Love story: Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour at Wembley

As Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour sweeps across the globe, it’s on track to gross more than $1bn (£770m) by the end of 2024, having already become the first tour to pass that figure last year.
Economists have even started talking about the “Swift effect” or Swiftonomics. Rumour has it that the tour’s impact may have played a role in the Bank of England’s deliberations before cutting its interest rate at the start of this month. With almost 1.2 million fans attending concerts in the UK, each spending an estimated average of £848 on the overall experience of attending the concerts, the surge in spending sparked a short-term bump in inflation.
Sure, there’s a marketing machine running at full steam behind the scenes but Swift has the Midas touch when it comes to connecting with her fans. A decade ago, back when Tumblr was still a thing, she was already mastering the art of fan engagement. Remember “Swiftmas” in 2014? She sent presents to 32 fans.
Nowadays, she’s chatting with more than 280 million followers on Instagram like it’s a casual group text. Didn’t she even say in her documentary that her superfans coined the term Swiftie?