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Photo by Chris Bales, 2012 |
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Gear means a toothed wheel, and gear means equipment and clothing. Same word, two meanings. Both meanings apply to Mouse Gear, the biggest store at Yester Epcot. |
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Mouse Gear is in Future World. Apparently, the future will be a world of gears, ducts, rivets, scaffolding, barrels, pipes, and other reminders of the industrial past. On the signs for Mouse Gear, the not-so-hidden Mickey consists of gears. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2010 Sea of concrete |
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Huge gears adorn the wall on both sides of the entrance if you’re coming on the main path from World Showcase. Even the planters are gears. After walking in the sun across hot concrete, the entrance to the air-conditioned store might be quite inviting. Mouse Gear has four entrances, each with its own personality and each facing in a different direction. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2016 South entrance, for guests heading toward the main exit |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2009 East entrance, facing Future World East |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2019 North entrance, for guests heading through the Future World East breezeway |
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Photo by Chris Bales, 2005 West entrance, from Innoventions Plaza and the Fountain of Nations |
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The entrance from the Fountain of Nations is a round pavilion. Let’s go in and wander around Mouse Gear. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Mickey art hanging from a huge gear on the ceiling inside the entrance. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Floor plan to help you find the departments |
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The interior is industrial chic, with rivets everywhere. The fixtures look like things you would find in a factory, not in a Target store. But, like a Target store, the large sales floor is organized in departments. Start shopping… |
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Photo by Chris Bales, 2012 “Epcot 30” graphics, celebrating 30 years since the opening of EPCOT Center |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Vinylmation |
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Photo by Chris Bales, 2012 Headwear |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2018 Look up at the decor, not just down at the merchandise. |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2018 Department sign with pipes |
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Photo by Allen Huffman, 2006 Pirates of the Caribbean in Future World |
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When Disney has a hot movie like Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006), it’s not surprising that you’ll find merchandise for it in Mouse Gear, even if the film has nothing to do with Epcot. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Angry duck decor |
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Mouse Gear only has one level of shopping, but there appears to be an office upstairs. You can see silhouettes of the staff—and somebody looks angry. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013 Dreamfinder’s Dreamcatcher |
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To the left of the angry duck, Dreamfinder’s Dreamcatcher from Journey Into Imagination serves as decor. The device works with the style of Mouse Gear. Probably, most shoppers are unaware of what it is (or what it was). |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2016 Good night! |
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If you’re like many guests, Mouse Gear is your final stop before you leave the park. Take your bags to your car, to a resort bus, or to the Epcot Monorail. |
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When Epcot opened (as EPCOT Center) on October 1, 1982, the park’s big store was called Centorium. The name was a mash-up of “Center” from EPCOT Center and “Emporium,” meaning a large retail store—but, in this case, referencing the Emporium shops on Main Street, U.S.A. at Disneyland Park and Magic Kingdom Park. Located in Communicore East at Future World, Centorium had two levels. The large ground floor sold EPCOT Center souvenirs, including clothing, jewelry, glassware, toys, and books. The smaller upper level, reached by wide stairs or a glass elevator, overlooked the ground floor. Originally, the upper level featured state-of-the art electronics and other high-end goods appropriate to Future World. Apparently, this retail mix was not successful, so the space switched to Team Mickey sports apparel. That didn’t last either. In its third incarnation, it became a Disney art gallery. When Communicore East became Innoventions East in 1994, Centorium remained. That would change when Innoventions Plaza was updated in 1999 for the Millenium Celebration. Centorium moved to a temporary location, allowing the former Centorium space to be reconfigured. In the process, Disney removed the upper level and added more space to the ground floor. That solved the problem of what to sell upstairs. Mouse Gear opened in September 1999 in the space where Centorium had opened 17 years earlier. On January 4, 2020, after more than 20 years, MouseGear had its final day of operation in that location. Once again, the big store would move to a temporary location to allow a thorough renovation of Epcot’s big store. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2015 Innoventions East, as it looked in 2015 |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2020 Temporary Mouse Gear in a portion of the former Innoventions East exhibit space |
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The exhibits in Innoventions East had closed permanently on September 7, 2019. Four months later, on January 5, 2020, the temporary store opened there. Although it reused the name, it bore no resemblance to the “real” Mouse Gear. |
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Photo by Werner Weiss, 2020 Inside the temporary Mouse Gear |
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In April 2021, Disney announced, “Creations Shop, the new flagship merchandise location inside EPCOT, will open this summer at Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. The shop features a bold, sleek design in an open, bright, welcoming environment.” |
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Artist Concept Only © Disney 2021 Creations Shop rendering |
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A rendering showed a completely different interior, with floor-to-ceiling picture windows facing large trees outside. Creations Shop opened September 15, 2021. |
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Photo by David Roark, 2021 © Disney Creations Shop, open for business |
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Centorium became Mouse Gear. Mouse Gear became Creations Shop. EPCOT Center became Epcot. Epcot become EPCOT. |
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© 2021 Werner Weiss — Disclaimers, Copyright, and Trademarks Updated September 18, 2021 |
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