So just why is Disney raising ticket prices so early

[Danibelle]

I just got back and MK was packed. I guess the price increases don't matter to most people. My only surprise was that the kid's price went from 68 to 79 on a one day pass. I think that is a huge increase on a percentage basis.

 

[kaytieeldr]

When the owned company has its own P/L responsibility and sells its product back to the owning company for a profitable price
So HGTV might sell Disney airtime at profitable prices. Or a manufacturing subsidiary might sell product back to the parent company at a profit.

You might say

Nope, not me. I'm not going to argue with you. Thanks for the lesson!

Disclaimer: I read jayandstacey's entire response and it makes a lot of sense; I only c&p'ed the specific portion to which I was responding.

 

[WDSearcher]

Who sprinkled you with pixie dust?

There are long threads, regarding Disney's downhill slide. They have streamlined and cut quality. Tinker Bell's Closet once had unique merchandise, as well as the Magic Shop. Many shops now have, the same merchandise. Engel-Puppen Doll's are gone, so are Hummels...to name a few. AND, don't get me started about the "Villian" merchandise.

BTW..we visited Universal, last December, and it made Disney "thrill" rides look lame, I've always loved Universal Hollywood, but Orlando has moved up with the inclusion of Harry Potter.

We are DVC members and still enjoy Disney, but we spending less time and money there.

RE: Merchandise ... Don't you think that if those items -- Hummels, the dolls, etc -- were selling well, they'd still be there? If a product is taking up space on the shelves and is not giving a decent return based on how much that sales space costs, any retailer would get rid of it. Hummels had a long LONG run at Germany, but no one was buying them. Sure, they're pretty to look at and work within the them of the area, but so does a candy shop, and it sells a LOT better. The dolls ... same thing. Pretty to look at, but no one was buying them. Most of the stuff you're talking about has been at the parks for a decade, at least. That's far more shelf time than they'd have been given anywhere else. If something else sells better, bring it in. There's still plenty of unique Disney merchandise out there, IMO.

Universal rides have always made Disney "thrill" rides look lame. But then again, Disney has never tried to match any of the thrill ride / coaster parks with the number, speed or type of coasters they do. Mostly because Disney is not and has never been a thrill ride / coaster park. It's designed so that nearly everything in the parks can be ridden by the whole family. It's about a balanced experience between thrills (Everest, TOT, RNR), mild thrills (TMRR, Test Track, Kali), interactive (TSMM, Buzz, Safari), family (Haunted Mansion, Nemo, Teacups) and kiddie (Pooh, Pan, Dumbo) rides. If you're putting Disney up against Universal based on thrill rides alone, Universal will win hands down. And if thrill rides are your primary goal, Universal is your park. (Well, actually, Busch Gardens is your park if you're in Florida, but Universal is it if you're talking Orlando.)

Calling Disney out on its lack of thrill rides isn't really criticizing them. They've never claimed to be in the lead there.

 

[Planogirl]

RE: Merchandise ... Don't you think that if those items -- Hummels, the dolls, etc -- were selling well, they'd still be there? If a product is taking up space on the shelves and is not giving a decent return based on how much that sales space costs, any retailer would get rid of it. Hummels had a long LONG run at Germany, but no one was buying them. Sure, they're pretty to look at and work within the them of the area, but so does a candy shop, and it sells a LOT better. The dolls ... same thing. Pretty to look at, but no one was buying them. Most of the stuff you're talking about has been at the parks for a decade, at least. That's far more shelf time than they'd have been given anywhere else. If something else sells better, bring it in. There's still plenty of unique Disney merchandise out there, IMO.

