Operation Mincemeat - New Diorama/SWP/Riverside/Fortune

Jon Thoday, co-founder of the Avalon entertainment agency, is a producer of the comedy musical Operation Mincemeat, a relatively new addition to London’s West End that is based on a second world war British intelligence deception mission.
The show has striking branding: a shade of yellow that has been incorporated into the Fortune theatre venue itself with a bespoke stage curtain and also extends to its merch.
Operation Mincemeat was “still in early days as a brand”, said Thoday, but “our intention with the merchandise is to complement the show and be part of the experience for the people who see it”.
There are three strands of Operation Mincemeat merch: items such as posters that reflect the yellow marketing image; objects that mirror what is on stage, such as a notebook similar to that used by the characters; and fans (known as “Mincefluencers”) making their own items.
Official merchandise would not make a big difference to the bottom line until the show had grown overseas, said Thoday: “Our gross sales to date are £180,000, and off that, we probably make £30,000 to £40,000. The show costs more than £100,000 a week to run.”
Sales are increasing, though, and the show has superfans – some of whom have seen it 80 times. “We’re lucky that we’ve got very big repeat business, so actually the merchandise is growing all the time,” said Thoday. In the meantime “it should be fun… it’s part of the experience” … but “at the moment, it’s more of a promotional thing”.