Green and gold in demand as Donegal jerseys sell out

Donegal jerseys are hot property right now, so hot they sold out in the county at 1pm yesterday.

Azzurri confirmed the company had planned to send replacements following an unprecedented demand for the jersey in the build up to the All-Ireland semi-final.

But once Cork were accounted for, phone calls came flooding in from America, Australia, the UK and, of course, Donegal looking for immediate shipments.

“It would definitely, by a good bit, be our best selling jersey,” said Azzurri sales director Jamie Osborne.

“The retailers are sold out. Technically they were sold out at 1pm [yesterday] so we’ve been planning our production for the final and there will be quite a few lorry loads hitting the stores tomorrow [today]. Some stores are taking bookings first and then waiting for the jersey to come in.

“The calls are coming in from retailers all over Donegal but we’ve also had calls from individuals looking for jerseys to be sent out to Australia, the UK and America. We deal with one retailer in Australia and they were on this morning looking for jerseys.”

But the green and gold variety is not the only seller. The fashion conscious Donegal folk have been buying up the away jersey, white with a green and gold trim, and pink ladies jersey in large numbers. With the hype surrounding an All-Ireland final appearance, those sales will grow even further now.

“We do orders depending on how teams perform. We did one at the start of the year for Donegal which sold out pretty fast.

“At each stage of the team’s progression, the sales of the jersey are far exceeding what we expected. I would say it’s double the sales of the Waterford one.”

The huge surge in sales is sustaining jobs both in Azzurri and shops in Donegal.

“It’s a unique opportunity to generate revenue. Every business is struggling in a marketplace that’s very tight right now. We’re all looking to cut costs and survive. This is an opportunity that gives companies some breathing space.”

* The jersey’s recommended retail price is €55 for adults, €50 for youths and €45 for kids.