CaptainMichael
Well-Known Member
I have no problem with more restaurants, but use some of that 43 square miles the company loves to pimp. Leave the small parcel of land occupied by the AC alone. Too much to ask?
So anyway, now that this has turned into: WE WANT A.C. BACK WAAAAAAH.... and IT IS NOT COMNIG BACK!! GET OVER IT!!! thread, can we find out from the OP when the press release or anouncement is due???
So anyway, now that this has turned into: WE WANT A.C. BACK WAAAAAAH.... and IT IS NOT COMNIG BACK!! GET OVER IT!!! thread, can we find out from the OP when the press release or anouncement is due???
I don't know anyone in P.R. But I would assume the staffing changes would be announced in the next week or two. As far as the rest, I don't know if it will be announced in chunks, all at once, or if walls will go up w/o a word being said. I hate to be ambiguous, but I don't have timelines. That being said, I'm out of this one.
aaww don't go! I want to know if you know if anything specifically happening with the mannequins/8-trax building. Going away? rethemed? Reopening?
Do the "it's about money" people around here not get it.... are you guys for real?... wake up..
Shareholders is what got people into this mess in the first place.... They put a "money man" (Rick Wagoener, Financial Analyst) in charge of GM.... look where that landed them, they've made more versions of the same SUV (cause it's an efficient way of giving people what they want, and put them in black ink), put the Volt on ice (showing a clear lack of inspiration and foresight) and then went bankrupt cause they couldn't compete with foreign car manufacturers...
Chrysler in the 70's went through the same thing... how did they deal with it? They brought in Lee Iacocca, a trained and skilled engineer who then went into sales and marketing... His knowledge of the car coupled with his knowledge of sales turned that company around... then they put a money man in charge again (Robert Nardelli) who drove that company into the ground... It's on life support...
When you think soley about money, there is no vision. Sorry AndrewRnR, you just can't think about profit anymore...
As Lee said Show trumps efficiency.... So what if you make a lot of greenbacks???.... People don't recognize Walt Disney as a man that made a nice dollar, they recognize him as an innovator and entertainer... Carnegie made a lot of bread too, but people don't remember him for that, they remember the work he did to educate/inform and entertain people....
You can't buy a legacy like that, you can't buy an image.... Sometimes it isn't about money, you have to innovate and adapt and look ahead. You can't do that when you've got a bunch of chairmen and stockholders who are wringing their hands like old grandmothers, worried they won't be able to vacation on Maui if the company doesn't hit their forecasted profit margin next quarter...
I've been to AC at least on 4 different occasions, all off season, each time it was shoulder to shoulder, and the barkeeps were slinging the 7 dollar drinks, there is no way that place didn't make some cash.... No way. They simply need to give it a new home (at the Boardwalk or AKL) or a little bit of support (better clubs surrounding it) an presto, they would have been rolling in it... It's as simple as that, anyone with a few braincells left can recognize that this place was a good idea from the get go...It's not going to make hand over fist money, clubs don't do that unless they are selling illegal narcotics or buying cheap gut rot and watering down the drinks...
.... The sooner everyone in north america realizes that it is no longer about making a beautiful dollar, the sooner we will all be out of this mess... We don't make anything anymore, we've stopped taking chances and we've stopped inventing...
Not at all. They could have left it, moved it, or expanded it. So much to do.I have no problem with more restaurants, but use some of that 43 square miles the company loves to pimp. Leave the small parcel of land occupied by the AC alone. Too much to ask?
I am amused by the idea that third party dining will somehow solve the problems brought about by the DDP. Yes, you need to make a reservation three months (are we back to six yet?) to get a meal at Le cellier or dinner at California Grill that's either not 5:30 or 9:50 p.m.
I dined at Raglan Road, Portobello and Fulton's in the past few weeks. Walked right in. Had no waits. Needed no reservations. Had great food, great service, fair portions and fair price points at all.
The one thing they all had in common is none of them were run by Disney ... but they were all near empty (not uncrowded ... empty) ... and the new Paradiso 37 looked likewise, although I never went in, everytime I walked by it.
People were packing in T-Rex and McD's ... but not the much better quality, smarter options.
And I'll make a prediction that Paradiso won't last a year if they don't do something to draw folks in.
I'll also say they really need to take down the PI signage (including entrance plaque) because right now all they are doing is confusing casual guests who have no clue what PI is and why it isn't open ... but yet some bars are ... and a few Disney crap carts ... and there's music playing.
And again, also, while I don't have the full story on AC at HKDL, my strong guess is that it will be an interactive restaurant. It won't be in the same form as at WDW. I still look forward to it.
Amazing Post. Absolutely Amazing. Best written one I've seen in quite a while.
Ohh... why thank you... I'll be here all week, and selling books in the lobby! HA HA! Thanks for the props...
My only wish is that it was posted on the first page, not the last...
