Expect more premium events with recent organizational changes

[LAKid53]

Walt Disney World is under continued pressure to increase guest spending and drive new revenue without significant additional expenditure.

To facilitate this, a new department has been established specifically to develop new offerings. It is headed by former DAK VP Josh D'Amaro.

Expect more along the lines of dessert parties, Club 33, ticketed events, selling drinks in the parking lots etc.

Selling drinks in the parking lot might run afoul of Florida liquor laws.....

 

[LAKid53]

I remember having to pay to use most of the public toilets in China. That was a learning experience lol.

I remember having to pay for toilets when we visited London.

 

[The_Jobu]

Rule 166 - Never give away what can be sold.

I bet corporate Disney would love the Rules of Acquisition.

 

[drizgirl]

Selling drinks in the parking lot might run afoul of Florida liquor laws.....

I think they're talking water and soda.

 

[ptaylor]

The Galactic Nights are so far averaging one a year -- not one's usual definition of a 'cash grab'.

In place of SW Weekends, Disney has provided for free:

• Upgrades to Star Tours and Jedi Academy
• new SW museum, short films, and M&Gs
• 2 new Stage Shows
• A brand new fireworks show (projections added later)

And all this every single day of the year. For free. And they're building SW fans two new E-Ticket rides and a fully immersive land. For free (of course, we all understand 'for free' means 'with no upcharge'... we're all paying a park entrance fee).

And "for free" you get: expansion of DAK ride hours; RoL; ToLA; night time shows; and Pandora.

And "for free" you'll get TSL.


So, yes, there are premium things you can buy. For example, a plush Mickey for a few bucks. That costs extra! It's an upcharge! So is their $1,000 VIP Tour that's been around forever. There will be more upcharges coming along. Whether it's a souvenir, specialty food, tour, limited ticket party, or priority seating. But there are also billions being spent to give everyone more free stuff. Let the deep pocketed folk fund the park expansions you'll enjoy for free.

If that is how you see it, fair enough.

But others may see it that the following closed

• Star Wars Weekends
• Lights, Motors, Action Stunt Show
• Backlot Tour and Catastrophe Canyon
• Animation Building Tour and Academy
• Osborne Lights
• Streets of America
• Honey I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set Adventure playground
• Monsters Inc. character meet and greet
• Writer's Stop
• Watto's Grotto
• Studio Catering Co.
• High Octane Refreshments
• Premiere Theater
• Phineas and Ferb set
• Club Disney

and all in park that has not seen a major new attraction since Toy Story Mania in 2008.

The minor additions are heavily out-numbered by the closures.

And as for Pandora and other additions - that is standard operating procedure to open new attractions. Although that used to happen at a much more rapid rate.

 

[LAKid53]

I take it you didn't spend much time at Star Wars Weekends in the final few years. It had become an unmitigated disaster. The park, in its current state, could not support those crowds.

Bingo. WDW discontinued SWW because half of the park would be undergoing renovations. Can you imagine what SWW 2016 would have been like after The Force Awaken came out? Or 2017 after Rogue One?

 

[Liberty6]

Walt Disney World is under continued pressure to increase guest spending and drive new revenue without significant additional expenditure.

To facilitate this, a new department has been established specifically to develop new offerings. It is headed by former DAK VP Josh D'Amaro.

Expect more along the lines of dessert parties, Club 33, ticketed events, selling drinks in the parking lots etc.

Just to be clear WDW isn't the only site to add this position. Both Disneyland and Disneyland Paris have this position. It is SVP-Commercial Strategy and Chief Revenue Officer of the site. It brings together Sales, Marketing, Finance, Revenue Management, Analytics and Global Devleopment to further revenue priorities for the site. While the end goal is to increase revenue this position is more of an integrator ensuring the above departments are communicating and working together at the site level (WDW, DL, DLP) and not solely on their LOB initivates. While more premium events can be expected where appropriate it's not like Josh D'Amaro job is solely adding new events. The job is higher scoped then that.

 

[ptaylor]

Selling drinks in the parking lot might run afoul of Florida liquor laws.....

 

[LAKid53]

If that is how you see it, fair enough.

But others may see it that the following closed

• Star Wars Weekends
• Lights, Motors, Action Stunt Show
• Backlot Tour and Catastrophe Canyon
• Animation Building Tour and Academy
• Osborne Lights
• Streets of America
• Honey I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set Adventure playground
• Monsters Inc. character meet and greet
• Writer's Stop
• Watto's Grotto
• Studio Catering Co.
• High Octane Refreshments
• Premiere Theater
• Phineas and Ferb set
• Club Disney

and all in park that has not seen a major new attraction since Toy Story Mania in 2008.

The minor additions are heavily out-numbered by the closures.

And as for Pandora and other additions - that is standard operating procedure to open new attractions. Although that used to happen at a much more rapid rate.

But none of those closures correlate to upcharged events. And isn't that what this whole discussion is about? A push for more premium events?

 

[ptaylor]

Just to be clear WDW isn't the only site to add this position. Both Disneyland and Disneyland Paris have this position. It is SVP-Commercial Strategy and Chief Revenue Officer of the site. It brings together Sales, Marketing, Finance, Revenue Management, Analytics and Global Devleopment to further revenue priorities for the site. While the end goal is to increase revenue this position is more of an integrator ensuring the above departments are communicating and working together at the site level (WDW, DL, DLP) and not solely on their LOB initivates. While more premium events can be expected where appropriate it's not like Josh D'Amaro job is solely adding new events. The job is higher scoped then that.

