Disney Headlines for January 28th, 2025
The Walt Disney Company just made some leadership changes.
Meanwhile, the company announced its next shareholder meeting and reassured stockholders about the state of succession.
Walt Disney Company
Your favorite company is getting its ducks in a row in the latest batch of Disney Headlines.
Thinking Ahead
Walt Disney Company
I often say that Disney thinks in terms of years and decades, not weeks.
A company can do that when it’s stable enough that it has earned the “too big to fail” moniker.
Test Track
For all the hand wringing over literally every decision Disney makes public, it is structurally sound compared to virtually any other business.
So, while you’re wondering whether Test Track will be open by the time you visit Walt Disney World this summer, Bob Iger is thinking ahead.
Photo: Deadline
Disney’s CEO recognizes two inflection points on the upcoming calendar, ones you and I have barely considered.
The first is that the United States turns 250 on July 4th, 2026. At this point, you cannot imagine how big an event this will be.
During the 200th anniversary, here’s what the festivities looked like:
Right now, some government official is tasked with a similarly ostentatious exhibition.
Photo: Variety
Disney wants to be a part of that, and it needs the political connections to do so.
Do you know who just proved they’re very good at politicking? Former Disneyland Resort President Ken Potrock.
Ken Potrock, Major Events Intergration
I say former because Potrock held that job as recently as last week, but as of today, he’s President of Major Events Integration.
Don’t worry. I know you haven’t heard of it, but nobody else has, either. The job didn’t exist until a few days ago.
Photo: Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG
Disney has promoted Potrock to this job, where his first major assignment will be to “maximize the value of large-scale sports, entertainment and tourism events.”
I hope you speak corporate jargon, as even I find this particular terminology rather inconclusive.
Disney
But Disney thankfully lists specific qualifying events as part of Potrock’s new assignment.
Those are the “2028 Los Angeles Olympics (and) the 250th Anniversary” of the United States.
What Does It Mean?
Image Credit: @KenPotrock/Instagram
Basically, Potrock just became Disney’s point person for all significant events.
While that assignment sounds all-encompassing, it really falls into the two categories: the 250th anniversary and the Olympics.
Image Credit: @kenpotrock/Instagram
As a reminder, Los Angeles will host the next Summer Olympics in 2028.
While those events remain three and a half years away, they’ll occur in Disney’s backyard.
Disney
Disney isn’t going to sit on the sidelines for an event like that.
We’re talking about a company that once purchased an NHL franchise in California and named it after a fictional hockey team.
Photo: Disneylandforward
So, the announcement Disney is making in January 2025 will matter most in July 2026 and (especially) July 2028.
You’re probably wondering why Potrock, and this is when I remind you about the protracted DisneylandForward negotiations.
Photo: Disney
Disney just successfully concluded this deal in 2024, but the talks remained in jeopardy until the very end.
You’ll recall that Disney feuded with Anaheim’s City Council over the location of a Downtown Disney hotel in 2018.
Photo: Jeff Antenore / for Voice of OC)
Anaheim officials refused to honor a tax incentive because Disney wanted to move the building by two blocks.
That’s petty right there, and it underscores the frosty relationship between Disney and Anaheim politicians a few years ago.
Photo: Disney
Potrock proved integral in repairing those relationships because he is, by all accounts, just a very nice and likable person.
In short, Potrock has proven himself the ideal Disney representative.
The Ripple Effects
Photo: Disney
As a byproduct of this promotion, Disney just rearranged the org chart fairly significantly.
Thomas Mazloum, formerly the head of Signature Experiences, becomes President of Disneyland Resort.
Photo: Disney
Let’s not sleep on what an honor it is to hold that position at any time, but it’s even better during the 70th anniversary.
Potrock held his previous job for nearly five years.
Photo: Disney
Should Mazloum follow a similar trajectory, he may be President for the 75th anniversary, too. That event will be a VERY big deal.
Meanwhile, somebody had to replace Mazloum, and that honor falls to Joe Schott, most recently the President at Shanghai Disneyland.
Joe Schott, President of Disney Signature Services
You may wonder why Disney didn’t transfer the President of one theme park to another, but there’s an excellent explanation.
Disney is eyeing its international expansion over the next few years.
DCL
Specifically, Disney Cruise Line will introduce two new cruise ships in Asia over the next five years.
So, Disney wants someone with an understanding of those markets in charge of Disney Experiences.
Photo: Eastday
As a byproduct of his promotion, Schott inherits Disney’s next great sales market, Storyliving by Disney.
The real estate market, especially Disney neighborhoods, is potentially a billion-dollar business.
Photo: Disney
You may not believe that, but I’d counter with this example.
Latitude Margaritaville just announced its 2,000th home sale last month. At $500,000 each, that’s $1 billion right there.
Photo: Disney
Importantly, that is NOT the only Margaritaville community. Also, that one is just getting started, with plans for 3,500 more homes.
I reiterate that the housing market represents Disney’s next gold rush. He’s getting the keys to the kingdom at the perfect time.
Photo: Joe Schott on LinkedIn
Finally, one of Schott’s top lieutenants, Andrew Bolstein, will replace him as head of Shanghai Disneyland. You got all of that?
Disney Sidesteps Pitfalls
Photo: Disney
These announcements were but one part of an eventful week for Disney.
When the stock market closed on Friday, Disney stock had a value of $112.16.
Photo: measureupgroup.com
I can assure you that knowledge caused a sigh of relief in the C-suite, as nobody was quite sure what to expect this past week.
A Presidential change always triggers anxiety on Wall Street, but Disney has bigger concerns here.
Photo: Disney
The next year must sustain the momentum of a stellar 2024, which makes the upcoming Disney Shareholders Meeting vital.
Thankfully, this one will be much quieter than the ones during the past two years.
Potential PR Traps
Photo: Bank rate
Still, you are likely to witness a few proposals at this year’s stockholder meeting akin to one Costco just faced.
A few think tanks are pushing investors to put DEI initiatives under the microscope.
Costco, a company I unabashedly admire, argued the financial benefits of its methodology.
Shareholders agreed in rather jaw-dropping fashion, as the proposal failed dramatically.
Photo: vecteezy.com
Roughly 98 percent of shareholders (!) sided with Costco. Since Disney is a priority target among such think tanks, a similar proposal appears nearly certain.
Iger is seemingly anticipating potential drama. Disney was proactive in discussing CEO succession.
Credit: Disney
You can read the full statement here, but it includes comments like this one.
James Gorman: “As Chair of the Succession Planning Committee, I am focused on managing our succession process, and we have continued to make strong progress over the last year.”
The Walt Disney Company
That’s corporate speak for “Chill. I got this.” Disney is doing everything it can to make this year’s shareholder meeting subdued.
After all the recent drama, I sincerely hope that’s how this all plays out.
Thanks for visiting MickeyBlog.com! Want to go to Disney? For a FREE quote on your next Disney vacation, please fill out the form below, and one of the agents from MickeyTravels, a Diamond Level Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, will be in touch soon!