Universal rides have always made Disney "thrill" rides look lame. But then again, Disney has never tried to match any of the thrill ride / coaster parks with the number, speed or type of coasters they do. Mostly because Disney is not and has never been a thrill ride / coaster park. It's designed so that nearly everything in the parks can be ridden by the whole family. It's about a balanced experience between thrills (Everest, TOT, RNR), mild thrills (TMRR, Test Track, Kali), interactive (TSMM, Buzz, Safari), family (Haunted Mansion, Nemo, Teacups) and kiddie (Pooh, Pan, Dumbo) rides. If you're putting Disney up against Universal based on thrill rides alone, Universal will win hands down. And if thrill rides are your primary goal, Universal is your park. (Well, actually, Busch Gardens is your park if you're in Florida, but Universal is it if you're talking Orlando.)

Calling Disney out on its lack of thrill rides isn't really criticizing them. They've never claimed to be in the lead there.

Walmart is a better seller too but it sure isn't as much fun to browse in as higher end stores. I get your point but I understand the other poster's point too.

Besides one side effect could be that fewer people bother to enter the various shops since they all sell the same thing. You could just as easily buy the souvenirs at one of the big shops close to the park entrance.

 

[KSDisneyDad]

Who sprinkled you with pixie dust?

There are long threads, regarding Disney's downhill slide. They have streamlined and cut quality. Tinker Bell's Closet once had unique merchandise, as well as the Magic Shop. Many shops now have, the same merchandise. Engel-Puppen Doll's are gone, so are Hummels...to name a few. AND, don't get me started about the "Villian" merchandise.

BTW..we visited Universal, last December, and it made Disney "thrill" rides look lame, I've always loved Universal Hollywood, but Orlando has moved up with the inclusion of Harry Potter.

We are DVC members and still enjoy Disney, but we spending less time and money there.

Pixie dust is all in the attitude IMO and I do admit that I’m a “glass half full” type of person.

Just because there are long threads on Disney’s “downhill slide” doesn’t change the fact that it’s simply just an opinion of a very tiny sampling of those who visit WDW. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of other threads with mini trip reports on how wonderful WDW is. We just returned from trip #16 and, honestly, it was our best trip we ever had. I don’t doubt that some people are disappointed with certain changes and believe that WDW isn’t what it used to be. But there are others who believe that the positive changes outweigh the negative ones or that they’ve cancelled each other out.

What are Engel-Puppen Doll’s? Like any corporation trying to maximize profits, they will sell what is popular today, not what was popular 5 or 10 years ago or they may have lost their joint marketing agreement with a particular vendor. Disney still carries a lot of unique collectibles, whether it’s WDCC, Precious Moments figurines, Jim Shore figurines, Lenox figurines, Olszwenski collectibles, Swarovski figurines and jewelry, and even Vinylmations and other new popular collectible items. I find some of the new stuff quite ugly, but it is definitely unique and there seems to be a variety for all tastes. You can even find lots of Disney prints, lithographs or posters. I’m not sure what you mean by the Villian merchandise as we have no interest in that. We found on our last trip that yes, you could find some of the same things in different stores and all throughout the parks. However, there were still some unique items that were only at a particular shop. I like Disney watches and have always been happy with the selection and variety. My only regret was not buying the Swiss Army version when it was available in 2006. It does seem that Disney does change their marketing relationships and for the past several years, Skagen has made watches for Disney as well as other watch manufacturers such as Citizens, Whittnauer and even Timex.

We visited Universal pre-HP and was bored with it. We did both parks in one day and were ready to get back to Disney. We love the HP books and films and may visit again just to see the WWoHP section, but their high prices make it hard to want to go do it. As another poster said, Disney does not try to compete with the other park’s thrill rides which is fine with us. RNRR is about as aggressive a thrill ride that we want. We do not visit WDW for the rides anyway, we visit for the escape from reality and being immersed in the entire WDW resort. We just did not get that feeling at Universal as it felt like it was just a better six-flags. When we are at WDW, we feel like we’ve left the world behind and the shows and attractions are just gravy.

