Disney teams up with local merchants for Donald Duck products

CALIFORNIA – The Walt Disney Company is teaming up with brands and malls in the Philippines in line with the 90-year celebration of one of the most famous, lovable and hilariously temperamental cartoon characters, Donald Duck.

Stéphane Kardos, vice president, Character Art-Global Creative at Walt Disney said that reaching out to the Asian market would definitely be part of the global initiative to celebrate Donald Duck’s 90 years of existence.

Disney’s global marketing team have been working on a catalogue of products that would specifically cater to Asia, including the Philippines, Kardos told The STAR on the sidelines of an exclusive media tour of The Walt Disney headquarters here.

“In Asia, we have a global team who are working specifically on some product catalogs that will work specifically for the Asian market. So our team works on different ideas for each market but it should connect to that specific market. We have to make sure that we have a wide range of products that are going to appeal to a lot of people,” Kardos said.

Disney has also worked with various local brands over the years to bring fan-favorite stories to life for fans in the Philippines, including Pixar, Marvel and Star Wars.

During the curated Donald Duck experience on May 8, The STAR was part of the media delegates who went on a private tour of Walt Disney’s office “Suite 3H,” in the historic Animation Building.

Walt Disney occupied Suite 3H from 1940 until his death in 1966. During his lifetime, Suite 3H was the creative center of what is now The Walt Disney Company.

The tour also included a visit to an exclusive “90 Years of Donald Duck” display of props, products and collectibles with the Walt Disney Archives Team.

Becky Cline, director of Walt Disney Archives, said the most significant part in Donald Duck’s 90-year existence was in the 1940s when he appeared in several animated propaganda films for the US government and when he served as a mascot for the US Military.

“Donald is a superstar like Mickey Mouse. I think Donald had the most impact in the US in the 1940s because the US government came to Walt Disney and asked them for help to support the military to get out the messages to the US and to the citizens. Donald was important during that time period to get people to pay their taxes,” Cline said.

To kick off the months-long celebration of 90 years of Donald Duck, Disney is intensively collaborating with industry-leading brands to launch dozens of stylish new products and collections.

From global brands such as Adidas, ASOS, Citizen, Disney Store, Funko and Pandora, as well as North American brands like Baublebar, BoxLunch, Hot Topic, Loungefly and RSVLTS, fans can now shop the array of products featuring Donald Duck in time for Mickey & Friends to celebrate Donald Duck’s 90-year milestone in June with more to be revealed.

Donald Duck has become one of the world’s most recognizable characters since his debut on June 9, 1934 in The Wise Little Hen (Silly Symphony cartoon). Originally intended to be a supporting character, Donald waddled away with the show.

“Donald Duck’s relatable and endearing frustrations with everyday life have made him one of the world’s most famous personalities, so we knew we had to make sure to celebrate him in a big way,” said Liz Shortreed, senior vice president of Disney Global Softlines and Global Brand Strategy.

“We are thrilled to collaborate with some of retail’s biggest brands to bring fans an array of Donald Duck products like never before,” she said.