Top-Level Perspective
IAAPA Attractions Expo tackled important issues during keynote sessions
by Jeremy Schoolfield and Amanda Charney
Merlin CEO Nick Varney on Consolidation
 As CEO of Merlin Entertainments Group, Nick Varney oversees a company that manages nearly 60 leisure attractions spread across several high-profile brands that cater to more than 32 million guests a year. So he understands the possible pitfalls of consolidation very well—and how to avoid them.
“Our mission—the reason we get out of bed in the morning—is unequivocally to give our visitors memorable experiences,” he said. “All of that is underpinned by strenuously trying always for the highest quality.”
The Merlin model focuses on building a diverse portfolio of attractions large and small, indoor and outdoor, to hedge against the typical economic vulnerabilities that can affect the amusement industry. It also provides approximately 200 managers with private equity shares—a far cry, Varney said, from the typically small amount of control similar companies allow their employees. Thus all levels of the organization have a sense of ownership.
“Whether you like it or not, [consolidation] is an inevitability—like night following day,” Varney said. “You get to the stage of maturity where it’s about the share, and that’s when you get consolidation, whether it’s airlines, computers, or packaged goods companies.”
The CEO boiled the consolidation conundrum down to two key issues, both related to investment:
• Loss of innovation, as corporations become less imaginative and more risk averse. (“That’s a fair criticism, something we should be concerned about,” Varney said.)
• High debt leveraging, restricting reinvestment in capital projects.
Varney answered these concerns by saying he runs Merlin by flying in the face of the theory that capital expenditures do not significantly impact attendance. Merlin has spent money both on building new locations (the company’s model calls for three to five each year), as well as on continual capital projects in existing facilities.
“The truth is, in Merlin, 90 percent of our capital projects on new features and attractions do get extra visitors and revenue,” he said.
CEO Tom Mehrmann on Renewing Ocean Park
When Disney moves into the neighborhood, you either fold up the tents or figure out a way to carve out your own niche.
 The latter is part of what Tom Mehrmann was brought in to do in 2004 when he became CEO of Hong Kong’s Ocean Park, just one year prior to the debut of Hong Kong Disneyland. The now 31-year-old park had been in steady attendance decline since 1997, when Hong Kong was returned to China. Further economic turmoil and the 2003 SARS outbreak certainly didn’t help, either.
So Mehrmann, an industry veteran who made a name for himself at California’s Knott’s Berry Farm, among other places, helped Ocean Park get back to its roots—in other words, figure out what it did differently from Disney, and tell everyone who would listen.
His plan to keep Ocean Park relevant in the new age of the Mouse broke down into four basic principles: Cater to the local fan base; reach out to mainland China; highlight Ocean Park’s singularities in the market; and renew the park.
The most significant improvement, though, is essentially Ocean Park’s reinvention through a $750 million overhaul that has been in development for six years. Mehrmann was brought on board to help shepherd this massive project, and its first phase is set to open next spring. From there, a new attraction will open about every six months through 2012.
Mehrmann has already seen the results of his team’s labor; Ocean Park has had record attendance growth in each of the past five years, exceeding 5 million visitors in 2008.
‘Bloody Mary’ Bobbie Weiner on Her Improbable Career Path
“I don’t know how I did it; I just did it.”
 That statement basically summarizes how Bobbie Weiner, a.k.a. “Bloody Mary” and founder of Bobbie Weiner Enterprises LLC, picked herself up after a difficult end to her marriage and started a new career as an entrepreneur and Hollywood special effects makeup artist.
Though Weiner had little professional experience and few skills, at the urging of a friend she enrolled in a four-month makeup program where she discovered her true talent: “Everyone I did looked like Tammy Faye Bakker, so I knew I had to do special effects.” She focused on creating old-age looks, broken bones, and bruises, and part of her training was visiting hospitals in the middle of the night to see firsthand what she would be developing behind the scenes.
After landing a job on the set of “Pumpkinhead 2” doing special effects makeup, the “Bloody Mary” name was coined. “I forgot about my life, how it was, and how I thought it should be. I wasn’t a doctor’s wife anymore … I was Bloody Mary,” she said.
Weiner’s name got around, and before she knew it she was getting calls from major studios, eventually landing on the “Titanic” set creating dead, frozen bodies for the Oscar-winning movie.
But it was the creation of her own line of makeup that would catapult Weiner’s work into a new realm. Through research, she discovered school sports teams didn’t have a dedicated makeup product, so she moved quickly to fill that void—after selling her Jeep to fund the first round of product. Weiner then went on to supply the entire U.S. government with camouflage makeup for troops stationed all over the world.
But she stressed to the audience these kinds of successes are not magic. “There are no overnight successes; you have to work hard,” she said, adding that having a solid team is critical. Weiner has a staff of 252 people in California working on her projects (which includes her hot sauce, Bloody Mary mix, and others). “I run [the business] by myself with a team of wonderful people.”
Cedar Fair CEO Dick Kinzel on Core Business Principles
 Newly minted Lifetime Service Award winner and IAAPA Hall of Famer Dick Kinzel participated in a wide-ranging Q&A during IAAPA Attractions Expo. Here’s a sampling:
Cedar Fair’s Core Philosophy
1. “We are only as strong as the weakest person in the room,” Kinzel said. “You cannot reward mediocrity.”
2. “We don’t give away our product,” he said, referring to maintaining price integrity and not giving away an excessive amount of free admissions. “You should have pride in what you have.”
3. “No toys,” he said, meaning his company and his business don’t strive to impress by presenting a flashy image. “We try to be a very conservative company.”
4. Monitor expenses. “With a new administration coming in and more government controls,” Kinzel said, “we’re going to see more expenses, more money going out to the government, and more money going to lawyers to protect our interests.”
5. Wear many hats. Kinzel said he keeps his full-time staff to a minimum and requires himself and his managers to juggle many different responsibilities as needed.
Qualities to Look for in a Manager
“We’re a strong believer in promoting from within,” Kinzel said, and he looks for a person committed enough to rise through the ranks, right down to the ride operators on the front line. They must be willing to spend a lot of time out in the park talking with guests, and, most important, they must have a love for the business and “good common sense.”
|
|
