World of Disney Store New York City Closing!

PixieintheCity

Earning My Ears
Joined
May 4, 2005
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63
For those local to or visiting New York City in December, be advised that the World of Disney Store on 5th Avenue (at 57th Street) will be closing on December 31, 2009. This store is/was the only place outside of the theme park resort areas and the Disney Cruise Line (as far as I know) where you can buy official Disney theme park merchandise and other Disney New York specific items. They do not carry the items sold at the chain "The Disney Store" that we see in malls across America.

In there today, all store items that bore the Disney NYC logo were marked 40% off, although a few items were marked down by 60% at checkout. I got great deals on Mickey NY Yankess and Mickey NY Mets tees plus a Disney NYC sweatshirt and small tote.

For a store going out of business in less than a month, it did not look like it. The shelves were stocked full despite the heavy shopper traffic. I think most of that is attributable to the fact that all of the other Disney merchandise (non Disney NYC logo) was not discounted. Store manager told me they were not likely to be discounted by much if at all and would probably all be shipped back (to the outlets?). Still, you can find the Disney Mr. Potato Head parts, Disney kitchen gadgets, and even theme park specific treats like the Disney Shortbread cookies and chocolate covered mini pretzels. :yay: Of course, Disney holiday decorations like those found in the Christmas shops at Walt Disney World abounded.

I'll be sad to see it go, as it was my little slice of WDW right in my backyard!
 
For those local to or visiting New York City in December, be advised that the World of Disney Store on 5th Avenue (at 57th Street) will be closing on December 31, 2009. This store is/was the only place outside of the theme park resort areas and the Disney Cruise Line (as far as I know) where you can buy official Disney theme park merchandise and other Disney New York specific items. They do not carry the items sold at the chain "The Disney Store" that we see in malls across America.

In there today, all store items that bore the Disney NYC logo were marked 40% off, although a few items were marked down by 60% at checkout. I got great deals on Mickey NY Yankess and Mickey NY Mets tees plus a Disney NYC sweatshirt and small tote.

For a store going out of business in less than a month, it did not look like it. The shelves were stocked full despite the heavy shopper traffic. I think most of that is attributable to the fact that all of the other Disney merchandise (non Disney NYC logo) was not discounted. Store manager told me they were not likely to be discounted by much if at all and would probably all be shipped back (to the outlets?). Still, you can find the Disney Mr. Potato Head parts, Disney kitchen gadgets, and even theme park specific treats like the Disney Shortbread cookies and chocolate covered mini pretzels. :yay: Of course, Disney holiday decorations like those found in the Christmas shops at Walt Disney World abounded.

I'll be sad to see it go, as it was my little slice of WDW right in my backyard!

I used to live in the Bronx and this store was like an escape for me. Even though I don't live up that way anymore, I'm sad to see it close. :sad1:
 
I'm confused...isn't this store relocating? I knew something was up with the NYC Disney store, but I didn't think it was gone forever.:confused3
 
I'm confused...isn't this store relocating? I knew something was up with the NYC Disney store, but I didn't think it was gone forever.:confused3

I believe it's going to reopen in a new location as a Disney Store, not a World of Disney. Not sure the credibility of that information, but that is my understanding of the situation.
 

I'm headed there on Tuesday. I am really glad that we were planning to make a trip, now that it is closing. It sounds like there were some good deals to be had, as well.
 
This store is/was the only place outside of the theme park resort areas and the Disney Cruise Line (as far as I know) where you can buy official Disney theme park merchandise and other Disney New York specific items.

That is not quite correct. The store on the Champs-Élysées sells city specific and theme park merchandise; the Oxford Street store in London did as well although I have lately just been walking by and this week again did not bother to look as all three of the stores (Manhattan, Paris, and London) have been a disappointment in recent years.

The Disney Artist store concept was at least a little more interesting than these stores in that it took a different direction and was something relatively unique.

By the way, the store is actually at 5th and 55th, not 57th.
 
You can now get some theme park merchandise through Disney store on-line. "The Disney Store" in New York (technically called World of Disney I think) was a branch of the theme parks, just like the Disney Stores in MCO.

Sad that it's going.
agnes!
 
They have been saying they were closing for a LONG time now. Sad to hear there's an actual date. I'll have to make a trip there before the end of the month...was planning to go into the city to see the Tim Burton exhibit at MOMA and would like to see the tree so I can make a day out of it.

BUT, I did ask just a few months ago and a CM at a disney store at MCO said that they WERE in fact relocating so they'd be closer to Times Square. Not sure how valid that information is (epsecially if all the NYC specific merch is marked down) but I sure hope it is.

