Showbags.
“We are devastated to hear the sad news the Sydney Royal Easter Show won’t be going ahead in 2020. While this is a big blow for our small business, we understand the health of Australians is the most important thing,” the company says on its site.
“We are working on having as many of our showbag brands available for sale on our online shop — there’s a small range available now and we will aim to have our full range available in the coming weeks.”
The aptly named Showbag Shop is currently stocked with a variety of show favourites, from the classic Bertie Beetle bags to Marvel-themed packs and The Simpsons merch.
While a physical visit to the showbag hall is out of the question in 2020, it’s nice to know that families and Bertie Beetle-enthusiasts can still have fun with picking and rummaging through their favourite showbags.
In these unprecedented times, when social distancing is seeing many of us self-isolated and spending time at home, we also imagine the craft-themed bags to fly off the shelves. The Kids Creation Station showbag, for example, is just $28 and comes with a wide variety of art supplies that include a 153-piece set of crayons, coloured pencils, textas and paints for drawing, colouring and painting.
Showbags on the store ship Australia-wide, and can even be sent to the US, UK and New Zealand. Even better, Afterpay is available.
There is a maximum weight of 40 kilograms per order, but still, that’s enough Bertie Beetles for a few years (or maybe months).
You can peruse the Showbag Shop online here.