Is attendance really down at WDW this or…

[UNCgolf]

Yeah, I used the light bulb thing as a reference - can’t speak to its literal truth. Though generally I do think a lot of things aren’t as fresh as they once tended to be, even if it’s just because a lot of the property was just decades newer back then.

I enjoyed stores that felt different from each other. I randomly remember buying a book about Shirley temple at a store at mgm as a kid!

Magic Kingdom is pretty bad, but DHS might be the worst for the stores compared to what they once were -- it used to be full of interesting shops with unique stuff and now it's basically just World of Disney.

 

[MR.Dis]

Magic Kingdom is pretty bad, but DHS might be the worst for the stores compared to what they once were -- it used to be full of interesting stores with unique stuff and now it's basically just World of Disney.

So agree. My favorite used to be Mouse Gears in Epcot, some of the best most unique stuff in WDW. They changed the name and it is just another gift shop, nothing special.

 

[Bocabear]

That is sadly shopping across all the WDW properties... Used to be fun to shop...now it is all the same crap.
You would think they would learn from the success of the Harry Potter land shops... They had great and unusual things that seemed to fly off the shelves...

 

[FigmentFan82]

I remember the great cool DHS stores. Was was like a high end clothing store that had very cool Disney merch, still have a hawaiian shirt from there

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

That is sadly shopping across all the WDW properties... Used to be fun to shop...now it is all the same crap.
You would think they would learn from the success of the Harry Potter land shops... They had great and unusual things that seemed to fly off the shelves...

It used to be that attraction gift shops had souvenirs specific to that location. It gave a sense of discovery and connection. I was certainly more likely to buy a Pirates keychain at the attraction versus seeing it in every single store on property.

However, I'm sure Disney has had better success with the current approach in terms of merch sales so that's where we are.

The question is, would it be worth it to make a little less money by missed sales if they made the shopping experience more engaging again? Brand loyalty is built up through those long term experiences and not just focused on short term gain.

 

[Smugpugmug]

It doesn't help that the merch itself is uninspired design wise and the quality is even worse. I find myself spending less and less at the parks these days merchandise wise.

T shirts in particular are terrible in terms of quality. They fall apart after a few washes or shrink.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

It doesn't help that the merch itself is uninspired design wise and the quality is even worse. I find myself spending less and less at the parks these days merchandise wise.

T shirts in particular are terrible in terms of quality. They fall apart after a few washes or shrink.

T-shirts are one of my biggest Disney merchandise complaints, sometimes they’re soft, sometimes they feel like sandpaper, sometimes thin, sometimes thick, sometimes medium, sometimes large, some will last years, others will fall apart after a wash or two… you never know what you’re going to get.

I have as many Target and Walmart Disney shirts as Disney ones now because they’re usually a better, and more consistant, quality… at 1/4 the price.

 

[FigmentFan82]

so, people in WDW right now, how do crowds seem? i'm going to be there sun/mon next week and curious how its trending

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

T-shirts are one of my biggest Disney merchandise complaints, sometimes they’re soft, sometimes they feel like sandpaper, sometimes thin, sometimes thick, sometimes medium, sometimes large, some will last years, others will fall apart after a wash or two… you never know what you’re going to get.

I have as many Target and Walmart Disney shirts as Disney ones now because they’re usually a better, and more consistant, quality… at 1/4 the price.

If I buy a Disney shirt it will be from one of the many Disney collections Uniqlo does.

Their t-shirts are great quality IMO.

 

[Basil of Baker Street]

It doesn't help that the merch itself is uninspired design wise and the quality is even worse. I find myself spending less and less at the parks these days merchandise wise.

T shirts in particular are terrible in terms of quality. They fall apart after a few washes or shrink.

100% If you see something you would like to purchase on when you arrive at WDW just hang tight, you will see it again and nearly every gift shop you visit

 

[some other guy]

If I buy a Disney shirt it will be from one of the many Disney collections Uniqlo does.

Their t-shirts are great quality IMO.

I dunno, I recall their Gundam shirts felt a little flimsy, and their Versailles stuff I saw was lacking in really any size anybody of any gender in the USA who likes Lady Oscar would be able to fit into
also so far this week is "hot but not _that_ hot"

 

[Smugpugmug]

T-shirts are one of my biggest Disney merchandise complaints, sometimes they’re soft, sometimes they feel like sandpaper, sometimes thin, sometimes thick, sometimes medium, sometimes large, some will last years, others will fall apart after a wash or two… you never know what you’re going to get.

I have as many Target and Walmart Disney shirts as Disney ones now because they’re usually a better, and more consistant, quality… at 1/4 the price.

It's insane how inconsistent the sizing is for Disney shirts. I'm a medium typically but sometimes I have to buy a large or a small since the sizing is so out of wack. With hoodies I always buy a large because they, without fail, shrink. And before anyone says anything, I always wash them in cold water and hang dry. I have a hoodie from Disneyland that shrunk after wearing it a few times.

