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The company, which for a century has been primarily based in California, is considering moving some major divisions to Lake Nona, Florida.
The company, which for a century has been primarily based in California, is considering moving some major divisions to Lake Nona, Florida.
The Walt Disney Company has been California based for nearly a century. Apparently they’re looking to change that.
According to a report by the Orlando Business Journal, things could be changing for the company’s California based divisions, with a planned move to Florida. While it looks like this wouldn’t be a full company move, some major divisions could be relocated to fit with their more popular eastern theme parks.
Jack Witthaus and Richard Bilbao of Orlando Business Journal have said that Disney is looking at relocating to Lake Nona, a new, modern, master-planned community located in southeastern Orlando, a 20 minute drive from the parks.
This rumored move is thought to be due to recent struggles with Californian governor Gavin Newsom, specifically relating to Disneyland’s status in the state. Gov. Newsom has been notably opposed to the thought of reopening Disneyland, even with no cases associated to its big brother Walt Disney World. With Disney’s movies and sports shut down, park revenue from Florida and DTC Disney+ revenue has been the only saving grace.
With no opening in the near future from California, the release schedule which Statural covered here, having placed amusement parks near the end of the reopening plan.
Even if Disney’s reasoning behind leaving isn’t due to Newsom’s theme park restrictions, it could still be due to the state, which has recently seen a lot of businesses leave for other states. These companies feel that California’s once tech and business friendly practices have ended, prompting many moves to Texas or other states. Some notable moves (or thoughts to move) have involved Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Oracle, Tesla, and many more.
A spokesperson for Disney had told the writers of the article that
“as the largest employer in Central Florida, we are always exploring opportunities for additional locations within the vicinity of our theme park, but there is nothing concrete.”
With the recent exodus from California, combined with Disney’s still growing attachment to the Floridian economy, there’s a big chance that this could happen. The only restriction would involve Disney’s film and production, which is currently rooted hard in Los Angeles.
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The Walt Disney Company has been headquartered at their Walt Disney Studios Burbank complex since Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, more than 70 years ago. This would be a big more for Disney, which has generally stayed pretty put, at least when it came to managerial and rooting locations.
That’s not taking into account Disney’s experiences with expanding other divisions, such as with foreign Disneyland openings, and some of their productions moves to New York and across the East Coast.
Whether or not this happens will likely not affect Disney too much, unless California takes more restrictive control over companies within the state. Remember, this wouldn’t be a headquarter move, it would likely only be a relocation for a few divisions, whether it be Disney+, parks or regional content.
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