Watching the wives and girlfriends of England’s multi-millionaire football squad at every World Cup Finals is as much a spectator sport as the on-pitch action.
The WAGs are not staying in the team hotel with their partners during the Fifa World Cup, which kicks off this Sunday in Qatar, but will instead be based on a $1 billion cruise ship docked off the coast of Doha.
Tabloid newspapers and social media are full of stories about what the players’ entourage will get up to, but among the pleasures on offer is an entire deck of upscale retail stores, including an Omega boutique and a multibrand watch showroom named World of Watches.
Adrian Pittaway, head of retail for the cruise ship MSC World Europa, says there will be something for everybody on board.
Deck 6 has the main Shopping Gallery with stores selling beauty products, fashion, jewellery, watches, sunglasses, technology, food, tobacco and liquor.
Deck 8 is a luxury indoor-outdoor promenade dedicated to watches, jewellery and accessories.
“The new stores, including an Omega boutique, have been designed to offer a premium and relaxed luxury retail experience to showcase our finest brands in a truly unique and high-quality environment,” Mr Pittaway says.
Mega cruise ships have always hosted retailers on board, but the scale of these floating pleasure palaces is now making them more like ocean-bound casino resorts, with all the amenities you would expect at a 5-star Las Vegas property.
A major retailer told WATCHPRO it will be revealing a major cruise shop showroom in the coming weeks, arguing that affluent travelers find themselves on long voyages with shopping, eating, drinking and gambling providing the greatest distractions.
