Set up 18 years ago, the shop originally sold jewellery, pottery, and Welsh handmade gifts. Although only small, the Welsh shop has enjoyed the best sales amongst all the United Kingdom attractions. Independent travel expert Richard Dixon said the Magic of Wales shop is located in the United Kingdom section of the World Showcase pavilions at Epcot. "This is one of the smaller pavilions and has very little to entertain visitors. There is no major attraction and unlike most of the other pavilions there's also no educational film on offer either. "The success of this one shop is therefore all the more remarkable," he said. The Development Board for Rural Wales, since absorbed by the Welsh Development Agency, opened the Magic of Wales gift shop at the top visitor attraction in 1986. It hoped the move would open up international markets for craft and gift producers and raise aware-ness of holiday opportunities in Wales. A WDA spokesperson said: "The former Development Board for Rural Wales created the Magic of Wales shop at the Epcot Centre with the Disney organisation as, at the time, the United Kingdom area of the centre did not have any Welsh representation. "The Disney organisation was totally responsible for purchasing the craft and gift products from Wales, although the DBRW would promote and introduce Welsh companies and products to the organisation. The contract ended in 1998 and since then the Disney organisation has had sole responsibility for the shop and its products." For many years the WDA and tourism authorities sponsored an exchange programme in which two young Welsh graduates spent a year working at the shop learning about Disney's marketing techniques. * Any company interested in supplying the Magic of Wales shop should contact David Williams by e-mail. His address is predicent@wales chamber.org | 
