Seen in particular on Sunday evening, during the closing ceremony of the Paralympic Games, these mascots are a great success.
They have put sparkle in the eyes of the French during all the Olympic Games. And their success is undeniable, quite the contrary: since the beginning of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the stuffed animals of the Phryges, these famous emblematic red mascots, have been flying off the shelves in stores. On Sunday evening, during the closing ceremony of the Paralympic Games, a glittery version of these red creatures particularly made an impression.
Massive, glittery versions of the famous mascot in the shape of a Phrygian cap joined the athletes in the heart of the Stade de France to dance to the electro sounds of French Touch. To hits by Kungs, Cassius and Martin Solveig, these glittery Phryges put on a show, arousing the curiosity of the fans. “I think we all dream of a glittery Phryge in our lives.”enthuses one Internet user on X, while another already seems ready to buy: “The Glitter Phryge exists? Where is she, I need her!”
Mascot fans can rest assured: they are indeed available. “We have manufactured four series of 2024 Phryges “collector paillettes” since the beginning of July.”confirms Alain Joly, president of Doudou et compagnie, one of the two manufacturers holding the mascot plush toy license. “Each of the series had a numbering from 1 to 2024 in both the Olympic and Paralympic.”
Sold mainly in large Parisian stores at a price of 59.90 euros, these collector’s soft toys are almost out of stock: “It’s a big success, because the first two series are sold out and there are only a few pieces left of the last two, so we will have sold, over these four series, 8096 pieces made in France.”rejoices Alain Joly. The president of Doudou et compagnie even claims to have offered the 2024th piece of one of these series of collector Phryges to Emmanuel Macron, which would have been “impressed” by design.
Also read2024 Olympics: “Behind the mockery, the “phryges” are the symbol of the revolutionary spirit of sport”
Making success last beyond the Olympics
A success that joins the more global one of the products derived from the Phryge during the Olympic Games. Alain Joly thus claims that 1.5 million stuffed animals were manufactured and sold during the Olympic and Paralympic Games. For its part, Carrefour, one of the distributors of the Phryge, claims to have sold 560,000 products bearing the image of the mascot. “The closing ceremony gave another boost to the stuffed Phryges, especially on the online sales networks”confirms Alain Joly, who indicated on FranceInfo that the company sold 10,000 Phryges the day after the end of the Paralympic Games.
These glittery Phryges could outline the future of the Olympic mascot. “There will be future products, because we want to have a lasting fashion effect,” explains Alain Joly. “The Phryge is not an ephemeral product, but a heritage product.”. Two series of exclusive mascots distributed to medal-winning athletes were also manufactured during the Games, totaling 5,400 pieces. A strategy «collector» who could announce the means of making the Phryge last over time: “Obviously, this makes us think about the need the public would have to find themselves in other limited series in the weeks to come.”smiles Alain Joly. The star mascot of the French has therefore not finished making people talk about her.
