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[dagobert]

I'm at the moment in the United States and yesterday I have visited a Disney Store in a shopping mall in Toledo, Ohio. I know that the Disney Store in the U.S. doesn't belong anymore to the Disney Company, but the store is very small and the merchandise looks really cheap. There was nearly no store decoration, just some old disney posters and some statues. It was very disappointing.
I can the merchandise only compare to Disneyland Paris, because I have not visited a Disney Store in Europe in recent years (in Austria is no Disney Store and it is several years ago that I have been to the Disney Stores in Paris and London) and I have to say that it is much more better at DLRP.
For Example the clothes for children had not a very good quality, or the PotC toys looked really bad and even the stuffed animals didn't look very nice. Our stuffed animals from DLRP are much nicer and more beautiful.

How is the situation in Europe, where the Disney Stores still belong to Disney, or in the World of Disney Store in NYC?

Is the Disney Store on Champs-Elysées still open, because I have read somewhere that it will close?

[Patrick]

The stores are still owned by Disney over here in Europe, where they are still open.  However there seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel as Disney has just opened a brand new stylish and new look Disney Store in Manchester in the UK.  The merchandise in UK Disney Stores seems to be focusing more on children toys and clothing.  The quality I am not all too thrilled about, but they don't seem too different to the quality of that in dlrp.  As for the rumour of a closure of the Champs E'lysees store I have not heard it so don't know, but seems a bit over the top to close a disney store in a city where there is a disney resort :? .

Then again saying that they seem to have closed a couple of stores in the UK over the past few years, so who knows what will happen.

[Kristof]

I'm at the moment in the United States and yesterday I have visited a Disney Store in a shopping mall in Toledo, Ohio. I know that the Disney Store in the U.S. doesn't belong anymore to the Disney Company, but the store is very small and the merchandise looks really cheap. There was nearly no store decoration, just some old disney posters and some statues. It was very disappointing.
I can the merchandise only compare to Disneyland Paris, because I have not visited a Disney Store in Europe in recent years (in Austria is no Disney Store and it is several years ago that I have been to the Disney Stores in Paris and London) and I have to say that it is much more better at DLRP.
For Example the clothes for children had not a very good quality, or the PotC toys looked really bad and even the stuffed animals didn't look very nice. Our stuffed animals from DLRP are much nicer and more beautiful.

How is the situation in Europe, where the Disney Stores still belong to Disney, or in the World of Disney Store in NYC?

Is the Disney Store on Champs-Elysées still open, because I have read somewhere that it will close?

I've been to the States last year and I can only say that the stores I visited were fully themed with some nice merchandising.  Maybe you went to a Disney Outlet Store?  These are different then the "normal" ones.  I believe they are temporarily and sell the "old stock".

[dagobert]

No, it was a regular Disney Store, but it is an older one. It was also themed, but not that much I would expect from a Disney Store. Maybe the many people (it was a Saturday before Christmas) in the shop made me think like this. I have also been to a Disney Store in Toronto, Canada, and this one was really nice themed, but it was a new one.

I can't wait to see the World of Disney Store in NYC, and of course the one at Downtown Disney at WDW.

[Anthony]

The stores in the UK are very good as Patmagic said.

Their new store design in Manchester is just stunning, very modern and minimal but still magic. An amazing quality of finish. The shop just gleams, with this amazing colour-changing surround around the shop and entrance. The drab Apple store next door looks like a funeral home in comparison, and the Disney Store in Disney Village will probably seem like a market stall from now on.

These are the only pictures I can find online:



(iphone queue i think, lol)



(the circular thing has a 360-degree screen and scrolling LED wrapped around it)

[experiment627]

I can't wait to see the World of Disney Store in NYC, and of course the one at Downtown Disney at WDW.

The World of Disney Store at Downtown Disney was a bit too much for my taste... there were some nice Disney touches but at times I felt like I lost orientation in that store - I am no retail expert, but I guess that you don't want to have your customers feeling lost...


That said, I just *love* the World of Disney Store on 5th Avenue in New York. During my last trip to the big Apple (2005) I just had to visit the store several times to take it all in.
(Though I was told that it was even more "magical" when it opened as a Disney Store...)

[Parkfisch]

I've been to 4 Disney Stores (Disney Village, Paris, Airport London Heathrow, Venice). I remember plans to open a Disney Store in Austria, but instead of opening new stores in German speaking countries they were closing them (in Germany).

[dagobert]

It would be great to open a store in Austria, but if they would open one, I think that they would only open one in Vienna. The other Austrian cities, like Linz, Salzburg or Graz, are maybe too small. In my opinion there are many people in Austria who like Disney.

[Parkfisch]

The shop would have been located at the Vienna Mariahilfer Street and it was scheduled to open in 2001.
But what are you awaiting: In Austria there's not even a Hardrock Café which can even be found in some East european countries. And there's no Planet Hollywood and Rainforest Café. KFC has just started this year and Burger King Restaurants weren't built here before the 21st century I think. It was there in the 80s as far as i know, but it disappeared and that's why McDonald's is so popular here and has nearly no competition. Pizza Hut has also disappeared from our country. It's very difficult to open stores here so I guess it's more popular to open international Restaurants and shops in Germany or anywhere else. But I cannot understand why they closed all the Disney Stores in Germany.

[dagobert]

Today I have been to the World of Disney Store in NYC. This is a really nice Disney Store. Compared with this Store the Disney Stores look even more cheaper. I hope they will build a WoD at DLRP too.

[DisneyParksFan]

I can think of about five Disney Stores within an hour of my house. I know that out of the five, there are two different designs. One is the older, with characters on the walls and popping out of the ceiling with 'action scenes' in the store windows and the other design is the new modern format (almost identical to the pics posted earlier). The only difference is that the new stores have a red mickey-mouse arch entrance for the doorway.


Disney Store in Downtown Chicago (pics I took...they are large so you can see the details of the building):  




Other pics (includes some of inside of store):
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl= ... %26hl%3Den

[MinnieMouse]

I can't wait to see the World of Disney Store in NYC, and of course the one at Downtown Disney at WDW.

The WoD Store in new York is located on 5th Avenue, the Store was BIG ans so wonderful, we was there in May 2005. We also see in 2005 the Store in Downtown Disney.

In Germany we have no more Disney Stores :-(


Alexandra

[The Butlin Boy]

WOW! that store looks amazing DisneyParksFan