Turning the Page - Six Flags out of Bankruptcy

[onyxhotel08]

Fact is the food is not that out of this world to charge the ridiculous prices. The merchandise is too pricey to get more than one thing on a single trip. If they changed the food or at least lowered the prices more people would eat inside the park. And like I said $34.99 for a stuffed Batman is laughable.

[rct2wizard360]

^The line on Monster Mansion at SFOG and Scooby-Doo at SF STL show that the chain can do amazing dark rides that the public loves. With Monster Mansion, the entire ride was redone for 2009 with a new merchandise building showing it's history. They are selling plush figures, shirts, hats, CD soundtracks and more for the ride. Every time I was in or by the store, there was a line to buy items for the ride. They are missing someone huge with this.

I know that these are both top notch attractions, and are definitely must-rides at either park, but the trouble is, the company would have a hell of a time producing a ride of those standards now.

You don't have to do Disney level (and cost) to put out a great dark ride. Look at the one at LEGO Discovery Center in Schaumburg. The cost on the ride is small, but they did a great job with it. A ride of that size and scope would be perfect for every Six Flags park. Yet the chain spends money on refurbishing top ranked coasters, turning wood coasters into steal ones for $10 million plus and adding small children only sections (which granted, some parks need.) This idea that Shapiro is marking to families is more of marketing to pre-5 age range, not the entire family.

LEGO Discovery Center is also a local alternative to spending an entire day at Six Flags which includes paying for parking (and out of sheer connivence) buying food for an entire family inside the park. There's free parking at the Streets of Woodfield, and there's plenty of cheap food on the strip. The basic upkeep costs of the LEGO place are a lot less than that of a Six Flags park. Little things like that (as there is really no room for expansion, no really expects it either) are great for places like LEGO Discovery Center. Keeps the kids entertained and keeps the money coming in. More of that money can be turned into profit for them.

Add something like to Six Flags? It wont be bringing in that profit. If anything, it would probably stay the same. More upkeep costs, and it wont be bringing back more people if it's on a level of that. Monster Mansion and Scooby-Doo are rides that even us enthusiasts enjoy, and that really says something to get some of us off of coasters and into other attractions such as these. Ridership for those are great, and they are worth the initial investment. Raging Bull, Superman, and V2 all had almost 30 minute lines last weekend. TDK? They line length was how far I walked from the entrance to the station. Great attempt, but little return.

the end of the day, what is/has the company been doing differently in the last 5 years to create more income? They have added ads, lockers and Flash Pass levels. That's great, but what happens when you have sold all the add space and income tops out? Those new revue streams do not fix the core problem at many Six Flags parks: In park spending on food and merchandise. The 2008 & 2009 years, revenue wise, were flukes due to how awful the economy was. Lets see how the chain does when people have money to spend to other vacation and recreational activities.

I will agree, those are extremely short term solutions to a long term problem. Season Passes used to be the smallest focus, as a vast majority of the people purchasing them are teens. There is virtually no money to be made off of any of them other than parking and their initial purchase of the pass. Park spending is something they really need to take a look at other parks. In my opinion they don't need to turn towards Disney and Universal, they need to look at places like BGE and Dollywood. Eating at those parks are an experience in itself. The food is true to the area of the park you are in (or in Dollywoods case, the area the park is in) and its genuine. A lot of the gifts are as well.

The trouble with most Six Flags parks is location. Thriving urban areas with houses no less than a block away. There is no feel to the park because there can't possibly be. It kills the atmosphere and ruins any chance at a great "out of your five day work week" experience. Opportunities for those true-feel themed restaurants are lost with the Burger King being right outside the gate. Have you seen the line for the skillets at Dollywood? It was longer than I waited for Thunderhead!

There's a lot that needs to be improved, but as I said in my previous post, the company really needs to get back on its feet. With the economy ever so slightly improving, this will be a great year to see how effective Shaprio's approach really is.

[monsterfan99]

I know that these are both top notch attractions, and are definitely must-rides at either park, but the trouble is, the company would have a hell of a time producing a ride of those standards now.

