Kim's Corner
Page 9 of 12

Hello. Stitch-aholics Anonymous?

OK - saving the best for last - STITCH! Yeah - I’m a Stitch-aholic and proud of it. Can’t seem to help myself where the evil tempered little alien (with the Disney-issued heart of gold) is concerned. And it looks like I’m not the only one. All of the merchandise was selling incredibly well before the movie’s release - which - I think - helped to create million-dollar buzz around its opening - and since the release has sold even better. It seems that the lessons of product shortages and panic buying that plagued the releases of both Toy Story 2 and Monsters Inc. have been remedied with the Lilo & Stitch campaign - with the exception of the Stitch as a dog 7-inch beanie - most of the merchandise is on the shelves from opening until the evening sales rush.

The Lilo & Stitch line features something for - almost - everyone from 2 micro-sound-chip enhanced plush Stitches to a musical hula dancing Lilo and a set of stickers and action figures for each character - the price points run from less than $3.00 to more than $40.00. The only thing wrong with the line is a missed opportunity - offering apparel for children ONLY - is incredibly short sighted and keeping thousands of ADULT consumer dollars out of the Disney Company coffers - not a good thing. There are also items with a distinctly tropical theme being sold in support of the Lilo & Stitch line.

L&S pins - there were 10 open stock pins released at the DLR on the day of the opening - they were released at WDW weeks earlier - and seem to be selling well - especially the Stitch as puppy and the Lilo & Stitch on the big-wheel. A limited edition 2,000 Opening Day pin was also offered and sold out in the afternoon. A mystery pin LE 750 was released on opening morning and was sold out in hours (lots of horror stories about this release). Cast members at the DLR had the opportunity to purchase 3 CM Exclusive pins LE 3,000.
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It seems that a little alien has taken over the resort - and the hearts of kids and collectors.
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Stitch will rule the summer collectable and merchandise sales - at least if I keep buying him he will.
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Stitch action figures - $8.00 each - and very cute.
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Lilo & Stitch play sets and a special space ray voice changer gun - also very well made - let's just say that I was surprised that the PC contingent didn't intervene and that the toys and the character were allowed to have "guns" in whatever form.
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