We hurt the ones that we love. Disney fans know this all too well, as the theme parks always seem to do something that breaks our heart. Lately, it’s cost-cutting measures. Despite record earnings for The Walt Disney Company, 2018 included several frustrating choices that have already caused problems at theme parks. It’s enough to cause even the most loyal Disney customer to feel a bit betrayed. Disney theme parks have reached a Turning Point. Let’s take a look at the company’s recent cheapness and what it could mean for the future of theme parks.
What happened with Toy Story Land?
Image: DisneyIn the internet era, rumors get posted online, and anything posted online gets accepted as fact. Disney works a bit differently. Some insiders within company walls have proven their accuracy over the years. Generally, we do get a strong idea of what’s happening from reliable people. In the case of Toy Story Land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, we know that a lot changed.
During the blue sky phase of theme park planning, anything seems possible. Once budgets get assigned, grand ideas tend to get lowered to reasonable outcomes. It’s a standard part of the process, as something theoretically feasible isn’t necessarily affordable. With Toy Story Land, however, Disney cut as many corners as any project since the early days of Epcot.
Image: DisneyYou’ve noticed some of the changes and possibly even griped about them. Exhibit A is the lack of cover at the themed land. Toy Story Land is almost entirely open-spaced, forcing theme park tourists to stand in the glaring Florida sun throughout the year. During early afternoon hours, the heat can be unbearable. The annoying part is that this aggravation was avoidable.
Many of the early illustrations for the project leaked online. We know that the original plan called for three distinct areas based on Buzz Lightyear, Woody, and Andy’s Backyard. We only wound up with one of them, and it changed quite a bit. Alien Swirling Saucers lost its indoor line queue, Slinky Dog Dash dropped some of its most imaginative ride elements, and several of Andy’s backyard toys feel like discarded props from Disney’s Pop Century Resort.
Image: DisneyDespite all of the concerns, I happen to love Toy Story Land. I’m particularly obsessed with the line queue for Slinky Dog Dash, which takes me back to my childhood. The toy assembly instructions are pitch perfect for the theming and make the wait feel trivial. I can’t ignore the budget cuts, though. I mean, the restaurant here doesn’t even have an indoors. And that brings us to the second problem…
Toy Story Land was poorly designed
Image: DisneyThese words aren’t ones I’ve said of Disney since, well, Disney California Adventure and the opening of DinoLand U.S.A. The conclusion is impossible to ignore, though. Cracks already appeared after only a few months of operation. During the first year, a staggering number of things have gone wrong.
Here are but a few examples:
- the tables and chairs at Woody’s Lunch Box are in such disrepair that they would sell for a dollar at a yard sale
- the paint has already cracked in several areas, and pieces have fallen off of decorative elements
- Slinky Dog Dash had to add covers to hide unexpected wear-and-tear issues with the slinky coils
- the individual ride carts lost their tails after a matter of weeks
- some of the trash receptacles look like they got swept up in a hurricane and landed awkwardly
Why hasn’t Disney moved to repair any of these issues? The problem is systemic. Disney reduced the budget of Toy Story Land right around the time that they announced Star Wars Land. Understandably, that themed land has become the focus of Hollywood Studios. This change in strategy has come with predictable fallout. Toy Story Land became a secondary project.
Image: DisneyWith everyone working to perfect it, Toy Story Land fell by the wayside. With every resource dedicated to Galaxy’s Edge, repairs at Toy Story Land are low in priority. At some point, Disney will get to it, but they’ve left their park in a decidedly un-Disney state in the interim. And the cost-cutting exists beyond this one themed land…
Going lean
Image: DisneyIn the big data era, corporations have developed new tactics to enhance revenue. One of the most troubling strategies is to get lean. It’s when businesses attempt to employ the fewest employees needed to operate effectively. In most instances, the quality of work decreases as stressed out workers become more error-prone. Also, essential assignments tend to fall through the cracks.
