'Hawk Tuah' woman has already sold at least $65,000 worth of merch after viral fame

'Hawk Tuah'. If you know, you know - and by this point, most of us probably know.

But on the off chance you haven't come across the phrase 'hawk tuah' recently, it's not some newly discovered species of hawk I'm talking about.

The phrase comes from a woman named Hailey Welch, now fondly known as the 'hawk tuah girl', who went viral on TikTok after being asked in a video: “What’s one move in bed that makes a man go crazy every time?”

The question came as part of a video filmed by creators Tim & Dee TV, and saw Welch grinning as she stood with friends and prepared to share her thoughts.

Mimicking the action of someone mustering up some spit, she replied: "You gotta give ’em that ‘hawk tuah’ and spit on that thing, you get me?"

The response caused Welch's friend to burst out laughing, and she wasn't the only one.

The video has been viewed millions of times after first being posted on 11 June, and it quickly became apparent that Welch was the world's latest meme.

See the clip for yourself below:

One X user saw the viral moment coming, writing: "Brace yourselves everyone . Within the next week the Hawk Tuah meme will finally make its way to Facebook and we’ll have to explain to our parents and grandparents what it means. Just be ready."

Sure enough, just a couple of weeks on from the video being posted and Welch is now raking in money by selling merch based on her viral meme.

Welch has gone into business with Fathead Threads, a family-owned business run by Jason Poteete and based in Marshall County, Tennessee.

Poteete has known Welch for years, and reached out to her after she went viral to help turn the video into a money-making opportunity.

Speaking to the Rolling Stone, Poteete said: “Of course she hasn’t gotten a dime from the first viral video that went out.

"Nobody was asking permission for her to do nothing, neither. I just wanted her to get some profit off of this deal.”

Poteete revealed that Welch has got herself an agent and has been in touch with a lawyer to trademark the phrase 'hawk tuah', though she asked Poteete not to feature her face on any of the merch they'd be selling.

Instead, Fathead Threads is exclusively selling hats which read 'Hawk Tuah ’24', which are available for $32.78 each, with signed versions available for $50.

Poteete estimated that the shop has so far sold just over 2,000 hats, earning an estimated $65,000.

“Our largest orders are usually 100 hats, maybe 150-250 shirts. This is way out of the normal for us,” he said. “This is a small family-owned shop. We’re all-hands-on-deck right now.”

As for his thoughts on Welch's video, Poteete said: “I just think the world needed a laugh, and she provided that.”