As each and every item I’ve mentioned is only my opinion about very subjective items, I understand that others will disagree. We obviously disagree completely and that’s okay. Disney will continue to change like everything in life. If one doesn’t like those changes, then they will soon find that the ticket prices don’t provide enough value anymore and will stop going altogether. Disney believes that it needs to appeal is to the masses and not the exclusive guests who have been fortunate to go nearly every year for up to 40 years, but want things the way they were in 1971, 1982,1989, 1998, etc. On a trip last year, we met a retired couple living in Orlando who visit the parks two to three times a week. He was joking that he knows all of the parking lot attendants by name. But even with all of the familiarity with Disney, they were acting like kids who only visit WDW once in a lifetime. We spent about 20 minutes in line talking to them. Their energy and love for Disney brought smiles to everyone they came across including us and they never complained about how things used to be so much better. If Disney has lost that special magic, then why do you still go?

 

[WDSearcher]

Walmart is a better seller too but it sure isn't as much fun to browse in as higher end stores. I get your point but I understand the other poster's point too.

Besides one side effect could be that fewer people bother to enter the various shops since they all sell the same thing. You could just as easily buy the souvenirs at one of the big shops close to the park entrance.

Of course you can. And I'm sure Disney's taken that into account when deciding their inventory. There are still wonderfully unique shops around World Showcase, specialty shops throughout the parks, merchandise unique and branded to each park, etc. I'm not sure what it is people are looking for when they say "there's nothing there".

Plus ... truly unique items are bound to cost more, simply because they won't be produced in the same quantities as the more standard souvenirs. And isn't the whole discussion here about how it costs too much to visit Disney?

 

[KSDisneyDad]

Walmart is a better seller too but it sure isn't as much fun to browse in as higher end stores. I get your point but I understand the other poster's point too.

Besides one side effect could be that fewer people bother to enter the various shops since they all sell the same thing. You could just as easily buy the souvenirs at one of the big shops close to the park entrance.

Browsing doesn't make Disney any money. Buying does.

That said, I wonder how many of those $37,500 crystal castles they've sold?

And we still found a lot of unique items in certain stores that you can't get elsewhere in the parks.

 

[KSDisneyDad]

I'm not sure what it is people are looking for when they say "there's nothing there".

Plus ... truly unique items are bound to cost more, simply because they won't be produced in the same quantities as the more standard souvenirs. And isn't the whole discussion here about how it costs too much to visit Disney?

 

[GadgetRick]

RE: Merchandise ... Don't you think that if those items -- Hummels, the dolls, etc -- were selling well, they'd still be there? If a product is taking up space on the shelves and is not giving a decent return based on how much that sales space costs, any retailer would get rid of it. Hummels had a long LONG run at Germany, but no one was buying them. Sure, they're pretty to look at and work within the them of the area, but so does a candy shop, and it sells a LOT better. The dolls ... same thing. Pretty to look at, but no one was buying them. Most of the stuff you're talking about has been at the parks for a decade, at least. That's far more shelf time than they'd have been given anywhere else. If something else sells better, bring it in. There's still plenty of unique Disney merchandise out there, IMO.

You're missing the point. Merchandise is headed back to the crap they used to sell 20 years(ish) ago (and it WAS crap back then). It had gotten quite good for many years and they standardized all of the merchandise (like the food) in order to make the merchandise more profitable. Shirts and other things were selling just fine. Yet, they've standardized everything (everything says Disneyland on the tags).

Many times, the quality has suffered. I can assure you many of the t-shirts are nowhere near as good as they used to be. Again, they're probably getting it for less money and they sell it for the same (or more) money making more profit.

Now, I'm not saying Disney is the only company out there doing this. I've noticed many t-shirts from many places have all gone through the same change. But make no mistake, it's not just about them selling enough or not. Obviously, they stop selling stuff which isn't selling. But the (overall) quality of the general souvenirs has declined. But I feel this is the case with everyone, not just Disney.

 

[GadgetRick]

Of course you can. And I'm sure Disney's taken that into account when deciding their inventory. There are still wonderfully unique shops around World Showcase, specialty shops throughout the parks, merchandise unique and branded to each park, etc. I'm not sure what it is people are looking for when they say "there's nothing there".

