News Mickey and Minnie are not popular anymore

montyz81

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
With all the IP that Disney has purchased over the past 10 or so years, it looks like they have pushed two iconic characters to a secondary level when it comes to the importance of merchandising priority in the parks and in the stores. Take a few minutes to read this article.
https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/does-disney-have-a-mickey-and-minnie-problem-174201053.html
I'm not sure this would sit well with Walt.

(If this belongs in the general discussion area, I understand. I was back and forth on where to put it because it is news)
 

Creathir

Well-Known Member
With all the IP that Disney has purchased over the past 10 or so years, it looks like they have pushed two iconic characters to a secondary level when it comes to the importance of merchandising priority in the parks and in the stores. Take a few minutes to read this article.
https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/does-disney-have-a-mickey-and-minnie-problem-174201053.html
I'm not sure this would sit well with Walt.

(If this belongs in the general discussion area, I understand. I was back and forth on where to put it because it is news)
While I disagree with the premise, I personally find the newer animation style to be absolutely abysmal.

If there is any truth to the article, this would be the primary reason why they are no longer popular in my opinion.
 

WondersOfLife

Blink, blink. Breathe, breathe. Day in, day out.
While I disagree with the premise, I personally find the newer animation style to be absolutely abysmal.

If there is any truth to the article, this would be the primary reason why they are no longer popular in my opinion.
Kids absolutely love the new style/show. And there’s plenty of the older style on Disney+ to keep boomers content.
 

nick99nack

New Member
While I disagree with the premise, I personally find the newer animation style to be absolutely abysmal.

If there is any truth to the article, this would be the primary reason why they are no longer popular in my opinion.
A lot of people hate the new style animation, including me. Goofy looks homeless.

I suspect the current lull in Mickey and Minnie sales is related to the Star Wars boom (People keep saying it's a failure, but I don't see it). People have limited souvenir budgets - if they're spending money on the new Star Wars stuff, they're not going to purchase as much of the Mickey stuff. I think after the initial excitement of Galaxy's Edge wears off, Mickey merchandise will climb again. The new ride will help that as well once it's opened.
 

Dead2009

Horror Movie Guru
A lot of people hate the new style animation, including me. Goofy looks homeless.

I suspect the current lull in Mickey and Minnie sales is related to the Star Wars boom (People keep saying it's a failure, but I don't see it). People have limited souvenir budgets - if they're spending money on the new Star Wars stuff, they're not going to purchase as much of the Mickey stuff. I think after the initial excitement of Galaxy's Edge wears off, Mickey merchandise will climb again. The new ride will help that as well once it's opened.

Or it's because some people like Star Wars and some don't like Mickey and Minnie as much, or vice versa.
 

xdan0920

Think for yourselfer
It's because they spent years and years only marketing the Fab 5 to infants and toddlers. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse was the only show Disney was producing involving the Fab 5 for YEARS. By the time a kid was 4 he/she thought Mickey was for babies because of this. They are only now starting to hold on to the kids as they age up. Hopefully they stick with it and make Mickey have longer lasting appeal.
 

Monorail_Orange

Well-Known Member
It's because they spent years and years only marketing the Fab 5 to infants and toddlers. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse was the only show Disney was producing involving the Fab 5 for YEARS. By the time a kid was 4 he/she thought Mickey was for babies because of this. They are only now starting to hold on to the kids as they age up. Hopefully they stick with it and make Mickey have longer lasting appeal.
I think that's the strategy behind Roadster Racers and Mixed-Up Adventures and then on to the cartoon shorts - new and classic in a nutshell. It's certainly proving to be a successful strategy in my family.

ETA: I think the article is clickbait, nothing more. Admittedly, it got me to read it, and I completely disagree with virtually every conclusion.
 

Touchdown

Well-Known Member
I have a nephew on the way, and I’m in the market for high quality (keeping screening to a minimum) outfits for him. There is no infant Star Wars products in the park, there are a smattering of Pixar stuff but they are all the cheaper quality.

Unbelievablely there is a severe lack of Pooh outfits, that are only limited to items that have Pooh drawn in the novel style in a buckskin cap with a Union Jack (where are the Disney style merch not to mention Tigger outfits?)

