Some 8.6m Brits, or 17% of the population, will celebrate the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, with the occasion seemingly capturing the imaginations of young people most.

According to new research from Direct Line for Business, the Royal Wedding will be celebrated most by millennials, nearly a quarter (22%) of which are using it as a reason to have a party. This is in contrast to 13% of the population aged 55 and above who are planning on celebrating the wedding.

With the average partygoer expected to spend £62 whilst out celebrating the Royal Wedding, businesses can expect consumers to spend as much as £534m in total over the course of the weekend.

Royal Wedding-related expenditures are varied, with Brits likely to spend money on everything from wedding memorabilia, to party supplies and new clothes. Some 850,000 people are even expected to travel to Windsor to catch a glimpse of the wedding for themselves, at an average cost of £75 per person.

Businesses across the country have looked to tap into the celebratory mood by developing promotions and products with a Royal Wedding theme. Some 1.6m of the country’s SME owners are looking to capitalise on the occasion – 8% have planned to run an event to celebrate the ceremony, while a further 7% intend to participate in a Royal Wedding event.

Offering discounts to customers, decorating premises, creating new tailored products and using the occasion as hook for marketing are all other ways SME owners have tried to turn Royal Wedding fever to their advantage.

“Royal events are a great opportunity for innovative British small business, which can provide a real boost to their bottom line if they can capitalise on this national event,” said Direct Line for Business spokesperson, Carly Menken.

In celebration of the last Royal Wedding, between Prince William and Kate Middleton in 2011, 10% of Brits went to parties, travelled to wedding-related events or bought memorabilia. However, the most popular recent royal event was the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, when 16% of people partied.

The number of businesses planning on celebrating the Royal Wedding

Source: Direct Line for Business 2018