Yes you are correct, however as this is a WDW centric site, I was focussing solely on WDW.

Regardless, the point is there is a continued push to increase guest spending and reduce operating costs in order to increase profits.

 

[ptaylor]

I used to be able to sit in the Tomorrowland Terrace seating area and watch Wishes! with my family. Sometimes we'd have Mickey ice cream bars, which cost roughly $12 for 4 back then, and they were also completely optional. What would doing that cost these days?

That would be $316 today - but there are tablecloths

 

[LAKid53]

A lot of guests who take part in these upcharge events do so reluctantly, because there is no other choice if they wish to do what they could previously do with regular admission, OR they don't have any knowledge of what was included before, and how it has become an upcharge.

Disney is fortunate that a lot of guests are not very knowledgable about how things have changed.

I've partaken of a few upcharges events...no one held a gun to my head. Would I do them again? Probably not.

 

[MisterPenguin]

If that is how you see it, fair enough.

But others may see it that the following closed

• Star Wars Weekends
• Lights, Motors, Action Stunt Show
• Backlot Tour and Catastrophe Canyon
• Animation Building Tour and Academy
• Osborne Lights
• Streets of America
• Honey I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set Adventure playground
• Monsters Inc. character meet and greet
• Writer's Stop
• Watto's Grotto
• Studio Catering Co.
• High Octane Refreshments
• Premiere Theater
• Phineas and Ferb set
• Club Disney

and all in park that has not seen a major new attraction since Toy Story Mania in 2008.

The minor additions are heavily out-numbered by the closures.

And as for Pandora and other additions - that is standard operating procedure to open new attractions. Although that used to happen at a much more rapid rate.

If you're going to mourn the loss of some shops and cafés as if that was significant, then, you're welcome to your opinions, but there's no more use in engaging with you.

 

[ptaylor]

Does anyone know more about Josh D'Amaro? I mean, he seems like a cool guy in photos and videos. And it seems like hardly anything's been cut operationally to compensate for longer park hours and more attractions that need to be staffed, which is great but very unusual these days. The parade is the only significant loss I see. But I don't know who to credit for that... maybe Josh, maybe not. I am just a poor outside observer.

If anyone knows anything and can share, that would be great.

This thread will give you information on the cost cutting that has been put into place http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/...-resorts-thanks-to-shanghai-and-paris.909756/

 

[Notes from Neverland]

Yes you are correct, however as this is a WDW centric site, I was focussing solely on WDW.

Regardless, the point is there is a continued push to increase guest spending and reduce operating costs in order to increase profits.

Isn't the point of nearly every business (and as a result, just about every employee) to try and increase profits and profit margins? It's so odd how it's spoken about in such negative, dark terms when it's the whole point. Now, the how is a big factor here. Every company wants to make a profit, but how they go about doing it will determine if people are repeat buyers (or visitors in this case) or fall into the one-and-done category.

So far, it seems like Disney has made some missteps, but the majority of those offerings have been well received and the overall numbers prove it isn't turning as many people away as many around here would hope.

Everything involved in Disney World is a choice, from visiting a park to seeing a movie. If you don't like it, don't go. But, if the masses do attend, like it and the company makes money, it seems kind of silly to bemoan a business acting like a business.

 

[LAKid53]

I think they're talking water and soda.

Ok, thanks for the clarification.

 

[drizgirl]

If you're going to mourn the loss of some shops and cafés as if that was significant, then, you're welcome to your opinions, but there's no more use in engaging with you.

You only see shops and cafes on that list?

 

[21stamps]

I've partaken of a few upcharges events...no one held a gun to my head. Would I do them again? Probably not.

There's plenty that I absolutely will not do, some that I will do, and others that I'd like to do, but can't totally justify the expense i.e ultimate day of thrills (mainly bc it excludes AK).. I don't begrudge anyone an Illuminations dessert party just because I have no interest in it lol. I hope all attendees have fun.

 

[ptaylor]

If you're going to mourn the loss of some shops and cafés as if that was significant, then, you're welcome to your opinions, but there's no more use in engaging with you.

I would personally rather have those than the extremely minimal upgrades to Jedi Training, the joke of a Star Wars fashion show (I mean stage show as they call it), and the now mostly ignored Star Wars museum. At least the shops and cafes had their role in placemaking.

 

[21stamps]

If that is how you see it, fair enough.

But others may see it that the following closed

• Star Wars Weekends
• Lights, Motors, Action Stunt Show
• Backlot Tour and Catastrophe Canyon
• Animation Building Tour and Academy
• Osborne Lights
• Streets of America
• Honey I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set Adventure playground
• Monsters Inc. character meet and greet
• Writer's Stop
• Watto's Grotto
• Studio Catering Co.
• High Octane Refreshments
• Premiere Theater
• Phineas and Ferb set
• Club Disney

and all in park that has not seen a major new attraction since Toy Story Mania in 2008.

The minor additions are heavily out-numbered by the closures.

And as for Pandora and other additions - that is standard operating procedure to open new attractions. Although that used to happen at a much more rapid rate.

Regarding HS- some people, like myself, think the park is better than it's ever been..and only going to get substantially better.
I'll take SW over anything on that list all day long.

Oh.. and Jingle Bell Jingle Bam was a cute show and fun dessert party.. inexpensive and good food and drinks.