Crowds flock to world's largest Disney store

The world's largest Disney store in Shanghai draws hundreds of shoppers from near and far

Waiting on the queue for almost an hour outside the Disney store and getting his favorite Spiderman costume probably is the coolest Children's Day gift that seven-year-old Chen Mo received in his childhood.

It was two days before June 1, the second weekend after the world's largest Disney store opened to the public on May 20 in Shanghai's Lujiazui area, dubbed China's Wall Street.

"I am so excited to have my own Spiderman costume, which is so cool. I will wear it all the time even when I go to sleep," said Chen, whose parents took him to pick his Children's Day gift in the store on May 30.

Like most Chinese parents waiting on the lines with their children, Chen's mother thought it was worth it to spend a half-day out and in the Disney store for bags of toys, costumes and gifts.

"It is more convenient to purchase Disney-logoed products for kids in Shanghai instead of flying to Hong Kong or asking friends to buy in Disneyland abroad," said Wang Lu, Chen's mother, who drove from Kunshan, a neighboring city to Shanghai in Jiangsu province in early morning.

She added that waiting one hour to get hold of those Disney goods only available in Shanghai was acceptable as it brought delightful memories to her son and family.

Located in the landmark financial area of Pudong, the Disney flagship store is the company's first on the Chinese mainland and the largest store by size, offering more than 2,000 products, 90 percent of which are exclusive to the site.

The new Shanghai store showcases a 19-foot castle at the heart of the store, featuring an hourly musical and projection show, and a Marvel-themed area with hand-sculpted statues of superheroes. Its exterior includes a landscaped plaza and Mickey Mouse-shaped roof sculpted with 8,000 LED lights visible from key tourism points such as the Pearl Tower.

A few minutes before the store's opening time at 10 am on May 30, groups of parents and children lined up out of the store in order to enter the dreamlike store.

"Compared to the first weekend, more customers arrived with purchasing purpose instead of sightseeing, so it seemed to be fewer people with shorter queuing time but actually more efficient customers," said a staff member in the store, who declined to be named because of company policy.

He added that most customers coming on the second weekend spent less than one hour in the store to buy what they wanted, which saved much time for those waiting outside.

To ensure the safety of customers, the number of visitors in the store is limited to around 100, which led to the long waiting line and crowds outside the store.

"There is no need to line up for one hour on weekdays, customers can pop in and take items to the cashier and walk out of the store within half an hour," said a security guard on the site who also refused to give names according to the policy.

Some limited edition items have been designed to celebrate the opening of the store, such as Mickey Mouse toys with Disney Shanghai or Disney 2015 embroidered on the feet, and mugs and key rings printed with Chinese-style lane houses. A series of "I Love Shanghai" products will be exclusively offered at the Shanghai store.

Those goods selling in the store also have become a favorite for tourists and local residents.

"My friends and relatives gave me a list of items to buy when they heard that I was travelling to Shanghai with a pass by of the store, which will become a must-go spot for national travelers," said Zheng Nan, a tourist from Changsha, Hunan province, who bought two bags of toys.

yuran@chinadaily.com.cn