See the complete story.

Elevating The Brand
The ‘Best 30 Minutes of a Child’s Day’
While great movies and exciting theme parks are
what most people think of when it comes to the
Disney brand, the company’s retail stores have always provided a unique experience all their own.
Now, the store is undergoing some changes that
allow children and families to connect with their favorite Disney characters in an even more fun and
interactive way.
In fact, throughout 2011, the Disney Store plans
to open its newly designed stores in more than 40
new and remodeled locations, all revolving around
the concept of providing the “best 30 minutes of a
child’s day.”
“We unveiled the new store design in 2010, and
now that we have a year under our belt, we see
from the response of our guests that it is delivering
on the brand promise,” says Paul Gainer, Senior
Vice President of Disney Store North America.
cept stores in 16 major markets throughout North
America and eight additional countries.
ENHANCING EXPERIENCES
The unique and highly interactive store design offers many features to enhance the Disney Store
experience for children and their families.
“Throughout the store, there are experiences that
allow kids to connect with their favorite characters
from their favorite stories,” Gainer says. “Whether
you walk into the store and interact with the magic
mirror in the Princess neighborhood or you love
[the movie] Cars and want to connect with the story
by building a customized car, we’re allowing children in the store to create their own experience.”
The visitor‘s experience begins before the store
even opens. Each day, Disney Store gives one
lucky child the opportunity to “unlock imagination”
and take part in an opening ceremony at the beginning of the business day.
Disney began its themed retail model in 1987 with
the opening of its first store in Glendale, Califor- “It is really a fun opportunity for kids to be part
nia, carrying high-quality products that support
of opening a Disney Store,” Gainer says. “Every
and promote Disney’s key entertainment initiatives
morning, we have an opening ritual where we bring
and characters. Today, the retail chain has more
out a very large key that we call the ‘key to imaginathan 200 locations in North America, more than 40
tion,’ and we invite one child to unlock the store.
stores in Japan and over 100 locations in Europe. They leave with a small commemorative key that is
By the end of 2011, Disney will have 60 new con- a reminder to them to always continue to imagine,
Disney Store
Senior Vice President
Paul Gainer
Location
Pasadena, California
50
STRATEGIZE | FALL 2011
FALL 2011 | STRATEGIZE
51
and that they were part of something really fun and
magical at the Disney Store.”
The ceremonies don’t end there. Thanks to the innovations in A/V media programming, companies
like Edwards Technologies & Videro are able to extend the experiences that Disney can provide for
their customers.
“We also have a closing ritual, we have celebrations
in the store that celebrate birthdays and we celebrate children who get good report cards,” Gainer
says. “We really have created, through technology
in the store, very quick ways to be able to celebrate
different special moments for children.”
After entering the store, visitors are invited to follow
the Pixie Dust Trail. Colored blue to create a magical atmosphere, the trail guides visitors throughout
the store to see the various attractions, storytelling
“neighborhoods” and merchandise. Playing an integral part in the stores’ celebrations and changing
with each season, the “magical trees” are a highlight along the trail.
“The trees have projection technology, so not only can
we change them for each season, but we can also
create content related to what is most current with our
popular characters,” Gainer says. “We showed Cars
content to coincide with the release of Cars 2, and
when the Muppets movie comes out this holiday, we
have the flexibility to change the content in the trees
at that time. Through technology, we can enhance
the mood and experience in the store.”
Also a popular feature of the new store design, the
Disney Store Theatre entertains guests with Disney
film trailers, film clips, music videos, classic animation and more on a 12-foot-wide curved screen.
New content is uploaded on a regular basis, making each visit to the Disney Store fresh and unique.
And, the theatre is used for more than just viewing video clips, also acting as a community center
where the Disney Store hosts family activities and
events like character drawing workshops, storytelling sessions and trivia.
FLAGSHIP LOCATION
Perhaps the most impressive location is the Disney
Store in New York’s Times Square, and it is also the
largest Disney Store in North America. More than
11,000 guests visit the two-story location each day.
“Times Square is such a unique and premier location,”
Gainer says. “It is the center of so much excitement
and activity, and our store has a high level of energy
52
STRATEGIZE | FALL 2011
FALL 2011 | STRATEGIZE
53
We also have a closing ritual, we have celebrations in the store that
celebrate birthdays and we celebrate children who get good report cards.
-Paul Gainer
and a tremendous amount of traffic. It is about three
times the size of an average Disney Store, so there’s
more exclusive content available and guests from all
around the world visit us every day.”
The highly-acclaimed 20,000 square foot Times
Square store has all the features associated with
the newly designed stores, but also has a threefoot-tall hand-painted Vinylmation Mickey, expanded Marvel product line and a 2,000 square foot
digital billboard. It also offers Disney-themed New
York-inspired product, and the surplus of space offers the company the opportunity to try new store
features before incorporating them into other store
locations. When Disney wanted to roll out its new
retail point of sale system, they turned to partners
Oracle, Deloitte and SkillNet [see inset for SkillNet’s
explanation of a successful POS system rollout] to
implement it. Point of sale systems play an integral
role in continuing the enhanced user experience,
54
STRATEGIZE | FALL 2011
checkout lines have to move fast and transactions
entertaining experience for families. Gainer says
have to run efficiently which is imperative at a high- that by redesigning locations and enhancing the
traffic retail location like Disney Store Times Square. Disney Store experience, the Disney brand will conWhile the Disney Store pushes forward with the
tinue to grow and thrive.
new design, the company has not forgotten about
its origin and roots. In spring 2012, the original Dis- “If we continue to deliver on the child’s experience,
ney Store location at the Glendale Galleria in Glen- which in turn delivers the family experience, and
dale, California will reopen with the new design and
people create great memories at the Disney Store
celebrate its 25th anniversary. The original store
like they do at Disney theme parks, then we know
paved the way for the entertainment retail concept
we are helping to elevate the brand,” he says.
when it opened in 1987, and the upcoming renovation will allow it to continue its progressive history.
Disney has always worked to create a positive and
FALL 2011 | STRATEGIZE
55