The thing with Monster Mansion is they just did last year. They tore out 90% of the ride and started new.

Add something like to Six Flags? It wont be bringing in that profit. If anything, it would probably stay the same. More upkeep costs, and it wont be bringing back more people if it's on a level of that. Monster Mansion and Scooby-Doo are rides that even us enthusiasts enjoy, and that really says something to get some of us off of coasters and into other attractions such as these. Ridership for those are great, and they are worth the initial investment. Raging Bull, Superman, and V2 all had almost 30 minute lines last weekend. TDK? They line length was how far I walked from the entrance to the station. Great attempt, but little return.

The thing is TDK is not a family dark ride. It is a thrill style ride that has dark ride-style elements. It's too intense for kids, but not enough for adults.

I will agree, those are extremely short term solutions to a long term problem. Season Passes used to be the smallest focus, as a vast majority of the people purchasing them are teens. There is virtually no money to be made off of any of them other than parking and their initial purchase of the pass. Park spending is something they really need to take a look at other parks. In my opinion they don't need to turn towards Disney and Universal, they need to look at places like BGE and Dollywood. Eating at those parks are an experience in itself. The food is true to the area of the park you are in (or in Dollywoods case, the area the park is in) and its genuine. A lot of the gifts are as well.

The trouble with most Six Flags parks is location. Thriving urban areas with houses no less than a block away. There is no feel to the park because there can't possibly be. It kills the atmosphere and ruins any chance at a great "out of your five day work week" experience. Opportunities for those true-feel themed restaurants are lost with the Burger King being right outside the gate. Have you seen the line for the skillets at Dollywood? It was longer than I waited for Thunderhead!

There's a lot that needs to be improved, but as I said in my previous post, the company really needs to get back on its feet. With the economy ever so slightly improving, this will be a great year to see how effective Shaprio's approach really is.

Agreed a lot with that.

[onyxhotel08]

Theme park operator Six Flags Inc emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Monday after wiping out more than a billion dollars in debt by turning the company's ownership over to bondholders

The company, which operates 19 amusement parks in North America, enters its high season without the constraints of bankruptcy and with less than half the debt it had a year ago.

The company now has more financial flexibility to pursue a shift in strategy toward attracting more families to its amusement parks, an approach spearheaded by Mark Shapiro when he took over the top executive job in 2006.

The company exits bankruptcy under the control of hedge funds such as Stark Investments, Pentwater Capital Management and Bay Harbour Management. The funds owned its bonds and invested $725 million to recapitalize the company.

That money, along with about $1.27 in new debt, was used to pay off creditors and finance the company as its main summer season nears. Six Flags entered bankruptcy with $2.7 billion in debt and obligations from redeemable securities.

ABC

The company's pre-bankruptcy shares were wiped out under the reorganization.

Six Flags said it will apply to list its new shares on the New York Stock Exchange.

The bankruptcy case is In re: Premier International Holdings Inc, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Delaware, No. 09-12019

[Ilovthevu']

I know that these are both top notch attractions, and are definitely must-rides at either park, but the trouble is, the company would have a hell of a time producing a ride of those standards now.

The thing with Monster Mansion is they just did last year. They tore out 90% of the ride and started new.

That, and you can always get Sally to do the dark rides like they do so well. Scooby-Doo is probably a dark ride!!

The thing is TDK is not a family dark ride. It is a thrill style ride that has dark ride-style elements. It's too intense for kids, but not enough for adults.

In my opinion, I disagree a little bit. I think the ride is great for kids, but the preshow especially is going to detract them because that shouldn't be for them at all. For adults and teens, I think they might think it's boring, and they might also feel that it's a short ride because they barely have any brakes during the ride, and the tempo to me is too fast.

The trouble with most Six Flags parks is location. Thriving urban areas with houses no less than a block away. There is no feel to the park because there can't possibly be. It kills the atmosphere and ruins any chance at a great "out of your five day work week" experience. Opportunities for those true-feel themed restaurants are lost with the Burger King being right outside the gate. Have you seen the line for the skillets at Dollywood? It was longer than I waited for Thunderhead!

