Mickey’s prepares for dino-themed Shelby attraction
By David Jacobs
A larger-than-life dinosaur-themed installation is in the works at the new Mickey’s off Mansfield Avenue, where a planned “Dino-World Adventure” is set to transform the store’s upper levels into a family-friendly roadside attraction.
Work is already underway on the indoor prehistoric display, which will include an estimated nine life-sized dinosaur models, each tailored to the available space in the Shelby store that opened May 5.
The display is part of a broader effort to rekindle the nostalgia of the American roadside experience and give travelers a reason to pull off the highway for more than gas and coffee.
“We created Mickey's Dino-World Adventure,” said Scott Rudge, a public relations representative who works independently with Mickey’s.
“We have two locations right now here in Shelby, and then we opened a new location one month ago in Norwalk, which is also going to happen," he said.
Rudge explained that the displays won’t just sit in corners -- they’ll fill and extend through various architectural features of the store.
“Like our brontosaurus, that's sort of a cave over there...His head’s going to extend all the way out in the middle of the store,” he said. “It's going to be really spectacular.”
Pterodactyls will be on the ceiling. "A tyrannosaurus is going right there," Rudge said, pointing to a location inside Mickey's, later noting planned placements of a stegosaurus and triceratops.
The Dino-World display is expected to be fully installed by fall in both the Shelby and Norwalk stores. “The first dinosaurs are already being created right now,” Rudge said.
The vision for the installation aligns with Mickey’s ongoing approach to draw attention beyond its core functions.
“One of the things that we have been working on over the last couple of years at Mickey’s is to get this sort of sense of restoring the excitement of the American road, the roadside attractions,” Rudge said.
With visual flair as a priority, he described other design features already used by the company to attract attention.
“With the mooses and the moose we put on top of the stores... the idea is to get people to come in," Rudge said, referencing the Mickey the Moose mascot.
Rudge suggested that Dino-World could soon appear on national tourist roadside attraction lists.
“Now with Dino-World, we want this to be something that would appear on the RoadsideAmerica websites," he said. "People would specifically come into town to see that -- driving business into Shelby, driving visitors into Shelby. And it’s sort of a unique thing that, as far as I know, nobody's doing.”
Rudge added: "We are excited to try something really new, very colorful."
He expects all of the installations to be in by fall in both the Shelby and Norwalk stores of Mickey's.
"It's going to be great," he said. "Kids will love it."
While specific additional plans remain under wraps, Rudge hinted at more to come.
The Dino-World Adventure stands out in the region for its scale and ambition.
“What’s around here that’s like this?” Rudge asked. “It's 'Cedar Point South.'”
A CLOSER LOOK
Photo gallery: Mickey’s and Dunkin' open in Shelby