I now turn to a new facet of the Disney Princess Phenomenon: merchandising and marketing, focusing on which models of femininity are the most dominant. As Ames and Burcon (2016) point out, ‘Girls are often referred to as princesses; they pretend to be princesses; they read about princesses; they watch programs about princesses; and they play with princess dolls’ (25). Princess products are available anywhere and everywhere, so ‘any girl who wants to be a princess can become one’ (Whelan 2014: 183). Therefore, the examination of princess merchandise available to consumers is imperative. Each princess’ marketing journey begins with a film that establishes her story, personality traits, wants, and desires. Traditionally, films are what many princess scholars have critically examined (Craven 2002; Davis 2006; Dundes 2001; England et al 2011; Mollet 2020; Stover 2013). From this, the film and its merchandising are marketed to consumers to associate with. A young girl can:

Therefore, we must not only examine the image of femininity in princess films, but also the way they are remediated and commodified through merchandise (Muir 2022a: 7). While consumers can engage heavily with princess films they can also do this with merchandise. It is merchandise that can help consumers identify with a princess even more: they can dress as their favourite princess, play with their products, re-enact stories, and make up their own, all through princess products. Therefore, the availability of these products is important to examine, as it identifies which princesses (and therefore which character traits) are dominant in merchandising availability, and which are not. It also identifies whether the diversity Disney are increasing in their princess films is being matched by their merchandise. This chapter introduces the concept of merchandise analysis to the Disney Princess Phenomenon, and identifies which images of femininity are promoted, and which are ignored.