If you were watching the 1pm briefing on Wednesday, you might have noticed Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins sporting a new accessory.
As he took a sip of water, he looked chuffed with his new mug tagged with his mishap-gone-viral motto: "Spread your legs, not the virus".
Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins with the 'spread your legs, not the virus' mug. Photo: RNZ
Listen to the full interview here
It was a reference to a slip of the tongue Hipkins made when he was describing how hard it can be for people to "stretch" their legs during lockdown.
Fleur Elliott from Pipers Boutique told First Up she just knew it had to be turned into a mug when she first heard it.
"The next morning I made a mug, just as a bit of a joke. I expected maybe 10 orders or something like that and I had hundreds instantly. It was crazy.
Photo: supplied
"At that time, I didn’t have a website either, it was still getting made. So it’s been quite a manual process."
She says people from all walks of life have been keen getting one, including nurses and vaccinators.
"My friend sent me through a screen [capture of Wednesday’s briefing], and was like 'oh my gosh, your mug is on TV!'
"So I went through and watched it and it was awesome to see, especially the cheeky grin he gave as well … It was quite a surprise actually."
With reports about the mug surfacing in the news as well, orders have continued to grow, she says.
"People who been ordering the mugs have been tagging in the business as well, which has then caused more traffic to the website and it’s just been a crazy day."
Anyone wanting to get one can go to her website, where pre-orders are open, she says.