Plus ... truly unique items are bound to cost more, simply because they won't be produced in the same quantities as the more standard souvenirs. And isn't the whole discussion here about how it costs too much to visit Disney?

World Showcase notwithstanding, I don't agree with you one bit. They absolutely have gotten rid of the uniqueness with merchandise. You used to find unique things in various stores throughout WDW. Now it's all (basically) standardized. If you're looking for the general souvenir, go to DTD in World of Disney and you'll find EVERYTHING you'd find at all of the souvenir shops. Obviously, there are some exceptions like the glass shop in MK but I'm talking about the stuff almost everyone buys (at least) once. No surprises anywhere.

Honestly, for me, it's not a huge problem as I'm not a big shopper and my family has enough Mickey shirts. But, when stuff wears out, we'd like to replace things and the stuff just isn't as good.

 

[KSDisneyDad]

World Showcase notwithstanding, I don't agree with you one bit. They absolutely have gotten rid of the uniqueness with merchandise. You used to find unique things in various stores throughout WDW. Now it's all (basically) standardized. If you're looking for the general souvenir, go to DTD in World of Disney and you'll find EVERYTHING you'd find at all of the souvenir shops. Obviously, there are some exceptions like the glass shop in MK but I'm talking about the stuff almost everyone buys (at least) once. No surprises anywhere.

Honestly, for me, it's not a huge problem as I'm not a big shopper and my family has enough Mickey shirts. But, when stuff wears out, we'd like to replace things and the stuff just isn't as good.

I agree that merchandise is a little more standardized than when we first started going back in the late 90's. But I don't see that much of a change. I think it's a bit extreme to say that all uniqueness is gone as a couple of posters have said. For someone visiting WDW from a distance, does it really matter that you can buy a WDW specific collectible or souvenir item on Main Street, MouseGears or World of Disney. These are all places where you can't shop when you're at home. Not everyone wants to shop at every single shop at WDW so having some of the same merchandise at different locations helps.

That said, when we were there earlier this month, we found a travel mug with Mickey heads on it colored with the various WS country flags that we only found in Epcot. We thought we could buy it at DTD, but when we didn't see it there are anywhere else, we purchased it when we returned to Epcot a few days later. Similarly, there was Polynesian specific merchandise (T-shirts, travel mugs, lithos, hats, etc.) that we found only at the Poly. I purchased a nice fleece jacket at Expedition Everest, I liked it as it didn't shout "WDW" all over it. I could go on and on with other examples of these unique items that we found throughout the parks.

I do have to admit that I was disappointed that they didn't have any 2011 Memorial Day pins. We were there on Memorial Day itself and asked a CM about it. She said they had some that they received in April, but they sold out immediately. Why would people buy a Memorial Day pin in April? They still had plenty of leftover Easter pins and even had some Father's Day and Flag Day pins. We like to collect pins that are specific to the actual dates and events we attend, so we were disappointed that they were sold out long before Memorial Day itself..

And as far as quality, I actually found that it improved during the past couple of trips. It seemed like between maybe 2005 and 2009, the quality of some of the t-shirts we bought was not very good. However, the ones purchased recently seem to be a lot better.

 

[WDSearcher]

You're missing the point. Merchandise is headed back to the crap they used to sell 20 years(ish) ago (and it WAS crap back then). It had gotten quite good for many years and they standardized all of the merchandise (like the food) in order to make the merchandise more profitable. Shirts and other things were selling just fine. Yet, they've standardized everything (everything says Disneyland on the tags).

I know this is going to cause another "::sigh::" and another "You're missing the point" , but I'm going to say it anyway. Don't buy the stuff. Is Merchandise that major a factor in your vacation? My guess is that for most people, it's not. People like to look at nice stuff. They try it on, play with it, take their photo with it. Buying it is another story.

Presuming that your definition of "just fine" matches the Company's, do you have any numbers to back up your contention that "shirts and other things were selling just fine"? How do the sales figures for those past products -- the ones that weren't standardized and weren't your definition of crap -- compare to the sales figures for the stuff that is? If there's somewhere you're seeing Merch numbers, I'd love a link, because I really don't know if sales are up or down on specific classes of products and that would be interesting information to read.