Oh AND by the way, you can buy the SAME NYC disney merch at a small cart on the Streets of America at DHS! :thumbsup2
 
They have been saying they were closing for a LONG time now. Sad to hear there's an actual date. I'll have to make a trip there before the end of the month...was planning to go into the city to see the Tim Burton exhibit at MOMA and would like to see the tree so I can make a day out of it.

BUT, I did ask just a few months ago and a CM at a disney store at MCO said that they WERE in fact relocating so they'd be closer to Times Square. Not sure how valid that information is (epsecially if all the NYC specific merch is marked down) but I sure hope it is.

Oh AND by the way, you can buy the SAME NYC disney merch at a small cart on the Streets of America at DHS! :thumbsup2


REALLY?!? Oooooooooooh, the things you learn on the DIS! Thanks!

agnes!
 
This was the store Philadisney aka Kelly went to when she was on What Not to Wear. Remember when she said "I see princesses"?

It will be sad to see this store go. :( Hopefully the proposed location on Times Square will be just as good.
 
REALLY?!? Oooooooooooh, the things you learn on the DIS! Thanks!

agnes!

Yes, really!!

I bought that shirt to the left of DH for my DBIL at the NYC WOD (he's an NYC police officer) and I was shocked to see that merch actually in WDW as well!

ry%3D480
 
I'm confused...isn't this store relocating? I knew something was up with the NYC Disney store, but I didn't think it was gone forever.:confused3

maybe it's moving to Boston cuz they realized they liked the Red Sox better !! Ha ! :lmao::worship::worship::dance3:
 
I had read this a while ago, but thought it might be of interest here:

Disney’s Retail Plan Is a Theme Park in Its Stores
By BROOKS BARNES

LOS ANGELES — The Walt Disney Company, with the help of Steven P. Jobs and his retailing team at Apple, intends to drastically overhaul its approach to the shopping mall.

At a time when many retailers are still cutting back or approaching strategic shifts with extreme caution, Disney is going the other way, getting more aggressive and putting into motion an expensive and ambitious floor-to-ceiling reboot of its 340 stores in the United States and Europe — as well as opening new ones, including a potential flagship in Times Square.

Disney Stores, which the media giant is considering rebranding Imagination Park, will become more akin to cozy entertainment hubs. The chain’s traditional approach of displaying row after row of toys and apparel geared to Disney franchises will be given a high-tech makeover and incorporated into a new array of recreational activities. The goal is to make children clamor to visit the stores and stay longer, perhaps bolstering sales as a result. Over the next five years, analysts estimate that Disney will spend about $1 million a store to redecorate, reorganize and install interactive technology.

“The world does not need another place to sell Disney merchandise — this only works if it’s an experience,” said Jim Fielding, president of Disney Stores Worldwide. The company plans to unveil the new look in May in Southern California, Long Island and Madrid, and is close to signing a lease for that Times Square flagship.

Theaters will allow children to watch film clips of their own selection, participate in karaoke contests or chat live with Disney Channel stars via satellite. Computer chips embedded in packaging will activate hidden features. Walk by a “magic mirror” while holding a Princess tiara, for instance, and Cinderella might appear and say something to you.

It’s your birthday? With the push of a button, eight 13-foot-tall Lucite trees will crackle with video-projected fireworks and sound. There will be a scent component; if a clip from Disney’s coming “A Christmas Carol” is playing in the theater, the whole store might suddenly be made to smell like a Christmas tree.

The makeover happened only after much internal debate at the company. Indeed, some Disney board members fretted that the concept was so lavish that parents would try to use the stores as day care centers. Others worried that people would come for the entertainment but not buy anything.

“It’s time to take risks,” Mr. Fielding said he told them. “When consumers are ready to spend again, we will be ready.”

The involvement of Mr. Jobs, the Apple chief executive who joined the Disney board with the 2006 acquisition of Pixar, is particularly notable. For the first time, Mr. Jobs’s fingerprints can be seen on Disney strategy, in the same way that he influenced the look and feel of Apple’s own immensely popular retail chain. While Mr. Jobs did not personally toil on the Imagination Park concept, he pushed Disney to move far past a refurbishment.

“Dream bigger — that was Steve’s message,” said Andy Mooney, chairman of Disney Consumer Products.

Mr. Jobs provided access to proprietary information about the development and operation of Apple’s highly successful stores, and Disney executives visited Apple’s research operation in Cupertino, Calif. Mr. Jobs, who declined to comment, also insisted that Disney build a prototype store to work out kinks, a costly endeavor that most retailers skip.

The company followed his advice, working for the last year on a full-scale, fully stocked store inside an unmarked warehouse in Glendale, Calif. The prototype was crucial to shaping an overall philosophy, Mr. Fielding said, noting that he discovered the shops needed more “Pixar-esque winks and nods.” To that end, one sales area is now labeled “WWTD: What Would Tinker Bell Do?”

