 Florida location in February 2008 | |
| Industry | Retail |
|---|---|
| Founded | October 3, 1996 in Disney Springs |
Number of locations | 4 |
| Parent | Disney Parks Merchandising |
The World of Disney is the flagship chain of specialty retail stores owned and operated by the merchandise division of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company. Currently, there are four locations that sell Disney products.
Disney had entered the retailing field outside of the parks with the first Disney Store opened in the Glendale Galleria in Glendale, California on March 28, 1987. [1] In 1994, Disney Stores opened its flagship location in New York City at a corner of 55th Street and Fifth Avenue. [2] The World of Disney is part of The Disney Resorts and not associated with the Disney Store.
The first World of Disney store opened October 2, 1996 in the Disney Village Marketplace (currently Disney Springs) at Walt Disney World Resort. [CDW3 1] At approximately 51,000 square feet (4,700 m2) of retail space, it is said to offer the largest selection of Disney character merchandise in the world, according to the company. A 2006 renovation added a small princess-themed salon called Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, plus a new children's merchandise area inspired by Pirates of the Caribbean and Stitch.[ citation needed ] The Boutique was moved out of this store with the Disney Springs overhaul of Downtown Disney in mid to late 2016 to Once Upon a Toy store, located in the Marketplace section. [3]
A second, 40,000 square feet location opened on January 1, 2001, coinciding with the opening of Downtown Disney District of the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim. [4] [5]
On October 5, 2004, a third location opened within a three-story New York City (30,000-square-foot) space formerly occupied by the flagship Disney Store on Manhattan's Fifth Avenue as the rest of the Disney Store chain in the US was sold. The store closed on December 31, 2009, and the interior was dismantled on January 4, 2010 to make way for a traditional Disney Store in Times Square in fall 2010 at the former Virgin Megastore location. The rental cost for the location had become unreasonable and Disney had purchased back the US Disney Stores. [2] [6]
Disney Parks' merchandising department added another retail location, Disney Vault 28, its first high-end apparel store, which opened on October 11, 2006 in Downtown Disney. [7] Vault 28 was closed down by the end of September 2017. [8]
An additional location opened at Disney Village in Disneyland Paris on July 12, 2012, the third location currently in operation. The 1,400 square-meters (15,000 square feet) store was a part of a major overhaul for the village. [9] The newest World of Disney location opened in the Disneytown area of the Shanghai Disney Resort at the park's opening on June 14, 2016, bringing the total to four stores in operation. [10]
The flagship store at Downtown Disney in Anaheim started a remodel in 2017 by PCL Construction with a soft reopening on October 19 and a grand opening on October 26, 2018. The remodeling added a back story to the location that it was "a bus depot turned into an animation studio for Disney artists." The Disney Springs location was also remodeled with its grand reopening on October 27. [11]
Disney California Adventure Park, commonly referred to as California Adventure or by its acronym DCA, is a theme park located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. It is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, Experiences and Products division. The 72-acre (29 ha) park is themed after Disney's interpretation of California, which is manifested through the use of various Disney, Pixar and Marvel Studios properties. The park opened on February 8, 2001 as Disney's California Adventure Park and is the second of two theme parks built at the Disneyland Resort complex, after Disneyland Park.
Soarin', also known as Soarin' Around the World, Soaring Over the Horizon and Soaring: Fantastic Flight, is a flight motion simulator attraction at Disney California Adventure, Epcot, Shanghai Disneyland, and Tokyo DisneySea. It employs a mechanical lift system, a projected presentation on an 80 ft (24 m) concave 180-degree dome screen, and artificial scents and wind to simulate a hang gliding flight over locations in six of the world's continents. Many consider it the first flying theater.
The Disneyland Resort, commonly known as Disneyland, is an entertainment resort in Anaheim, California. It is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, Experiences and Products division and is home to two theme parks, three hotels, and a shopping, dining, and entertainment district known as Downtown Disney.
Club 33 comprises a number of private dining clubs located within the various Disney Parks. First opening in 1967 inside Disneyland Park, the club was modeled after numerous executive VIP lounges created by pavilion sponsors in the 1964 New York World's Fair. At the time, Club 33 was the only location within Disneyland Park to offer alcoholic beverages.
Disney Springs is an outdoor shopping, dining, and entertainment complex at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, near Orlando. It opened on March 22, 1975, and has been expanded and renamed over the years. In 2013, plans were announced for a three-year renovation and expansion, and on September 29, 2015, the name was officially changed to Disney Springs.
Downtown Disney is an outdoor shopping center located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. It opened on January 12, 2001; a component of the Disneyland Resort expansion project alongside the Disney California Adventure theme park and Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa.