However, when it comes to mouse apperal there are plenty and most of these are brand new. Here’s what I bought my nephew:
 

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prberk

Well-Known Member
It's because they spent years and years only marketing the Fab 5 to infants and toddlers. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse was the only show Disney was producing involving the Fab 5 for YEARS. By the time a kid was 4 he/she thought Mickey was for babies because of this. They are only now starting to hold on to the kids as they age up. Hopefully they stick with it and make Mickey have longer lasting appeal.

This.

Plus Disney has ebbed and flowed with how to treat Mickey Mouse for generations. It even goes back to Donald Duck, who in the early years was easier to write for because Mickey had become synonymous with good and thus bland. Mickey was meant to be the everyman character, which like Charlie Brown, made him relatable but also somewhat bland compared to the characters around him. Yes, in the earliest shorts he was mischievous, but as his popularity soared and he became more ubiquitous, the company knew that he had to be the good guy all the time. They didn't quite know how to write stories for him, but side characters like Donald Duck could be the "mischievous" character... and thus easier to write for.

It got even more difficult to write for him as he became a corporate symbol. As the company's mascot, the weight of being "good" or "inoffensive" became even stronger, while at the same time the company continued to put his face on all number of children's product and yet selling his t-shirt at the parks.

Even in the 1950s Mickey Mouse Club he was a mascot more than any other type of character. And through the years the company has put energy behind other iterations of Mickey that have ebbed and flowed, including Mousercize, Disco Mickey, Vinylmation, Mickey and the Beanstalk, Mickey's version of A Christmas Carol, Runaway Brain, and of course park appearances.

So, for generations the company has not known how to market Mickey Mouse, with the main "problem" being his own stature in balance as "everyman," childhood appeal, and corporate symbol. Truthfully, it takes both courage and someone to care about the character to do anything more with him... someone like Walt.
 
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JustAFan

Well-Known Member
The article cites declining sales on Mickey/Minnie merchandise while sales related to other characters remained strong. That's fact, not opinion. If Disney were to come out with some new Mickey/Minnie media, maybe that would change. Nostalgia only lasts so long. You're always 1 generation from extinction. Disney has done well to stay current in other areas. Maybe it's time to come out with something fresh for Mickey and Minnie. Hopefully the runaway railway will help.
 

Notes from Neverland

Well-Known Member
Bad article is bad. Merchandise is only one piece of the puzzle and ignoring the remaining slices in the pie results in misinformed takes. The success of Mickey's Clubhouse and the related Disney TV shows are aspects that have to be considered for the younger demographic. For the teen to early-20s group, it's now cool to be a Disney person. It doesn't take long to scroll through Instagram to see that. That wasn't the case even 10-20 years ago. I'd agree - more popular than ever.
 

MMFanCipher

Well-Known Member
I don't mind the new art style, except for Goofy, he looks like he's homeless. I have a grown daughter that ALWAYS wants Minnie stuff. I would also Like Donald or Mickey stuff over other characters.
 

Notes from Neverland

Well-Known Member
Guys, everyone calling this clickbait and wrong....

The quote the article is based on came directly from Disney's quarterly report. The author of the Yahoo article didn't make this up. It's an actual fact from Disney's reporting.
The story is clickbait because it makes a huge leap based off one fact. What were the sales for Mickey and Minnie items? Or Fab 5 items? Viewed on their own, would anyone think their sales are low or is it only when compared to some of the biggest toy-selling franchises of all time?

Merchandise is one part of the story. The "article" paints with a wide, all-encompassing brush that can't be supported with any additional facts.
 

xdan0920

Think for yourselfer
The story is clickbait because it makes a huge leap based off one fact. What were the sales for Mickey and Minnie items? Or Fab 5 items? Viewed on their own, would anyone think their sales are low or is it only when compared to some of the biggest toy-selling franchises of all time?

Merchandise is one part of the story. The "article" paints with a wide, all-encompassing brush that can't be supported with any additional facts.
Maybe I missed it. What's the huge leap the article makes? I only read it 2x, so maybe I skimmed past the leap.
 

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