‘Taylor-nomics’: Some Utahns saving up to see Taylor Swift’s record-breaking Era’s tour

SALT LAKE CITY — Taylor Swift announced she will be extending her world tour, adding new dates to the U.S. in 2024. Anticipating another tour leg, some Utahns are getting creative with their efforts to save for those new dates.

And a finance professor says the tour could affect the U.S. economy by millions.

On Saturday, 13-year-old Samara Van Wagenen and her mom, Eliese, held a bake sale in Salt Lake City to save up. Fans all over the world are spending hundreds of dollars per ticket. The record breaking ‘Era’s tour is coming to a halt in 2023, giving potential concertgoers some time to save up before the next leg.

“I think both of us have been wishing, hoping, and praying to go (see Taylor Swift),” Eliese Van Wagenen said. “A lot of people have to work really hard and if you’re going to spend your money on thousands of dollars to go see her, it’s a big deal.”

Professor of finance at the University of Southern California, Sanjay Sharma, has been studying and estimating Swift’s numbers.

“The multiplier effect is just enormous and it’s a new phenomenon,” Sharma said in an interview with CNN. “(The) Super Bowl doesn’t compare to this.”

Sharma can see the ‘Era’s’ tour being what he’s says is a “$5 billion GDP tour,” an estimate of how much money Swift is bringing to the U.S. and supporting local economies.

“So that includes ticket sales, hotels and all of the small shopkeepers.”

With such a big impression on the economy and fans’ hearts all over the world, the Van Wagenen mother and daughter hope to be some of the lucky “Swifties” to make it to a show. They wrapped their sales day at about $340 and are hoping to get a presale code this week.