Many times, the quality has suffered. I can assure you many of the t-shirts are nowhere near as good as they used to be. Again, they're probably getting it for less money and they sell it for the same (or more) money making more profit.

So ... don't buy it. (Sorry.) This huge drop in quality ... is it something that you're just generically disappointed about or is it literally keeping you from spending more money on souvenirs?

I'm not sure where you're shopping or what, exactly, you're looking for when you shop, but I see a wide variety of t-shirts at a wide variety of quality and prices. I see the nice heavy-duty I'll-be-able-to-wear-this-forever type shirts for $40 and up, and I see the "souvenir / proof I was there" cheaper kind of shirts that go for under $20. I don't think every single item in the shop has to be the highest level of longevity in order to make it a good choice. There have to be low-end, buy-'em-cheap things for the people who are trying to buy a dozen things for their kid's classmates, and there need to be higher-end last-forever things for the people who desire that. I think Disney has plenty of both. But again ... I'm not sure what kind of unique, lasting merchandise you're trying to find.

Now, I'm not saying Disney is the only company out there doing this. I've noticed many t-shirts from many places have all gone through the same change. But make no mistake, it's not just about them selling enough or not. Obviously, they stop selling stuff which isn't selling. But the (overall) quality of the general souvenirs has declined. But I feel this is the case with everyone, not just Disney.

What are you not seeing that you want to see? And again, is it stuff you want because you want to buy it, or do you just want to see better stuff as you wander through shops to get out of the rain?

 

[GadgetRick]

I know this is going to cause another "::sigh::" and another "You're missing the point" , but I'm going to say it anyway. Don't buy the stuff. Is Merchandise that major a factor in your vacation? My guess is that for most people, it's not. People like to look at nice stuff. They try it on, play with it, take their photo with it. Buying it is another story.

Presuming that your definition of "just fine" matches the Company's, do you have any numbers to back up your contention that "shirts and other things were selling just fine"? How do the sales figures for those past products -- the ones that weren't standardized and weren't your definition of crap -- compare to the sales figures for the stuff that is? If there's somewhere you're seeing Merch numbers, I'd love a link, because I really don't know if sales are up or down on specific classes of products and that would be interesting information to read.


So ... don't buy it. (Sorry.) This huge drop in quality ... is it something that you're just generically disappointed about or is it literally keeping you from spending more money on souvenirs?

I'm not sure where you're shopping or what, exactly, you're looking for when you shop, but I see a wide variety of t-shirts at a wide variety of quality and prices. I see the nice heavy-duty I'll-be-able-to-wear-this-forever type shirts for $40 and up, and I see the "souvenir / proof I was there" cheaper kind of shirts that go for under $20. I don't think every single item in the shop has to be the highest level of longevity in order to make it a good choice. There have to be low-end, buy-'em-cheap things for the people who are trying to buy a dozen things for their kid's classmates, and there need to be higher-end last-forever things for the people who desire that. I think Disney has plenty of both. But again ... I'm not sure what kind of unique, lasting merchandise you're trying to find.


What are you not seeing that you want to see? And again, is it stuff you want because you want to buy it, or do you just want to see better stuff as you wander through shops to get out of the rain?

OMG, can you EVER say a negative thing about Disney???? I mean, every time someone says anything even remotely negative about Disney, you come back with positive fluffy stuff.

First of all, I don't buy what I used to buy. However, I do enjoy a good Disney shirt. I can assure you that, not only have they increased in price, the quality has dropped. Again, I'm not the only person to have noticed this. I have also said, this is not just a Disney thing, I've seen this EVERYWHERE. So I wasn't knocking Disney but pointing out what is happening.

