Walt Disney Company expanded into food and beverage products in the 2000s to diversify its brand and address concerns about childhood obesity. Disney partnered with producers and retailers like Imagination Farms and Kroger to market healthier food options branded with Disney characters. While initially successful, Disney faced challenges with pricing, differentiation from competitors, public perception of its new product category, and achieving broad distribution.

1. Marketing
nutrition to
children
DISNEY CASE STUDY
Made by-
Rhythm Tyagi
DTU

2. Founded by Walter Elias Disney and his brother Roy and later renamed as Walt Disney Company.
In 1923, the famous Mickey Mouse is debuted which is the first cartoon with sound.
Disney film are known for their beautiful imagery and for emotional storytelling. Thus, the company won
the Academy Awards for their cartoons. This followed the success of release of Snow White, highest
grossing film at the time.
The brand debuted into amusement parks including a theme park boasting of hotels, golf courses,
shopping centres.
After the death of roy,Eisner took over and the company focused more on its entertainment assets by
acquiring the famous ABC channel.

4. California
Florida
Paris
Shanghai
Hong Kong
Tokyo

5. 9.16 billion
Around the world, families spent an
annual average of
hours immersed in Disney-branded experiences and products

6. WHY?

8. Media networks
STudio entertainment Parks and resorts
DCP
Diversification of the brand
into 4 categories-

9. × Merchandising at Disney dated back to 1929, when, because of
the popularity of the first Mickey
× Mouse films, the company began to receive requests to license
the character.
× Disney Consumer Products was responsible for extending the
Disney brand to merchandise ranging from apparel, toys,
home décor and books to interactive games, food and
beverages, electronics and animation art

10. 1. Licensing Model- DIsney being a big brand was accustomed to settling
terms with licensees for distribution. However, the scenario of market was
changing and DIsney had to come up with two new models for distribution:
2. Sourcing- When licensees couldn’t provide with distribution strength and
superior product differentiation, DIsney switched to its Sourcing model.
3. DTR- Direct to retail model involves partnering with retailers who are
winners in their own marketplaces.
NEW

11. DCP had been a long-time licensor of packaged foods,
the portfolio had consisted largely of candy and ice
cream.
They did have a few cereals, Minute Maid juices, some
frozen fish and chicken—but the portfolio was mostly
sweets and treats.
It was largely an extension of the park experience.
Their strategy then was-Disney is about fun and they
should be in fun categories.

12. However, In 2004, health experts estimated that more than 30% of American children between the
ages of 5 and 9 years were overweight and 14% were obese.
The Advertising Standards Code of the Communications Act of 2003 ensured that broadcasters
followed a tough set of rules regarding advertising food to children
Dramatic increases in childhood obesity caused the company to consider the nutritional value of its
own food products. Disney conducted a corporate-level audit of the food and beverage offerings
DCP managers realized the company would need to establish credibility with the U.S government,
parents and nutritionists.
This was a significant challenge given the company’s existing licensing deals with candy and treat
manufacturers and its long-standing role as a toy supplier to McDonald’s, itself under constant
attack as a significant contributor to the obesity epidemic.
THE

13. Disney found out that mothers transferred their perceptions of the Disney
brand as high quality, trustworthy and familiar to a line of food and
beverages.
Moms associate Disney strongly with magic—it is the key image that
comes to mind—even when it comes to food.
Thus, they combines the likes of children with the idea of loyalty of their
moms into their products.
RESEARCh

14. DCP’s internal nomenclature for its evolving healthier product line—
products would be minimally processed, have controlled levels of
added sugar, and contain no trans or hydrogenated fats.
Calories were limited by either adjusting a ood’s formulation or its
portion size. In addition, the company minimized the use of additives.
They set limits within the problem areas of calories, fat, added sugar
and sodium. We also look for ways to promote fiber and calcium and
prefer to use whole foods that are intrinsically dense in nutrients.

15. STrategies for overcoming the
problem3
31
2
Innovation
The third strategy was
to offer products that
already had broad
appeal such as milk or
peanut butter.
Creative Packaging
Innovative packaging was
used to inspire product
sampling, such as making
water bottles in the shape
of characters.
Rebranding
Products that are already healthy and
make them more fun. They partnered
with source manufacturers and took
something that is already working and
make it more fun. For example, we could
mold whole-wheat pasta into character
shapes

16. Thats All
planning!
Where’s the implementation?

17. Imagination Farms
Kroger

18. Disney began licensing its
characters to Imagination
Farms, a national fresh produce
marketing company founded
specifically to serve as a licensee
to dCP, in March 2006.

