While many fans at the MGM Grand hotel's pop-up shop Friday "were buying items that featured both Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, it was clear that it was the former that was the true merchandising king," according to Darren Rovell of ESPN.com. Hats and shirts "with Floyd's trademarked terms 'The Money Team,' 'Money, Just Make It' and 'TBE' (The Best Ever) were feverishly pulled from the racks at exorbitant prices, including $88 for a leather 'TMT' hat." Mayweather Promotions currently "owns 16 trademarks and has filed for 129 more -- and that's just in the U.S." Mayweather Promotions' merchandise arm is "divided into two parts: The Money Team, which seeks to merchandise quick turnaround quotables that come out of Mayweather's mouth, and the greater Mayweather Promotions, which recently trademarked a more broad Mayweather Sports brand." It is all overseen by Mayweather Promotions VP/Marketing & Operations Nicole Craig, who serves as the "liaison between Mayweather and the lawyers who seek to protect the intellectual property that he is amassing." Craig said that roughly 70% of Mayweather sales "are from the U.S., with Canada and Australia as the next two most popular countries" (ESPN.com, 5/1).
KING AT THE RING: In N.Y., Tobias Salinger wrote Burger King's mascot "turned heads when his crowned visage appeared" alongside Mayweather and Justin Bieber on the way to the ring before Saturday night's fight. The telecast showed Mayweather "shuffling around excitedly while the Burger King looks on in his creepy, unchanging grin" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 5/3). In Newark, Lanni & Olivero noted the Burger King mascot was "stuck right in the middle of Mayweather's faithful" and wondered how much "that product placement cost" (NJ.com, 5/3). In DC, Des Bieler asked, "But that creepy Burger King mascot? What in the name of Michael Buffer was he it doing there?" (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 5/3). NBC’s Tamron Hall said, “I’m sure Burger King paid to have that guy there.” The net's Al Roker: “That’s a lot of Whoppers” (“Today,” NBC, 5/4).
