Twelve years after JK Rowling’s final book in the wizarding series, why is everything from Quidditch slippers to Hedwig lip balms still flying off the shelves?

In November 2001, Private Eye mocked the Pottermania surrounding the franchise’s first film, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. The magazine fabricated ridiculous-sounding merchandise, satirically advertising the “Harry Potter potato peeler”, the “Lord Voldemort wheelie bin” and “Quidditch drawing pins”.

What was once ridiculous is now reality. In 2018, you can pop into Sainsbury’s, Lakeland or WH Smith and pick up the Harry Potter egg cup and toast cutter set (£5). Multiple British brands have launched exclusive Potter ranges: Boots introduced wand-shaped makeup brushes (£20) and Hedwig lip balms (£6); the stationery shop Typo brought out oversized turquoise Quidditch slippers (£15); and Primark’s Hagrid bauble (£5) made pre-Christmas headlines.

Twelve years after the last book, why are Potter products ubiquitous?

“Harry Potter has really broad appeal to a diverse group of customers, from original Potter fans to those discovering the stories and films for the very first time,” says Mark Haynes, a Boots senior buying manager. Haynes says the cosmetics collection was on Boots’s “wish list” for “some time”, but was launched last year because Potter franchises remain “undiminished”.

Of course, Potter merchandise is not new – Marks & Spencer had a range in the early 00s. Yet everything changed last March, when Warner Bros announced a new brand: WIZARDING WORLD™. Encapsulating Harry Potter and JK Rowling’s new franchise Fantastic Beasts, this allowed Potter merchandise to be sold under a new umbrella (incidentally, an officially licensed colour-changing umbrella is £29.99).

“We have noticed from our customers that the increasing demand does not stop at the Fantastic Beasts collection, but extends back to the whole Harry Potter universe,” says a spokesperson for Cinereplicas, an official wholesaler. Cinereplicas says customers who were once happy with Hogwarts scarves now want “more”, and its customer base has “diversified” – the high-end Parisian department store Galeries Lafayette recently held a pop-up Potter shop.

“As the Harry Potter universe matures and returns, they are seeking ‘magic-infused’ day-to-day items: fashionable non-replica clothing, kitchenware, stationery,” says Cinereplicas. In 2018, the wholesaler launched hair accessories, infinity scarves and cookie cutters – each “a big hit”.

With the final Fantastic Beasts due in 2024, wizarding merchandise isn’t going away. Undoubtedly, the Voldemort wheelie bin is coming soon.