Hong Kong Disney: China's Dream of a Fairy Tale Kingdom

On September 12th, the Hong Kong Disneyland, which will cost US$3.6 billion, will welcome guests from all directions. Located on the Lantau Island Fairy Tale Park, this is China's first world-class Disney theme park, and Walt Disney Company regards it as a “dream board” for China.

Disney’s upcoming CEO, Robert Igeb, places more emphasis on overseas revenues than his predecessor. He particularly likes China’s vast market—“1.3 billion people who are getting richer, and 290 million children under 14 years of age. With such a huge customer base, China is undoubtedly Disney's dream place.” Izhe has come to China many times, from the slightest awkward start to the present day, and he is determined to keep Mickey Mouse toys, movies and children’s magazines alive. Brought here to add another gorgeous addition to the expansion of the entertainment empire.

After repeated discussions, the company eventually chose to build a Disneyland in Hong Kong, because nearly half of the world's population can arrive in Hong Kong within five hours, and one of the most affluent areas in China, most residents of the Pearl River Delta It can be reached in two hours, coupled with Hong Kong's own spending power and a high degree of internationalization, and its appeal to guests in other Asian countries cannot be underestimated.

"Hong Kong Disneyland is the key to Disney's success in China," one of the company's top executives told the Times reporter. "We hope that Hong Kong Disneyland will be able to provide relevant DVD products, TV shows and cartoon toys for China's hot sales paved the way.” Jay Rasulo, Disney’s president responsible for theme park affairs, pointed out bluntly that Hong Kong Disneyland is Disney’s stronghold in China.

The most familiar stranger

From the beginning of the late 1930s to the new millennium today, Disney has had more than 70 years of friendship with China, and is an old friend of “crossing the century”. Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Snow White, the Sleeping Beauty, the Lion King... all of them are familiar with each other's names. They have a lively and lovely face. I do not know how many generations have spent happy childhood and how many people weave. The beautiful dream of the fairy tale kingdom.

Today, Disney has more than 1,000 franchised stores in China, and this number will be doubled next year. Disney movies and television programs also began to be broadcast on television. There are 24 hours of programming a week, so Disney claims to be the largest foreign film supplier in Chinese TV stations. In 1995, Disney's "The Lion King" became one of the first western films to be released in movie theaters since the founding of New China. After that, more than a dozen films entered China one after another. Among them were excellent works such as "The Incredibles" and "National Treasures". However, the adaptation of Mulan from Chinese historical legends in China in 1999 did not yield satisfactory box office income. According to reports, part of the reason is that the story is too western.

In addition, Disney has been successfully touring since 1996. The Disney company even wanted to invest in a real-life Kung Fu version of Snow White. The story was set in the 1890s. The seven dwarves in the original cartoon were also replaced by seven Shaolin monks.

According to industry insiders, after the successful Disneyland 100th Anniversary Tour on the ice last year, this year will present three well-known Disney "jungle stories": "Taishan Taishan," "Prince of the Forest," and "The Lion King." The theme of the show is “Growth, Friendship, and Adventure.” The contents are interpenetrating and the plot is deepened. Combining dances with great skill and numerous award-winning music, the stadiums of Hangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing will be transformed into beautiful fairy tales. world.

According to analysis by industry insiders, Disney’s large-scale tour performance in Mainland China is one of its important aims is to expand the momentum for the opening of Hong Kong Disneyland and further increase the Disney brand's influence in China.

However, on the other hand, some experts pointed out that it is still not known whether Hong Kong Disneyland can achieve great success. Disney faces a serious obstacle in China: Although many Chinese children are familiar with the classic characters in Disney animation, their understanding of Disneyland and Disney is very limited. Rasulo said: "This is our first paradise built without long-term customer relationships."

In view of this, with an old friend who has more than 70 years of friendship but lacks in-depth understanding, Disney has a lot of "homework" to do, which also gives us more attention to its prospects in China. And expectation.

