An announcement was made today making official the transfer of the Disney Store name, product, and stores to The Children’s Place. The licensing agreement is for an initial term of 15 years with three 10 year renewal options. The DisneyStore.com domain goes with the agreement and a payment will be made to Disney based on the amount of in store inventory at the time the deal closes. Other than that it looks like no money will be changing hands.
What was not mentioned was whether the current store employees will be allowed to retain their benefits and discounts at The Disney Company’s themeparks and other properties. My prediction there will be an exodus of employees when the benefits are changed, but it will be a slow trickle not a giant movement all at the same time. Hey, being trained by Disney still has cache in the business world.