Disney has made changes for the Downtown Disney and Epcot pin trading areas, but it's still a Shark Pit... and boy are they getting angry!

If you've read my articles in the past, you know that the two things that "get my goat" are Scrapper pin sellers and Sharks.  Sharks are some of the people - usually from the Orlando area - who make a living by "trading" common Disney pins for brand new store-bought pins.

Briefly, here's the way the Sharks function:  Because they're in the parks all the time - knowing when lanyards are refreshed and picking off the hard-to-find pins - they have a large collection of the Hidden Mickey pins, mystery box pins, etc.  They trade cheap, common pins to get these.  Then, when an unsuspecting Guest comes by their table (located outside the pin stores in Downtown Disney and the pin kiosk in Epcot), the Guest ultimately finds a pin the Shark has.  When shown pins that the Guest has, the Shark will normally say, "I'm sorry...you don't have anything that I need.  But I am needing such-and-such a pin -- which you could buy for me inside the store -- and I'd be willing to trade that pin for the one you want."  Sometimes, they even get 2 or 3 pins, depending on how desperate the Guest is.

The Guest ends up paying $10-12 for a brand new pin to get a common pin from the Shark.  Is it illegal?  No.  Disney hates the Sharks' practice, but they can't really do anything about it, because Guests willingly give up their money for their pins.  But is it taking advantage of Guests and scamming them?  I'll let you decide.

Disney has taken some steps to make it less convenient for the Sharks to market their wares...

First, Disney removed the benches outside of the Downtown Disney store.

Second, they restrict pin traders to only use one table, and they're only permitted one trade book with them.

Has this stopped the Sharks?  No, but it has made their lives more miserable...

During my last visit to Walt Disney World, I spent a decent amount of time talking with the "professionals" at Downtown Disney.  Apparently, a few of them actually thought I was a Shark too, because some were very candid about things.  Seems that their health has "deteriorated," as many formally strong individuals now bring wheelchairs (since Disney removed the benches).  And replacing the traditional pin trading bags, they now have HUGE, thick non-Disney folders...some as thick as a foot! 

...and they are not happy about the changes Disney has made.  Here's some of the comments I heard...

"I used to be able to make 50 or more trades in a day," said one, "having people go in and get pins I need from the store.  Today, I've only gotten one or two."  (Seems the economy has hurt them too...)

"They take away our benches, they don't allow us to move tables anymore, we have to leave half our stuff at home... I don't know why Disney is doing this:  We're helping them make money!"

"I'm gonna have to find another way to supplement my income..."

I spent some time, trading my pins at a table too.  It was great fun.  The difference for me was, though, that I would tell people loudly, "I'll trade anything for anything...all my pins are traders so it doesn't matter."  Ohhhhhhh that made some of these guys so mad!!  The funny thing is, some folks traded me some really cool stuff that I ended up holding onto, but it was fun and it made a lot of people - especially the kids - happy.

My favorite quote was when one pin trader referred me by name to another pin trader hanging out there.  When I approached that pin trader, sitting in a wheelchair, I asked them, "Are you _______?"   His response was, "Are you a cop?"

So what's the point of this Guide?  Guests can spend their money anyway they want, but just BE CAREFUL out there when you travel to Walt Disney World.  Trading with Cast Members is perfectly safe...wandering into a Shark Pit can be too, IF you know what you're getting into.  But don't get chomped.