How Much for Donald Duck?!

Photo Credit: Green Panda

How much is the merchandise at Disney World marked up? I did an informal comparison while on vacation. Outside Disney World there’s a Walmart that sells some Disney souvenirs. Donald Duck is my favorite Disney character of all time, so I wanted to get a doll for myself.

I bought a Small Donald Duck doll for $5 plus tax(6%). The next day we went back to Disney World and I kept an eye out for a comparable doll. I didn’t have to find a comparable doll. I found the exact same doll, for $13 after taxes. (Disney seems to have a standardized price on dolls based on size.)I don’t know the wholesale price of that doll, but I’ll use Wal-Mart’s price since they claim to have the lowest price. Let;s see how much Disney would make off of the Donald Duck doll.

Last year Disney saw approximately over 16 million people in the Magic Kingdom Park (this is just one of the 4 main parks). If they each got a doll, then they would make $208 million. After taking out $80 million for costs, they get $128 million before taxes. That’s how Disney World makes its money. The ticket prices which seem high go back into the park. Disney World spends $100 million on renovations every year.

So is Disney World a rip off for souvenirs? Not really. I think that you should shop outside Disney world to confirm that you’re getting something exclusive from the park. Don’t spend money on what you can get at Wal-Mart. If you don’t, then you can lose some money.

If you enjoyed this post, please consider subscribing.

• Planning a Vacation Without Spending a Ton of Money Photo Credit: Pink Sherbet Photography We're leaving tomorrow at 5am (yikes) for a road trip down to Orlando, Florida. I'm excited and nervous about the trip. I've cleaned the apartment several times this week and when I get home this evening, I'll do a once over and leave it alone. ......
• 2008 Financial Goals and a Review of 2007 I can't believe the year went by so quickly. It was overall a good year. We celebrated our 1 year anniversary this month and I like to thank my husband for a wonderful first year. I graduated about 2 weeks ago. I decided I should review how I did in......

• Our Footprint There is a Chinese concept, they call it doing non doing. We are busy doing, and we aren’t even where we are because we are so busy doing and thinking about doing. In doing non doing you just do without making yourself do stuff. You are present to the doing......
• Teach Your Kids To Go Green. This is a guest post from Emily, who blogs at Remodeling This Life about living a simple and frugal life. She's a stay at home mom to 2 kids and enjoys teaching them about the value of living simply and responsibly. Many of us, as adults, have had to change......