There's a lot that needs to be improved, but as I said in my previous post, the company really needs to get back on its feet. With the economy ever so slightly improving, this will be a great year to see how effective Shaprio's approach really is.

Oh no, urban areas with houses a block away! Oh no, a chance for people to come to the park so close. They should move the park into the desert, and the park will succeed so much more than. Opportunities for true-feel themed restaurants are lost with Six Flags not wanting to spend the money to put in better themed restaurants, and getting chains like Papa John's, Dippin Dots, Johnny Rockets (Isn't this a Redzone property even??), Panda Express, and Cold Stone Cremery. Before the park got those chain of restaurants in the park, I never even heard of them (Johnny, and Cold Stone).

Going to Disney World, they make you feel trapped, and I still go out of the park to get to a place I don't have around me - Shoney's, Ponderosa, Chick Fil-A maybe. Yeah, close down Gurnee Mills Mall, Key Lime Cove Waterpark, and other stores, and you would probably see less people coming, and Six Flags Great America not spending as much money on good rides. Obviously, the people don't really care about if their is Red Robin across an amusement park because Disneyland still ranks in the top for amusement parks, and their is a Target, some restaurants, and other stuff around the park. Of course, Disney wants you to never go out of the park (like Disney World) so they can hammer you for all the money you got, and when you do go out of the park, they have their own shopping areas like Downtown Disney where they are trying to get money from you.

[Galvan317]

The trouble with most Six Flags parks is location. Thriving urban areas with houses no less than a block away. There is no feel to the park because there can't possibly be. It kills the atmosphere and ruins any chance at a great "out of your five day work week" experience.

That really hurts the Disneyland Resort which is squeezed in the middle of Anaheim and those two small parks get over 20 million visitors per year.

[w00dland]

The trouble with most Six Flags parks is location. Thriving urban areas with houses no less than a block away. There is no feel to the park because there can't possibly be. It kills the atmosphere and ruins any chance at a great "out of your five day work week" experience.

That really hurts the Disneyland Resort which is squeezed in the middle of Anaheim and those two small parks get over 20 million visitors per year.

Agreed, I don't think location is the problem of killing park atmosphere, its the amount of advertising and lack of any real theme that kills the atmosphere.

But when it comes to food, if Six Flags came anywhere near what Dollywood or even Busch Gardens Europe does I honestly believe you would see guest satisfaction skyrocket. I doubt it will ever happen not just because of the cost of food, but also the money lost on partnerships between restaurants and the park. But its not like what Dollywood does costs a lot to produce. They essentially burn wood beneath giant skillets and throw some meat and veggies and grill em up perfectly.

People like food fresh off the grill that isn't burnt to a crisp. They will be happy to pay 8 bucks for a quesidilla if its delicious. Fact is any burger made at SFGAm tastes like burnt baby crap. Tough to bite into, and stomach afterwards. Honestly if I was magically granted total control over SFGAm all by myself the first thing I would change would be the food service. Followed by giving the park some type of theme. And then the 4D wooden standup inverted hydraulic launch coaster thats been in the works for years codenamed project tumbleweed.

That's all though.

Oh, and Coaster Justin, I don't want to attack you, I just want to say that the park should convince ComEd to build their own wind turbines, then the park can go green without spending the green. Yay government subsidies and mandates.

[Coaster Justin]

To get back on track, I think this is a Good Move for Shapiro Six Flags and Maybe he can improve the parks, have better shows, and make the Company Good Again.


I have been very hard on Shapiro but from now On, its Do or Done. I'm Through giving him C's in the Class.


I Wish him the Best.

[onyxhotel08]

RETIRE Dick Clark for 2011 Please! Pictorium has become a joke people. BTW, Shapiro is from Chicago right? How often does he visit us? Anyone every see Hank?

[david]

I've seen Hank on a few occasions, I saw him near the Carousel at about 1:00 opening day, and I think I saw him near Eagle later in the day. I really don't think Shapiro visits our park much. I know he's quite fond of Magic Mountain, Great Adventure, and Over Texas. The smaller parks don't get to much "VIP" action. Not to say that our park is small, but in comparison to other parks in the chain, ours isn't to important to the company.

