Disney Park Stops Selling Merchandise With Immediate Effect, Notifies All Guests
After recent complications at the resort, one Disney park has stopped selling select merchandise.
From Labubu to Sonny Angels, recent years have seen a wave of viral collectibles spark long lines and frenzied demand. Disney has felt the effects too, often stepping in to manage the crowds of fans eager to snap up the latest must-have merch.
In the past, Disney has utilized virtual queues to control the demand for everything from runDisney merchandise to Star Wars items launched specifically for May the Fourth (aka Star Wars Day).
Disney Overwhelmed by Merchandise Demand
Despite its best efforts, one Disney park found itself overwhelmed by merchandise demand earlier this week – and has since taken drastic measures to make sure it never happens again.
According to Sina, guests waited up to 14 hours at Shanghai Disneyland to get their hands on the new Summer Ocean Party merchandise line, which included Duffy and Friends keychains. Originally priced at 179 yuan ($28), some items have since been flipped by resellers for as much as 499 yuan ($56).
Resellers have long driven demand and chaos around Disney merch drops, with guests queuing outside the park last month for new merch, too. Some guests admitted they wouldn’t normally wait so long, but feared everything would be gone before they had a chance. To combat this, Shanghai Disneyland previously introduced an ID requirement to reduce ticket scalping and limit reseller activity.
Queues began forming at 5 p.m. on July 7 – five hours earlier than usual. Guests even booked hotel rooms for early access. “Everyone came for the new product release,” one guest told Sina, noting that earlier entry increased the chance of winning the lottery to buy the dolls.
Now, Disney has taken drastic measures to prevent a repeat incident. The entire line of merchandise has been removed from the resort. Shanghai Disneyland issued a notification to all guests via its official app, confirming that it won’t sell the Summer Ocean Party line in the park or at its resort hotels (Shanghai Disneyland Hotel or Toy Story Hotel).
According to The Standard, the remaining stock will be sold at Shanghai Disneyland’s official Tmall store, another platform of Alibaba.
Other Attempts To Control Merchandise Sales at Shanghai Disneyland
This isn’t the first time Shanghai Disneyland has tried to rein in avid shoppers.
Last year, it was reported that guests had formed an eight-hour line, and security was summoned in the chaos that formed over the sale of Duffy and Friends merchandise.
The resellers of Shanghai Disneyland.
Whatever the destination I hate them.
#Dealer #reseller #disneyparks #ShanghaiDisneyland #SDR
The resellers of Shanghai Disneyland.
Whatever the destination I hate them.#Dealer #reseller #disneyparks #ShanghaiDisneyland #SDR pic.twitter.com/ObcUa6YSJd— DLP Welcome (@DLPWelcome) February 16, 2023
In the past, we’ve seen mountains of Duffy merch pile up at the theme park as resellers seize dozens of the same item. Disney typically enforces purchase limits per guest, but fans often find workarounds. One common tactic is bringing children along, since each guest—regardless of age—can buy the allowed number of items.
Do you think Shanghai Disneyland has made the right choice?