ESPN Zone was a theme restaurant and entertainment center chain in the United States that included arcades, TV studios, and radio studios, operated by the Disney Regional Entertainment subsidiary of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts using the Disney-owned ESPN brand. While the ESPN Zone name is no longer used, similar, still-operating restaurants include the ESPN Club at Disney's BoardWalk Resort and the ESPN Grill at ESPN Wide World of Sports, both located within the Walt Disney World complex in Bay Lake, Florida.
The Disney Store is a chain of specialty stores selling only Disney related items, many of them exclusive, under its own name and Disney Outlet. It was a business unit of Disney Consumer Products with the Disney Parks, Experiences and Products segment of The Walt Disney Company conglomerate.
The Disney Vacation Club (DVC) is a vacation timeshare program owned and operated by Disney Vacation Development, Inc., a subsidiary of Disney Signature Experiences, a division of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, a segment of The Walt Disney Company. It allows buying a real estate interest in a DVC resort via a flexible points-based membership system. There are an estimated 220,000 club members.
Walt Disney Imagineering Research & Development, Inc., commonly referred to as Imagineering, is the research and development arm of The Walt Disney Company, responsible for the creation, design, and construction of Disney theme parks and attractions worldwide. The company also manages The Walt Disney Company's properties, from Walt Disney Studios in Burbank to New Amsterdam Theatre and Times Square Studios Ltd. in New York City. Founded by Walt Disney to oversee the production of Disneyland, it was originally known as Walt Disney, Inc. then WED Enterprises, from the initials meaning "Walter Elias Disney", the company co-founder's full name. Headquartered in Glendale, California, Imagineering is composed of "Imagineers", who are illustrators, architects, engineers, lighting designers, show writers and graphic designers.
Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, Inc., formerly Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Worldwide, Inc. and informally known as Disney Parks, is one of The Walt Disney Company's five major business segments and a subsidiary. It was founded on April 1, 1971, exactly six months before the opening of Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, just outside of Orlando.
Paul Pressler is the chair of the board of directors of eBay. He was previously CEO of Gap, Inc., chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts and a partner at the private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice.
The Warner Bros. Studio Store was a chain of retail stores selling Looney Tunes, DC Comics, and other merchandise based on Warner Bros. films, similar in style to The Disney Store. They first opened in 1991. In 1996, Warner Bros. owner Time Warner merged with Turner Broadcasting, which owned Hanna-Barbera and the pre-1986 MGM library, and merchandise based on Hanna-Barbera and other Turner properties were added to the product lines.
Disneyland is a theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney initially envisioned building a tourist attraction adjacent to his studios in Burbank to entertain fans who wished to visit; however, he soon realized that the proposed site was too small for the ideas that he had. After hiring the Stanford Research Institute to perform a feasibility study determining an appropriate site for his project, Disney bought a 160-acre (65 ha) site near Anaheim in 1953. The park was designed by a creative team hand-picked by Walt from internal and outside talent. They founded WED Enterprises, the precursor to today's Walt Disney Imagineering. Construction began in 1954 and the park was unveiled during a special televised press event on the ABC Television Network on July 17, 1955. Since its opening, Disneyland has undergone expansions and major renovations, including the addition of New Orleans Square in 1966, Bear Country in 1972, Mickey's Toontown in 1993, and Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge in 2019. Additionally, Disney California Adventure Park opened in 2001 on the site of Disneyland's original parking lot.
Shanghai Disney Resort is a themed resort in Pudong, Shanghai, China. The resort opened to the public on June 16, 2016. It is the first Disneyland in mainland China. It is also the sixth Disney resort worldwide, after Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World Resort, Tokyo Disney Resort, Disneyland Paris Resort and Hong Kong Disneyland Resort.
Shanghai Disneyland is a theme park located in Chuansha New Town, Pudong, Shanghai, China, that is part of the Shanghai Disney Resort. The park is operated by Disney Parks, Experiences and Products and Shanghai Shendi Group, through a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company and Shendi. Construction began on April 8, 2011. The park opened on June 16, 2016. The park operated in its first half-year with a visitor attendance of 5.60 million guests.
Disneytown is a shopping, dining, and entertainment complex at the Shanghai Disney Resort in Pudong, Shanghai, China. It is the Shanghai Disney Resort equivalent of the Downtown Disney complex at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California; Disney Springs at the Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Florida; Ikspiari at Tokyo Disney Resort, and Disney Village at Disneyland Paris, France.
For the First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration is a musical show based on Disney's 2013 3D computer-animated musical feature film Frozen and the songs from the film, located at Disney's Hollywood Studios and Shanghai Disneyland Park. It was also formerly hosted at Disney California Adventure, Disneyland Park in Paris, and Hong Kong Disneyland.
Robert Alan Chapek is an American media executive who was the chief executive officer (CEO) of The Walt Disney Company from 2020 to 2022.
Josh D'Amaro is an American businessman, who is Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products. Before becoming Chairman, D'Amaro has had a 22-year career with The Walt Disney Company, particularly in his positions across the resorts sector of the company.
