Disney Store

Disney Store is an international chain of specialty stores selling only Disney related items, many of them exclusive.

At Disney Stores in North America, guests can purchase passes to the Disneyland Resort and the Walt Disney World Resort. In France, Italy, and Spain, they may purchase passes to the Disneyland Resort Paris. In the UK, they may purchase tickets for both the Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort Paris. In Japan, guests can get passes for the Tokyo Disney Resort.

Locations

The first Disney Store (then titled "The Disney Store") opened in Glendale, California on March 28, 1987. Disney Stores are located in malls and commercial areas in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy, and Japan. A small number of stores were opened in Hong Kong and Australia; however, the Australian stores were closed in 2003, and the only Disney Store in Hong Kong at this time is located in the Hong Kong International Airport, which was renamed The Magic of Hong Kong Disneyland and managed by Hong Kong International Theme Parks.

In the United States, Canada, and Europe, Disney Stores are owned by The Walt Disney Company. However, Japanese Disney Stores are owned and operated by The Oriental Land Company, the company that owns and operates the Tokyo Disney Resort. From November 2004 until May 1, 2008, Disney Stores in the United States and Canada were owned and operated by Hoop Retail Stores, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Children's Place, LLC. Oriental Land operates Disney Stores under a long-term license agreement with The Walt Disney Company, as did The Children's Place. Until The Children's Place exited the Disney Store business, their operating agreements were to have extended at least 50 years.

Sale of the Disney Store Divisions in Japan and North America

Even though the Disney Stores maintained strong sales, mounting cost of sales and operation and the loss of key executives who had driven the Disney Stores to success lead The Walt Disney Company to convert Disney Stores into a licensed operation. The Japanese stores were licensed to Oriental Land Company in 2002, while most North American stores were licensed in November 2004. The Walt Disney Company decided to keep the stores in Europe, along with the Manhattan store, which was converted into a World of Disney store. World of Disney also owns and operates a Disney retail location on the company lot in Burbank, California, accessible only to Disney employees and special guests, along with retail outlets associated with Disney-owned, operated, or leased theaters such as the New Amsterdam in New York City, the El Capitan in Hollywood, and merchandise outlets at its Broadway shows in New York.

The Children's Place intended to reinvigorate the Disney Store brand in the United States by expanding the number of stores, reducing initial selling prices. Previously, Disney Stores have been well known for inflated initial prices, which would be marked down substantially after just a few weeks. Also, The Children's Place opened Disney outlet stores, which have lower operating costs and typically have a high profit margin even though they have reduced prices versus mall stores. However, Disney's strict licensing agreement, which included the burden of being required to invest significantly in store remodels, contributed to the eventual decision by The Children's Place to exit the business. Additionally, the licensing agreement required the stores to sell goods that only promoted Disney's high-risk and short-lived film properties.

Disney repurchase of North American stores

Hoop Retail announced on March 20, 2008 that they were in talks to sell the Disney Store brand back to The Walt Disney Company, affecting two-thirds of the 335 stores currently operating in North America, with 98 expected to close after the proposed transaction is completed. This was further confirmed on March 21, 2008, when The Walt Disney Company officially stated that it was interested in buying back a portion of the stores, stating that the Disney Stores are "an important extension of the Disney brand" and that Disney believed a smaller chain "could add value to the Company in the promotion and monetization of its growing number of robust franchises".

Hoop Retail filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for Hoop Retail LLC, the Children's Place subsidiary which operates the Disney Store chain, on March 27, 2008. The Children's Place stores were not affected by the bankruptcy filing for Hoop Retail. At the time, negotiations with the Walt Disney Company were still underway, with a reported target turnover date for two-thirds of the existing Disney Store locations of May 1st, 2008. .

On May 1, 2008, approximately 220 Disney Stores in North America became the property of The Walt Disney Company, operating under the Disney Consumer Products arm. The remaining 98 stores in North America around this time are scheduled to close by the end of summer 2008 and have been turned over to a third-party liquidator. All stores have been notified about whether they will remain open or close. The majority of stores affected by the closures are lower-volume stores; however, a number of newer store locations are being shuttered as well. This took many by surprise; Disney is closing its only two stores in the city of San Francisco, the Stonestown Galleria Store and its flagship Union Square Store on Post St. In Disney Store's heyday; there were three stores in San Francisco, one of the three was Pier 39; one of the first Disney Stores to open when the chain started in 1987.

Disney Consumer Products promoted James Fielding to President of Disney Stores Worldwide in May 2008.

References

.