KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A new relationship is exciting. It can leave you feeling butterflies, and sometimes it's the only thing you can talk about — just ask Kansas City.
Days after Taylor Swift cheered on Travis Kelce at the Chiefs’ latest home win, many in the city are still buzzing. (Of course, much of the internet still is, too.)
Swift, 33, seems to bring a wave of excitement and fervor everywhere she goes, and she can also be a boon to the economy. Welcome to K.C., it’s been waiting for you.
Kansas City business owner Elle Steadman said as soon as Swift popped up at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday, her customers were ready for tees and sweatshirts featuring the possible couple.
So she got to work, designing six looks and taking preorders.
"People feel like this is the greatest thing to happen to Kansas City," Steadman said. “It's just been a whirlwind, so exciting and fun."
This isn’t the first time Swift has helped boost sales at her shop, which sells locally designed gear celebrating K.C. teams as well as dresses and accessories.
Steadman said business at Pink Dinosaur picked up this summer when Swift’s Eras tour made its Kansas City stop and fans came in looking for concert outfits — but the Kelce-Swift coupling has been even bigger. “It feels like the Super Bowl came early,” she said.
For Steadman, who was at Sunday’s game but didn’t catch a glimpse of Swift, even if the relationship doesn’t last, “this moment in time deserves to be on a shirt.”
More on Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce
- 'A game to remember': Kelce says Swift looked 'amazing' supporting the Chiefs
- Swift cheers alongside Kelce's mom at Chiefs game
- Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce timeline: From dating rumors to the Kansas City Chiefs game
- The Taylor-Travis TikTok prank
Though she rushed the print shop to get the designs out ASAP in case of a possible breakup, Steadman thinks this relationship will go the distance. “It’s the real thing — I see a wedding in the future.”
Until then, she said, it’s a good thing pondering the pairing is part of her job.
“My friends and I have been saying we need to refocus our lives, because Taylor and Travis is all we can think about.”
Kelce wears 87, a number Swift featured in one of her earliest song lyrics; that may have been enough to add up to a jersey sales bump.
His jersey sales spiked 400% in one day across Fanatics’ network of sites, including NFLShop.com, according to the NFL’s commerce partner.
The two-time Super Bowl champion’s merchandise became one of the top-selling players in the league, surpassing his revered quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who on Wednesday said he met Swift but wanted the two to have some space and privacy.
Even just the rumor of Swift frequenting a local spot in the area draws major crowds. On Monday, whispers that Swift was at Free State Brewing Co. made its way through the grapevine.
The craft brewery, which is in Lawrence, Kansas, about 50 miles west of Arrowhead, posted a video on Instagram of the frenzy outside as fans and curious spectators lined up outside on Mass. Street just for a potential glimpse of the pop star, who didn't actually make a visit inside.
It should be noted that Swift is no stranger to Lawrence, as her longtime friend Abigail Anderson attended the University of Kansas. In fact, Swift once told Oprah Winfrey that her perfect day off would be a visit to Lawrence to see Anderson.
"It's this little college town, and it's kind of fun because you always kind of wonder about the path you didn't take," Swift said in 2009. "And the path I didn't take was to go to college."
According to a source close to the singer, Kelce and Swift are in the early stages of getting to know each other and hanging out. Even Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas seems to be rooting for them, or at least for Swift to spend more time in the area.
Kelce spoke about Swift's "ballsy" decision to come to the game on Wednesday's episode of New Heights, a podcast he co-hosts with his brother Jason, who is a center for the Philadelphia Eagles. The tight end told his brother that everyone had kind things to say about Swift, who watched the game in a suite with their mother.
"To see the slow-motion chest bumps, to see the high-fives with Mom, to see how, you know, Chiefs kingdom was all excited that she was there," he said. "That s--- was absolutely hysterical, it was definitely a game I will remember, that’s for damn sure. Then we just slid off in the getaway car at the end.”
Kelce went on to add that he won't be speaking much more about Swift publicly.
"I think what’s real is that it is my personal life and I want to respect both of our lives," Kelce said.
One thing is for sure about Taylor Swift: She’s got a smile that lit up this whole town.
Jamie Knodel reported from Kansas City, and Doha Madani from New York City.
