Why is a giant donair costume being auctioned by the Alberta government? Whatever the reason, it's a hit

An unusual item – from a curious owner – is up for auction in Alberta, attracting dozens of bids and plenty of internet interest, while sparking love for the local food favourite.

"Donair costume" – complete with fake shaved meat, lettuce, onions, tomatoes and sauce wrapped in a pita and tinfoil – is being sold by the Alberta government.

The donair was purchased in 2015 for a public service announcement that didn't end up happening, a government spokesperson told CTV News.

"The idea was to focus on the perils of impaired driving caused by cannabis and urge motorists to make responsible choices," Nicky Gocuan confirmed on Thursday.

"Ultimately the Wise Donair video production was cancelled, and the government’s efforts to raise awareness about the perils of drug-impaired driving were refocused on other tactics."

Gocuan did not say how much Alberta paid for the costume.

The bidding started at $50 and surpassed $7,000 Thursday, with 25 days left in the online auction.

"Made of different latex's, volcanized (sic) rubbers and synthetics," states the posting by Surplus Sales Edmonton.

"Comes with silver colored Body Suit for that authentic tinfoil look!"

The costume stands more than six feet tall (1.9 metres) and is listed as being in "excellent" visual condition, but "dusty."

It's being kept at an auction warehouse on Fort Road in Edmonton.

CTV News Edmonton was permitted to see it and take images of it Wednesday, but our reporter was not allowed to try it on.

A giant donair costume, which is being auctioned by the Alberta government, at an Edmonton warehouse on July 19, 2023. (Evan Klippenstein/CTV News Edmonton)

Turns out, the costume was built in 2015 by a company based in California called Alterian Inc.

Alterian has also zipped together some outfits for the movie Zombieland, created caveman characters for Gieco commercials and put together helmets for electronic music artists Daft Punk.

The big donair was made for a commercial and sold to branding firm DDBCanada, said creator Tony Gardner.

"It feels great that people are liking it. That was the whole intent, was to do something that people would think is cool. The fact that they're bidding on it, want to spend money on it, is fantastic," he told CTV News.

Gardner couldn't remember exactly what the donair costume was sold for; he figures it was probably between $12,000 and $15,000.

He also doesn't know for certain what the outfit has been used for since he shipped it to Canada.

But he does recall debates about whether it should be called a "donair" or a "shawarma."

There were also some differences of opinion about putting lettuce on it and whether the sauce should be sweet and runny or thick tzatziki.

"To have it come up again, and have it have all of this energy behind it, and all these questions, was pretty hilarious," Gardner said.

"It's pretty funny and the fact that the government has it makes it all that much more entertaining for all of us back at the studio."

Donair costume designer Tony Gardner from Alterian Inc. in an interview with CTV News on July 19, 2023.

The donair design impressed the president of locally-based International Mascots, which has built costumes for the Edmonton Oilers, Edmonton Elks and University of Alberta Golden Bears.

"I see a really great costume prop…whoever built this did a really great job," Joel Leveille told CTV News Edmonton.

"That's a very high-quality costume. It's got a lot of detail to it. It appears to be very well made."

He said professional mascot costumes typically sell for $10,000 to $15,000 in Canada, so $1,000, where the bidding initially hovered, would have been a bargain.

Reaction online was swift and largely positive.

"I NEED THIS DONAIR COSTUME IN MY LIFE," tweeted Edmontonian Andrew Livingstone.

"I enjoyed my brief time as a serious donair bidder. Alas, the bit has gone beyond my budget," tweeted radio host Graham Mosimann who bid $600.69. "May this very silly item bring some very silly person with a lot of disposable income a lot of joy.

"I don’t know who needs to hear this but you can actually just laugh at the donair costume for free and not give the government all of your money for it," tweeted an Edmonton local named Sam.

Leveille said he was not actually shocked to see that the government owns the costume, because he's sold many for public awareness campaigns before.

As for the love the donair is getting, Leveille said the explanation is elementary.

"People are attracted to character costumes, because it allows them, #1, to feel like a kid again. So, it's almost like they're participating in a real-life cartoon experience."

 With files from CTV News Edmonton's Jeremy Thompson and CTV National News' Bill Fortier