North Carolina hasn’t started marketing it yet, but our state is arguably the theme park capital of the world, after this summer’s merger of the Six Flags and Cedar Fair companies prompted a headquarters move to Charlotte.
Take that, Mickey Mouse! Just kidding. Disney Parks is much bigger, but the new Tar Heel public company has more sites.
Six Flags Entertainment is now the “largest and the most diverse amusement park operator” with 27 amusement parks, 15 water parks and nine resort properties in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, the company says. The sole Tar Heel entry is Carowinds and Carolina Harbor in Charlotte, which had been a Cedar Fair operation.
The company reported some interesting information in a recent SEC filing of a presentation for investors. Highlights include:
- 250 million people live within 100 miles of Six Flags’ parks.
- Attendance at the 42 parks totaled 49 million in the 2023 fiscal year, with revenue of $4.3 billion and operating profit of $1.2 billion.
- It has sold 7.6 million season passes; holders make up more than half of the parks’ attendees.
- Passholders pay an average of $115 at Cedar Fair versus $79 at Six Flags, reflecting the widely held view among park aficionados that Cedar Fair has better parks and superior leadership. “Analysts and fans consider Cedar Fair a stronger manager of day-to-day park operations than Six Flags,” CNN reported in July.
- Cedar Fair’s passholders average nearly five visits a year and renew at a 28% clip, compared with three visits and an 18% renewal rate at Six Flags.
At the merger, Cedar Fair holders controlled 51% of the new company, and its CEO, Richard Zimmerman, moved to Charlotte to lead the business. The merged company chose the Six Flags name, though its shares had declined about 40% over the past five years. The market cap is about $4 billion. Cedar Fair had been based in Sandusky Ohio, while Six Flags’ corporate office was in Arlington, Texas.
That trend has continued since the July 1: Shares closed at $39.90 Tuesday, down from about $53 on the merger date. Along with Disney and other park operators, Six Flags reported relatively weak results this summer. Executives blamed financial pressures facing lower-income consumers.
But Zimmerman’s team plans to turn things around, pledging the merger will create $200 million in savings over the next three years. They expect a “recovery of 10 million-plus visits at legacy Six Flags parks” through various improvements, according to the investor presentation.
Indeed, Six Flags executives know changes are needed. In 2022, former Six Flags CEO Selim Bassoul said that its parks had turned into “cheap day care centers” for teenagers. He also said the company hoped to “migrate…a little bit from what I call the Kmart, Walmart to maybe the Target customer.” He raised Six Flags’ prices, which hurt attendance. Bassoul is now the company’s executive chairman.
Among the first changes Zimmerman announced this summer were a “chaperone policy at selected Six Flags parks to ensure we maintain a family friendly environment while increasing the deal with parents who are the decision-makers and who have the deeper share of wallet,” he told investors. The company also removed an unpopular surcharge on in-park purchases at the Six Flags parks.
“The merger’s most attractive and important growth opportunity, however, is returning legacy Six Flags parks to their historical levels of attendance,” Zimmerman said.
