It would appear we are going after the pet market:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060607/en_nm/media_disney_pets_dc;_ylt=AtYvGzlhmn9p1qfQfKWzOz1b.nQA;_ylu=X3oDMTA5aHJvMDdwBHNlYwN5bmNhdA
Disney barking up a new tree with pet products
By Jeffrey Goldfarb Wed Jun 7, 1:55 PM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - Disney is going to the dogs.
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The iconic entertainment company, home to such famous canines as Pluto and Goofy, wants a piece of the $75 billion global market for pet products after a successful trial run of "Old Yeller" branded dog food at Kroger supermarkets.
"That's a character that most people wouldn't even remember," Andy Mooney, head of Walt Disney Co.'s consumer products division, said during a discussion with a handful of journalists on Wednesday.
"And we have a lot of pets in the Disney portfolio."
Cincinnati-based Kroger in April 2005 replaced a private-label dog food in its 2,500 U.S. stores with one branded by the 1957 Disney film pooch. Since then, it has become the store's best selling dog food, Mooney said.
"They're anxious to develop a whole range of accessories," said Mooney, a Scotsman who formerly worked for Nike. Disney is already investigating a cat food range with Kroger.
He stressed, however, that Disney's expansion in the pets business is unlikely to be centered around food, but instead on such items as collars, clothing and bedding, which have been popularized recently by celebrity dog owners like
Paris Hilton.
Mooney did not say how soon the pet product line would be rolled out or how much investment it would entail. He noted that consumers in the United States and Japan have become particularly fond of pampering their pets, but the plan was for Disney's products to sell globally.
Another already hot-selling U.S. pet-related item for Disney is an aquarium based on its "Pirates of the Caribbean" film, a company spokeswoman said.
Since joining Disney in 1999, Mooney has shifted the company's focus away from owning stores to a more active licensing process working more closely with other retailers, including Wal-Mart, Tesco and Target, as well as high-end fashion labels such as Dolce & Gabbana.
Disney-branded consumer products last year generated $21 billion of global retail sales, compared with $12 billion in 1999. Profit margins on licensing hover around the 70 percent level, he said, meaning incremental growth yields large amounts of cash.
Mooney said he was optimistic about more growth for his unit because Disney only has about a 4 percent market share of the toys business, 2 percent for children's apparel and 1 percent or less in other segments like home furnishings, food and beverages, beauty products, stationery and consumer electronics.
It has a bigger share of the children's book and magazine markets, especially in Europe.
About 50 percent of Disney's licensing revenue -- the biggest component of the consumer products division -- is generated by 26 customers in the top 10 markets, and Mooney expects that ratio to grow to 60 percent in the next five years. It was at 40 percent two years ago.
Consumer products were responsible for about 6.7 percent of Disney's $32 billion of revenue last year, or about $2.1 billion and 11.2 percent of its $4.7 billion of operating profit, or $520 million.
Its popular Princess line for girls accounted for about $3 billion of retail sales in 2005, and Mooney said he thought that could reach $6 billion before it plateaus.
Disney is hoping to score a similar success targeting boys with a massive range of products spawned from its upcoming animated release "Cars."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060607/en_nm/media_disney_pets_dc;_ylt=AtYvGzlhmn9p1qfQfKWzOz1b.nQA;_ylu=X3oDMTA5aHJvMDdwBHNlYwN5bmNhdA
Disney barking up a new tree with pet products
By Jeffrey Goldfarb Wed Jun 7, 1:55 PM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - Disney is going to the dogs.
ADVERTISEMENT
The iconic entertainment company, home to such famous canines as Pluto and Goofy, wants a piece of the $75 billion global market for pet products after a successful trial run of "Old Yeller" branded dog food at Kroger supermarkets.
"That's a character that most people wouldn't even remember," Andy Mooney, head of Walt Disney Co.'s consumer products division, said during a discussion with a handful of journalists on Wednesday.
"And we have a lot of pets in the Disney portfolio."
Cincinnati-based Kroger in April 2005 replaced a private-label dog food in its 2,500 U.S. stores with one branded by the 1957 Disney film pooch. Since then, it has become the store's best selling dog food, Mooney said.
"They're anxious to develop a whole range of accessories," said Mooney, a Scotsman who formerly worked for Nike. Disney is already investigating a cat food range with Kroger.
He stressed, however, that Disney's expansion in the pets business is unlikely to be centered around food, but instead on such items as collars, clothing and bedding, which have been popularized recently by celebrity dog owners like
Paris Hilton.
Mooney did not say how soon the pet product line would be rolled out or how much investment it would entail. He noted that consumers in the United States and Japan have become particularly fond of pampering their pets, but the plan was for Disney's products to sell globally.
Another already hot-selling U.S. pet-related item for Disney is an aquarium based on its "Pirates of the Caribbean" film, a company spokeswoman said.
Since joining Disney in 1999, Mooney has shifted the company's focus away from owning stores to a more active licensing process working more closely with other retailers, including Wal-Mart, Tesco and Target, as well as high-end fashion labels such as Dolce & Gabbana.
Disney-branded consumer products last year generated $21 billion of global retail sales, compared with $12 billion in 1999. Profit margins on licensing hover around the 70 percent level, he said, meaning incremental growth yields large amounts of cash.
Mooney said he was optimistic about more growth for his unit because Disney only has about a 4 percent market share of the toys business, 2 percent for children's apparel and 1 percent or less in other segments like home furnishings, food and beverages, beauty products, stationery and consumer electronics.
It has a bigger share of the children's book and magazine markets, especially in Europe.
About 50 percent of Disney's licensing revenue -- the biggest component of the consumer products division -- is generated by 26 customers in the top 10 markets, and Mooney expects that ratio to grow to 60 percent in the next five years. It was at 40 percent two years ago.
Consumer products were responsible for about 6.7 percent of Disney's $32 billion of revenue last year, or about $2.1 billion and 11.2 percent of its $4.7 billion of operating profit, or $520 million.
Its popular Princess line for girls accounted for about $3 billion of retail sales in 2005, and Mooney said he thought that could reach $6 billion before it plateaus.
Disney is hoping to score a similar success targeting boys with a massive range of products spawned from its upcoming animated release "Cars."