After 20 years with the Walt Disney Co., Randy Garfield, executive vice president of worldwide sales and travel operations for Disney Destinations and president of the Walt Disney Travel Co. will retire in April. Senior Editor Michelle Baran spoke with Garfield about his time with Disney, the company's relationship with the trade and the challenges the industry faces going forward.
Q: How has Walt Disney Parks and Resorts' relationship with retailers evolved over the past 20 years?
A: Retail sales have always been strong [and] have certainly more than kept pace with the growth of the company. ... I don't remember what the company's overall revenue was the year I came here, but I know it's $14 billion-plus when I'm leaving, for Disney Parks and Resorts.
Q: As your role evolved and the business became more dynamic, how did you stay focused?
A: No. 1, I surrounded myself with great people. I never lost touch with our client base, in terms of always being open and accessible, spending time in the field, establishing relationships with our distribution partners. I also established very strong relationships with our airline partners and with destination marketing organizations. We never tried to operate as an island. We realized that we were a key element of an overall destination that also benefited from the critical mass in those markets. I never looked at the development of new product at SeaWorld or Universal really as anything but further jewels on the crown of jewels that we had in Central Florida. That it would enhance the likelihood of somebody visiting Orlando vs. selecting another destination, especially when they were traveling a long distance from some place like the United Kingdom or Canada.
Q: What was your relationship with the airlines?
A: We were constantly out in the field trying to persuade airlines to add lift and inventory into our markets. Always trying to convince the carriers that there's pent-up demand for this market, and that we bring enough to the table in terms of destination awareness and demand that they would be wise to make sure they had adequate inventory available so that people could fly to Southern California and Central Florida.
It's a constant battle, though, I can tell you that, because it's a dynamic marketplace. And the airlines are going to look at where their highest-yield markets are, but they're also going to look how much they need to market that destination and what's the load factor.
Orlando is a very inexpensive market on a cost-per-seat-mile basis, but it is a really great market from the standpoint that the airlines don't have to create destination awareness or create demand for their flights.
Q: Is there anything you see on the horizon that could put Disney to the test?
A: I don't think it's a question of putting Disney to the test. The challenges on the horizon are the transportation infrastructure in the United States. Meaning the roadways and the bridges: A lot of people still travel by car. The airports in the United States: There haven't been new airports built in many years. The customs and immigration: Are they properly staffed for the increasing number of international visitors that are being invited to come to the United States? I don't think those are unique to Disney. I'm not worried about insurmountable Disney challenges, quite honestly.
Follow Michelle Baran on Twitter @mbtravelweekly.