FYI: More Cuts Coming

[disneynutz]

I did send my email to Staggs and Iger - didn't have Chapek's email address. She actually told me that George sees every email sent to the general wdw.communications email address as well - that any email that hits that box he automatically gets a copy of - and he reads every single one of them.

I find this hard to believe, a Disney executive reading thousands of emails sent to the WDW general mailbox.

Bill

 

[jpeden]

I find this hard to believe, a Disney executive reading thousands of emails sent to the WDW general mailbox.

Bill

I found this suspect as well.

 

[Budshark]

Maybe he used to have people who did that, but the positions got cut?

 

[rteetz]

When I wrote them after our Christmas trip, they were very quick to respond and did a great job in dealing with our issues. They may have cut a lot of CMs, but they've got a good thing going in Guest Services.

I say send to executives first and voice your concerns so they can read them and have it stick with them. Sending to guest services often does nothing because they get thousands of letters or emails or calls every day about issues and usually nothing is done about it.

 

[rteetz]

I find this hard to believe, a Disney executive reading thousands of emails sent to the WDW general mailbox.

Bill

From what I've heard yes many of the executives do read there emails on a daily basis.

 

[Planogirl]

See now I've only been visiting since 1999 and I don't even remember that trip because I was so young. Now I have visited six flags recently and WDW while yes things have decreased six flags is still worse in terms of staff and cleanliness in my opinion.

It's important to understand that Six Flags was not always the way they are now. The original park in Dallas was clean and had decent food and also had some theming. Six Flags has gradually disintegrated over time and it appears that Disney is doing the same.

 

[Bellaoxox24]

So sad to read all of this. I think it will be better soon when Shanghie opens and it is awesome.

 

[rteetz]

So sad to read all of this. I think it will be better soon when Shanghie opens and it is awesome.

Not with the way the Chinese economy is, it won't be awesome if people don't come.

 

[Planogirl]

I once wrote a polite letter expressing concern over (at the time) rumors about the changes at Norway. I think that I was very nice and detailed about what my concerns were but I just got a letter full of Disney speak which ended with a very polite way of telling me just to deal with it. No questions answered whatsoever.

I did write the link Disney gives which appears to be a mistake. I suppose that I should have written Iger.

 

[Csaks]

So, I sent this email to a whole host of Disney execs this morning:

Good Morning,

I want to start this email out by saying that both my wife and I love Walt Disney World. In fact, we went to Walt Disney World three times last year, spending a total of ten days in all four of the theme parks. We spent our anniversary last year at Animal Kingdom Lodge and for our Christmas present to each other, we took a trip the week after Thanksgiving to Walt Disney World to see the Osborne Lights one last time, where we stayed at the Polynesian. I say this to show that I am no novice when it comes to visiting the Walt Disney World Resort.

While over the years there have been a number of exciting things that have happened to improve guest experiences at Walt Disney World (including the additions in New Fantsyland, the expansion of the Food and Wine Festival, and My Magic Plus), it has come to the attention of not only myself, but also of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of other Disney fans that recently Parks and Resorts has decided to implement massive staff reductions, layoffs, and a significant reduction in entertainment options in the theme parks in Florida. The removal of characters such as Chip and Dale, Pooh and Tigger, and Aurora in EPCOT was a shock to many people. And while they're rumored to be replaced with other characters, these are timeless, classic Disney standards that people expect to see when they visit. On top of that, we have seen the removal of the Wicked Stepmother in the Magic Kingdom, and a large reduction in front-of-the-line staff throughout the resorts and the park itself. On top of all of this, we have seen a reduction in the number of Main Street Electrical Parades that are to be run this spring and summer in the parks, along with the elimination for the time being of the 2nd showing of Fantasmic! All of this at a time when the Walt Disney Company has recorded record profits, and has had substantial growth in revenue and profit in the Parks and Resorts Division.

It is disheartening to see that the executives of Disney believe that as guests, we should continually pay more and receive less service. For example, on our trip in November, we had an issue where a package that was supposed to be delivered to our resort did not arrive on time. Due to the fact that we were scheduled to depart the next morning, the manager on duty at the Polynesian said that they would have the package sent to our room. When we arrived back from the Christmas Party that night, the package was not there. I spent the next hour (well past 1:00AM) discussing this with the front desk staff at the Polynesian. When I asked to speak with the manager on duty, I was told that there was no night manager on duty - a fact that I know to be not true, because I turned around and called Guest Services. The wonderful Cast Member at Guest Services offered to call the hotel and have the night manager come speak with me, but at that point I just wanted to go to bed. We did discuss this issue at length with the manager on duty the next morning before we left, but in no way would I ever have been expected to be told that I could not speak to a manager about an issue at a Disney Resort.

The reality of the matter is that as repeat visitors of Walt Disney World, we have come to feel not valued by the Walt Disney Company. Sure, our hard-earned vacation money goes into your company's bottom line and onto the P&L sheets, but the reality is that we are no longer the demographic that you concern yourselves with - as repeat customers, you know we will most likely come back. Disney is now focused on the "one-and-done" or "once-in-a-lifetime" customer who comes once, has a great time, and never comes again. These types of guest don't know or notice that a parade has been cut from the Magic Kingdom, or that the Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios used to have daily parades. This guest doesn't realize when the bathrooms in the park are not as clean as they used to be, because Disney has reduced custodial staff. They don't know that gift shops used to open when the park opened, allowing guests to have a quieter and more relaxed time to shop and send items back to their hotel. They don't realize that we wait longer in lines, pay more for food and tickets, and get less and less service and "magic" from staying on property - because they have no baseline to compare their stay with.

