(Yicai) Sept. 14 -- The Walt Disney Company is rolling out a new cross-border strategy to help many of its consumer product partners in China to expand their market abroad, a senior executive of the US entertainment giant said.

Some of Disney’s partners in China, such as discount retailer Miniso Group Holding, have a presence overseas, but many have not yet gone global, said Kermid Rahman, senior vice president and general manager of consumer products for the firm’s China and South Korea divisions.

“We plan to launch more Chinese consumer goods in the international market through our sales channels and bring suitable foreign merchandise to China,” Rahman said at The Walt Disney China 2024 Consumer Products Showcase recently.

“The creative and development team at Disney China’s licensed consumer product department creates over 200 new designs per day on average,” Rahman said.

Sales of Disney China’s licensed merchandise surged by double digits in the fiscal year 2023, he added. And that of its plush toys has been growing at an average rate of 50 percent for the past three years.

China is an important market for Disney and the Burbank-based firm is opening a number of new themed parks in the country this year. World of Frozen, the world’s first themed land based on the animation film Frozen, will open at Hong Kong Disneyland on Nov. 20. The thrid installment of Frozen movie has been announced. And the world’s first Zootopia-themed land is expected to open at Shanghai Disney Resort late this year.

All of these new initiatives spell opportunities for licensed Chinese manufacturers of the firm’s branded products, Yicai learned.

Disney also owns a diverse array of brands and franchises in Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, 20th Century Studios, and National Geographic.

Editor: Kim Taylor