And I don't have sales figures to back anything up--I don't need them. You can walk around the parks--or your hometown outside of FL--and see things like Disney shirts are selling. Yet, they HAVE standardized the shirts and the quality hasn't been as good as it's been (overall). Of course, there may be exceptions but I'm talking very general here.

Not that long ago, you used to be able to walk though all of the little shops throughout WDW and find cool little things you couldn't find anywhere else. Various shirts, toys, etc. Now, that's just not the case. Again, I'm sure there are exceptions and I'm talking about general souvenirs, not crystal castles and stuff like that. I am far from the only person who has noticed this.

And, I'll say it again, I'm not knocking Disney as this is the trend EVERYWHERE, however, to act like none of this is happening makes no sense. I guess the people who've noticed this over the years are just crazy?

I'm a Disney fan, however, they're not perfect like you make them out to be every time someone says something negative about them. I love my wife but she also does things which piss me off from time to time. I know it goes both ways. I love my kids, they also piss me off from time to time. I love certain stores or companies or restaurants (not talking Disney) but, again, from time to time one of them does something which pisses me off. Disney is no different. They do things which some people don't like. Sometimes it's enough for some people to give up on Disney. That hasn't happened to me at least not yet.

Things have changed at WDW, they're always changing. Some changes have been for the better and some have not been.

 

[WDSearcher]

OMG, can you EVER say a negative thing about Disney???? I mean, every time someone says anything even remotely negative about Disney, you come back with positive fluffy stuff.

Hey! My stuff is no fluffier than yours! I've said negative stuff about Disney. But if you're waiting for me to say "Disney has gone radically downhill and it's not worth it any more" ... that's not coming. But I also tend to respond to the people who just generally say that things are worse or things are bad or things are going downhill. Back it up with something and I'll concede. Tell me it's just something you "know" or something "you can tell", and I'll challenge that. Because -- in this case -- what is obvious to you is something that I haven't seen.

First of all, I don't buy what I used to buy. However, I do enjoy a good Disney shirt. I can assure you that, not only have they increased in price, the quality has dropped. Again, I'm not the only person to have noticed this.

Yeah ... but you're the only one arguing with me about it.

I have also said, this is not just a Disney thing, I've seen this EVERYWHERE. So I wasn't knocking Disney but pointing out what is happening.

And I don't have sales figures to back anything up--I don't need them.

You do if you're going to make a comment like, "Shirts and other things were selling just fine." How can you say that if you don't have anything to back it up?

You can walk around the parks--or your hometown outside of FL--and see things like Disney shirts are selling. Yet, they HAVE standardized the shirts and the quality hasn't been as good as it's been (overall). Of course, there may be exceptions but I'm talking very general here.

Not that long ago, you used to be able to walk though all of the little shops throughout WDW and find cool little things you couldn't find anywhere else. Various shirts, toys, etc. Now, that's just not the case. Again, I'm sure there are exceptions and I'm talking about general souvenirs, not crystal castles and stuff like that. I am far from the only person who has noticed this.

And yet ... I still see those "cool little things you couldn't find anywhere else" when I walk through those little shops throughout WDW. So honestly -- I don't know what it is that you're looking for that isn't there. It seems to be more of a "feeling" than it is an actual hardgood, so maybe it's hard to quantify. Maybe I just don't shop in the same kind of places you shop. Maybe my tastes are more easily pleased. Maybe I'm just more of a bumkin and am more easily impressed. But to just say you don't see the same "various shirts, toys, etc." that you used to see -- even you have to admit that that's pretty vague.

And, I'll say it again, I'm not knocking Disney as this is the trend EVERYWHERE, however, to act like none of this is happening makes no sense. I guess the people who've noticed this over the years are just crazy?

They are no crazier than those folks who haven't noticed it happening. I'm not acting like it's not happening. I honestly don't see it. You do. Doesn't make either one of us wrong. And by the way ... I'm not telling you you're wrong, I'm telling you how it looks from my POV. I think the reason you're so frustrated here is that I'm having a conversation; you're trying to win.