These staffing reductions and entertainment cuts have concerned me and my family so much, that we have decided that we will not be visiting Walt Disney World this year, and we cancelled our planning for a vacation to Disney in the first quarter of 2017. In all honesty, I am not comfortable in expending my hard earned capital, just so that Disney can keep more of theirs and provide me with a lesser experience. All of this coming on (and I emphasize this again, even though you are all aware of the fact) that The Walt Disney Company (including Parks and Resorts) broke record revenue and profit margins last year, while CEO Bob Iger received $44.9 Million in 2015, with a $22.3 Million dollar bonus. Let me be clear, I do not begrudge Mr. Iger or his compensation package - as a free market fundamentalist, I believe that if the market demands he get paid that, then so be it. He has a highly complicated and stressful job. But, that is not the point. The point to be made is a company that can afford a $22.3 million dollar bonus (whether in cash, or stock options, or a mix of those and any other benefits) can afford to not cut labor by 20% when most of those are making close to minimum wage in Central Florida. Meanwhile, Mr. Iger, with total combined compensation, brings home over $860,000.00 - a week.

There have been a number of rumors floated that these cuts are due to budget overruns at Shanghai Disneyland and due to the loss of money because of the closing of Disneyland Paris after the attacks in Paris earlier this year, along with attempts to re-coup some of the estimated $2 billion + spent on My Magic Plus (which by the way, is pretty awesome - kudos to you guys for coming up with that one - seriously). Regardless of the reasons, it plays out with longtime Disney loyalist as nothing more than corporate greed. It is hard to justify these extreme measures to guests when Disney has made record profits, along with consistent price increases. For example, a four-day park hopper in 1995 when I first visited as a child would have cost my parents $137.00 for each adult. Adjusted for inflation, that ticket would now cost $212.98. In 2016, a four-day park hopper for an adult now costs $392.99 - which is almost double the rate of inflation. While we may not be the target audience for Disney World vacations anymore, we notice these type of things, and we do not feel as if Disney cares anymore.

I have gone on in this email for long enough, and I could continue but I believe that I have tried to explain my concerns in a respectful, but firm tone. While I'm not expecting a response or any action to occur from this email, I would be greatly appreciative if a response was received. Until we see how all of these new actions by Disney level out, we most likely will not be returning to the parks. I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes from Walt Disney, which I think this company needs to take to heart more often:

"I knew if this business was ever to get anywhere, if this business was ever to grow, it could never do it by having to answer to someone unsympathetic to its possibilities, by having to answer to someone with only one thought or interest, namely profits. For my idea of how to make profits has differed greatly from those who generally control businesses such as ours. I have blind faith in the policy that quality, tempered with good judgment and showmanship, will win against all odds."

Sincerely,
Jared

While I don't know what will come of it, I've already received a phone call (and voice-mail) from George Kalogridis' assistant. I plan on calling her back in a few minutes. I'll be interested to see what she has to say. I was honestly shocked that I received a response, much less a phone call within five hours of sending that email.

I truly believe you speak for a great many of us repeat fanatics. Very well written.

 

[pcstang]

I truly believe you speak for a great many of us repeat fanatics. Very well written.

Could not agree more! We went to see the mouse, in October, for the first time in a few years. No plans to go back anytime soon.

 

[Clare Voince]

I don't agree that Disney is focused on the one-time trip. If they don't want return guests, then who will buy their DVC? However, Perhaps now that DVC members have committed to coming for the next 30 years, Disney feels they don't have to court their business as aggressively.

 

[rteetz]

I don't agree that Disney is focused on the one-time trip. If they don't want return guests, then who will buy their DVC? However, Perhaps now that DVC members have committed to coming for the next 30 years, Disney feels they don't have to court their business as aggressively.

Disney has always loved the first time or once in a lifetime guest because they spend the most money. Then they get those newbies to look into DVC locking them in for 50 years.

 

[jtwibih]

People may not care for cuts and changes but money is what drives business decisions. If they don't see a negative in their pocket book, sadly they will continue to make cuts and changes.

Bill

I don't understand this logic considering the recent earnings they posted.

 

[rteetz]

I don't understand this logic considering the recent earnings they posted.

Disney logic isn't necessarily the same logic everyone else has.

 

[jtwibih]

Substitute "logic" for "greed" and you may have a point there

 

[halfpintpeggy]

Your ticket will only get you a certain number of experiences per day. In order to get more you must pay more to get more.

Should this come to fruition...I can get Dole Whips, (non-Dis) character interactions, & AMAZING customer service right here in Pa. at Dutch Wonderland Theme Park!

 

[Angel Ariel]

Should this come to fruition...I can get Dole Whips, (non-Dis) character interactions, & AMAZING customer service right here in Pa. at Dutch Wonderland Theme Park!

They have Dole Whips? Hmm..will have to find this summer...

 

[halfpintpeggy]

They have Dole Whips? Hmm..will have to find this summer...

Oh they sure do! We go at least twice a summer & always gobble up the Dole Whips....& rarely more than a person or 2 in line!

 

[Planogirl]

Should this come to fruition...I can get Dole Whips, (non-Dis) character interactions, & AMAZING customer service right here in Pa. at Dutch Wonderland Theme Park!

I really like the smaller older parks sometimes. (If that is what this is.) That's a thought...