Focus on... Disney’s 100 Years of Wonder

Disney magic

As global giant The Walt Disney Company celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, retailers can ride on the coat tails of a number of celebratory events…

The Walt Disney Company needs no introduction - and as it celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, interest in all things from the house of the mouse is bound to be heightened. As CEO Bob Chapek said at a launch event for the celebrations: “Ten decades of creativity, innovation, and determination created The Walt Disney Company you know today - the most enduring and beloved name in entertainment.’’

Gift company Enesco’s marketing & product director Helen Cotrrill commented: ‘’Disney is so special, loved worldwide by collectors and fans of all ages. A love of Disney tends to flow through the generations of a family, with the anniversary films being as popular now as they were when they were launched. It’s so special to be able to work with Disney, across several collections, each one with their own unique traits.

‘’We have added anniversary product to our main product offerings, so there will be product within Disney Traditions, Disney Britto, Enchanting Disney, and Showcase. It was a global collaboration with our US team with weekly meetings for many months, to ensure we had the right product for all markets.’’

A number of experiences, exhibitions, concerts and new products are set to come to the UK this year, increasing consumer interest. Disney100: The Concert will bring to life Disney 100 Years of Wonder in May and June with a live multimedia experience, while Disney100: The Exhibition will take guests on a journey through Disney’s past, immersing them in the beloved stories that have been entertaining the world since 1923. The Exhibition will come to the ExCeL in London in autumn 2023.

Wonder of Friendship – The Experience is an immersive multi-sensory experience coming to London in May and targeted at Gen Zs and young adults, with 1,000 square metres of different experiences and installations set across four rooms, including Alice in Wonderland, Lilo & Stitch, The Lion King and Mickey and Friends.

Disney’s Wonder of Play celebrates 100 years of characters, stories and product, and is a global campaign that will encourage families to play more by helping parents and guardians integrate imaginative play into everyday moments and make the most of time together.

There’s also a host of new product (some included on these pages) and Disney will also be encouraging fans to share their favourite Disney moments on social media using #ShareTheWonder and #Disney100. 42 www.greetingstoday.media

Danilo

Celebrating its centenary year in 2023, Danilo will be joining in the jubilations by including a wide variety of Disney titles in its calendar and diary portfolio, ranging from Disney Classics to live-action movies. Danilo will be adding new calendar titles for movies such as The Little Mermaid, Elemental, The Marvels and more. Plus, with the Star Wars brand growing significantly in recent years, building on the classic movies, there will be new additions to the franchise such as Visions, Ahsoka and Skeleton Crew. Marvel will also be returning to the 2024 collection, where different calendar formats will be created for characters across the Marvel Comics universe for the likes of Loki, Groot, Ant-man and The Wasp, Blade, X-Men, Spiderman and more. 01992 702 900 sales@danilo.com www.danilo.com

Enesco

Contemporary gift retailer Enesco is going for gold with new presentations of figurines inspired by Disney’s best-loved characters in its ever-popular Britto collection.

International pop art sensation Romero Britto has interpreted some of the world’s favourite Disney characters in figurines through his signature style.

Now, for the first time, Britto is bringing splashes of gold to his bold popart designs. Pieces in Disney’s Midas Collection by Britto include figurines of Mickey Mouse, Sorcerer Apprentice Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse and Stitch, as well as fun and funky mugs featuring Mickey and Minnie Mouse, and another showcasing everyone’s favourite little blue alien – Stitch. New to Enesco’s licensed collection, Disney Showcase, is Aloha Stitch Figurine. Fans of the 2002 film Disney’s Lilo and Stitch will love this figurine, with Stitch wearing his tropical print red and white swimming shorts in a pose as if he is taking to the waves and riding the ‘Hawaiian rollercoaster ride’. Meanwhile, a new storybook figurine has been introduced to Disney Traditions by Jim Shore. Carefully created in the form of a 3D storybook, Jim Shore’s artistry brings some of Disney’s best-loved tales to life, with iconic scenes depicting heroes and villains. The Maleficent Storybook draws on original artwork from Disney’s 1959 animated movie Sleeping Beauty and sees Maleficent in her dragon form engage in a fiery battle with Princess Aurora’s very own knight in shining armour, Prince Phillip, with the castle in the background.

Carefully created using a palette of greys, purples, and blues to depict Maleficent’s dark nature, Shore’s synonymous design style is clear, through the use of intricate carvings and motif patterns inspired by American folk art.

Another new Disney Traditions by Jim Shore figurine, features a grouping of six Disney Princesses in one standalone figurine.

The Princess Group Castle figurine sees Tiana, Belle, Jasmine, Cinderella, Mulan and Aurora huddle together as if posing for a photograph in front of a Disney castle.

Each princess is depicted in her iconic costume, such as Tiana’s dress presented in shades of green and adorned with white lilies and Belle’s beautiful yellow gown from the ballroom scene in Beauty and the Beast.

Finally, Enesco is launching a new range of lithophanes into its Enchanting Disney Collection.

A lithophane is an etched or moulded piece of artwork in very thin translucent porcelain that can be seen clearly only when backlit. Lithophane pictures have three-dimensional characteristics and change their appearance as the light source angle is changed.

The first lithophoane is Never Land’s Waiting, inspired by the scene from Disney’s Peter Pan where Peter, Tinker Bell and the Darling children leave the confines of their nursery and soar across the London skyline as they head off to Never Land.

The second lithophane is Beauty Within, inspired by the iconic ballroom scene from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, bringing to life the image of Belle in her beautiful ball gown as she dances in the arms of the Beast. 01228 404022 uksales@enesco.co.uk www.enesco.co.uk

Rainbow Designs

Rainbow Designs is launching new additions to its Disney’s Classic Pooh, as well as two exciting new Disney Mickey Mouse collections.

To celebrate Disney’s 100 Years of Wonder, on display at Spring Fair will be the adorable new Mickey Memories collection, a beautiful, luxury collection of fun forever toys and gifts delivered in stunning packaging that features the iconic Mickey Mouse vintage artwork. The range includes a Mickey Mouse Wooden Ring Rattle, Comfort Blanket and Activity Toy, as well as an adorable Musical Lullaby Mickey Mouse Toy. 01329 227300 www.rainbowdesigns.co.uk