Spirited Spring Break News, Observations & Thoughts ...

[71jason]

As for the cover charge it is helpful, but, not able to pay the bills. Theme Park admittance isn't able to cover all of the cost of operation, but, if someone goes there and doesn't spend anything else, the profit comes from shear volume of people.

$25 cover charge for 8 bars is nowhere in the same league as theme park ops. And keep in mind, 6 of the 8 bars were profitable NOT taking into account cover charges.

PI was not able to draw enough people, or for that matter, could even hold enough people to make up the difference. I always felt that places like the Adventurer's Club that was filled every night with 100's that weren't buying much of anything, but, were there to watch the fun show was a very good example of that. That show had many performing CM's and without a huge amount of liquid refreshment being sold during that time, the cover was not doing it and it was losing Disney money everyday.

Again, I've heard the numbers from different sources, and even Lansberry admitted in the Sentinel: AdvClub was profitable. This whole "nobody drank" is based on observations from the last 3 months, when internet fanboiz finally figured out the place existed, and even then, it's highly exaggerated. They were selling plenty of booze at premium prices. And, of course, the Adventurers Club was not PI. The dance clubs were obscenely profitable, with minimal overhead.

 

[marni1971]

how couldt hey tell what the queue looked like from the helicopter? I must have missed it from that shot. lol

Someone pulled a screen grab from the chopper video showing the overflow switchbacks.

 

[Cesar R M]

If MyMagic+ was just an infrastructure upgrade analysts would not be pestering about it generating revenue on the quarterly conference calls. Disney fully intended to monetize system, increase revenue through its implementation have this accomplished before now.

Agree, Still mymagic as a huge opportunity on managing the clients's information to give specialized and exclusive stuff tailored to each client.
But I think they will take way too long to implement this due of "it costs money".
Because the tech as it is, I dont think will increase spending by much.

Putting aside the direct return for a minute the other piece of the puzzle that isn't really talked about is the data mining. That info has some real value to not just P&R but to the company as a whole. I know a lot of large corporations are spending a lot of money to compile and then analyze big data. It's not just Google and Amazon looking to build a customer profile and track your behavior anymore. It's the trend in most businesses these days. This aspect of the magic bands will not likely be talked about any time soon publicly, but is an indirect benefit to TWDC. Is it valuable enough to justify the money spent? Your guess is as good as mine on how much that is worth to the company.

Imho, it could also open the gates to fast and quick tailored merchandise.. You want a plush with your name on it quick? just wave your magicband at the machine!

How about tailored meet and greets? wave your magicband on entering and Mickey might say your name perfectly!

 

[wdisney9000]

Imho, it could also open the gates to fast and quick tailored merchandise.. You want a plush with your name on it quick? just wave your magicband at the machine!

That would probly be a BIG machine if it were to house plush dolls and have a system that can stitch your name on it.

How about tailored meet and greets? wave your magicband on entering and Mickey might say your name perfectly!

That could be cool, but what happens if there is an error and Mickey says the wrong name? Not a major issue but whenever you add more "technology" to something, it allows for many more problems to arise such as malfunctions, shut downs, errors, etc. Its like what Palmer Joss asks in the movie Contact. Does science and technology make the world a FUNDAMENTALLY better place? (Disney World in this case)

 

[flynnibus]

It wasn't about the demand not being there. It was about the "dead" money walking around taking up space. The gate problem they had was the annual pass being priced too low and expanding Cast Member nights.

Sounds just like Disneyland and the aps

 

[Goofyernmost]

And that's where I'm saying you all are completely wrong if that's truly what you are saying. Only two bars were not profitable up until the very end. Also, you realize there were still cover charges even after the turnstiles came down, correct?

I never paid anything, but then again I only went to the Comedy Warehouse and AC.

 

[Nubs70]

The simplest way to judge the success of MyMagic+ will be to compare baseline financial metrics from the previous 3 years with the next 4 quarters:

Baseline

Domestic Attendance: 3% growth per annum
Domestic Per Capita Guest Spending: 8% growth per annum
Domestic Occupancy: 81% average
Domestic Per Room Guest Spending: 6% growth per annum
Parks & Resorts Revenue: 10% growth per annum
Parks & Resorts Gross Operating Income: 19% growth per annum​

MyMagic+'s biggest challenge will be outperforming recent aggressive domestic price increases that seem to have achieved much of the gain that MyMagic+ was supposed to realize.

