SHANGHAI DISNEY RESORT AUTHENTICALLY DISNEY, DISTINCTLY CHINESE A COMPLETE GUIDE PRESENTED BY SHANGHAI DISNEY RESORT: AUTHENTICALLY DISNEY, DISTINCTLY CHINESE 2 SHANGHAI DISNEY RESORT AUTHENTICALLY DISNEY, DISTINCTLY CHINESE OVERVIEW The Walt Disney Company, in cooperation with the Shendi Group, created the Shanghai Disney Resort, which opened in June 2016. For Disney, it is their sixth destination globally and their 12th major theme park. Some 140 million people visit the Disney parks annually. When Shanghai Disneyland was introduced to the world, Disney CEO Bob Iger made it clear that the new park would be unlike any other made before. Specifically, the decree was that the Shanghai Disney Resort should be “Authentically Disney, Distinctly Chinese”. Decades since Disneyland opened over 60 years ago, the folks at Disney have learned a few lessons. The Japanese totally embraced the first international park when it opened. But when Disney opened Disneyland Paris in a former sugar beet field outside Paris in 1992, the company was roundly criticized for being culturally insensitive to its European guests. Hong Kong Disneyland opened modestly, and has struggled to compete with a local competitor, even with newer additions. And now Disney is in Shanghai. This is not just about a Magic Kingdom in China. It’s about China’s Magic Kingdom. It must be something the Chines people embrace and make their own. Certainly there is the potential market to make that happen. Some 330 million of China’s 1.3 billion people live within a three-hour drive or train ride from Shanghai, an enormous metropolis of 24 million. This should give the resort a leg up on being successful. But that success will only be sustained if people enjoy the experience so much, that they return again and again to visit, and they promote visiting the park to others around them. To work from the view “build it and they will come” is a poor approach to what is a 5.5 billion dollar investment, Disney’s most expensive theme park destination to date. Disney SHANGHAI DISNEY RESORT: AUTHENTICALLY DISNEY, DISTINCTLY CHINESE 3 must win the hearts of its guests—guests who for the most part have never entered a Disney park before. But just how? What is the approach one makes to create something “Authentically Disney, Distinctly Chinese.” Disney CEO Bob Iger framed it this way: “It’s an honor to be invited into China,” he adds. “When you’re invited to somebody’s home, you show respect. And that’s why the ‘distinctly Chinese’ aspects of the Shanghai Disney Resort are so important. Not only do we create relevance, we also show respect.” This treatise is not about how to tour the property. It’s not about which attractions to ride, or where is the best place to find a meal. Rather, this is about how Disney set out to make the experience that was “authentically Disney, distinctly Chinese.” In particular, we will examine issues such as: Accommodations: How did Disney approach the park experience in terms of China’s culture, heritage and symbols? Chinese Preferences: How did Disney accommodate the preferences Chinese have in terms of entertainment, retail, culinary, and even language and communication? Authentically Disney: How did Disney bring their own heritage and experience to the table? Cultural Demeanor: Each culture brings both positive and negative behaviors. How does Disney build on the positive, and eliminate the negative? Capacity: How does Disney accommodate the massive number of people who could potentially visit the park? Balance: How does Disney weigh those decisions between what should be Authentically Disney, and what should be Distinctly Chinese? You’ll see that Disney has done much more than incorporate some Feng Shui principles— which they did as well. Rather, we’ll look at the entire resort, to include hotels, DisneyTown, and the various lands that make up the Shanghai Disneyland Park. Our hope is that not only will you see the how the thread of “Authentically Disney, Distinctly Chinese” is woven throughout the guest experience, but how the lessons of this park can offer insights to any who are trying to bring their products and services to new destinations and cultures. SHANGHAI DISNEY RESORT: AUTHENTICALLY DISNEY, DISTINCTLY CHINESE 4 DISNEY RESORT AREA Let’s begin in the Disney Resort Area, with the parks, hotels, and facilities outside of Shanghai Disneyland itself. Long before you arrive at the gates to the Shanghai Disney theme park, you see instances of Disney merging its brand with Chinese culture. A great place to start is the Shanghai Disneyland Hotel. This is Disney’s high-end 420-room hotel and convention space, and it’s spared no expense to celebrate not just Disney, but the heritage of China. At the center of the hotel’s atrium