Why do I mention this with Disney? They’ve had several high-profile instances of layoffs in recent years. In one memorable example, they were unsuccessfully sued by former employees forced to train their replacements. Some of these layoffs have specifically targeted performing cast members.
In 2016, Disney laid off a third of the Citizens of Hollywood. These performers act in the shows on the streets of the theme park. They’re wildly popular, but Disney has targeted them multiple times in recent years. The corporation also did a reorganization in 2018 that led to layoffs, with 4,000 (!) more expected after the Fox/Disney merger. This seems to mention that Disney’s had record profits in consecutive years, with the theme park division anchoring the entire company. Yes, Disney’s earning more while providing less. That’s not opinion but an indisputable fact.
What does the trend toward frugality mean for the future of Disney?
Image: DisneyThe dirty secret about all Disney parks is that what happened with Toy Story Land is nothing new. Whenever Disney expends a great deal of capital to build something new, budget cuts are an expected part of the process. The company’s never been able to afford the financial outlay required to create a full park. To wit, Walt Disney famously had to sell his dream home to pay for Disneyland.
Back when Disney bought the land for the Florida Project, the entrepreneur knew that he must construct a theme park first. This section of E.P.C.O.T. would fund everything else. Fifty years later, the same principles apply. Shanghai Disneyland ran over budget by $1.5 billion, almost 38 percent, forcing Disney to reduce costs in its American parks, the ones that were actually earning money at the time.
Given this reality of construction costs, Disney’s current situation is more reasonable. After all, they’re undergoing one of the most significant expansions in the company’s history. Star Wars Land at Hollywood Studios had a reported budget of $800 million at the outset, and Disney’s building two of them. Simultaneously, they’re building two expensive new attractions at Epcot based on Ratatouille and Guardians of the Galaxy. They’ve also reportedly committed $2 billion to reinvigorate Future World.
Image: DisneyAt Magic Kingdom, Disney’s building a Tron roller coaster while altering the appearance of Tomorrowland. On the other coast, Disney California Adventure is converting into a Marvel/Pixar-themed park, with multiple attractions and lands under construction. Then, there’s Disney’s recent acquisition and investment in Disneyland Paris. And Disney’s committed to part of the $1.4 billion budget for upgrades at Hong Kong Disneyland.
You don’t have to be excellent at high finance to understand that your favorite corporation is spending a LOT of money on theme park improvements right now. When you see a busted table at Woody’s Lunch Box, however, your first instinct isn’t to think, “Oh, they need that money for Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run.”
Image: DisneyHigh-level executives have to think of the big picture, though. They’ve done something rare and brave over the past few years. They’ve decided to address every standing criticism of Disney theme parks. Disney California Adventure and Hollywood Studios previously had the worst reputations of the American theme parks. Now, they’re going to host some of the newest and most exciting rides.
Future World hasn’t seemed futuristic since the Reagan administration, but $2 billion will go a long way in bringing it into the 21st century. And the worst international parks, Disneyland Paris and Hong Kong Disneyland, are undergoing sweeping changes to improve their quality. If anything, Disney’s trying to do too much right now, and one of the first victims of these changes took place at Toy Story Land. Should Disney commit a bit of money to get rid of the unsightly stuff? Absolutely.
Image: DisneyTo a larger point, Disney customer service is integral to the sustained excellence of the company. Layoffs are short-sighted and diminish the Disney brand. But it’s easy for me to say that as someone who doesn’t have to distribute funds across four multi-billion divisions or pay the salaries of those employees.
Given what I know of Disney’s history and their current ambitions, I don’t see them cutting corners needlessly. It’s more that they’ve cut the wrong corners. They could/should have held off on some of the projected upgrades until the Star Wars Land money started rolling in. Once that revenue stream is in place, my hope/expectation is that Disney’s recent cost-cutting phase becomes a thing of the past. If corporate officials are committed to this new strategy, however, it’s a huge miscalculation. Disney theme parks must maintain their magic at all costs.
