Shareholder Meeting 2011

This year the Annual Shareholder Meeting was held in Salt Lake City, Utah and because I live here I was able to attend. The main items were the Board Seats, pay discussion and the usual status of the company report. It was an awesome meeting. There were only about 150 shareholders present, however you can be certain many attended via live feed.

As a field trip I took my son with me. He is 9 and very intelligent and business curious. When it came time to begin the question and answer phase of the meeting he stepped up to the mic. "My name is Deacon, and I am in third grade. Mr. Iger, can you explain to me why you are changing California Adventure.... the entrance??" This was met by applause and a stunned looking Bob Iger. "Deacon, that is a wonderful question. The main reason we are changing it is because it does not feel Disney enough. It is lacking the character and hospitality - I am not sure if you know that word. Hospitality. Do they teach that in third grade? I digress. It simply is not up to the spirit of Walt. I would like to personally invite you to come check the new entrance when it is completed."

Many of the audience asking questions seemed to be part of the same union, and they tried repeatedly to get Iger to give them free healthcare coverage and pay increases. One man voiced concerns over the appearance of some areas of the parks. He was concerned about paint chips, cob webs and other small things. Please note that if you are at a park and notice something that does not appear to belong, bring it to a cast members attention. Iger also made a point of reassuring Deacon that he would ensure the new entrance way was perfect, and stated he has an email address that Deacon can contact him at if there are more concerns with it.

However, one other person stood out. An older man took the mic and began telling the story of the very first stockholder meeting he attended. It just happened to be the very first public meeting the company ever held. He told about seeing Walt and Roy before the meeting and how excited they were about the 25 people who came. Because of this, Walt stated all shareholders present would receive free park tickets. This tradition died when Walt passed, yet Iger reinstated it today. This brought many applause and compliments.

This was an amazing meeting, and I am so glad I decided to go. There are many amazing things happening in the parks around the world, and we are excited to be reporting them, as they happen, to you.