19. DCP and Imagination Farms used a three-pronged product
development strategy:
1.Differentiate commodity produce through promotion
2.create value-added products through product
preparation
or packaging
3.develop exclusive produce varieties that would yield more
child-friendly foods.

20. Disney+Imagination farms=
taste, nutrition, magic

21. In addition to licensing produce
through Imagination Farms, DCP
developed a broad range of
products with Cincinnati-based
Kroger Supermarkets,

22. 60600000000This is the annual sale of Kroger. It is the
largest grocery retailer in the US

23. To be profitable with food,
you need to be in 80% of the
nation’s outlets.

24. Kroger and Disney together launched the
‘Disney Magic Selection’ brand differentiated
by a “better for you” health call-out which
pictured a gloved, thumbs-up Mickey hand
next to a “check it out” balloon that
described the product’s health benefits.

25. Kroger used a variety of mickey centric
characters like chef mickey, farmer mickey,
mickey burgers, peanut butter etc.

26. Sesame
Workshop
Nickelodeon Warner Bros

28. Spinach, baby carrots and clementines bearing SpongeBob
Squarepants and Dora the explorer character images, licensed by
children’s cable television channel Nickelodeon, began to appear
on supermarket shelves.
Nickelodeon executives began contacting food manufacturers to
explore new licensing partnerships for fruits and vegetables.
The branding effort turned out to be an instant hit.

29. Del Monte Foods signed a licensing deal with
Sesame Workshop. They sold peas, corn and
green beans featuring Elmo, Grover and
Cookie Monster characters on its labels.
A study conducted by Sesame Workshop found
that preschoolers’ consumption of broccoli
increased by 28% when the vegetable was
branded with a Sesame Street character.

30. Ready Pac, signed a licensing agreement with Warner Bros.
And planned to feature Warner’s Bugs Bunny, Tweety and
Tasmanian Devil characters on its Cool Cuts Ready Snax single-
serving packages of fruit.
The company also marketed carrots and celery served with ranch
dip or peanut butter, which it described as a “healthier snack
alternative” and “the original kidpleasin’,Mom-lovin’ Dippity
Delicious snack!”

32. Health Categories Staples Treats
Water/Juice Pasta/Soups Confections
MilkFruits Carbs/Breads Ice Creams
Vegetables Yogurt/meat Cookies

33. You think all is
well?You need to reconsider

35. 14,000New foods debut in
US market each year
6%Successful
94%FAIL

36. Developing healthier
food and beverage
products or serving
smaller portion sizes
may be
viewed by some private
sector businesses as
risks rather than as
opportunities.
Making changes in
the absence of broad-
based consumer
demand, whatever
the market,
conceivably can be
seen as a risk to the
private sector.
The food and beverage
industries’ decisions are
guided by key factors—
including taste,
palatability, cost,
convenience, value,
variety,
availability, ethnic
preferences, and safety—
that drive consumer
demand.

39. Pricing
products were priced similarly to private
brands and Imagination Farms’ products
were priced competitively within the
produce department, the market
expected premium pricing from Disney
and this is a marketing challenge for them,
to go out with lower pricing
Differentiation & Competition
There is competition and channel friction, but
Disney can beat the competition because
even if they develop and match our
nutritional standards, they cannot access
Disney magic,
Legacy
Some DCP managers wondered if the
public—and particularly the media—would
embrace the new food products.
.
Growth & Distribution
Though DCP signed an exclusive DTR relationship
with Kroger for the Disney Magic Selections line,
Disney wanted to license or develop additional
lines. DCP managers believed that the company
could differentiate additional lines using
characters, brand and price.

41. DCP was excited about their entry into the food market and planned to
capitalizing on the vast resources of the Walt Disney Company to gain
market share and acceptance for its new undertaking. Managers envisioned
publishing cookbooks, televising cooking shows for children, and linking
its nutritional efforts with exercise programs. Extending its offerings
from retail supermarket products to food service (school lunch
programs) and out-of-home consumption in restaurants was also under
consideration. Disney—and by extension, DCP—was highly influential with
children.

43. × Google Images
× www.fLickr.com
× www.disney.in
× www.disneyinternational.com
× disneyworld.disney.com

44. This presentation is made by Rhythm Tyagi,
Delhi Technological University (Formerly
Delhi College of Engineering) under prof.
Sameer Mathur, IIM-L in the marketing
management internship.