 

[erasure fan1]

T-shirts are one of my biggest Disney merchandise complaints, sometimes they’re soft, sometimes they feel like sandpaper, sometimes thin, sometimes thick, sometimes medium, sometimes large, some will last years, others will fall apart after a wash or two… you never know what you’re going to get.

I have as many Target and Walmart Disney shirts as Disney ones now because they’re usually a better, and more consistant, quality… at 1/4 the price.

Spot on. The last Disney shirt I bought had to be well over 10 or 12yrs ago. It was a Muppets PePe shirt that said, I am not a shrimp, I'm a king prawn! I hardly wear it because I'm afraid it's going to fall apart like most all my other Disney shirts. Lol It doesn't help that they are $40+

 

[dreday3]

It doesn't help that the merch itself is uninspired design wise and the quality is even worse. I find myself spending less and less at the parks these days merchandise wise.

T shirts in particular are terrible in terms of quality. They fall apart after a few washes or shrink.

Gonna have to completely disagree with this because of our last trip.

I never, ever buy t-shirts or clothing. Last April we bought way more stuff than we normally do. The merchandise was great! Way better than I've seen in recent years. The Flower/Garden stuff was awesome. Got an amazing Snow White nicer than a t-shirt shirt, got fun Orange Bird shirts. I also got a striped, nicer than a t-shirt shirt with a small Dumbo embroidered on it. We got a Thunder Mountain shirt, Raiders shirt and I got a great zipper hoodie. A lot of fun sweatshirts (not spirit jerseys, I don't like those). My husband wears the Thunder Mountain and Raiders t-shirts often and they are still in good shape.

And the Halloween stuff this years looks fantastic! So good we may actually buy some of it online.

 

[UNCgolf]

The question is, would it be worth it to make a little less money by missed sales if they made the shopping experience more engaging again? Brand loyalty is built up through those long term experiences and not just focused on short term gain.

I think in the original design, certain shops were designated more or less as "show" where any sales were of course welcome but strict P&L wasn't the driving force behind their existence. My understanding is that was the point of the old antique shop at the Magic Kingdom, as one example (likely Sid Cahuenga's at Disney-MGM too) -- the main purpose was theme to enhance the overall park experience.

 

[Smugpugmug]

Gonna have to completely disagree with this because of our last trip.

I never, ever buy t-shirts or clothing. Last April we bought way more stuff than we normally do. The merchandise was great! Way better than I've seen in recent years. The Flower/Garden stuff was awesome. Got an amazing Snow White nicer than a t-shirt shirt, got fun Orange Bird shirts. I also got a striped, nicer than a t-shirt shirt with a small Dumbo embroidered on it. We got a Thunder Mountain shirt, Raiders shirt and I got a great zipper hoodie. A lot of fun sweatshirts (not spirit jerseys, I don't like those). My husband wears the Thunder Mountain and Raiders t-shirts often and they are still in good shape.

And the Halloween stuff this years looks fantastic! So good we may actually buy some of it online.

To each their own. I disagree about the Halloween stuff looking good and that hurts me to say since I LOVE Halloween. I don't feel compelled to buy any of it.

I did see that TDR is getting a Halloween popcorn bucket that I may try to buy off of ebay but other than that, nothing for me sadly.

 

[dreday3]

To each their own. I disagree about the Halloween stuff looking good and that hurts me to say since I LOVE Halloween. I don't feel compelled to buy any of it.

I did see that TDR is getting a Halloween popcorn bucket that I may try to buy off of ebay but other than that, nothing for me sadly.

Oh wow! The way the characters are drawn, the colors, we love it! And we never buy their Halloween stuff.
But yes, to each their own.

 

[Mireille]

I know "family from Denver" is a meme at this point, but honestly, if I lived in Devnver I'd be more likely to visit DLR than WDW.

As someone who lives in Denver, it's a flight either way; it's not the proximity that matters. WDW is a completely different vacation. If I want a long weekend, I'll go to DLR, but if I'm going on VACATION to a Disney resort, I can spend a week in WDW and not feel like I'm going to run out of things to do. Last time I went to DLR was 2006, but I've been to WDW about 10 times since then. I just like WDW so much more.

 

[Splash4eva]

T-shirts are one of my biggest Disney merchandise complaints, sometimes they’re soft, sometimes they feel like sandpaper, sometimes thin, sometimes thick, sometimes medium, sometimes large, some will last years, others will fall apart after a wash or two… you never know what you’re going to get.

I have as many Target and Walmart Disney shirts as Disney ones now because they’re usually a better, and more consistant, quality… at 1/4 the price.

Omg so true!!!

 

[MagicRat]

so, people in WDW right now, how do crowds seem? i'm going to be there sun/mon next week and curious how its trending

Was there two weeks ago and the crowds were fine. I bet with school starting you will get even better crowds. The one thing my family really did notice was how much happier the crowds were and the cast members too! We average about three to four trips a year pre Covid and our rebounding to that number of visits. I don’t have Facebook or twitter but I do read on here how a certain group is not going to the parks anymore for “woke” reasons or something like that. I wonder if that has anything to do with our experience?