Focusing on P&R gross revenue, last quarter was up 8% YoY. Based on the above numbers, Q2 2015 will need to be 27% or greater than 2013 if MM+ can judged as meeting projections?

 

[71jason]

I never paid anything, but then again I only went to the Comedy Warehouse and AC.

And I can introduce you to several people who never walked away from a night at Adventurers Club without dropping a C-note. But anecdotal evidence is anecdotal. The simple fact is you don't rack up $4 - 6K a night in bar sales alone (again, discounting the $25 cover that many, many people paid) with a room full of people not buying drinks.

 

[Omnispace]

Really like your thoughts on Epcot. It is the park that will always be hardest to successfully update.

It will be interesting if Uni starts to see this reaction as they continue to reinvest in their parks. The Jaws reaction was surprisingly quiet.

Actually, I was going to mention Jaws. There didn't seem to be a hint of outrage that it went away. I never saw it so I have no insight. If Universal in FL is anything like here in CA, the attractions involve very little emotional commitment. Their concept of entertainment dictates as such. Harry Potter may be the first in a long while to encroach on this new territory of nostalgia. ET had some as well.

Epcot needs to be redesigned like one those new modular phone prototypes where they can easily update key portions while maintaining the appeal of the overall experience. It will take commitment both creatively and financially -- a difficult task but definitely achievable. Unfortunately, it would seem that whoever is making the decisions lately can't grasp what is okay to change and what to leave alone.

 

[LithiumBill]

Someone pulled a screen grab from the chopper video showing the overflow switchbacks.

i've now seen that, and it looks rather light on any themeing (if there is any).

 

[bhg469]

Actually, I was going to mention Jaws. There didn't seem to be a hint of outrage that it went away. I never saw it so I have no insight. If Universal in FL is anything like here in CA, the attractions involve very little emotional commitment. Their concept of entertainment dictates as such. Harry Potter may be the first in a long while to encroach on this new territory of nostalgia. ET had some as well.

Epcot needs to be redesigned like one those new modular phone prototypes where they can easily update key portions while maintaining the appeal of the overall experience. It will take commitment both creatively and financially -- a difficult task but definitely achievable. Unfortunately, it would seem that whoever is making the decisions lately can't grasp what is okay to change and what to leave alone.

It's fairly simple, don't take away countries in world showcase without a replacement, that is an actual country. Better yet use the expansion pads for countries, African outpost is wasteful since dak has a huge, thoughtful dedication for the continent.

Future world, that's another animal.

 

[GoofGoof]

And I can introduce you to several people who never walked away from a night at Adventurers Club without dropping a C-note. But anecdotal evidence is anecdotal. The simple fact is you don't rack up $4 - 6K a night in bar sales alone (again, discounting the $25 cover that many, many people paid) with a room full of people not buying drinks.

I think anyone who had been to PI (especially during its prime) would have a hard time imagining them losing money. It wasn't that they weren't profitable, just that they felt they could make more money by using 3rd party vendors. I have to say I didn't spend a lot of time at Adventurers Club, but when I was there I drank and wasn't drinking alone.

 

[marni1971]

i've now seen that, and it looks rather light on any themeing (if there is any).

Indeed. At least they've begun the landscaping berm around it. Like Transformers I wouldn't be surprised to see a last minute (or post opening) canopy.

Given it is an extreme overflow area I don't expect it will be theme heavy. Though something not screaming park backstage would be preferable. Even scrims and Victorian style canopy posts would do it.

 

[GoofGoof]

It is also worthy of thinking about the idea that unlike the CM's, the purpose of the tourist visit there was completely different. The tourist would probably go there to have a couple of drinks, maybe dance, grab a meal, watch a comedy show or AC. In other words their agenda didn't include a morning hangover, covering face plants with makeup or releasing frustrations. They were there on vacation and had another theme park to visit the next day. Doing that with a hangover can really take away a lot of the magic. What the CM (on or off duty) might find to be a release, would easily have been an annoyance to a tourist, I'm thinking!

