TheDisneyGirl02
<font color=navy>I found my Disney Prince!<br><fon
- Joined
- Jun 23, 2006
- Messages
- 7,773
Wow...thank you for your review of the ONE store that you observed. Let me comment on a few of the concerns you obviously have with them.
The black and white signs are the signage that TCP put into place. It actually can be very helpful to guests and does cut down on guest questions since everything is very well explained. As far as the sales being the norm, yes in a way they are and it's brought the stores many new guests. Right now, the way the ecomony is, everybody is looking to save a little money. When they can get a good quality item at a good price, people will buy it. Guest still buy the merchandise that isn't on sale, though.
The newer stores have the plush fountain mountains, that is the way my store is. The 'mountain' hasn't changed in size as far as I know. As far the MBBP quality going down, I have to disagree with you. I think it is much better than when they first became popular. As far as the price is concerned, it may have gone up, but does anything cost the same amount that it did 10 years ago? No, MBBP included.
My mall sweeps and mops our Mickey tile and they do a great job with it. I don't know if this store is located inside or outside, but that may be the case with them also.
With you being a former manager, you should understand that you cannot leave the stage if you are the only CM working. At my store, we always have at least 2 CMs on at a time, even if there is only one on stage. Some stores may not be able to do that because of scheduling hours though.
Just because you have failed to find a store that meets your expectations, doesn't mean that there aren't great Disney Stores out there. I've had many guests tell me that they need to come into my store just to get their Disney fix and their Disney magic. To me as a CM, that is the highest compliment. I have also visited many stores in many cities and states and I have always found the CMs to be kind and helpful and always happy to talk to a fellow CM.
Your last comment was what upset me the most. The quality of the CMs at my store has not changed in the last couple of years, if anything it has gotten better. I am so lucky and blessed to be working with such a wonderful group of people. Having worked at both the parks and the stores, I can tell you that TDS CMs are sometimes more dedicated than some park CMs.
You may not have liked it in Fantasyland, but as for me I'm not planning on leaving any time soon. And if you are ever in the great state of PA, stop in one of our stores. We'll help restore the magic that you seemed to have lost when you decided to leave Fantasyland.
My first impression was that the entire store was very well stocked. Most shelves, displays and clothing racks had a abundance of merchandise available. There was a 40% off sale going on. I guess sales have become the norm at TDS. Every fixture had at least one black sign with white lettering. Several other fixtures had larger red signs promoting the sale.
The black and white signs are the signage that TCP put into place. It actually can be very helpful to guests and does cut down on guest questions since everything is very well explained. As far as the sales being the norm, yes in a way they are and it's brought the stores many new guests. Right now, the way the ecomony is, everybody is looking to save a little money. When they can get a good quality item at a good price, people will buy it. Guest still buy the merchandise that isn't on sale, though.
Plush was also fairly well represented. The plush "fountain" was small than I remembered, but maybe my memory is not the same. (The store that I used to manage had a plush "pier"). There was other plush on different fixtures, endcaps, etc. There were also many MBBP, although the quality had obviously gone way down, while the price went up.
The newer stores have the plush fountain mountains, that is the way my store is. The 'mountain' hasn't changed in size as far as I know. As far the MBBP quality going down, I have to disagree with you. I think it is much better than when they first became popular. As far as the price is concerned, it may have gone up, but does anything cost the same amount that it did 10 years ago? No, MBBP included.
We vacuum the floor every evening at close, unless ALL (and when I mean all, I mean all 3 vacuums) are broken, which has happened. I will tell you that I'm OCD when I vacuum and even with being so careful, it is nearly impossible to pick up every string or piece of debris, which I'll pick up by hand. If the store was open for an hour before you arrived, there is a chance that the big pieces of debris could have been dropped since opening. As far as dusting is concerned, we do it often at my store. With that being said, we still do get dusty quickly, it's just the way the fixtures are - they are like dust magnets.Where this store lost points with me is in staffing and cleanliness. I arrived at this store shortly after 11am. The store had been open since 10. The floor had obviously not been vaccumed the night before or earlier in the morning. There was debris all over the floor. And the dust and junk along the bottom of the fixtures was an obvious indication that no deep cleaning had been performed in months.
As far as the Starbucks cup on the counter, it may not have belonged to a CM. I can tell you for a fact that this past Saturday when I worked we had an entire soda left in the store. We do no throw them away in our trash out on stage because of the garbage leaking, we take them back and dump them out in the sink and then dispose of the cup backstage. Sodas, coffee and slushies are left all over the store by guests frequently, as are the occational chicken nuggets. Just because it was on the cast wrap, you shouldn't assume that it belonged to the CM.The cashwrap was disorganized. There were several shipment boxes on the counter and a Starbucks cup on the counter behind the registers. The Mickey Mouse tile entrance had not been swept and it was heavily stained.
My mall sweeps and mops our Mickey tile and they do a great job with it. I don't know if this store is located inside or outside, but that may be the case with them also.
I will agree with you that this CM was out of line wearing what he was wearing. That really upsets me when I hear that because at my store, you cannot go out on stage unless you are in full costume. There is no excuse for that lack of standards and it just makes all of the stores look bad and that really upsets me.This guy was wearing a plain, black t-shirt (oversized) with black athletic pants (the really thin, baggy ones) and black and white tennis shoes. There was no name tag, no promotional clothing and no uniform of any kind. This guy was not helping any customers unless they walked to the cashwrap and asked him how to find something. He would then point and describe where they could find the item on the other side of the store.
Another customer asked the guy if they had a particular size and he said he could not go into the back room because he was the only one working.
With you being a former manager, you should understand that you cannot leave the stage if you are the only CM working. At my store, we always have at least 2 CMs on at a time, even if there is only one on stage. Some stores may not be able to do that because of scheduling hours though.
Because the Disney "Magic" is supposed to be such an important part of a person's experience at a Disney Store, I'd have to give this visit a D-. According to the many comments posted on this very thread, it's the employees who spread the magic. Not at this store. And I should point out that in the last several years I have visited stores in several cities and states, and have yet to find the "magic" that is described in threads like these (or for that matter the "magic" that used to exist in Disney Stores).
All this being said, not much has changed at The Disney Store over the years, except perhaps for the quality of the employees.
Just because you have failed to find a store that meets your expectations, doesn't mean that there aren't great Disney Stores out there. I've had many guests tell me that they need to come into my store just to get their Disney fix and their Disney magic. To me as a CM, that is the highest compliment. I have also visited many stores in many cities and states and I have always found the CMs to be kind and helpful and always happy to talk to a fellow CM.
Your last comment was what upset me the most. The quality of the CMs at my store has not changed in the last couple of years, if anything it has gotten better. I am so lucky and blessed to be working with such a wonderful group of people. Having worked at both the parks and the stores, I can tell you that TDS CMs are sometimes more dedicated than some park CMs.
You may not have liked it in Fantasyland, but as for me I'm not planning on leaving any time soon. And if you are ever in the great state of PA, stop in one of our stores. We'll help restore the magic that you seemed to have lost when you decided to leave Fantasyland.
