Euro Disney opened in April of 1992, and was expected to be the biggest attraction in France. So what happened? Were the French not into Mickey Mouse, or were they not willing to adapt to American culture? Or were it the wrong expectations of the investors? Many reasons contributed to the initial failure of Disney, and it seems Disney underestimated their influence and popularity outside of the United States. The Europeans, mainly the French, were not eager to pay $280 on a day at the park, swollen prices placed on American food like hamburgers and milkshakes, and additional costs from $110 to $380 for hotels per night. However one of the main factors that Disneyland management has suddenly ignored is that people wanted to see a part of America under Disney trademark. The French did not want a parody of France; they wanted a stem on the USA. Disneys biggest mistake was not researching the people who were supposed to account for fifty percent of the attendance, the French. Many of the French people viewed the Disney name and company as American Imperialism – plastics at its worst. Many French farmers were upset over how Disney purchased the land, which was at 1971 market value.
Disney did not do homework at all. The advertising that they used, which was glitz and glamour, was completely wrong. The French wanted to know about the variety of rides and attractions, not the image. Euro Disney was also not to serve alcohol in the park. The French are the worlds largest wine consumers, and eating a meal without a glass is viewed as absurd. Most of these factors would have been foreseeable and controllable if Disney looked at the demographics and psychographics of the country that they called their newest home.
The Essay on French Revolution and American Revolution.
The American Revolution is defined as the war between the American colonies and Great Britain, this leading to the formation of the independent United States. The French revolution was a period of political and social upheaval in the history of France during which the French government underwent radical change. Each Revolution contains analogous and diverse reason as to why each group of people ...
The assumptions made about the spending habits on the types of items that Disney markets were all wrong. What seems to be is Disney assumed that Europeans, Asians, and Americans shared the same view on value. The French are a strong group who do not approve of the foreign influences of America. For one, the French already had a beloved cartoon character, one of which had a theme park that went through major renovations in order to compete with Disney. Disneyland Tokyo has been a success since the moment the doors opened. The Japanese were willing to pay the inflated prices for admission, food, and Disney novelties.
Disney assumed because of this success, that when the doors opened in Paris, the people and the wallets would be flying around the park. Yet in Europe, the same trend was not observed. The management could have done a little differently and thus generate a slightly different but working strategy for the business. I think that a good marketing research done by some European research agency could have prevented the social prejudices, which present in the heads of American investing executive board. For it is apparent to me that it were the prejudices, and wrong assumptions and expectations that brought up the results that Disney Company now has. I do not believe that Disney would have encountered all of these problems if they chose Spain as their location. Spain is known for its low taxes, which means they might not have had to cut such a deal for land like they did in France, which upset many people. Disney would have encountered some problems like initial acceptance, but with the Olympics being held in Barcelona, it would not have been such a competition, both events would have complemented each other in drawing people. Spain is also very warm year round, giving much better conditions for a theme park.
If I were to select 3 possible locations for a new Disneyland, I would look at Rio de Janeiro, Sydney, and Las Vegas. Rio de Janeiro is a large city of over 8 million residents, and Brazil as a whole is over 170 million in population. Sydney, population of over 4 million, is located in the southeast of Australia, which is home to more then 18 million people. Las Vegas, known for its gambling, has really cleaned up their image and has become a destination for family vacations now. I think Disney should change the park to give the people who go thee what they want, maybe people don’t want to see the same attractions as there is in Florida or California. In conclusion, I dont think that Disney made a mistake by opening a Disneyland in Paris.
The Essay on Walt Disney Theme Park
Walter Elias Disney At a time in American history when jobs were scarce and money was hard to come by, one mouse and his group of animated friends, with their comical antics brought smiles to the faces of children and adults alike. The mouse's name was Mickey, and with his creation came the birth of a multi billion dollar corporate empire, all because of on eman's dream. Walt Disney was born in ...
I believe that Disney made their mistakes by not knowing how to culturally adapt to the styles of Europe, and mainly French. They thought they could market to the French the same way as they do business in America or Japan..