I don't know, I think maybe your view is based on your personal experience at the time. People looking to go to clubs and have a good time are usually not annoyed by other people doing the same thing. When PI was in its prime (before the gates came down) I happened to be in the young adult age between 18 and 25. I loved WDW, but I also liked to go out and have a good time at night. I had no issues with staying until closing and drinking and still getting up for rope drop the next day. A Gatorade and a cup of coffee and I was good to go. I can't do that now. I would be hung over and miserable the next day. I was not alone, there was a demographic of people who visited Disney but still wanted night life that was safe and fun. PI was that. It was a niche market, but still one that existed and was profitable. At some point management decided to abandon that demographic (except during food and wine). City Walk may fill some of the void, but it's still not what PI was in its prime.

 

[Goofyernmost]

I don't know, I think maybe your view is based on your personal experience at the time. People looking to go to clubs and have a good time are usually not annoyed by other people doing the same thing. When PI was in its prime (before the gates came down) I happened to be in the young adult age between 18 and 25. I loved WDW, but I also liked to go out and have a good time at night. I had no issues with staying until closing and drinking and still getting up for rope drop the next day. A Gatorade and a cup of coffee and I was good to go. I can't do that now. I would be hung over and miserable the next day. I was not alone, there was a demographic of people who visited Disney but still wanted night life that was safe and fun. PI was that. It was a niche market, but still one that existed and was profitable. At some point management decided to abandon that demographic (except during food and wine). City Walk may fill some of the void, but it's still not what PI was in its prime.

OK, well we are just looking at it from different directions. That's OK we are all different. My one real concern is the premise that it was making a lot of money. I've never heard of anything that was making money being abandoned by Disney. Sure, they might ignore it and never upgrade or improve it. Or maybe they were making money but not enough to deal with the headaches involved. Who knows? What we do know is that they closed it down and that is usually done for a reason.

 

[GoofGoof]

OK, well we are just looking at it from different directions. That's OK we are all different. My one real concern is the premise that it was making a lot of money. I've never heard of anything that was making money being abandoned by Disney. Sure, they might ignore it and never upgrade or improve it. Or maybe they were making money but not enough to deal with the headaches involved. Who knows? What we do know is that they closed it down and that is usually done for a reason.

I believe the story that it was closed down because they planned to bring in 3rd party vendors instead. They saw an opportunity to make even more money and more consistent money. When you switch over from club operator to landlord you get paid no matter what the crowds are like (unless the tenant goes bankrupt). They brought in Raglan Road and Paradiso 37 even before all of the clubs closed and they were successful. The clubs were too big to rent to 3rd party vendors. No club could survive long with the rent they would want to charge. Then we got bluffed with the whole Hyperion Wharf thing. Disney Springs is sorta the final nail in replacing PI. I believe they will probably make more money renting the buildings to restaurants now at Disney Springs then they would have made if they still had PI and the clubs. So if the only goal is to maximize profit then it's probably a good move. A little piece of WDW is lost for the demographic who would have enjoyed it.

 

[Lee]

The FP+ return queue for Pirates this afternoon.
That just looks...wrong...

Remember the good old days when Pirates was usually less than a 10min wait?

(courtesy of DCALover on Twitter)

 

[Clamman73]

The FP+ return queue for Pirates this afternoon.
That just looks...wrong...

Remember the good old days when Pirates was usually less than a 10min wait?

(courtesy of DCALover on Twitter)View attachment 54888

A dude wearing jean shorts in 2014...yes

 

[Mike S]

The FP+ return queue for Pirates this afternoon.
That just looks...wrong...

Remember the good old days when Pirates was usually less than a 10min wait?

(courtesy of DCALover on Twitter)View attachment 54888

So much wrong with that picture

 

[The Mom]

A dude wearing jean shorts in 2014...yes

The average WDW guests aren't known for being fashion mavens.