From "Waterloo in Europe" to "Mickey Mouse in Tang"

The performance of Disney Overseas Theme Park can be described as "weak." Tokyo Disneyland in Japan has been very successful. About 25 million guests visit the park each year, but Euro Disney in Paris, France has encountered “Waterloo”. The only Disneyland in Europe officially opened to the public on April 12, 1992. Disney Company wanted to recreate the success of Tokyo Disney here. It became the largest culture, entertainment and holiday center in Europe. It did not expect to start from the first day of its opening. Since then, it has fallen into a dilemma of losing millions of dollars a day, and Disney's stock prices have continued to fall. This loss lasted for eight years until the fiscal year 2000-2001. However, in the 2001-2002 fiscal year, Euro Disney announced losses.

Analysts believe that there are two main reasons why Disneyland Paris suffered “Waterloo”: On the one hand, the conflict between different cultures has triggered a boycott of European customers. For example, when the European Disneyland opened its doors, the restaurant did not provide wine, which was simply unbearable to the self-styled French people; on the other hand, the price of Disneyland was indeed true for European consumers who were in an economic downturn at the time. Some are high.

In order not to repeat the mistakes of Euro Disney in Hong Kong, Disney Company has made every effort to solve it. First, it is trying hard to make itself more Chinese. In Hong Kong Disneyland, Chinese traditional architecture will appear for the first time; Hua Mulan will return to his hometown and dance in Chinese-style pavilions; the T-shirts in Disney stores will be tailored to the size of the Chinese body; the first Disney Chinese meal The shop will use the finest Chinese cuisine to whet the appetites of tourists; the first Disney jewelry store is precisely the pulse of the Chinese people's preference for jewellery... A reporter who visited the park in advance said with emotion: “ Mickey Mouse was dressed in Tang suits, Donald Ducks were wearing embroidered shoes, and sleeping beauty tied up with red-headed ropes. They rang the Chinese dance with the national dance, and I really could not think of a reasonable reason to shut them out.”

Walking through the gates of the 126-hectare Hong Kong Disneyland, it feels like being in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The exquisite buildings on the street, the dimly lit gas lamps, the wagons that have passed by... a deep nostalgic atmosphere. Come here. This is the “U.S. Township Street”, one of the first four theme parks in Hong Kong Disneyland. It is like most Americans’ childhood memories, but not exactly the same—because of the irresistible fantasy Because of the ingenuity that is integrated into the Chinese elements.

In a Victorian-inspired building, the first Chinese restaurant, Plaza Street in the American Town Plaza Inn, recreates the teahouse style popular in Greater Shanghai in the early 20th century. On the indoor walls, traditional Chinese fading landscapes are painted, and the wall decorations are modeled on the various images of the Disney cartoon “Mulan”. In addition, the workers will also have a fish-shaped lantern hanging shop with ethnic characteristics, adding a bit of local flavor. breath. Tom Morris, one of the designers, said: "While Hong Kong Disneyland is a display of American culture, it also pays great attention to meeting the tastes of the local people. This is like the United States at the turn of the century. It has both Disney features and doping with China. culture."

"Dream World" has a garden where tourists who like to take photographs will certainly keep the shutters on hold. Mickey, Minnie Mouse and other well-known cartoon characters will be dressed in Chinese clothes to take a close photo with you; Hua Mulan also has its own pavilion, like the Chinese temple.

In addition, eight themed restaurants have carefully prepared a variety of oriental cuisines: Indian curries, Japanese sushi, Chinese mango pudding... and a wide range of products. They are placed in Mickey Mouse's head-shaped receptacles to evoke the double surprises of your sight and taste.

The designers of Hong Kong Disneyland also invited Mr. Feng Shui to ensure the prosperity of the park. He even chose Ji Garden for the park. Before the new construction begins, a traditional ceremony is always held. Dennis McAlpine, of McAlpine Associates Media Entertainment Research, pointed out that Disney has realized that they cannot impose the American will or Disney's will on others. They want to integrate the Hong Kong Disneyland with the surroundings.

