Star Wars: May the Merch Be with You

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Strict Quality Control

Despite the abundance of product, one of the keys to the longevity of the Star Wars franchise is that Lucas keeps a keen eye on the quality of the merchandise, said Alan Gordon, president of Comic Images, a licensee for the past three years. Gordon started out with an antique gumball machine, but he has since expanded into furry $25 Yoda golf club covers, $30 Darth Vader slippers and $40 Chewbacca backpacks. "Everything they license is as high a quality as possible for that price point," Gordon says.

Licensees who don't agree to Lucas' terms face the fate of an evil Stormtrooper. On May 15, the director's production company, Lucasfilm, announced that Master Replicas, a longtime maker of lightsabers, helmets, and other props that had recently been acquired by Corgi International (CRGI), would lose its license at the end of the year. "We deeply regret that we and Corgi could not come to terms on a new agreement," says Howard Roffman, president of Lucas Licensing.

For those who play along, the gravy train can last a long time. David Prowse, the bodybuilder and health-club owner who portrayed Darth Vader in the original trilogy, at first was miffed when his chipper English accent was overdubbed by the more menacing baritone of actor James Earl Jones. "I got a cable that said, 'Congratulations, you're in the biggest movie of all time; by the way, they didn't use your voice,'" Prowse recalls as he awaited an onslaught of fans at an autograph booth. Today he earns a living traveling around the world, making personal appearances and signing photos. "It's quite a nice life," he says.

For Hobbyists, a Way of Life

Lucas is not all about the bottom line. There are dozens of Star Wars fan clubs, such as the Jedi Assembly and the 501st Legion, whose members enjoy dressing up as Star Wars characters. Most of the uniforms are made not with official licensed products, but out of handcrafted, personalized gear. "Lucas is definitely aware of us," says James Gonzales, a 37-year-old real estate agent from Santa Barbara, Calif., at a booth representing an online forum for costume makers called The Dented Helmet. "He supports hobbyists and encourages them." Gonzales says he's built two clone commander costumes at a cost of roughly $3,000 each. "I traded in my golf clubs three years ago," he says.

The Lucas magic trickles through the economy in many ways. Jim Balent and his wife, Holly Golightly, say they were inspired to become comic book artists in part by the early Star Wars films. Today they merchandise their BroadSword Comics much the way Lucas does, even releasing a perfume. The pair were married two years ago in a Star Wars-themed wedding, with she dressed as Princess Leia and he as Darth Vader. They asked a local fan club to supply Stormtroopers. When more than 50 people volunteered, Golightly limited the invitations to 17. "It was a wedding," she explains. "You've got to feed them."

Catch a glimpse of Lucas' lucrative Star Wars universe in BusinessWeek's slide show.

Palmeri is a senior correspondent in BusinessWeek's Los Angeles bureau.