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| The Pressler Era |
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Itās pretty big news when the Chairman of the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts leaves the company, with myriad implications for empire he manages. His successor, James (Jay) Rasulo, inherits an interesting legacy. Itās that legacy I want to examine today: just how did Paulās tenure add up? Itās fitting, I think, to pause as both cast members and the public welcome Jay to his new job to also consider how things have been going, and examine what kind of shoes Jay needs to fill. What I intend to do is provide both facts and opinions on each segment of Paulās track record.
FACT: As you can see from the resume in the right sidebar, Paul started at Disney in Consumer Licensing where he was charged with controlling the Disney brand. OPINION: Does anyone remember what Disney was like in the early to mid 1980s? It was a company for kids, which churned out awfully cheesy movies and very occasional, unremarkable animated features (Great Mouse Detective, Black Cauldron). The cartoon characters were underused and stood for nothing more than cheese, kitsch, or nostalgia for the public at large. Sure, there were the vacation destinations on both coasts - but thatās about all Disney had going for it. From then until now, somehow the Disney brand was reinvigorated by several orders of magnitude more than anyone would have dreamed possible at the time. I think Paul did a tremendous job here. FACT: Paul became the President of the Disney Stores, during which time the number of stores nationwide grew from 160 to 335 in multiple countries fueled by a series of hit animated films (the chain at that time did little or no advertising, depending solely upon traffic generated by movie releases). Spending per customer skyrocketed during this phase while the Disney Consumer Products division became an increasingly bigger chunk of the Walt Disney Companyās income. OPINION: If you ask me, the Disney Stores never looked as nice before Paulās arrival and never so nice since he left. He was made for the retail branding market, and vice versa - his star really skyrocketed on this particular job. Not only did Disney Stores become ubiquitous, they also somehow managed to become chic. This was Paul in his element. FACT: Once installed as President of the Disneyland Resort, Paul presided over a number of changes. Letās look at the additions and removals separately from each other (in roughly chronological order for each). For the sake of convenience, his time as president and chairman of the entire Parks and Resorts division is included here as well, and the initial focus will be just on the original Disneyland Park: Additions:
Removals:
Adjusted Additions (including only those things which remained permanently): 21 Adjusted Removals (including only those which didnāt reopen): 23 Net Result: 1995 vs. 2002 = -2 Disneyland Admission just before Paul arrived: $31 Disneyland Admission on 9/26/02: $45 Not included: Disneyland Resort Expansion
OPINION: First, a caveat. My opinion isnāt the only one that counts. If you like, head over to this MousePad thread and see how members of our discussion boards are reacting to my proposed list of additions and removals. The list of closures doesnāt include part-time closures; locations which only open when the Park is very busy - which is a departure from the tried and true method Disneyland had used for decades, and results in a de facto closure. Such a list might include the Jolly Trolley or the Columbia. There are also major refurbishments underway on King Arthurās Carousel and the Matterhorn, as well as expanded downtimes this past year for Splash Mountain and small world which further skew the results. The numbers for DCA are also misleading, for a visitor is very likely to find many of the eateries listed to be closed. Unless itās a truly unusually busy day, many or all of the following locations are likely to be closed: Bountiful Valley Farmerās Market, Hollywood & Dine, Catch a Flave, Malibu-Ritos, Strips Dips Īn Chips, Lucky Fortune Cookery, Between Takes, Schmoozies, Sam Andreas Shakes, and Ritaās Baja Blenders. Speaking of DCA, this is likely to be the one major thing skewing the "Net Result" total above. Surely Paulās tenure would show a positive net figure if DCA and the Resort Expansion were included in the list. While this is undoubtedly true, the resort expansion is not included in the price of admission to Disneyland, which is part of the point of the comparison above. There are many who go farther and claim that DCA is, in fact, an unmitigated disaster of a theme park: not enough rides, not enough for children to do, no attractions with the detail-rich trappings that characterize such E-Tickets as Pirates of the Caribbean, and the most common complaint, that the prices for admission, merchandise, and food are too high. That leaves a smaller list of things to examine. The Indiana Jones Adventure, often credited to Paul, in fact was in its testing phase already by the time he joined the Disneyland Resort... he had little to do with this attraction. It should be noted Paul was trying to shutter the project at one point, convinced it was too expensive, and had planned his marketing to only depend upon a retooled 40th anniversary promotion. (To be fair, he also had little to do with the removal of the Skyway, which happened one day after his arrival.)
The new Tomorrowland seems to be the other large-scale addition to Disneyland, but this too is often seen as lacking. With the Rocket Rods, its signature attraction, now permanently removed, along with an empty Submarine Lagoon, the renovated land lacks the hum of activity and vitality that characterized the area before the refurbishments (not to mention having fewer attractions in sum than previously). Fastpass is popular with a lot of people. I, for one, think it clutters up the Park and only generates time efficiencies because not everyone understands it (and the system is thus unfair). But thatās a debate for another time. This is arguably a success among the additions. That leaves the holiday additions - all unqualified smash hits, arguably the only ones during the past seven years. The problem with associating these additions with Paul is that, unlike rides, shops, and restaurants, such entertainment offerings were created and coordinated at levels below his own. The Disneyland Entertainment department, under the leadership of Steve Davison, worked within its own budget to bring these additions to life. Bottom line: sorry, Paul. Even if I grant you credit for the holiday additions, your batting average is far too low to qualify you as a home-run hitter in my book. New Tomorrowland and DCA were your two babies (DCA in particular, since you and Barry Braverman reportedly pitched this idea to Michael on the infamous Aspen retreat), and neither one of them lives up to its hype or promise. And to raise Disneyland admission by 45% during those seven years, when the net amount of attractions and entertainment actually declined along with even the most basic of maintenance, seems nothing short of scandalous. So what does all this mean for Jay Rasula and our expectations for him? There are those who rejoice that Paul - long derided for his focus on meeting budgets and trimming costs - has finally left the building. While I agree that Paul stumbled massively in creative terms (this is a man who is pure genius in marketing, but pure antipathy for creativity), I donāt think he set out to destroy the Park. He may have been a truly nice man, committed and caring. But he was also Michael Eisnerās mostly unapologetic hatchet man. Michael wanted the theme parks to outperform and carry the media conglomerate to ever higher earnings growth, the better to see his own stock options zoom (in 1997 alone, Eisner reaped $575 million from stock options). With that goal in mind, he turned to Paul for help. Paul provided that help. Will Jay be in a position to do anything different?