are statues of Mickey and the gang as part of an orchestra. But their representations, and all that is around them, are set in an Art Nouveau tone. That art deco architecture was predominant in the 1920s throughout Shanghai. It returns to Disney in a style appropriate to this very grand hotel. It’s reflected on its walls, in its pillars, in its chandelier lamps, in the carpet and floors, throughout the railings. Note the centerpiece fountain just outside. It features a large glass peony —a traditional symbol of China. SHANGHAI DISNEY RESORT: AUTHENTICALLY DISNEY, DISTINCTLY CHINESE 5 The Shanghai Disney Resort actually has two hotels. The 800-room Toy Story Hotel may be a more affordable fare for guests staying the night, but it too has Chinese symbolism attached to it. Best seen from the air, but also seen on the hotel directory, one will see that the hotel is in the shape of the infinity symbol, which also resembles the number 8. The pronunciation of “8” in Mandarin is “bā”, which sounds close to “fā”. One of the Chinese characters that is pronounced as “fā” is “”. This character has lots of meanings itself. But Chinese people give it the specific meaning of “get rich, make a fortune financially” when they relate “(fā)” to “8”. That same design sensibility is found on the inside of the hotel. Step in the lobby of the Toy Story Hotel and you’ll see kites in the shapes of Disney characters. Kites were invented in China centuries ago and are revered by the people. It’s a simple example of how Disney has put its own twist on symbols and objects that are beloved to the people of China. Of course, rooms in these hotels are functional to Chinese needs. Tea kettles are found in the rooms. Additional beds can be pulled out to accommodate children at Shanghai Disneyland. Of course, that same bed shows Mickey in a slumber. And the main headboards in this room light up with pixie dust. There are clearly plenty of Disney touches to be found. But it’s done in the context of providing Chinese visitors an accommodating stay. SHANGHAI DISNEY RESORT: AUTHENTICALLY DISNEY, DISTINCTLY CHINESE 6 WISHING STAR LAKE & PARK ENTRANCE Guests point to Mickey Avenue, the first land inside Shanghai Disneyland, as evidence that it’s really about all things Disney. In truth, what most comes across first when arriving at Shanghai Disneyland is Wishing Star Park. It was in the original agreement that a public park would be part of anyone’s experience, whether they intended to pay for a ticket to go inside or not. Wishing Star Park is approximately 500,000 square meters. That means the overall area (lake and park) is equal to approximately 70 football (“American soccer”) fields. Wishing Star Lake is approximately 390,000 square meters and the park area itself is approximately 110,000 square meters. The walking path at the lake is 2.5 kilometers. The pathways, bridges, benches, gazebos, and play areas all feature a design sensibility of that same Art Nouveau style found in the Shanghai Disneyland Resort. But in this instance, it is a modern interpretation with organic and dynamic forms and curving designs. In D23 Magazine, John Sorenson, landscape architect for Walt Disney Imagineering, noted, “I wanted to create a place that feels different from what Shanghai is accustomed to seeing; however, we didn’t want to do something that was too alien to this landscape. That’s what we were after.” Indeed, it would be fair to say that not only is Wishing Star Lake a park, but that Shanghai Disneyland is as much a park as it is about theming. There are nearly 2.4 million shrubs and ground cover plants, and more than 12,000 trees (including 200 different varieties). Landscapers not only feel that it enhances the storytelling, but helps Disney live up to its edict of being “Authentically Disney, Distinctly Chinese”. Whereas the Western market usually is about individual motorized transportation, here in China, it’s about trains and buses. A brand new train station greets guests arriving from all points throughout Shanghai. An effort was made to make sure the trains not only operated seven days a SHANGHAI DISNEY RESORT: AUTHENTICALLY DISNEY, DISTINCTLY CHINESE 7 week, but were available from early morning until late night—not just for guests, but for many of the Cast Members who must arrive earlier or stay later. More than 8,000 riders traveled to the station by 5:00 pm on the station’s first day of business, and it is considered to be one of the busiest on the Shanghai Metro network. The design of the station is contemporary, but two 10-foot-tall Mickey and Minnie sculptures, along with elements of traditional Chinese paper cutting, are incorporated into the 430,000 square foot facility—about four to five times the size of an ordinary station.