[Goku1910]

Great America not Important?! What drugs are you on!?

Short Explanation: Great America is one of the biggest money makers in the chain. It also has the best balance between thrill-seekers and family attractions....That is all.

[david]

Yes, But there is no reason for Shapiro to visit us, I stated that he probably has no reason to come down here. I also don't get why he visits Magic Mountain often, Jay Thomas is doing wonderful from what I hear.

[Goku1910]

Of course there is reason. Maybe he wants to see how all the parks are doing.

Maybe he visits SFMM more often because Magic Mountain has more room to improve. It's not about the rides each park has, it's about the guest experience.

[Bob O]

"The trouble with most Six Flags parks is location. Thriving urban areas with houses no less than a block away. There is no feel to the park because there can't possibly be. It kills the atmosphere and ruins any chance at a great "out of your five day work week" experience. Opportunities for those true-feel themed restaurants are lost with the Burger King being right outside the gate. Have you seen the line for the skillets at Dollywood? It was longer than I waited for Thunderhead!

I dont think location has anything to do with it. They have gotten rid of most of the theming that Marriott had, and the little that was added in SWt is also being reduced and ruined with the same awful music being played thru-out the park. They need to have different music in each section that matches theme, and the same goes for uniforms and food selection. No chance for theming when the same music is everywhere and you are going to have your employees dressed like peanut/beer vendors at baseball parks.

Parks likes Dollywood/BGW/Silver Dollar City are beautiful parks which are very well themed with alot of flowers and food to match the theming of the park, and not just having everything thrown about in a haphazard manner. People like fresh made food as said before and not just going to eat at a food stand that is the same that can be found in any mall. And the above named parks also have excellent bakery s on site that have freshly made cookies/snacks etc.,little touches like this (along with high quality merchandise in stores) have people spending money money in the parks and helps the company's bottom line.
Good food/great atmosphere/decent prices/good merchandise can help a company's bottom line much more than having annoying ads everywhere and having everything being overpriced and of mediocre quality.

[Ilovthevu']

^I think even if the park adds more theming, I really doubt it would get a ton more people into the park. I feel like Disney gets so much people because it's unique (It's hard to find those rides elsewhere besides Disney), has a lot of rides involving their own movies, is a fully kids park plus EPCOT is anyone dreaming of going out of the country type of park, and because they have multiple full day parks near each other. Not only that, but their ticketing system in a way pushes people to stay more often because of how much cheaper each day gets when you stay their longer.

Think of how many Six Flags, Cedar Fairs, and other like those parks their are, and I guess a lot of the general public see their homepark being as their own park. I doubt a lot of people care that their is another park at least 4-5 hours from Great America called Six Flags St. Louis, and they have some different rides like Mr. Freeze, the mine train, a different (in my opinion much better) Eagle, and so on. Not everyone is so obsessed with riding so many coasters like enthusiasts are. So, what is theming really going to do themed to fisherman's wharf? To me, a ride like Batman, Superman, or other characters is the theming that is going to get more people to come to the park and spend more money than a ride like Tidal Wave did.

Now, if SFGAm had a Jaws ride, that theming might sound really cool because of Jaws the movie, and the feeling you get. Put Tidal Wave back in, and I wouldn't get a great feeling based on Yankee Harbor. It's just a harbor. Big whoop, with a lighthouse. To me, they aren't focusing on the flats, and the toddler rides are just rides you might find at a carnival for much cheaper. Where's the dark rides for toddler's, and everyone else? Heck, if you had 5 dark rides at SFGAm, that could compete with Disney a little bit instead of just one. Than, the park is more unique than what it is now. If the people that come to the park are bored with the roller coasters, really what is going to please them? They have put probably around 100 million into just the roller coasters, and if that major spending isn't going to make them happy, than that demographic isn't worth getting.

A movie park would be much more unique than what's at the park now because the movie parks there are, are Universals, and the one Disney one.