A lot of people on this thread are reminiscing about the “good ole days” of Disney theming. Not realizing that most companies are moving away from the over the top garish 90s style.
It's cheaper to just give up. - Dis Corp.
Capex is well below the last 5 years levels, the increase you saw in the earnings call was offset by the underinvestment the last few years.
I’m not saying that Disney isn’t watching its budget. I’m saying that even some of their most hated recent projects have cost inordinate sums of money. That should caution us against automatically equating what we don’t like with cheapness. There’s no evidence that these new signs cost less than more colourful ones would have.
So if it costs more it isn't cheap? Not the Disney way sadly
If people are using “cheap” to mean tacky, that’s another debate. I took the meaning to be monetary.
Maybe 'cuz most of the folks on this board were children in the 90's?
spending money to replace road signs that don’t need replaced yet with a new design does not help the budget.
The money spent on the major projects doesn't mean they don't cheap out in other areas.
I think the branding of cheap comes in for example when they show us what Toy Story land or Galaxy’s Edge is going to look like and have then when they actually get built they “cheap out” and give us less.
Which is why I wrote, “I’m not sure why every unpopular decision Disney makes is branded as cheap”—emphasis on “every”. Yes, penny-pinching is sometimes (perhaps often) at play, but it shouldn’t be the default accusation in all cases.
The road signs are not attributable to cheapness. I think they’re more attributable to the fact that Disney is determined to attract folks with a lot of cash and has fixed on the stereotype that theming, bright colors, and entertainment architecture aren’t “classy.” As with the resort makeovers, it’s an absurdly misguided attempt to make WDW “fashionable.” Like so many other problems, it’s born of the fact that management has no notion of the very specific needs of the Disney brand and is instead versed only in general, one-size-fits-all “business principles.”
Yes, I agree.
I saw a thing going around LinkedIn earlier this week about how on paper, Grand Central and Penn Station are pretty much the same thing. Similar passenger numbers, trains served, levels, etc. If you were just looking at a spreadsheet comparing them you wouldn’t see much of a difference. The experience of the two though is completely night and day.
I completely agree that clashing mandates and poor communication between departments is a big part of what is happening at WDW. I haven’t been in the new Contemporary rooms, but looking at images, they look like they could be the result of a badly botched attempt to marry the “more IP” and “very subtle, if any, theming” initiatives.