Paul may have left the building, but the culture of slash and burn at Disney starts at the top, and the management espousing it is still in place. Yet I still wish Paul the best. Iām glad he moved on - Disney may be the better for it - but I also think the Gap found the right man for their job. As we move out of the Pressler era I hope and pray Jay finds a way to keep Michael happy (and thus keep his job) while managing to avoid further alienating the consumer. Finding that balance is the one thing I think Paul could have done, but failed to do. |
Paul Pressler: A Quick Disneyography 1987 - Senior Vice President for Consumer Licensing (arriving from Kenner, where he had shepherded the Care Bears craze, among other things) 1991 - President, Disney Stores 1994 - President of Disneyland Resort 1998 - President of Walt Disney Attractions 2000 - Chairman, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Official Disney press release with Eisner commenting upon the departure of Paul Pressler: BURBANK, Calif., Sep 26, 2002 -- "Paul has been a tremendous asset to the Walt Disney Company over his 15 years of service," said Michael D. Eisner, chairman and chief executive officer of the Walt Disney Company. "Under his leadership, both the Parks and Resorts and the Disney Stores were guided through a time of enormous creative and financial growth. I am certain that Paul's talents will benefit the Gap tremendously, just as they have added outstanding value to our company," Eisner said. Official Disney press release announcing the appointment of James A. Rasulo: James A. Rasulo Promoted
to President of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts "Jay has been instrumental in making Disneyland Resort Paris the most popular tourist destination in Europe," said Eisner. "His vision and extensive experience in the international arena will be invaluable as we continue to grow the business globally." Iger added, "Jay has an exceptional understanding of our brand and the complexities of the parks and resorts business. His talents as a strategic thinker, accomplished leader and effective operator combine to make Jay the perfect person to lead the parks and resorts group." "This is one of the most exciting challenges of my 17 years with Disney. I'm honored to have this opportunity to lead a fantastic team and look forward to sharing the Disney magic around the world as we continue to grow our parks and resorts business," said Rasulo, who will be based in Burbank, California. In his new role, Rasulo, 46, whose appointment will be effective immediately, will oversee the company's theme parks and resorts, the Disney Cruise Line, Disney Regional Entertainment, Walt Disney Imagineering and Anaheim Sports Inc., management company for Major League Baseball's Anaheim Angels and the NHL's Mighty Ducks. In addition, he will be responsible for the business' long-term growth and international expansion initiatives, including the opening of Hong Kong Disneyland. "Beginning with Walt Disney Word veteran Al Weiss along with Matt Ouimet of Disney Cruise Line, Cynthia Harriss of Disneyland, Don Goodman and Marty Sklar of Imagineering, Mas Imai of Walt Disney Attractions Japan, Don Robinson in Hong Kong and Regynald Washington of the ESPN Zone, we have an exceptional group of talented leaders to steer us through these challenging times. Through an extraordinary level of guest service and creativity, this team has positioned us to further capitalize on the great assets the company has built," Eisner added. Rasulo joined the Walt Disney Company in 1986 in Corporate Strategic Planning where he led strategy development for all real estate-based businesses in The Walt Disney Company portfolio. He was senior vice president of Corporate Alliances from 1993 - 1995, organizing the sponsorship activities into a company wide strategic business unit. Rasulo also spent three years with the Disney Regional Entertainment business where he was part of the development of ESPN Zone. In 1998 he moved to Paris to assume the position of executive vice president, Euro Disney S.C.A. In May of 2000, Rasulo was named Chairman and CEO of Euro Disney, S.C.A. and has been an integral part of the many growth initiatives that transformed Disneyland Paris into the top tourist destination in Europe. Just this year, Rasulo marked the beginning of a new and exciting era for the Disneyland Paris Resort with the opening of its second park, Walt Disney Studios. In January of 2001 he welcomed the 100 millionth guest to the Disneyland Paris Park which celebrated it's 10th anniversary this year. During his tenure at Disneyland Resort Paris, Rasulo oversaw a massive period of real estate development and signed four major hotel deals with European tour operators and hotel chains for the construction of two thousand new hotel rooms on the Euro Disney property and surrounding area. Also under his leadership, the Disney Village retail, entertainment and dining center has expanded dramatically and seen record levels of revenue. Rasulo succeeds Paul Pressler, who has become president and chief executive officer of Gap Inc. An international search for Rasulo's replacement is under way and in the interim he will continue to oversee Euro Disney operations until a successor is named. A native New Yorker, Rasulo graduated from Columbia in 1978 with a degree in economics. He went on to earn both a MA in Economics in 1982 and an MBA at the University of Chicago in 1984. Rasulo is bi-lingual in English and French. |
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