Buying merchandise from Disney can be a surreal experience, especially at the D23 Expo 2019 underway now at the Anaheim Convention Center. On Friday, a woman dressed as Mary Poppins toyed with the idea of buying a plush Pluto dog puppet, while nearby, others shopped for superhero socks.
This is how you know you’re at the D23 Expo, where the world’s biggest collection of Disney fans, nerds and collectors gather to meet each other, learn about new Disney plans for the studios and theme parks and, gasp, buy stuff.
In fact, the search for merch – as collectors call Disney merchandise – is an important part of the experience. Hundreds of people camped out Thursday night in the basement of the Anaheim Convention Center just for the chance to buy special collector’s items not available anywhere else.
On Friday, avid pin collectors fell asleep in line on the floor, waiting for hours among hundreds of others hoping for their chance to buy special pins from the Mickey’s Of Glendale pop-up pin store.
Nearby, Savannah Torres of Covina was expecting to spend two hours in line at Mickey’s of Glendale to buy two or three new pairs of mouse ear headbands to add to her collection.
“Honestly, I have over 250 headbands and I’ll just keep going until I know I have them all,” Torres said with a laugh. “I have a lot from (Disneyland) Tokyo, Paris, Hong Kong and Shanghai that I bought on eBay. But I’m going to Shanghai Disneyland for my honeymoon next year.”
Crowds also waited in line hoping to get into the DreamStore, another Disney popup that offered exclusive merchandise made specifically for the D23 Expo and available nowhere else.
Melanie Martin of Austin, Texas waited in line outside the store, hoping for the chance to get inside within a reasonable length of time to buy a few souvenirs to take home.
“Two hours is my limit,” Martin said. “After that I get hangry.”
Disney merchandiser Erin Herbst said the team began strategizing and brainstorming 18 months ago about what to sell at the expo, which only happens every two years in Anaheim.
“Essentially, we asked ourselves what our guests love the most and we brought it to them,” Herbst said. Items include mouse ears, ornaments, spirit jerseys, dresses, handbags, backpacks and more. “We tried to come up with things that are easy to carry.”
Only 23 each of a series of Precious Moments Disney princess dolls were made for the expo, including Disney characters such as Belle and Sleeping Beauty. Once the 23 are sold, there will be no more.
The D23 Expo is occupying some 1 million square feet at the Anaheim Convention Center. Tickets sold out early with tens of thousands of Disney fans attending. People get into the spirit by wearing costumes.
Need some socks with Marvel superheroes on them? No problem. A pair of $125 Cheshire Cat earrings? An Otterbox iPhone case with Snow White’s Evil Queen on it? Suitcases with Mickey Mouse designs? Got it. Collectible posters? Yup.
But you’ll have to wait to buy the ride vehicle from Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride on display at the Profiles in History booth. It won’t be sold until a Disney auction Oct. 15, along with a yellow ride vehicle from Disneyland’s defunct Skyway.
“A similar skybucket sold for $625,000 in a previous auction, but we don’t expect this one to sell for that much,” said Mike Fazio, director of Disneyana auctions.
Whew, that’s a relief.
