TROR
Well-Known Member
You also seem to support every change Disney does soooo....
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World of Disney Store Redesign Coming
- Thread starter dweezil78
- Start date
Old Mouseketeer
Well-Known Member
Welcome to Disney Gap ca. 1995!
I don't dislike it because it's modern or clean, I dislike it because it's so bland and generic. Definitely not against updating the store to fit current trends/tastes, but when you're in one of these (I've visited the Northridge location several times now), it's is absolutely devoid of any Disney magic in any sense of the word. It is a few screens, a blown up iPad, and a few displays surrounded by generic merch racks that really do look like they are from a JC Penney as someone else here mentioned.
Disney Irish
Premium Member
That's not true, so don't troll....
I just choose not to express "the sky is falling" comments on things that I may dislike and have no control of. I try to express positive things as I think the world needs more positivity.
But there are plenty of things I don't like, for example the state of TL. But I know that there have been many plans in the works, so its just a matter of time before something is done. So again I choose to look at the positive side of things.
DryerLintFan
Premium Member
I like the interactive format they're trying to build! We are almost exclusively online shoppers, but I could see if we were in the area stopping by a Disney store to watch a parade every now and then!
I much prefer the new look as well. I think there's probably some room for a happy medium. Add some more Disney touches to the clean, fresh look. But I'd much rather spend my time in the new store than one of the older versions.
DryerLintFan
Premium Member
RustySpork
Oscar Mayer Memer
Steps to making their own magic:
- Find a bench
- Sit
- Close eyes
- Strain imagination
- Poof, the store looks just like the original!
Rich T
Well-Known Member
I think the new look is so generic it makes the store look like a temporary installation that could be swapped out with another tenant at a moment's notice. The old look was outdated and needed to change (and, c'mon, the old stores were always too dark, cluttered-looking and full of kids treating Plush Mountain like a ball pit at Chuck E. Cheese).
The new look swings too far toward sterile. Somewhere on Disney's drawing boards, I'm sure someone suggested a look that was a pleasant meeting point between the two extremes, and they should have gone that route.
The new look swings too far toward sterile. Somewhere on Disney's drawing boards, I'm sure someone suggested a look that was a pleasant meeting point between the two extremes, and they should have gone that route.
DryerLintFan
Premium Member
I had that thought too. Maybe this is step one towards going to only online shopping. When you sell your house, you paint the walls a neutral color....
D
Deleted member 107043
I agree, but that's clearly by design. Considering the number of large IP acquisitions the company has made since Iger became CEO, and the likelihood that more are to come, maintaining and constantly updating a global chain of retail stores with costly fixed storytelling elements would be unsustainable.
mickEblu
Well-Known Member
Ok so I take back what I said about the World of Disney store at DLR. I was at the park yesterday and took a passing glance through the windows as I walked by. There was a lot more decor then I imagined in my mind. (I’ve only been inside a handful of times at the end of a long day)A lot of figures, murals, etc.. A lot like the original Disney stores.
mickEblu
Well-Known Member
This is a good point and if you think about it, it’s kind of like what we re seeing at the parks. The dumbing down of design and theme to incorporate/ leverage all of the new aqusituons/ IP.
You are right about the fact that it can no longer be about the classics and Mickey and Friends -- but that doesn't mean it couldn't be more interesting stylistically. It just lacks any identity. Word is they were trying to be like Apple store with the latest redesign, but when you walk into an Apple store you know you're in an Apple store. Like Rich said, the new design almost feels temporary like a pop-up location.
This is an outrage. The time-honored theming of Disney stores should never change! I remember when I was three and my parents would take me to The Disney Store and I would play there for days and days. Mostly because my parents would leave me there for days or even months and the CMs raised me as their own. A plush Cruella was my only friend in life. As I aged and grew, they'd dress me with all the tourist clothing. When I was five, the CMs took me by the hand to a Disney bus that took me to kindergarten. The other kids would laugh that I had an Ariel pencil and Hercules notebook and wore a T-Shirt that said, "I'm always a little bit Dopey," and they'd make up songs about how Dopey I was. Later, the fiberglass Cinderella was my prom date. I was then lucky enough to marry one of the Disney store CMs and the Spitting Stitch was my best man. It was a bit embarrassing when I discovered my wife was a Drizella mannequin. I'm still here in the store watching the construction workers remove everything. I found great places to hide behind the acoustical ceiling tiles and in the vents. Come look for me when the store reopens. You may find me hard to spot, I'm taking the painter's canvas and sewing an all-white outfit to hide in plain sight. Look for the wall with eyes.
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D
Deleted member 107043
There is no debating this; you're right. However, when you consider the direction the company is headed as a content distribution business the stark design serves a purpose. Also, the shop appears bland in photos, but it's hard for me to tell what level of quality the materials and finishes are, so I'm not sure if the environment feels as cheap as it looks.
Am I a fan of the aesthetic for a Disney retail space? Not really, but I'm also not even close to being a Disney Store customer. My guess is that their core audience will be happy with it.
DryerLintFan
Premium Member
Their core audience couldn't care less about the design of the store, as long as it's filled with toys and pajamas of all their favorite characters
When the redesign comes around to our neck of the woods though, I'll be sure to ask my preschooler what she thinks of the new finishes....
RustySpork
Oscar Mayer Memer
Their core audience couldn't care less about the design of the store, as long as it's filled with toys and pajamas of all their favorite characters
When the redesign comes around to our neck of the woods though, I'll be sure to ask my preschooler what she thinks of the new finishes....
Make sure you give them a pair of magical glasses first so they will have the best view of the new design.
brb1006
Well-Known Member
This is the Disney Store I remember.here's some 90s disney stores to clear the eye of the disney store monstrosity
much better
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brb1006
Well-Known Member
Well at least we know where the Paris Alice float came from.
Alice giving birth to a very large litter of mice. I can't unsee this.
I'm not sure I'll ever recover.
Rich T
Well-Known Member
Back in the late 90's, the Disney Stores really felt like an extension of the Park experience... or at least the buyin' souvenirs part of the park experience. My county finally got a Disney Store just before Lion King opened, and I (I was much more of a Disney nut back then) was their first customer. I was super happy that this store's mascot statues included a lot of my favorite characters, including Scrooge McDuck and the Doorknob from Alice in Wonderland. As the 2nd Golden Age of animation faded (thanks, Pocahontas! 
), the store's goods got less interesting, and I stopped going there when the place became almost nothing but Beany Babies and Princess costumes.
It would be great to see a re-think of the Disney store that recaptured that park-connection feeling while still being more open and sleek. Imagination's what I'm looking for. A bit of warmth is good, too.
), the store's goods got less interesting, and I stopped going there when the place became almost nothing but Beany Babies and Princess costumes.It would be great to see a re-think of the Disney store that recaptured that park-connection feeling while still being more open and sleek. Imagination's what I'm looking for. A bit of warmth is good, too.