Rumours swirl over new Woolworths Lion King promotion
Watch out, parents — because it looks like another collectables craze is about to take the country by storm.
The rumour mill has gone into overdrive after a mysterious poster was spotted at a South Australian Woolworths branch recently that appeared to hint at an upcoming Lion King-themed promotion.
The large sign features what appears to be a lion’s paw print with the words “The King is coming 17th July”.
A snap of the Adelaide poster was shared on a dedicated collectables group on Facebook, with many social media users interpreting the enigmatic sign as a hint that a new collectables promotion is on the cards.
This poster — spotted at a Woolworths in Adelaide — has caused frenzied speculation on social media. Picture: FacebookSource:Facebook
A Woolworths spokeswoman remained tight-lipped when contacted by news.com.au but did confirm a Lion King promotion was just weeks away.
“Like most of Australia, here at Woolworths we are very excited for the launch of The Lion King and are gearing up to celebrate with our customers in a cute, yet equally majestic way,” the spokeswoman said.
“More will be revealed in the coming weeks.”
However, The Disney Review Facebook page seemed to know more, sharing another photo of the poster along with more alleged details.
“Woolworths are re-teaming with Disney again for a new promotion that will see, from July 17th, Woolworths (in Australia) giving away a free Lion King collectable with every $30 spent in store!! There will be 24 to collect and the promotion will run for a month,” the caption reads.
Another Facebook page, CollectorDes, shared the same news, sparking hundreds of excited comments.
There are also rumours on social media that supermarket rival Coles plans to launch a new Coles Little Shop collectables promotion in July.
That speculation began after New Idea Food was reportedly tipped off about the new craze by insiders.
While the informants had few details, they claimed the minis would return to stores “at the end of July”, with a large range of new toys available.
If the rumours are true, it would come hot on the heels of Coles’ Stikeez collectable campaign, which launched in February.
The collectables mania was first kicked off by Coles last July thanks to the Little Shop fad, with families scrambling to get their hands on 30 mini toy versions of popular grocery staples including Weet-Bix, Vegemite and Nutella during the original campaign, which was followed up by a special Christmas edition in December.
Audrey Henderson, 9, Annalise Henderson, 7, and Abi Campbell, 8, at a Southland Coles Little Swap meet. Picture: Nicole GarmstonSource:News Corp Australia
Shoppers scored one free toy with every $30 spent in-store, and before long, it had become a popular trend, with some items reportedly being sold online for astronomical prices as parents attempted to amass the entire collection for their kids.
It was so popular Facebook groups dedicated to swapping the toys began popping up on social media, and swap days were held in some Coles stores.
But it wasn’t without controversy — there was widespread fury when Little Shop cases sold out across the country and when some minis popped up on eBay with outrageous price tags.
There was also backlash regarding the use of plastic, which coincided with the divisive plastic bag ban.
News.com.au contacted Coles for comment.