This weekend was my first trek back into the Disney Store after a few months of it being closed. It was nice seeing some familiar faces who were VERY happy being back at work and gave me the chance to check out the merchandise to see what was new.
Without totally ruining the rest of the blog post, the answer was not very much.
After talking to a few Cast Members and looking around for myself, it was pretty clear that little to no new merchandise was out on the shelves. There was a few new Mandalorian items and some of the new Castle Series items that were new, but other than that, it looked much like it did when it closed. There was however, sale signs almost everywhere.
So, for me, it was worth it. Older Disney t-shirts, some older mugs, and other items were on sale at huge discounts (we're talking 40% off the last ticketed sale price), leaving the price for many under $10.00. Other items were also discounted with only really the newer items, such as the Mandalorian (surprisingly Mulan merchandise after the movie was postponed indefinitely) at full price. Chances are, if there was something you were interested in buying before the shutdown and didn't want to pay full price, it's likely on sale now.
That leaves the question of when (or if) new merchandise will be hitting the shelves in the near future. That answer is probably a maybe (in very small quantities). Until the store shelves and store rooms can be freed up with the sale of older merchandise, there's a good chance they'll keep on putting older stuff out on sale to clear it out, especially if there's a risk that the stores will close again.
Like many retailers, Disney was not immune from the logistical nightmares caused by massive amounts of merchandise (and money) locked up in closed stores and unavailable for sale through other means, such as ShopDisney. So, I think it's safe to say that the newer merchandise will be in stores in smaller quantities in the short-term. That said, if the parks merchandise becomes too plentiful should the parks close, Disney Store guests may get a special opportunity to purchase things usually reserved for the parks on the shelves in retail outlets.