I'm a Disney fan, however, they're not perfect like you make them out to be every time someone says something negative about them. I love my wife but she also does things which piss me off from time to time. I know it goes both ways. I love my kids, they also piss me off from time to time. I love certain stores or companies or restaurants (not talking Disney) but, again, from time to time one of them does something which pisses me off. Disney is no different. They do things which some people don't like. Sometimes it's enough for some people to give up on Disney. That hasn't happened to me at least not yet.

I don't think there is a post anywhere on this BB (or anywhere else) where I've said that Disney is perfect. Find me someplace where I've said that and I will stop posting. I do like playing devil's advocate and I do like trying to get people away from general complaints and into specfics. Telling me "I hate Epcot" tells me nothing. Telling me "Epcot is my least favorite park" is a little clearer. "I used to like Epcot, but then they took Tapestry of Nations away, and now it just seems empty when I walk around World Showcase" is the whole story.

Things have changed at WDW, they're always changing. Some changes have been for the better and some have not been.

I agree with you that some changes have been for the better and some have not been. We just happen to disagree on which changes are in which categories.

 

[TLSnell1981]

What are Engel-Puppen Doll’s? Like any corporation trying to maximize profits, they will sell what is popular today, things in different stores and all throughout the parks. parks in one day and were ready to get back to Disney.

They are collectible, German-made dolls..that have been produced for over 100 years, and sold all over the world. You could choose hair color and type, eye and skin color.. If you were really lucky, you could have one made, signed and dated by Mr. Engel. We purchased these dolls ( and clothing), along with Steiff animals and Hummel figurines. I doubt, we were the only ones.
http://www.dollreader.com/archive/datw/germany/engelpuppen.html

 

[GadgetRick]

Hey! My stuff is no fluffier than yours! I've said negative stuff about Disney. But if you're waiting for me to say "Disney has gone radically downhill and it's not worth it any more" ... that's not coming. But I also tend to respond to the people who just generally say that things are worse or things are bad or things are going downhill. Back it up with something and I'll concede. Tell me it's just something you "know" or something "you can tell", and I'll challenge that. Because -- in this case -- what is obvious to you is something that I haven't seen.

Nobody is asking you to say you agree, however, you can't even acknowledge something which has been brought up over and over and over by many people. That's my point. You paint this rosy picture on everything whenever someone says something even slightly negative. Where have you said negative things about Disney? I'd love to see it.

Yeah ... but you're the only one arguing with me about it.

Uh, you were the one who is disagreeing on these points...

You do if you're going to make a comment like, "Shirts and other things were selling just fine." How can you say that if you don't have anything to back it up?

No I don't because that's not the point. You said something about (and I'm paraphrasing here) Disney only changing the things they're selling because those things aren't selling. You may have been talking about something specific, I'm talking generally. If you're trying to say you need numbers to prove people are buying Disney shirts then I really don't know what to say. People ARE buying Disney shirts (as an example), you can see people wearing them.

And yet ... I still see those "cool little things you couldn't find anywhere else" when I walk through those little shops throughout WDW. So honestly -- I don't know what it is that you're looking for that isn't there. It seems to be more of a "feeling" than it is an actual hardgood, so maybe it's hard to quantify. Maybe I just don't shop in the same kind of places you shop. Maybe my tastes are more easily pleased. Maybe I'm just more of a bumkin and am more easily impressed. But to just say you don't see the same "various shirts, toys, etc." that you used to see -- even you have to admit that that's pretty vague.

Maybe you're just ignoring the fact that they have standardized on many products. Again, plenty of people have mentioned it over the last couple of years. They've (essentially) gotten rid of all resort-specific and (in some cases) attraction-specific merchandise. Again, this has been brought up before in other areas. So I guess I'm just crazy again...

They are no crazier than those folks who haven't noticed it happening. I'm not acting like it's not happening. I honestly don't see it. You do. Doesn't make either one of us wrong. And by the way ... I'm not telling you you're wrong, I'm telling you how it looks from my POV. I think the reason you're so frustrated here is that I'm having a conversation; you're trying to win.

