Walmart customers were given a special Christmas surprise on Friday night. Instead of having to pay for their own Christmas gifts to friends and family, a celebrity did it for them. Beyonce Knowles surprised the shoppers at the Tewksbury, Mass. store.
Beyonce was in the store to do some shopping for herself. Among her items was her own album titled Beyonce and a dolly as Christmas gifts for daughter, Blue Ivy. Instead of greeting people and quickly leaving, the former Destiny’s Child singer announced that she would pay for the shoppers’ items.
There was a catch. She would pay for the first $50 of all shopping. She used the store’s loudspeaker to make the announcement, so customers there at the time were aware of the Christmas gift.
The second catch was that Walmart customers did not quite get their shopping paid for there and then. The store decided to give out gift cards for $50, with a “Happy Holidays from Beyonce” message. 750 were handed out in total, and would encourage customers to return to the store at a later date. That 750 is a total of $37,000 paid out to customers at the store by the superstar.
She definitely did not need to do this, but decided that it would be the perfect gift to her fans. She was simply visiting because her new album was out and to get some last minute gifts for her daughter.
The special Christmas surprise given to Walmart customers is not the only thing that she has done over the last few weeks. Her self-titled album went platinum—selling more than a million copies—after just 72 hours of being on the digital shelves. It may sound like nothing for the superstar, but she had done no marketing or promotional material beforehand. It just shows the type of fan-base she has. Even Madonna has labelled her a “queen”.
Customers who want to buy a physical copy of her album should avoid Target. The store announced that it would not stock the album since it was available in digital format before being released in a physical format. Target explained that this can hinder sales as it impacts the demand.
Fans will be able to hear a song on the album that is directed at any “haters” of the solo superstar. Beyonce explained that she woke up with the chant in her head and decided that she had to record it. At first, she did not expect it to make the album, but when listening back it had to be on there. It will not likely be released as a single, but at least it is on the album for people to hear. The whole track is her defense against those who are “haters”.
It is not often that people hear of the generosity of celebrities, but customers who were at Walmart on Friday night will know that it happens first hand. 750 Walmart customers were given $50 gift cards in the end as part of a surprise Christmas gift. It will definitely be a story to tell the grandchildren.
By Alexandria Ingham
References
- ^ USA Today (www.usatoday.com)
- ^ Global Grind (globalgrind.com)
- ^ Global Grind (globalgrind.com)
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