However, most of the park's buildings are still shipped from the United States. Designers follow the design of Disney's first Disney. Disney's many classics are copied and moved here, such as the mythical Sleeping Beauty Castle, Space Roller Coaster and so on. Can this be favored by the Chinese customer base? Disney executives on this issue showed optimistic expectations. Don Robinson, general manager of Hong Kong Disneyland, said: "The Chinese have heard too many stories about the global Disneyland. They must want to experience it for themselves."

Propaganda, Low Price, Expansion: Disney "kills" frequently

Disney has repeatedly stated that it hopes that 1/3 of the guests in the Hong Kong park will come from the Mainland. In order to achieve this goal, Disney company racked its brains. Responsible person in charge of Ogilvy & Mather (Asia Pacific) company responsible for the advertising and public relations work before the opening of Hong Kong Disneyland revealed that 1/3 of the marketing plan is for Hong Kong, 1/3 is for the Chinese mainland, especially South China, and the remaining 1/3 is for Other regions in Asia.

A year ago, Hong Kong Disney had already started its round-the-clock promotion on the mainland market. In August 2004, more than a year after the opening of the park, Hong Kong Disney held a “dream party live performance” in Guangzhou. After entering the year of 2005, Hong Kong Disneyland first appeared on the 4th “Princess of Sleeping Princess” exhibition on the 4th of May in the “2005 Guangzhou International Tourism Fair”, and then in Shenzhen, Dongguan, Zhongshan, and from April 15 to May 8. Pearl River Delta cities such as Guangzhou launched a tour tour named “The Wonderful Journey”.

In addition, they also discussed with the Mainland authorities on the increase of transit quotas through the relevant departments of the Hong Kong Government, arranged direct transit buses, and set up a "Disney train" that directly passes through the park...

Of course, among the various efforts made by Hong Kong Disneyland, the most powerful one is the ticket price. In order to get closer to the consumption level in the Mainland, Hong Kong Disneyland set the fare as the lowest in the world: adult weekday tickets of HKD 295 and holiday of HKD 350; children of 3 to 11 years of age have a daily ticket price of HKD 210, holidays of HKD 250, and children under 3 years of age are free to enter field. In contrast, the fare for adults on weekdays is 393 HKD for Tokyo, 427 HKD for Orlando, 388 HK for California, and 383 for Paris.

Although Hong Kong Disneyland has not yet officially opened its doors, the new expansion plan has been put on the company's schedule. Disney plans to double the capacity of the park or add a theme park. In addition, according to Rasulo, Disney has already discussed with China’s relevant parties about the opening of Disneyland in mainland China, and may choose to visit Shanghai. Despite the ambitious plan, Disney is also consciously aware that success in the world's most populous country does not come overnight, and challenges always coexist with opportunities.

However, Disney has never been a place of lack of dreams and passion. Founder Walt Disney once said: "As long as the world still has a dream, Disney will never be completed." And in the tower of the main castle in each Disney park There is a small white space on the tip, without any color. The whispering of this spire is a classic interpretation of the phrase Disney's Father from generation to generation - "The dream of Disney never stops." Because they believe that it is possible to create something.

Related Links: Disneyland Family Table
California Disneyland, opened on July 17, 1955;
Magic Kingdom - Walt Disney World, Florida, opened on October 1, 1971;
Located at the Epcot Centre in Walt Disney World Resort, Florida, opened on October 1, 1982;
Tokyo Disneyland, opened on April 15, 1983;
Disney-MGM Studios, Walt Disney World Resort, Florida, opened on May 1, 1989;
Disneyland Paris, opened on April 12, 1992;
The Disney Animal Kingdom, located in Walt Disney World Resort, Florida, opened on April 22, 1998;
The Disney Sea cruise line, Disney Magic, set sail on July 30, 1998;
The Disney California Adventure Park located in the California Disneyland Resort opened on February 8, 2001;
Tokyo DisneySea, opened on September 4, 2001;
Disney Studios Paris, opened on March 16, 2002;
Hong Kong Disneyland, opened on September 12, 2005.