The new head of Disney (DIS.US) outlined a $60 billion investment strategy, and “core iron powder” became the focus of the layout

There aren't many occasions where a live audience can cheer for a simulated electric snow monster, but it wasn't the average audience that sat in the audience at the Disney (DIS.US) D23 Exposition — and these core fans are at the core of Disney's theme park investment strategy.

The Zhitong Finance App learned that in the next ten years, Disney plans to invest about 60 billion US dollars in this field.

“We want the Snow Monster back to life,” said Thomas Mazloum (Thomas Mazloum), chairman of the Disney Experience Division, to 12,000 Disneyland fans at a special business event in Anaheim, California.

What he called “rebirth” refers to a simulation model of the Snow Monster from the “Mount Everest Adventure” amusement program at Disney World's Animal Kingdom theme park. The Snow Monster models in this facility have been stationary since 2006. At the time of its debut, it was the largest and most complex animated character ever built by Walt Disney Imagination (Walt Disney Imaginary), but it broke down after only a few months of operation.

Since the device is located inside a completed amusement facility, maintenance is extremely difficult. Therefore, the fantasy engineer switched it to “B mode” and used the strobe light effect to create the illusion of movement. Since then, this damaged animated animated character has been affectionately called the “Disco Snow Monster” by fans. Now, it has finally ushered in its “second spring.”

Mazlum took over the park business after Josh D'Amaro (Josh D'Amaro) was named Disney's CEO. Last Saturday, he announced the Snow Monster restoration plan to his most loyal Disney fans, which also included the return of popular characters “Dreamfinder” (Dreamfinder) and “Figment” (Figment) at the Epcot (Epcot) theme park in Florida, as well as the overall transformation of Tomorrowland (Tomorrowland) in California.

This series of initiatives sends a clear signal that Disney will focus on its major business segment, Disney Experiences (Disney Experiences). This segment covers theme parks, cruises, and consumer goods sales. As Disney continues to expand its reach, the company needs to rely on its most loyal visitors and customers with the strongest spending power to meet the challenges brought about by macroeconomic uncertainty and fluctuating travel trends.

“It may not sound like a big deal, but Snow Monster, Little Purple Dragon, or seriously transforming Tomorrowland means a lot to many people because they grew up with these stories,” Mazlum said in an interview.

“These projects are small but have immediate results, but they are full of meaning,” he added.

The way to balance

For Mazlum, the core issue during his time in charge of the Disney Experience Division was to balance two major directions: on the one hand, large-scale expansion plans — building new parks and regional transformation based on popular IPs to attract infrequent foreign and international visitors; on the other hand, launching more targeted updates and upgrades for annual pass holders and high-frequency tourist groups.

“Our job is to listen to the voices of all parties and then find ways to reconcile different needs and expectations,” he said.

“The simplest statement is: My real concern is making sure fans, consumers, and visitors are at the center of decisions,” he said.

Mazlum said these efforts have begun to bear fruit. Citing the company's recently released financial report for the third quarter of fiscal year 2026, he pointed out that the revenue of the experience sector was close to 10 billion US dollars, an increase of 10% over the previous year, reaching a record quarterly high.

“I believe that the final results come from doing something right in the beginning, and the most critical of these is putting fans at the center of our attention,” he said. “Because of this, despite other companies reporting different performance, we still performed very well in Florida, and we did a great job in California — because we listened attentively and responded to the right consumer needs at the right time.”

Last month, competitor Comcast (CMCSA.US) reported a decline in the number of visitors to its theme parks, particularly in the Orlando, Florida area. However, the number of visitors to Disney's domestic theme parks increased by 3%, and tourist spending increased by 4%.

The company credits this to the “Cool Kids Summer” promotion, which includes benefits such as kid-centered cartoon character meet-and-greets, dance parties, an air-conditioned lounge area, and free admission to a water park for Disney Resort guests on the day of their stay.

Disney has also recently renovated and transformed a number of attractions in the park, including “Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin” (Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin), “Big Thunder Mountain Railroad” (Big Thunder Mountain Railroad), and the Mupdle-themed “Rock 'n' Roller Coaster” (Rock 'n' Roller Coaster).

Driven by IP to drive admission rate

Next, the renovation of the classic project “Carousel of Progress” (Carousel of Progress) is expected to be completed in late spring 2027; at the same time, a new “Monstropolis” (Monstropolis) park with the theme of “Monster Electric Company” is also scheduled to open in 2027.

At the same time, Disney continues to advance long-term projects such as the “Avengers Campus” (Avengers Campus) expansion, a new “Villains Land” (Villains Land), the transformation of “Frontierland” (Frontierland) with the theme of “Racing”, and a new “Tropical Americas” (Tropical Americas) theme park.

Since the first amusement park opened, Disney's huge IP asset library has been the cornerstone of its theme park, and in recent decades, this treasure trove of content has continued to expand. The company has inexhaustible story and character resources to attract visitors to the park.

Although the new park and theme transformation are open to all visitors, the primary goal is to leverage the low-frequency remote customer base and create new reasons for foreign and overseas visitors to travel.

“A very high percentage of visitors to Shanghai Disneyland made a special trip to 'Zootopia, '” then-CEO Robert Iger (Bob Iger) said during the company's first fiscal quarter earnings conference call in February this year.

Give back to loyal visitors

Equally important are the frequent visitors to Disneyland. They have the deepest emotional connection with the park, and they also have more purchasing opportunities in terms of surrounding products and food and beverage expenses.

While these loyal visitors love the completion of the big new park, it's not the only driving force behind their frequent visits. Visitors who visit the park every year or multiple times have a deep passion for experiencing the park's live shows, character meetings, festival-limited cuisine, seasonal festivals, float parades, and nighttime light shows.

At the press conference last Saturday, Disney also announced that it will resume two popular nighttime shows — Disneyland's fireworks show “Remember Dreams Come True” (Remember Dreams Come True), and California Adventure's original “World of Color” (World of Color). Additionally, the “Magic Happens” (Magic Happens) float parade will return to Disneyland.

“This series of new announcements shows that Disney is listening to fans,” said Gavin Doyle (Gavin Doyle), founder of MickeyVisit.com. “The live response was cheers and thunderous applause. People feel that Disney has heard what they have always wanted.”