Merchandise - First Hand Accounts
"As a merchandise cast member, my job was to entertain, keep stores clean, work a cash register, work in the bakery, and pin trade. I was located in Animal Kingdom Africa, but worked in every park during my program. I really enjoyed 'Merchentaining' which is when you play with the merchandise to show it off to guests. Some tips that I would give is if you have tattoos on your arms to tell your recruiter, so they can place you properly. I had friends that couldn't work in the bakery and had to wear long sleeves all of the time due to tattoos. Another tip is to always be attentive. If you see an older gentleman not having a good time, if would be almost terrible if you didn't go try to cheer him up. Also, be creative. You are a story-teller. If someone asks for directions, don't just tell them, perform it to them."
- Bailey, Spring 2016
"In Disney, we were merchantainers, so we were constantly entertaining guests while also partaking in normal retail tasks. I specifically worked in Dinoland merchandise, and for this location, I also worked at the carnival games. I would give the spiel for each game, which some examples of the games were bronto score (or a basketball game) and mammoth marathon (or a skee ball game), and then hand out prizes to the winners. I tried to create magical moments as often as possible, too! If there was a really young child trying to play and possibly played a couple times, I would give them one of the dinosaurs or other prizes to help make their day magical. Disney is all about creating magic for the guests, and I definitely got to do that daily in Dinoland!"
- Taylor, Fall 2015