According to CNBC, by the end of the year, The Walt Disney Company will close at least 20% of its brick-and-mortar stores as the focus shifts more and more to e-commerce. At least 60 out of 300 Disney stores will close across North America, and then an evaluation will begin as to whether these closures will extend to other parts of the world.
The company plans to further utilize its popular store Disney website and will add another collection of adult clothing, streetwear, premium home products and collectibles to the online store in the coming months.
Stephanie Young, president of consumer products, games and publications, says: “While consumer behavior has shifted to online shopping, the global pandemic has changed what consumers expect from a retailer.” Since the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a huge increase in the demand for online shopping, it comes as no surprise.
Just the pandemic has changed the shopping habits so drastically that the demand for e-commerce has been advancing for about five years. E-commerce sales increased by 32.4% in 2020, to $ 791.7 billion, and are still growing.
While North America will be the first continent to see the closure of Disney stores to a large extent, Disney officials say Europe is likely to be the next target after evaluating the effects of these closures. Meanwhile, Disney plans to continue updating and improving its popular shopDisney site, and a wider range of merchandise will be added to appeal to a wider audience.
The Walt Disney Company has not yet made a statement on the impact of job losses due to the store closure.