Walt Disney World is undergoing a major expansion and rebranding of its Downtown Disney area, to be renamed Disney Springs. The expansion will double the retail and dining space to 1.1 million square feet across five new neighborhoods. Disney is recruiting new high-quality retailers and restaurants to create unique flagship experiences that leverage the Disney brand. The goal is to make Disney Springs the premier retail and entertainment destination in Orlando.

1. SHOPPING CENTER BUSINESS • APRIL 2014
S
ituated within the heart of one of
the top family destinations in the
world, Downtown Disney at Walt
Disney World Resort in Lake Buena
Vista, Fla., has spent nearly 40 years as a
top performing, high volume retail, dining
and entertainment venue with more than
70 themed and immersive experiences,
such as the world’s largest Disney store,
Cirque du Soleil’s La Nouba, the LEGO
Imagination Center, House of Blues and
an AMC Movies complex with Fork &
Screen Dine-In theatres.
What do you do with a property that is
already doing exceptionally well? If you’re
Disney and you have a property located
in the booming Orlando retail market,
you view it as an opportunity to make it
even better.
Downtown Disney is currently undergo-
ing the largest expansion in its history — a
multi-year transformation that will double
the number of shopping, and dining ex-
periences available and feature an eclectic
and contemporary mix from Disney and
other noteworthy brands. Opening in
phases starting in 2015, the area will be
renamed Disney Springs. Development
will be complete in 2016.
In total, the rebranded area will grow to
1.1 million square feet, including 350,000
square feet of new leaseable space. The
development is attracting affordable-
luxury tenants and encouraging them to
use proximity to “the most magical place
on earth” to their advantage by offering
a look, experience and merchandise that
stands out from other stores that bear
their names. It is part of the entire vision
of the area, which is the next step in the
evolution of retailing at the resort.
“With the Downtown Disney expan-
sion, the primary focus of our growth
will be with third-party retailers,” says
Keith Bradford, vice president of Down-
town Disney. “We are adding up to 65
new retail tenants and talking with lead-
ing national and international retailers
and brands that will help us provide di-
verse and high-quality experiences that
complement our Disney-branded experi-
ences. The response has been extremely
positive.”
Walt Disney Imagineering is the cre-
ative force behind Disney Springs, and
its legendary team of Imagineers are in-
volved in every step of the design and
build process. They’ve collaborated with
several talented design groups, including
Elkus Manfredi Architects, which worked
Disney Springs will feature five distinct areas that will ultimately make up 1.1 million square feet
of retail, restaurant and entertainment space. Pictured is a rendering of the Town Center
and Landing portions of the center.
Disney’s Magic Kingdom Of Retail
The Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando is embarking on a plan to recast its successful Downtown
Disney retail and entertainment center to Disney Springs. The resulting center will be a win-win for
visitors and retailers looking for a one-of-a-kind venue.
Randall Shearin and Lynn Peisner

2. APRIL 2014 • SHOPPING CENTER BUSINESS
on The Grove in Los Angeles, to create
what will be a dynamic, world-class desti-
nation. Mitch Friedel of Newmark Grubb
Knight Frank is the leasing agent.
Drawing inspiration from Florida’s wa-
terfront towns and natural beauty, Disney
Springs will include five outdoor neigh-
borhoods interconnected by a flowing
spring and vibrant lakefront. In addition
to a new gateway with a signature water
tower and grand entry, the destination will
feature:
• A colorful commercial district called
The Landing with inspired dining and re-
tail and waterfront views.
• The Town Center, which offers a mix
of dining and shopping along with a prom-
enade where guests can relax, refresh and
reconnect.
• The family-friendly Marketplace that
will continue to engage guests of all ages
by combining new experiences, such as an
over-the-water pedestrian causeway, along
with classic Disney favorites, including an
expanded World of Disney store.
• A West Side that provides an atmo-
sphere with lively entertainment, along
with a series of new elevated spaces that
offer both shade and an overlook to the
activity below.
• The Springs, a unique place at the
heart of the property for guests to ex-
plore their options to shop, dine and be
entertained.
The overall concept is about creating
a sense of reinvented history, with a high
emphasis on lighting, landscaping and the
impression that these spaces were a part
of a former 20th Century town.
“We’re really going for an adaptive re-
use look, so think about San Antonio’s
Riverwalk or Faneuil Hall in Boston,” says
Theron Skees, executive creative director
with Walt Disney Imagineering. “You’ll
seesomerecycledwoodandreusedbricks.
It’s meant to be a snapshot between the
original, older classic streetscape and the
modern. All these various buildings and
spaces that were designed in another time
for another purpose are being gentrified.
Disney Springs is meant to feel that way.”
Work is well underway on the first
phase of Disney Springs, known as The
Landing, which will open in early 2015.
Set along the waterfront with the feel of a
seaport, The Landing will offer inspired
dining and small boutique shops. It will
elevate the guest dining experience with
innovative dining options featuring well-
respected restaurateurs from New York
City, Chicago, and Los Angeles, as well
as some exciting new concepts. The din-
ing component is expected to be signifi-
cant. There are currently 17 restaurants at
Downtown Disney, but that number will
rise to about 30 at Disney Springs, with
more than 10,000 seats of dining.
“Along with retail, food and beverage
will play a crucial role in the success of
Disney Springs,” Bradford says. “We
think of it as equally as important as the
retail. It’s a huge anchor for us through-
out the property, and we’re very excited
about some of the offerings we’re bring-
ing here.”
Tenanting deals are in the process of
being finalized for The Landing, with
more news to come later this year. In the
interim, Bradford says The Landing’s ten-
ants will be indicative of the high quality
experiences the company is bringing to
Disney Springs, and guests can expect
even more on the retail front with the
opening of The Town Center in 2016.
Bradford says Disney Springs was de-
signed with the retail tenant in mind and
will be brought to life with the quality and
attention to detail for which Disney is
known. Retailers will enjoy a captive mar-
ket, ready to spend. More than 50 million
tourists visit Central Florida every year,
spending almost $30 billion, according to
Daily Finance. Orlando is the most visited
destination in the United States and the
No. 1 convention spot in the country, ac-
The entrance to Disney Springs.
The West Side area borrows influences from New York City’s High Line, featuring
elevated spaces that provide an overlook to the activity below.

