Disney by design

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: goal was to stretch the brand a bit while adding buzz.

Now Mooney is going further, asking people to think of Disney as a brand of luxury clothing, expensive home furnishings and hip jewellery. Lest anyone be confused, the company has created labels to differentiate the new merchandise from what it sells at Disney Stores and theme parks.

The “upscale, high-glam” Disney Couture is primarily for women, while guys have Bloc28, a name that refers to Mickey Mouse’s debut in 1928. The labels, featured in fashion magazines like Vogue and worn by celebrities like Rihanna, are sold only in boutiques and in department stores like Bloomingdale’s and Neiman Marcus.

From a business perspective, the full-speed push into “noncharacter products” like dining tables and executive fountain pens is a crucial way for Disney to expand its consumer products unit, which is better known for pumping out Power Rangers pajamas and Daisy Duck key chains. Disney says that sales of its home and lifestyle products will total about $85 million in the next 12 months, making up four per cent of the consumer unit’s revenue. Within five years, the company projects the category will deliver $500 million in sales a year.

It is an ambitious plan for a company whose idea of fashion for decades was to attach plastic mouse ears to a beanie. Analysts who follow Disney said the company’s strategy is smart, though the recent downturn in consumer spending may make it difficult to meet those aggressive sales goals, and some consumers have noticed a similarity between Disney Couture and Juicy Couture.

Over time, consumers from all quarters are likely to grow familiar with the new designs. In one deal that has yet to be announced, Wal-Mart has hired Disney to take over its children’s bedding department this spring. Disney will supply its normal range of “Cars” pillowcases and “Cinderella” sheets, but it will also create four lines of bedding that include no images of Disney characters.