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Report: Cherry Hill, NJ opens the second next generation Disney Store
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Mickey and Minnie Mouse, along with Pluto and Goofy "strike a pose"
for photographers and guests at the opening of the new
Disney Store at the Cherry Hill Mall.

The Wonderful New World of Disney Retail Shopping

Borrowing a page from Cinderella's Fairy Godmother, officials from the Disney Stores magically opened a second prototype Disney Store at the Cherry Hill Mall in New Jersey. The opening came after three months of extensive renovations to the location.

Tom Park, Executive Vice President for Disney Store Worldwide was joined by Doug Murphy, Senior Vice President and General Manager for Disney Store, North America and a cast of familiar Disney characters for the opening of the store on Friday, October 27th. Standing in front of a curtain which heightened the suspense of the opening, Park and Murphy asked the crowd to help them in their task to open the store. The two Disney executives asked the crowd to shout out "Abracadabra," "Ali-kazam," and the Fairy Godmother's famous words "Bippity-Boppity-Boo" to begin the festivities. Through lighting, special effects, music and five Disney Store dancers, a curtain was pulled down from the store front to reveal the Wonderful New World of Disney retail shopping. The curtain also gave way to a Disney Store welcoming committee featuring Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Goofy and Pluto along with cast members from the Cherry Hill Store.

Once the store was officially opened, the ropes were let down and guests crowded in to experience what company executives maintain is the new design for the Disney Store in the 21st Century. A similar prototype Disney Store opened October 4th at the South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, California. For those guests who wanted to wait until the crowds thinned out in the Cherry Hill Store, they had the opportunity to attend a meet and greet with Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Pluto a short distance away from the store at the Strawbridges Department Store Court of the Mall.

 
Confetti swirls from ovehead as the Walt Disney Company opens the
second prototype Disney Store of the future at the Cherry Hill Mall.

Guests to the new Disney Store will immediately notice the difference between the old and new stores. Gone at the Disney Store Cherry Hill are the trademark store-front animated store windows, plush mountain, carpeting and the large video screen in the back of the store. The windows have been replaced by merchandise and a video wall, plush mountain has given way to a plush tower. The colorful carpeting has been removed for a gray-beige terrazzo floor. The large video screen has been replaced by a six-foot-tall Disney "D" logo which is backlit in vibrant colors and can be tailored to the season.

The Cherry Hill Store, which opened in 1989, originally featured animated scenes from classic Disney films around the ceiling of the store. They have been removed to make way for increased selling space throughout the store. The new Cherry Hill Store is brighter and colorful than the original store's gray, blue and mauve color scheme.