3. SHOPPING CENTER BUSINESS • APRIL 2014
cording to Visit Orlando.
Asking retailers to set up shop at Disney
Springs has not been a hard sell thanks in
part to Downtown Disney’s successful his-
tory, which takes away a lot of guesswork.
“Disney Springs is an exciting project
for prospective tenants because they are
getting access to Walt Disney World
guests and tapping into an already suc-
cessful property,” says Phil Bernard, vice
president of operating participants with
Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, U.S.
While Disney does not broadly release
its sales figures, Bernard claims Down-
town Disney has impressive per-square-
foot sales figures for its current retail
space with some of the highest revenues
in the industry. “We break records for
guest satisfaction and intent to return or
recommend,” says Bernard.
Viewing its available space as a fresh
creative playground, Disney Springs is
asking its potential tenants to think big,
and outside the box. “We really want
some of these stores to be flagships,” says
Bernard. “A flagship doesn’t need to be
the largest, it just has to portray something
that is unique and special.”
“We ask retailers how they can create an
immersive experience with their brand,”
adds Skees. “For example, there might be
something in the store that showcases how
a product is made. That type of element
creates an experience. And while there
is great shopping in Orlando, at Disney
Springs, we want to create something you
can’t find anywhere else in the country.”
Thinking through the “story” is where
the Imagineers come into play, as does
the idea of placemaking. Tying the new
neighborhoods together will require ex-
panding the infrastructure and increasing
accessibility. Much of this work is cur-
rently underway.
“We know that access to the property
is important,” Bradford says. “As part of
the expansion, we are working closely with
the Reedy Creek Improvement District
to expand Buena Vista Drive, the road
leading directly into Disney Springs, to 10
lanes and add a dedicated bus lane, along
with two parking garages.”
In addition to a centralized bus route,
Disney Springs will include two pedestrian
bridges. If not coming by foot, by car or
by bus, there are also approximately 6,000
hotel rooms that are situated along the
waterways that provide boat transporta-
tion around the resort, including to Dis-
ney Springs. All the roughly 30,000 hotel
rooms are connected to a closed-circuit
TV that will market Disney Springs to
guests.
“Prospective tenants will have branding
opportunities throughout Walt Disney
World parks and resorts and the ability
to tap into existing guest infrastructure like
in-room television, charging privileges di-
rect to room folios and merchandise de-
livery to their on-site hotel room free of
charge,” says Bernard.
While trying to push the experience to
the next level, it’s the opinion of those
who will shop, eat and spend their hard-
earned money to vacation here that Dis-
ney listens to most. Guest research is a
large part of planning any new venture in
these parts, including staying connected
with attendance trends, demographics,
spending patterns, diversity, income and
much more.
“With Disney Springs, we are tak-
ing the opportunity to address some of
what our guests have been asking for,”
Bradford says. “They’ve told us they want
additional restaurants, more diversity in
shopping. We conducted many focus
groups, and they shared a lot of great in-
sights with us about what they love about
Downtown Disney and what we should
consider doing differently. We talked to
people who’ve never been here, conven-
tion guests, non-convention guests, fami-
lies — you name them, we talked to them.”
It’s these guests who always remain top
of mind as Downtown Disney evolves into
its next chapter as Disney Springs.
“Through the expansion of Downtown
Disney, we are committed to providing
a great guest experience,” says Bradford.
“We have a long-standing track record of
being able to make enhancements to our
property while maintaining the magic of
the Disney experience, and we will con-
tinue that tradition with this project.” SCB
A nighttime view of the Disney Springs project.
This article originally appeared in Shopping Center Business, April 2014.
©2014 France Media, Inc.
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