Pressler Brings Disney Magic to The Gap
It was a small story in today's business news that, even if you saw it, I'm sure meant little to you. But it meant something to me.
In another lifetime, in a world far, far away, I worked for Disneyland. Not the Walt Disney Company, nor Disney Studios or the Disney Store, nor, later, for ABC. For Disneyland.
As a young man, working my way through college, I worked in the Park as a busboy and then a waiter at the Blue Bayou. Later, with the invaluable help of my sister, who worked in Casting, I returned to a "real" job in the Entertainment Division. Through my years working at the Park, I learned what it was that made Disneyland special, that made its people feel that DL is something worth going out of one's way for.
In all the places I have worked in my varied life, DL is the only place I have ever seen employees walk out of their way to pick up a stray piece of litter off the ground coming off of break. It's the only place where I've seen people off-shift wait a half-hour for the park to close so they could "walk" back to Costuming through an empty Adventureland and Main Street.
And I got to work with some amazing people, people who understood what "show" means in the DL context and who would do whatever it took to make that happen (Take a bow Chaz!).
DL was, though, a sleepy backwater of what had become Eisner's Walt Disney Company. It was an afterthought, a jewel in the crown to be sure, but not the unit that was driving the company. In that sense, mercifully, it was left mostly alone, its traditions, its management and its unique business culture untouched.
And it remained that way right until it began to show some serious potential as a resort destination. For a variety of reasons, too complicated to go into here, DL was not a place families went to for days on end. It was a place you visited in one day, and locals have always been the bulk of the business. But then, with the acquisition of the Angels and the Mighty Ducks (and, more importantly, the passing of a particular strawberry farmer!), the long-dreamed-of "Second Gate" began to seem possible.
Alas, for poor, old Disneyland, such possibilities brought it the attention of the Higher Ups, who sent as their emissary an energetic young executive named Paul Pressler.
I could tire you with pages of stories about the war Pressler's appointment as Disneyland President set off between the "Old Timers" and the "Presslerites", but I'll spare you. Needless to say, those small but crucial elements that kept Disneyland special were eliminated with maximum ruthlessness. In the interests of time, I'll let the man's Wikipedia entry give you the gist:
Another example: around the Park, at popcorn carts, retail shops, rides and restaurants, we once kept cardboard boxes with rain ponchos. If the infrequent happened and it began to rain, we opened those boxes up and gave the Guests rain ponchos.
Under Pressler's guidance, this was a "revenue stream" to be "maximized." Now, if you're at DL and it starts raining, you can have a poncho for you and your family...at $5 a pop.
After ruining DL and running some of its best people out of town, Pressler was, of course, promoted. He then went on to ruin more stuff with his abject cluelessness.
I am not at all surprised to see him behind the Gap's road to ruin. There is in corporate America a certain type of executive, one who impresses by spouting the latest business school jargon, plays effective office politics, who manages to position himself for advancement, all the while sucking the life out of the entities they are put in charge of to no one else's gain.
Paul Pressler is such a man. I wish him nothing but continued failure.
CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- Gap Inc. said late Monday that Chief Executive Paul Pressler is leaving the company and the board immediately, ending a difficult period for the company. He will be replaced by Robert Fisher, chairman of the board and son the company's founder, until a new CEO is hired. The company said it prefers to recruit a new leader with deep retailing experience, something Pressler did not have.
In another lifetime, in a world far, far away, I worked for Disneyland. Not the Walt Disney Company, nor Disney Studios or the Disney Store, nor, later, for ABC. For Disneyland.
As a young man, working my way through college, I worked in the Park as a busboy and then a waiter at the Blue Bayou. Later, with the invaluable help of my sister, who worked in Casting, I returned to a "real" job in the Entertainment Division. Through my years working at the Park, I learned what it was that made Disneyland special, that made its people feel that DL is something worth going out of one's way for.
In all the places I have worked in my varied life, DL is the only place I have ever seen employees walk out of their way to pick up a stray piece of litter off the ground coming off of break. It's the only place where I've seen people off-shift wait a half-hour for the park to close so they could "walk" back to Costuming through an empty Adventureland and Main Street.
And I got to work with some amazing people, people who understood what "show" means in the DL context and who would do whatever it took to make that happen (Take a bow Chaz!).
DL was, though, a sleepy backwater of what had become Eisner's Walt Disney Company. It was an afterthought, a jewel in the crown to be sure, but not the unit that was driving the company. In that sense, mercifully, it was left mostly alone, its traditions, its management and its unique business culture untouched.
And it remained that way right until it began to show some serious potential as a resort destination. For a variety of reasons, too complicated to go into here, DL was not a place families went to for days on end. It was a place you visited in one day, and locals have always been the bulk of the business. But then, with the acquisition of the Angels and the Mighty Ducks (and, more importantly, the passing of a particular strawberry farmer!), the long-dreamed-of "Second Gate" began to seem possible.
Alas, for poor, old Disneyland, such possibilities brought it the attention of the Higher Ups, who sent as their emissary an energetic young executive named Paul Pressler.
I could tire you with pages of stories about the war Pressler's appointment as Disneyland President set off between the "Old Timers" and the "Presslerites", but I'll spare you. Needless to say, those small but crucial elements that kept Disneyland special were eliminated with maximum ruthlessness. In the interests of time, I'll let the man's Wikipedia entry give you the gist:
The park's management team of the mid-1990s was a tremendous source of contention to many Disneyland fans and employees.
During Pressler's tenure, a transition was made in how the stores were stocked. Traditionally, Main Street and the other themed areas had many specialty stores, such as the tobacconists and magic stores on Main Street. In addition, many items had been sold in only one or two stores in the park. Under Pressler, the number of unique items sold decreased, specialty stores were reduced in number, and more of the remaining merchandise was made available in more places in the park. Stores such as the One of A Kind Shop (personally created by Mrs. Lillian Disney) were closed down to make way for more generic park merchandise.
In addition, Pressler is credited with the decision to remodel Tomorrowland. In previous decades, Tomorrowland had undergone changes as rides were updated to keep from getting 'stale,' but Pressler's remodel was much more far-reaching. Many rides popular with Disneyland employees and fans closed, and the land underwent a radical makeover to a look that evoked a future as it was envisioned by Jules Verne and early Science Fiction.
Lastly, maintenance and staffing procedures changed under Pressler's tenure. Traditionally, attractions, railings, and other painted areas were painted on a routine basis, and lightbulbs were replaced before they burned out. Over time, longtime visitors and employees observed a reduction in the frequency of such maintenance.
Due to these issues, Pressler was unpopular with many longtime fans and employees. Pressler was also behind Disneyland Resort's second gate, California Adventure, which has been criticized for muddled theming and lackluster attractions.
Another example: around the Park, at popcorn carts, retail shops, rides and restaurants, we once kept cardboard boxes with rain ponchos. If the infrequent happened and it began to rain, we opened those boxes up and gave the Guests rain ponchos.
Under Pressler's guidance, this was a "revenue stream" to be "maximized." Now, if you're at DL and it starts raining, you can have a poncho for you and your family...at $5 a pop.
After ruining DL and running some of its best people out of town, Pressler was, of course, promoted. He then went on to ruin more stuff with his abject cluelessness.
I am not at all surprised to see him behind the Gap's road to ruin. There is in corporate America a certain type of executive, one who impresses by spouting the latest business school jargon, plays effective office politics, who manages to position himself for advancement, all the while sucking the life out of the entities they are put in charge of to no one else's gain.
Paul Pressler is such a man. I wish him nothing but continued failure.