Disney will adopt Apple touches like mobile checkout (employees will carry miniature receipt printers in their aprons) and the emphasis on community (Disney’s theater idea is an extension of Apple’s lecture spaces). The focus on interactivity — parents will be able to book a Disney Cruise on touch-screen kiosks while their children play — reflects an Apple hallmark. Employees can use iPhones to control those high-tech trees.

Disney is a merchandising titan whose licensed consumer products generated $30 billion in global sales last year, up from $12 billion when Mr. Mooney joined the company a decade ago. But Apple is king of the mall. Its fleet of stores generated sales of about $4,700 a square foot in 2008, by far the highest for any retail chain, said Charlie Wolf, an analyst at Needham & Company. In comparison, Best Buy’s sales are about $1,000 a square foot.

The Disney board approved the Imagination Park concept on Oct. 1 after touring the prototype and receiving hand-made books from Mr. Fielding that pitched the concept as “the best 30 minutes of a child’s day.” Now Disney is bringing in landlords, trying to pit them against one another to secure top-tier locations and favorable leases.

“We will essentially be the only toy retailer left at the mall because everybody else has evaporated,” Mr. Mooney said. Mr. Fielding added, “Every mall in America is desperate for newness and freshness.”

The Disney Store chain, introduced in 1987, was initially so successful that the company overexpanded to more than 600 locations. Buffalo alone had five. But consumers overdosed on the animated-character merchandise and by 2002 the chain was losing about $100 million a year.

Judging the upkeep too burdensome and focusing on the safer licensing business, Disney sold the chain to Children’s Place Retail Stores in 2004.

But Children’s Place failed to meet contractual renovation obligations and consumers complained of poor service, Mr. Fielding said. The vaunted Disney brand was in peril. “Let’s face facts,” he said, “some of those stores looked like a dog’s breakfast.”

In March 2008, Disney bought back part of the chain on *****closed terms and the remaining stores, about 100 of them, were closed. A spokeswoman for Children’s Place declined to comment.

Dressing up a toy store with entertainment is hardly new. F.A.O. Schwarz has its famous floor piano, Toys “R” Us operates a Ferris wheel inside its Times Square outpost and American Girl jazzes up its retail outlets with theaters and doll hair salons. But the emphasis on programming — via the theaters, Disney is essentially creating a mall-based television channel — and the degree to which the media giant is pouring on the razzle-dazzle in every store is unusual.

The nation’s largest mall operator, Simon Property Group, however, said Disney might be overly optimistic about how far landlords will bend. “No one comes in here and dictates terms,” said Bruce Tobin, a Simon executive vice president.

That said, however, Mr. Tobin had pinwheels in his eyes after touring the prototype. “It’s truly spectacular — beyond our imagination,” he said. “These are going to be true destinations.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/13/b...ney brand store&st=cse&scp=1&pagewanted=print
 
How exciting, scrump! That makes me feel so much better! I hope that it actually happens. :cheer2:

Thanks for the info, Bavaria. And yes, I messed up and the store is on 55th, not 57th Street. Hopefully one day I can make it to France and London and check out the places that you mentioned.

NikkilovesWDW, glad to hear that at least some of the stuff can be found at DHS. I hope they continue that, but wonder whether or not Disney will continue to produce the Disney NYC items once the World of Disney NYC closes.

Hey, pyrxtc - those sound like fighting words to me! pirate: But hey, it's all good, right? BTW, did you catch that big parade that was televised with all the confetti and Jay Z, and all those celebrities not so long ago? No, no, not the Thanksgiving Day parade - the Yankees victory parade! Do they televise that in Boston? Hee Hee :hug:

Finally, I found this link on another disboards thread and reposting it hear for those interested. It's from the NYS Department of Labor about the store closing and the associated layoffs. http://www.labor.state.ny.us/app/WARN/details.asp?id=2395
 
I had read this a while ago, but thought it might be of interest here:

Disney’s Retail Plan Is a Theme Park in Its Stores
By BROOKS BARNES

LOS ANGELES — The Walt Disney Company, with the help of Steven P. Jobs and his retailing team at Apple, intends to drastically overhaul its approach to the shopping mall. ...

...an expensive and ambitious floor-to-ceiling reboot of its 340 stores in the United States and Europe — as well as opening new ones, including a potential flagship in Times Square.

Disney Stores, which the media giant is considering rebranding Imagination Park, will become more akin to cozy entertainment hubs. The chain’s traditional approach of displaying row after row of toys and apparel geared to Disney franchises will be given a high-tech makeover and incorporated into a new array of recreational activities. The goal is to make children clamor to visit the stores and stay longer...

“The world does not need another place to sell Disney merchandise — this only works if it’s an experience,” said Jim Fielding, president of Disney Stores Worldwide.

Just like the Disney Stores used to be...