It's true, we (in North America) don't make anything anymore.... We've stopped creating and taking chances...
We made the ipod at the turn of the millenium, super.... It's a revolutionary product, it changed the way the music industry thinks (another outdated business model) and changes the marketplace for the better. It basically killed the 7 record deal... Now a lot of indie bands (with tonnes of creativity) have been able to make a living with their music again...
I think a lot of these lightweights that answer every post with "Disney has shareholders to appease, and that's the way it should be" need to read it and weep..... We can't run businesses like that anymore, that's what got us into trouble in the first place, it doesn't work.
With all due respect. Spare me your speech on saving business in North America.
Just because 1 person gushes on you doesn't mean the rest of us want you up on your soapbox. :hurl:
You say "there's no way the AC was losing money" Really? OK. I guess you must know.
The AC has a fanatical following with a very, very small base. If it was universally popular with the masses, it wouldn't have been shut....... Period.
With all due respect. Spare me your speech on saving business in North America.
Just because 1 person gushes on you doesn't mean the rest of us want you up on your soapbox.
You say "there's no way the AC was losing money" Really? OK. I guess you must know.
The whole area was in the red, as discussed previously in the post, but obviously some of the clubs (most likely C.W, A.C) were definately raising the bell curve...
Nope. We've been over this a zillion times in the last year. AC was holding it's own quite well.Interesting. I always heard and even read on this very site that it was the other way around - CW/AC were losing the big money when the other clubs were around the break even point.
Interesting. I always heard and even read on this very site that it was the other way around - CW/AC were losing the big money when the other clubs were around the break even point. That makes sense considering the clubs have one DJ while the AC has what one musician, a few techs, and 7ish EQUITY pay actors.
Was the AC a great thing produced by WDI? Absolutely. I don't think anyone is saying it isn't. It just didn't appeal to the masses. I certainly was turned away when I went in the first time and a bunch of the fanboys ruined all the jokes and improves by saying the punchlines. The place was empty nearly all the time. I always tell the story a few summers ago when I used to live in Orlando my friend and I went to AC on a Saturday night and around 10pm the place maybe had 20-30 people in it.
Nope. We've been over this a zillion times in the last year. AC was holding it's own quite well.
The PI concept in general was on the decline, and rather than keep one or two well performing clubs, they closed them all. Baby out with the bathwater.
Properly marketed, with appropriate cover charges....AC would have thrived as it did for all of the 90s, up until the changes to the island's access and pricing structure.
Wow....haven't we traveled this road before?
Oh...I gotta keep up my mantra: Show trumps Efficiency.
Now, for me, that's a solid post. Love the fanboy comment!
Anybody can claim the AC was making or not making money.
Intelligent posts give reasons why it may or may not have.
How on earth was the AC making more money than the other clubs?
Higher costs, fewer drinks sold. Doesn't equate.
The comeback will be "Noooooo, but it was always busy!"
Sorry, nope. Too many people with stories of it being a dead zone. And with those few around not drinking.
Yep. That was their ultimate failure.tirian said:...but when Disney refused to invest in its infrastructure and realized they couldn't compete with today's club scene without losing their family image, they gave up.Instead of doing something innovative with PI, Disney simply threw in the towel.
(Oh, and put me in the camp that never saw the Club when it wasn't doing very brisk business. Often shoulder to shoulder, especially after 9pm or so.)
ImaYoyo said:Don't lie to me. If you knew about Downtown Disney finances, then you would know me. And I certainly don't know you. Can you even tell me who is the GM of finance for Region 1 entertainment? How about the DTD finance manager since he covers F&B locations (such as Ad Club). Can you really look at his numbers and tell me that it is pulling in "profits"?!? I know CPAs are supposed to be good at fudging numbers, but no one is THAT good... Actually now that I think about it he's not a CPA, but that doesn't change the fact that the lease from a third party will bring in a positive cash flow, unlike the negative cash flow that currently exists.
Agreed. He is right there, and has info likely better and more detailed that what I was able to get. Most of my info boiled down to the Club doing what was expected of it. It was never seen as a huge money maker, and didn't have to be. It added to the DTD experience.And I'm sorry Lee but I take what ImaYoyo says over your info... .
Agreed with all but the last bit. Good is good. Disney quality is Disney quality, no matter if it's a club or a playground. As an adult with no kids, I would like to think that the company would be interested in giving my demographic something worth doing at night after the parks close. (Wandering around World of Disney doesn't count.)I think no one is arguing the club was crap or what not it just did not appeal to the masses like a Tower of Terror or Splash Mtn does. Sure Disney takes a bath money wise for parades or the water pageant but the masses enjoy it and more importantly it is available to the masses. It's not restricted to a certain age group, you don't need to buy a separate ticket for it, and its family friendly.
Lee we can both agree that whenever it was shoulder to shoulder very few (if any!) people paid to get in.
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