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Most of us expect to see a find a few bargains when hitting our local shops or even a few food stalls these days, however I got an unexpected surprise when I went shopping at the weekend.

Being from Portsmouth, the best place to head to go shopping is Gunwharf Quays, seeing as the high street is pretty dead these days. The waterfront designer outlet is best known for its collection of over 90 outlet stores offering discounts of up to 60% off RRP. This includes top brands such as Polo Ralph Lauren, Hugo Boss, Nike, Adidas, Mulberry, and Kate Spade.

As well as shops, there's also more than 30 restaurants and cafes, including Wagamama, Nando's, Brasserie Blanc, Giggling Squid, and Loch Fyne.

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You can also find the Spinnaker Tower there, which is a 170-metre tall landmark offering panoramic views of the Solent and Isle of Wight.

There's also a 14-screen Vue Cinema, a 26-lane Hollywood Bowl, a Grosvenor Casino, and the Aspex contemporary art gallery.

You can take powerboat rides too, enjoy harbour tours, or simply walk along the marina to see visiting yachts.

As you can tell, there's a lot going on so it always attracts plenty of visitors. In fact, according to reports, Gunwharf attracts approximately 7.3 million visitors per year

As of 2025, it remains the most popular attraction in Portsmouth, visited by nearly 65% of all people who travel to the city.

Considering these stats, it's no surprise that many brands decide to promote their products there.

This includes Dr Pepperwho were promoting their brand new limited-edition flavour 'Cream Swirl' last Sunday (March 29) when I visited. However, I got quite the shock when I saw how they were promoting it.

As I turned the corner to head toward Boots, I was greeted by some poor guy dressed up as the fizzy drink can himself.

He was seen greeting customers as he promoted with the drink, with many people taking photos and videos as they couldn't help giggle at the poor guy.

Bizarrely they also had a man on a human hamster wheel too, with the slogan, 'Do you dare to cream?', above it. Basically the whole thing felt like a fever dream.

Despite the marketing being questionable, I guess it had the desired affect as I took straight to TikTok to share what I had seen with others.

The new 'Cream Swirl' flavour, which launched in the UK on February 23, 2026, blends the signature 23-flavour taste of Dr Pepper with a "silky creamy twist" and is scheduled to be available until February 2027

The drink has rolled out to major supermarkets and convenience stores across the country, including Tesco, Sainsbury's and Morrisons.

Maybe we should all just buy it so the flavour will be a success and that poor guy in the suit doesn't have to go out to any shopping malls anymore!