The new crown epidemic has prevented many children from having close contact with Santa Claus as they did in previous years. However, some caring people saw business opportunities and launched a video connection service with Santa Claus, which was very popular and made a lot of money.
CNN reported on the 5th that Don White, 79, and Mary Rogers, 73, would pretend to be a Santa Claus couple during the Christmas season and appear in restaurants, museums and other places in their hometown of Kansas City, Missouri. This year they provided paid video connection services through the website established by their son Josh. They connected 4 to 6 times per hour on average, and the charges ranged from US$49 for 5 minutes to US$69 for 10 minutes. When they were busiest, they had to work 9 hours a day. Parents can make an appointment to connect time and leave a message what they hope Santa will say to their children.
White said: “We expect our income to increase by two to three times this year… Parents are eager to find fun and do something for their children.”
The “Cherry Hill Project”, an American company, provided Santa Claus actors to more than 700 shopping malls in the United States and Canada in the past years. This year, the company changed a quarter of its headquarters in Malton, New Jersey into a Santa’s live studio, equipped with a high-quality sound system, and offering customers a $99 Christmas package that includes a video connection with Santa. , Chat videos and some Christmas gifts.
When William Yvesseize saw people waiting in long lines with children to meet Santa Claus a few years ago, he wanted to do a business of “meeting” with Santa Claus remotely. In July this year, he finally turned his idea into reality. Founding the “Santa Claus Club”, the lowest price for a video connection service package with Santa Claus is 49.99 US dollars.
The online Santa Claus business is booming, and the competition is extremely fierce. Yvese Zezer said that in order to win the order, the actors used their best effort. Some spent $3,000 to buy clothes, some made magic while connecting, and some played guitar and sang. Yvese Zezer intends to set up a “university” next year to provide better services to professors who play Santa Claus.
Many companies that provide such services believe that meeting with Santa Cloud has the advantages of personalization, convenience and no long queues, and it is expected to continue in the coming Christmas.