The involvement of Mr. Jobs, the Apple chief executive who joined the Disney board with the 2006 acquisition of Pixar, is particularly notable. For the first time, Mr. Jobs’s fingerprints can be seen on Disney strategy, in the same way that he influenced the look and feel of Apple’s own immensely popular retail chain. While Mr. Jobs did not personally toil on the Imagination Park concept, he pushed Disney to move far past a refurbishment.

“Dream bigger — that was Steve’s message,” said Andy Mooney, chairman of Disney Consumer Products.

Disney will adopt Apple touches like mobile checkout (employees will carry miniature receipt printers in their aprons) and the emphasis on community (Disney’s theater idea is an extension of Apple’s lecture spaces). The focus on interactivity — parents will be able to book a Disney Cruise on touch-screen kiosks while their children play — reflects an Apple hallmark. Employees can use iPhones to control those high-tech trees. ...

Corporate synergy at its best - hope it works out in this instance, but Disney corporate should at least get a discount on all those iPhones.

“We will essentially be the only toy retailer left at the mall because everybody else has evaporated,” Mr. Mooney said. Mr. Fielding added, “Every mall in America is desperate for newness and freshness.”

Yeah, all that newness and freshness will take away attention on all the boarded-up stores in the malls.

The Disney Store chain, introduced in 1987, was initially so successful that the company overexpanded to more than 600 locations. Buffalo alone had five. But consumers overdosed on the animated-character merchandise and by 2002 the chain was losing about $100 million a year.

Judging the upkeep too burdensome and focusing on the safer licensing business, Disney sold the chain to Children’s Place Retail Stores in 2004.

But Children’s Place failed to meet contractual renovation obligations and consumers complained of poor service, Mr. Fielding said. The vaunted Disney brand was in peril. “Let’s face facts,” he said, “some of those stores looked like a dog’s breakfast.”

And some of the merchandise looked just as bad and was just as cheap.

In March 2008, Disney bought back part of the chain on *****closed terms and the remaining stores, about 100 of them, were closed. A spokeswoman for Children’s Place declined to comment.

Dressing up a toy store with entertainment is hardly new. F.A.O. Schwarz has its famous floor piano, Toys “R” Us operates a Ferris wheel inside its Times Square outpost and American Girl jazzes up its retail outlets with theaters and doll hair salons. But the emphasis on programming — via the theaters, Disney is essentially creating a mall-based television channel — and the degree to which the media giant is pouring on the razzle-dazzle in every store is unusual.

The nation’s largest mall operator, Simon Property Group, however, said Disney might be overly optimistic about how far landlords will bend. “No one comes in here and dictates terms,” said Bruce Tobin, a Simon executive vice president.

That said, however, Mr. Tobin had pinwheels in his eyes after touring the prototype. “It’s truly spectacular — beyond our imagination,” he said. “These are going to be true destinations.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/13/b...ney brand store&st=cse&scp=1&pagewanted=print

Gee, this all sounds a LOT like the concept of the original Disney Stores....everything old is new again.

agnes!
PS - And a bonus of a starred-out word too :teeth: .
 
Sad to see the store closing, but I did always wonder why they didn't go to Times Square to begin with. Isn't this the 2nd or 3rd relocation?

Thanks for posting the info OP, I will send DH in to see if he can find anything good on sale, he works nearby! BTW, I am originally from the Bronx too! Most of my family is still there. What part are you in?
 
Thanks for posting the info OP, I will send DH in to see if he can find anything good on sale, he works nearby! BTW, I am originally from the Bronx too! Most of my family is still there. What part are you in?

OOH! Desnik - a fellow Bronxite (at least at heart), Disney nut! Yay! :banana:

Yeah, I picked up a very cute hoodie with New York City around Mickey ears that should keep me nicely warm this winter. The Mickey NY Yankees and Mets tees were cool, except they're a little loud (i.e. tie-dye). A steal at 60%, though and DS likes them. They had lots of stuff with the I "mickey ears" NY logo on sale. So yeah, it's worth sending DH to check it out.

I'm in Throggs Neck or Throgs Neck, depending on who you ask. :confused3

How about you - where did you live in the BX? Where did you relocate to? (If you say Florida, I will try and contain my jealous rage. :worship:)
 
I was in the WOD store today. Chock full of the latest merchandise, the only sign something was up was that the Mr. Potato Head parts kiosk was just about empty. Big Christmas displays and two big displays of Princess and the Frog merchandise.

The store is definitely closing at the end of the month and the CM I spoke to said they were currently evaluating 3 locations 'near Times Square' and the new location would indeed be an 'Imagination Park' prototype store. No details beyond that.

All NYC themed WOD merchandise is currently 60% off. Lots of t's, sweatshirts and tote bags.. All remaining merchandise will be shipped back to WDW.
 





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