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| The Spirit of Mickey was celebrated with Hometown Parades in four U.S. cities during the summer. | Pooh-themed Mini Bean Bag Plush toys tapped into the growing collectible toys market. | 1999 looks to be the year of Tarzan®, with a broad line of consumer products tied to the animated film. |
In 1998, Disney Consumer Products continued to offer a dazzling array of toys, books, apparel, magazines, computer software, animation art and collectibles to Disney fans around the world. What's more, special events were produced to bring Disney characters directly to the children and adults who love them.
Winnie the Pooh's global appeal reached new heights. The annual Pooh Friendship Day was celebrated in New York City, and Pooh-themed events were held in Canada, China and Japan. The "Pooh & Friends 100 Acre Holiday" in Osaka alone attracted more than 300,000 people in just a month.
Five hundred new books and 11 magazines featuring Pooh delighted readers of all ages, and even more new titles will appear in 1999. An innovative line of construction toys from the LEGO Group based on Pooh and his friends also will be introduced worldwide.
At The Disney Store, the popularity of Pooh continues to be strong. For example, Pooh maintains his number-one status in the Disney's Mini Bean Bag Plush line of collectible toys — the most successful product line in Disney Store history. In North America alone, 80,000 people collect these toys. The bear of little brain has also created a stir among collectors with a line of figurines called Pooh & Friends from Walt Disney Art Classics. And, during the holidays, one of Pooh's best friends proved particularly popular with the Bounce Around Tigger toy.
Mickey Mouse traveled the globe last year. Special events feted him at parks, shopping malls and other sites worldwide, including the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto. In November, Mickey was on hand at Disneyland Paris for the fifth annual World Rapid Chess Championship, which encourages youngsters to take up this challenging game. He was also featured at the Children's Summit in May, where 600 young people from around the world met to learn about each other and discuss their collective future. In Tokyo, a huge entertainment-retail event featuring Mickey Mouse will make its debut this summer.
The stars of Disney's animated hit Mulan were welcomed into homes as well as movie theaters in 1998, thanks to a strong line of products based on the film. Mulan fashion dolls by Mattel enjoyed strong sales in North America. Four Mulan titles from the Disney Children's Book unit of Buena Vista Publishing held spots on the Publisher's Weekly best-seller list, and the Mulan Classic Storybook stayed in the top 10 for three months.
In 1999, Disney Licensing will swing into action with major support for Tarzan® . The broad line of products for boys and girls includes apparel, home furnishings, gifts, plush toys, dolls and a full line of action figures based on the high-spirited adventure.
devoted to Winnie the Pooh were published
around the world.
As it entered its second decade of operation, The Disney Store opened 47 locations worldwide and enjoyed a significant overall increase at locations that have been open more than a year. Nearly 700 stores were in business as 1998 ended, with continued international expansion planned. In addition, there is the "virtual" Disney Store Online, which offers consumers the convenience of shopping at home.
In Hollywood, the architecture and history of the newly refurbished El Capitan Theatre are the inspiration for a Disney Store that opened in November adjacent to the entertainment landmark on famed Hollywood Boulevard. In 1999, a major store will debut on Chicago's Michigan Avenue. New York City's massive Harlem USA project will also include a Disney Store.
ESPN-The Store capped its first year by adding sites in Torrance and Santa Ana, California. Six more stores throughout the U.S. are planned for 1999. Disney Licensing has introduced a line of ESPN apparel and merchandise sold through ESPN shops in selected Sears stores and other retail outlets. In addition, sports fans can shop directly on the web at ESPN.com.
ESPN-The Magazine debuted in 1998 and quickly achieved subscriber and newsstand circulation of 700,000. It is expected to reach a million subscribers by 2000.
Also new to the publishing world was Jump at the Sun, a line of children's books from the Buena Vista Publishing Group that focuses on themes aboutblack culture. Among its contributors: Pulitzer Prize-winning author Toni Morrison (Beloved) and actress Della Reese (Touched by an Angel).
Hyperion, Disney's adult publishing imprint, set a division record with 15 books on the best-seller list in 1998, including Steve Martin's Pure Drivel, Malachy McCourt's A Monk Swimming, George Carlin's Braindroppings and the durably popular Don't Sweat the Small Stuff...and It's All Small Stuff by Dr. Richard Carlson.
Around the world, Disney's publishing efforts bring entertainment to families in more than 100 countries and 37 languages … from Italy, where Topolino magazine reaches more than three million people each week, to Japan, where a remarkable 87 percent of Japanese families with young children own one or more Disney books.
Through its licensees, the Disney Children's Book group reached hundreds of millions of consumers with its publishing program for A Bug's Life. In 1999, Disney Children's Books will release a developmental preschool Winnie the Pooh package that helps parents pick age-appropriate books for youngsters. In addition, the Winnie the Pooh "First Reader" paperback series in the U.S. will add 12 new titles for beginners. Meanwhile, a large-scale publications program featuring Disney's Doug will be launched in Europe.
