Hearts score a gnome victory as jolly statues fly off shelves

AT this time of year, it is usually the hats and scarves that are most in demand at the Hearts club shop.

But a slightly more unusual sporting souvenir is proving the biggest seller for the Gorgie club in the run-up to Christmas.

The newly-created Hearts garden gnome has triggered a ten per cent sales rise and looks set to dwarf all other club products.

More than 300 of the jolly figures – dressed in a maroon shirt and a Hearts scarf – have disappeared from the shelves barely weeks after being launched.

And club chiefs say they have had to order more of the figurines to meet the festive demand.

The club's retail general manager, Stephen McMeneny, said the gnomes were now the first thing people looked at when they went through the door of the club store. He said: "A lot of them ask what we're going to think of next and say that they've seen it all now.

"But we're always trying to stay a step ahead and looking to stretch the type of merchandise fans can buy.

"This has really captured the imagination of the fans and it seems like novelty gifts are becoming more popular than ever. They have been a big hit with almost everyone who has come into the store."

Nationwide, garden gnomes appear to be becoming more popular. Experts at Dobbie's garden centre in Lasswade have put it down to the increase in gardening programmes on the television.

The Tynecastle Club's commercial director, Ali Russell, said the surge in sales had surprised everyone in the merchandising department.

He said: "We have a vast array of merchandise for sale at attractive prices in our retail outlets but the sales figures for the gnomes have been spectacular.

"They have by far been the most popular item in our shops and we've actually had to order in back-up supplies to cope with the demand.

"Our sales figures in general for the festive period have been tremendous and it's great to see the fans backing the club in such numbers off the pitch as well as on it."

However for now, it would seem the green side of the city has no intention of following their arch rivals.

While other clubs across the country have produced souvenir gnomes, a spokesman for Hibs said it was not an idea currently being considered.