Disney Stores Headed to 25 Target Locations
August 25 2019 - 5:58PM
Dow Jones News
By Kimberly Chin
Target Corp. and Walt Disney Co. have joined forces to open
dedicated Disney Stores in about two dozen Target locations
starting this fall, the latest example of a large retailer offering
a specialty shop within its walls.
The companies said Sunday they plan to open 25 Disney Stores at
Target locations across the U.S. on Oct. 4. By the end of 2020, the
companies expect to add an additional 40 Disney Stores at Target
locations.
The Disney "shop in shop" locations will be run and operated by
Target employees and will include more than 450 items, such as
toys, games, apparel and accessories, including items that had
previously been exclusive at Disney retail locations.
Retailers are increasingly carving out space in their stores for
other brands and concepts. J.C. Penney Co. and Macy's Inc. recently
said they'd set aside space within some of their stores for resale
marketplace thredUp Inc. Also, Kroger Co. has branded sections in
some stores of Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc.
Target has long collaborated with celebrities and designers for
exclusive products and collections. Over the past 20 years, Target
has worked with designers ranging from Anna Sui to Lilly Pulitzer
on exclusive lines.
As part of the Disney partnership, Target plans to open a new
store at the western entrance of the Walt Disney World Resort in
Orlando, Fla.
For Disney, the move represents a major expansion of its
retail-store presence. The Burbank, Calif., company currently has
300 Disney Store locations. The new partnership will boost Disney's
store count by about 22%.
The move helps extend Disney's reach beyond its mall locations,
said Bob Chapek, Disney's chairman of parks, experiences and
products, on a call with media.
In its latest quarter, Disney said its retail stores helped
boost revenue in its parks, experiences and products division by 7%
to $6.6 billion.
Still, malls continue to struggle with foot traffic and store
closures. The national mall vacancy rate was 9.3% this quarter at
the end of the second quarter, up from 8.6% a year earlier,
according to real-estate research firm REIS Inc.
The Target shops are set to open around the same time when
products tied to the coming Disney films "Frozen 2" and "Star Wars:
The Rise of Skywalker" will hit shelves.
The companies declined to say how much revenue they expect to
generate from this partnership.
Write to Kimberly Chin at kimberly.chin@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 25, 2019 17:43 ET (21:43 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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