“We find that brand partnerships are a very effective way to tell our brand story and bring new customers to Biscuiteers. We are hugely excited by the opportunity of working with Disney and bringing so many wonderful characters to life in icing. We believe it will bring new audiences to our brand through a shared love of these iconic stories.”
Biscuiteers
Disney has always understood the value of partnerships. What is increasingly interesting is how those partnerships are now being shaped, not purely around size or spectacle, but around relevance, regional insight and creative fit.
Christmas activity in the UK illustrates this clearly. Disney’s growing presence across Selfridges the leading department store, spans immersive retail, fashion, gifting and food, a fusion of activity and carefully layered expression of how the brand wants to live in modern consumer culture. Some partnerships speak in a global language. Others, quieter and more design-led, add texture and intimacy.
One such example is Disney’s newly announced, year-long collaboration with beloved British brand, Biscuiteers.
While smaller in scale than some of Disney’s better-known alliances, the partnership is revealing. Biscuiteers operates in a category driven by gifting, celebration and emotional connection, spaces where character, craftsmanship and familiarity carry more weight than novelty alone. It is a considered alignment, not just a beautifully, decorative one.
Disney Princess-Inspired Luxe Tin, that brings some of Disney’s most beloved character designs to life. Featuring designs of Disney Belle, Jasmine and Ariel among other Disney Princesses, the delightful keepsake box, which has been beautifully illustrated with images of the Princesses, can be used to store all manner of nick-nacks, from bracelets to tiaras.
Biscuiteers
Harriet Hastings, founder and managing director of Biscuiteers, told me exclusively the benefits of the collaboration for both partners:
“We find that brand partnerships are a very effective way to tell our brand story and bring new customers to Biscuiteers. We are hugely excited by the opportunity of working with Disney and bringing so many wonderful characters to life in icing. We believe it will bring new audiences to our brand through a shared love of these iconic stories.”
Her remarks underline a dynamic increasingly visible in Disney’s approach: partnerships should never dilute. They should be brilliant for both partners in deliver, in this case allowing the Disney universe to be expressed through brands that already understand how their customers live, gift and celebrate.
A Broader Strategy Playing Out in the UK
Disney’s Christmas programme has been shaped as a true department-store takeover rather than a single-brand moment. The collaboration stretches deliberately from accessible gifting through to luxury fashion and beauty, allowing Disney to sit naturally across the store rather than being confined to one category or price point. Premium partners such as Christian Louboutin, Coach and Golden Goose sit alongside more contemporary labels including GANNI, DUKE + DEXTER and thisisneverthat, each bringing Disney’s characters into their own creative language.
Disney
Disney Christmas at Selfridges
That range comes into sharp focus at Selfridges, where Disney’s Christmas programme has been shaped as a true department-store takeover rather than a single-brand moment. The collaboration stretches deliberately from accessible gifting through to luxury fashion and beauty, allowing Disney to sit naturally across the store rather than being confined to one category or price point. Premium partners such as Christian Louboutin, Coach and Golden Goose sit alongside more contemporary labels including GANNI, DUKE + DEXTER and thisisneverthat, each bringing Disney’s characters into their own creative language. The effect is layered rather than overwhelming: Disney becomes a thread woven through Selfridges, not a logo placed on top of it.
André Maeder, Selfridges Group Chief Executive Officer, says: “We’re full of excitement for this collaboration, bringing Selfridges and Disney together for a Christmas like no other. With a shared history of imagination and creativity it’s been a joy to dream up
something this unique and special, working with some of the world’s best storytellers.
We can’t wait to reveal more and share the magic with our customers.”
Globe’s Largest Licensor
Disney remains the world’s largest licensor. According to License Global, Disney has consistently ranked number one in global brand licensing, with retail sales tied to its IP estimated at over $60 billion annually. In its most recent reported financial year, The Walt Disney Company generated approximately $90 billion in global revenue, spanning entertainment, experiences and consumer products.
Swarovski, another Disney partner, marks over twenty years as a licensee, a relationship rooted in luxury craft, collectability and global recognition. It reinforces Disney’s stature and longevity in premium retail, offering consistency at scale.
The Quiet Power of Character Familiarity
André Maeder, Selfridges Group Chief Executive Officer, says: “We’re full of excitement for this collaboration, bringing Selfridges and Disney together for a Christmas like no other. With a shared history of imagination and creativity it’s been a joy to dream up something this unique and special, working with some of the world’s best storytellers. We can’t wait to reveal more and share the magic with our customers.”
Disney x Selfridges
Threaded through these partnerships is another reality Disney navigates with care: the enduring strength of its most recognisable characters.
Figures such as Mickey Mouse, Tigger (who along with Winnie The Pooh and friends have been transformed into Selfridges striking yellow plush versions for limited editions), Aladdin and The Aristocats continue to carry exceptional cross-generational appeal. Their silhouettes and expressions require little explanation. They work instinctively across categories, from jewellery to gifting and particularly well in formats that rely on immediate emotional recognition.
Newer characters, while narratively important, do not always translate with the same ease into consumer products, especially within design-led or gifting contexts. Disney does not overstate this, nor does it ignore it. Instead, it allows each partner to lean into the characters that best suit their aesthetic and audience.
In the case of Biscuiteers, whose products are deliberately charming and hand-crafted, these classic characters provide clarity and warmth rather than spectacle, an interpretation that feels contemporary without straying from the core.
Why Variety Strengthens the Brand
The most significant insight from Disney’s current UK partnerships is not about expansion, but about orchestration. Each layer supports the next. None competes for attention. Together, they ensure Disney remains not just visible, but relevant, familiar and emotionally present.
Disney has never struggled to command attention. What we are seeing now is a brand refining how it earns affection and understanding that the most powerful partnerships often begin with those who know their customers best.
Today’s consumers are surrounded by content, characters and collaborations. Attention is finite. Emotional connection is harder won. Familiarity still matters, but it needs refreshing.
That is where smaller partnerships like Biscuiteers play their part. Smaller, design-led businesses bring nuance and cultural sensitivity that cannot be industrialised, allowing Disney to exist within everyday rituals of gifting and seasonal behaviour rather than only through high-visibility commercial moments.
More broadly, this approach reflects a truth facing all global heritage brands. It is no longer enough to rely on a pair of Mickey ears or a branded jersey to secure attention. As audiences fragment and younger generations become harder to reach through traditional channels, cultural relevance is increasingly earned through context, craft and fluency rather than scale alone. Disney’s continued investment in a wide spectrum of partners suggests an understanding that long-term strength will depend not just on intellectual property, but on how seamlessly it moves through modern consumer life.