It's not a matter of whether you've noticed it happening. My point is you (and some others) act like those of us who acknowledge (or notice) these things are crazy for saying these things are going on. You defend every one of the things people talk about like this. I don't care if you haven't noticed, or don't care about, these things but it doesn't mean these things are not happening. When you ask for specifics--and people give them to you--you change the argument (what are the numbers, etc.).

I don't think there is a post anywhere on this BB (or anywhere else) where I've said that Disney is perfect. Find me someplace where I've said that and I will stop posting. I do like playing devil's advocate and I do like trying to get people away from general complaints and into specfics. Telling me "I hate Epcot" tells me nothing. Telling me "Epcot is my least favorite park" is a little clearer. "I used to like Epcot, but then they took Tapestry of Nations away, and now it just seems empty when I walk around World Showcase" is the whole story.

Never said you mentioned they are perfect. However, I will say I've never seen you post anything negative about Disney and I've certainly never seen you agree with ANYONE who has said something negative about Disney no matter how trivial that would be. You might acknowledge something but then make an excuse for Disney doing it (ticket increases as one example). So, while you may not say they're perfect, you certainly act as if they are.

I agree with you that some changes have been for the better and some have not been. We just happen to disagree on which changes are in which categories.

I have no problem disagreeing about them but which changes would you say have been for the worst? I'm curious now.

Also, search for posts made by you. In most of the posts, you are telling someone who is complaining about something (no matter how minor--like Duffy's foot) why Disney is not wrong for doing what they're complaining about. I'm not judging, I'm just saying...

 

[Planogirl]

Browsing doesn't make Disney any money. Buying does.

That said, I wonder how many of those $37,500 crystal castles they've sold?

And we still found a lot of unique items in certain stores that you can't get elsewhere in the parks.

Browsers buy. If you don't get them into the shops, they certainly don't buy.

I can't speak for the crystal castles.

 

[dreweyj]

I can't speak for the quality of the merchandise because I haven't bought much. Specifically, of the last 3 trips I took, each time I found a specific article of clothing I really liked the looks of but they didn't have it in a (men's) Large. Just medium and/or small.

So I can't attest to the quality or the prices from 10 or even 20 years ago, but I can assure you that literally 3 times in a row - from april to November they didn't have my size in the items I wanted. The third time I actually complained to the manager at one of the retail shops and explained that I was willing to spend money and couldn't because the merchandise orderer was not doing their job. All 3 times someone confirmed with the warehouse that it was out of stock and each time I tried buying two specific items they sell.

That turned me off...

 

[shalom]

That said, I wonder how many of those $37,500 crystal castles they've sold?

I don't think they care how many of them go. Those crystal castles are both a wienie to draw you in, and an extremely overpriced item to make the other overpriced items look like a bargain. Most people don't buy that sort of stuff everyday and really don't know what a good price is -- but when you compare it to the price on the castle, one of the pumpkin carriages is a deal!

 

[jayandstacey]

Anecdotal evidence:

This doesn't really add anything to the current flavor of this discussion, however, I was thinking about the merch.

I believe that we've bought VERY few souveniers relative to the time we spent in the parks. Over 25 park days, maybe a couple of glowsticks and two shirts to cover emergency situations (sickness).

Then I think - we HAD to buy other stuff - if nothing else, we collected pressed pennies so were in the shops all the time. Maybe a pin or two? Maybe a deck of cards?

And the conclusion is that it is so purely "point of sale" with no pre-planning and little afterthought - that I really have no idea and that works SO well into Disney's hands - I imagine that nothing has higher margins than the merch, the only downside being that a live person needs to stand there to sell it.

As for the $37,000 crystal palaces, I'd guess that between 5 to 15 are sold per year. I talked with a CM once and they said "yeah, one was sold last week in Epcot, and another about a month ago in DTD, so yeah, they sell..." Now, this is anecdotal information about anecdotal information - but how about this - I doubt they ever need to be dusted