Disney Buys Store Chain in North America

BURBANK, May 1: Some four
years since offloading the Disney Stores in North America to The Children's
Place, The Walt Disney Company has reached a deal to reacquire approximately
220 shops in the U.S. and Canada.

The transaction consisted
of an asset purchase by Disney’s subsidiaries through the bankruptcy and
insolvency proceedings of Hoop Retail Stores in Delaware and Hoop Canada. The
deal covers about 220 Disney Stores; the actual number is dependent on the
outcome of negotiations with landlords. Disney also obtained the right to
conduct an orderly wind-down and closure of approximately 98 Disney Stores in
the U.S. and two Disney Stores in Canada, but without assuming the leases for
such stores.

“From Cars to High School Musical to Disney Fairies, Disney’s entertainment engines are producing
multiple popular franchises,” said Andy Mooney, the chairman of Disney Consumer
Products. “The Disney Stores can play a vital role in touching the millions who
cross their thresholds. With the reach of a global retail chain, we will be better
able to take advantage of our franchises.”

James D. Fielding has been
named as president of Disney Stores Worldwide, with oversight for merchandising
and all other operations of the Disney Stores in North America and the 107
existing Disney Stores in Europe, as well as managing the relationship with
Oriental Land Company, which operates the Disney Stores in Japan under a
license arrangement.

—By Mansha Daswani