shopDisney Releases MerchPass for High-Demand Items

in Disney, Merchandise

shopdisney merchpass

For quite a few months now, shopDisney has been under scrutiny over their shopping and checkout process regarding high demand items like the Minnie Mouse: The Main Attraction collection pieces. The newest of shopDisney’s solutions to the much-aggrieved process is MerchPass, introduced to Disney fans today. Shoppers have not been able to grab popular items without being double charged for un-confirmed purchases for Star Wars Mugs, and Minnie plushes or being locked out of checkout altogether over the past few months. In response, shopDisney suspended the Minnie collection until further notice, as fans suspected the brand was trying to figure out how to make the process fairer. Here’s how the new Disney MerchPass system will work:

shopdisney merchpass logo
Credit: shopDisney

shopDisney’s MerchPass

MerchPass is being billed as “Early Access Drawings for High-Demand Products” which will give more purchase opportunities to Guests to handpick coveted items. It’s essentially a lottery system to shop early and have a basic guarantee of access to items.

When a shopper visits the Early Access Drawing page for a collection ( the next offering of the Disney Castle Collection opens 7/13/20 and ends 7/14/20 ) they can sign up for the emails. After that, a short process of logging into their shopDisney account and selecting the items they hope to purchase via Early Access is next. The shopper will click “Submit” and then watch for an email from Disney entitled “shopDisney Merch Pass – Early Access Drawing,” from merchpass@shopdisney.com to find out whether your entry was selected in the Early Access Drawing.

how to sign up for merchpass
Credit: shopDisney

If their entry was selected, they will receive an email by the time noted on the Early Access Drawing page. If a shopper does not receive an email, they were not selected (make sure it’s not in SPAM or Promotions Folders). IF YOUR ENTRY WAS SELECTED: Items will be automatically added to your Bag/Cart. Log in to your Disney Account to complete your purchase by the time designated on the Early Access Drawing page using the link in the notification email.

faq merchpass on shopdisney
Credit: shopDisney

shopDisney’s Facebook post offered the first look at the new MerchPass system, stating:

“Introducing MerchPass, the newest way to get access to our hottest items. This drawing system will first open up for Guests looking to purchase the latest addition to our Disney Castle Collection – Arendelle Castle.

Drawing for the Castle Collection opens at 7:00am PDT on 7/13/20 and ends 7/14/20 at 11:59pm PDT. Visit http://di.sn/6189GproV for more on the Castle Collection and MerchPass.” – ShopDisney

Introducing MerchPass, the newest way to get access to our hottest items. This drawing system will first open up for Guests looking to purchase the latest addition to our Disney Castle Collection – Arendelle Castle.Drawing for the Castle Collection opens at 7:00am PDT on 7/13/20 and ends 7/14/20 at 11:59pm PDT. Visit http://di.sn/6189GproV for more on the Castle Collection and MerchPass.

Posted by shopDisney on Friday, July 10, 2020

MerchPass FAQs

ShopDisney offered several answers to questions about the MerchPass process, and who was eligible for this process. The good news is that you can still purchase other items at the same time and you may use applicable promo codes on these purchases. However, you may not be selected for all the items you are requested. Complete Collection Fans may be disappointed in that.

Can a Shopper decide not to purchase if they are selected for the drawing?

Yes. You are not required to purchase even if selected for an early access purchase opportunity. There are no fees or penalties for deciding not to purchase for any reason. However, to give all interested guests a fair chance to purchase, we recommend that you only enter an Early Access Drawing for a product if you are actually interested in purchasing that product.

For drawings with multiple products, can I enter for more than one product (for Example, the Minnie Mouse: The Main Attraction Collection)?

Yes, but there is a limit of one (1) entry per person per product. If selected, only one (1) unit of each product can be purchased. To give all interested guests a fair chance to purchase, we recommend that you only enter the Early Access Drawing for a product if you intend to purchase that product.  If you enter for the chance to purchase multiple products, each product will have its own drawing and you may be selected in all, some, or none of the drawings. For example, you may enter the drawing for the Minnie Plush, the Minnie Mouse Ears and the Pins, but only be selected for Early Access to the Plush.

How will I know if I was selected for the drawing?
If your entry was selected, you will be notified via email.

Can I go back to unselect from or add products to the drawing once I submit my entry?

After submitting your entry, you will not be able to unselect a product or select another product. You can decide not to purchase the product if your entry is selected in the drawing and you have been given an early access purchase opportunity. 

I was selected in the drawing! How do I complete my purchase?

Simply log in to your Disney Account on shopDisney.com during the purchase window identified on the Early Access Drawing page to complete the purchase. You can use the link in the email notifying you that your entry was selected. During the purchase window, your Bag will already have the selected Early Access Drawing product(s) in it. You may add other items from shopDisney.com to your Bag, but do not remove the Early Access Drawing products from your Bag unless you no longer wish to purchase them. PLEASE NOTE: If you do not complete your purchase by the date designated in the Early Access Drawing page, you will not be able to purchase the Early Access Drawing product as part of this promotion.

My entry was selected. Can I transfer the opportunity to purchase to someone else?

No. The opportunity to purchase the product is personal to the selected entrant.

Do I have to live in the U.S. to be able to enter?

Yes, Early Access Drawings are currently available for Guests shopping in the U.S. These products are eligible for shipment to U.S. addresses only. Canadian and international addresses are currently NOT eligible for early purchases.

When purchasing, can I buy other products and use promotion codes?

Yes, you may add other items from shopDisney.com to your Bag for purchase in the same transaction.   You may also enter promotion codes, which are subject to their promotion terms and will be applied to eligible purchases.  Please note that certain promotion codes exclude limited edition and limited release products, including Early Access Drawing products, but they may be applied to other eligible items in your transaction.

Fans Are Airing Grievances

Though shopDisney offered FAQs for using the new MerchPass system online, it that didn’t stop Disney shoppers from airing grievances or frustrations on social media about the high-demand shopping process or the limited items that Disney offers. Many shopDisney patrons, from Star Wars to Minnie collectors are worried that the new system won’t hold up to eBay scrapers or international purchases. The Arendelle Castle, beginning the new Castle Collection, was the first test of shopDisney’s Merchpass, because it didn’t have an extremely high demand at the start. Later on, when The Minnie Mouse: The Main Attraction series for Peter Pan’s Flight emerged, the random drawing seemed to be far and few between. The Merchpass drawing didn’t appear to stem eBay pirates, and every Disney fan took to Twitter and social media to let shop Disney know.

merchpass shopdisney fb comments
Credit: shopDisney FB

Will you sign up for shopDisney’s new MerchPass systems to snag the items you want? Leave us a comment below with your thoughts! 

in Disney, Merchandise

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