Six Flags Seeks to Lure Families, Not Just Teens

Six Flags Inc. has been on a bumpy ride lately.

Not only has the nation’s largest regional theme park operator experienced several years of declining revenue and attendance, but it’s also had to cope with a power struggle fueled by shareholder discontent.

Now that a new management team is in place, headed by Washington Redskin owner Daniel Snyder and former ESPN executive Mark Shapiro, the company known for its screaming roller coaster rides is attempting to refashion itself as a family-friendly destination.

Shapiro, Six Flags’ new chief executive, paused last week on his tour of Six Flags parks -- there are 30, including Six Flags Magic Mountain and Six Flags Hurricane Harbor in Valencia -- to talk about his plans for turning the company around.

Question: You’ve inherited a company that’s seen declining revenue and attendance for several years in a row. What are you planning to do about that?

Answer: First off, I want to tell you that our revenue for last year appears that it will be going north, and our attendance did go north. We were up just over 5% last year as a whole.

But to your point, yes, over the last six or seven years it has been declining, but we’re going to increase our numbers by improving the guest experience and swinging the pendulum back to focus as much on families as we do on teenagers.

Q: How will you appeal to families?

A: We’re ramping up our Main Street USA strategy; it’s going to be more about “streetmosphere.” We’re going to add a parade every day, and from June to August we’re going to do a super-parade every night, complete with a fireworks show.

We’re tripling the number of characters you see in the park. We’re introducing the Justice League for the first time, so Superman, Batman, Robin, Flash, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, they’re all going to be visible.

We’re adding character breakfasts and lunches and we’re doing afternoon story readings for the kids. We’re introducing the Chinese acrobats this year, which is clearly aimed at attracting more families.

Q: Might this approach drive away some of the teenagers?

A: Absolutely not, because at the same time we’re launching Tatsu, which will be the tallest and fastest flying coaster in the world. And it’ll also be our 17th coaster [at Magic Mountain], which cements our position as the coaster capital of the world. I love our heritage of thrill rides and I’m very pleased that they attract so many teenagers, it’s just that we can’t alienate the families and I think, over the years, Six Flags has done a bit of that.

Q: You’ve spoken about wanting Six Flags to become a multimedia family entertainment company. CBS Corp. and Time Warner have stepped away from the theme park business. Do you ever wonder if you’re heading the right way?

A: No, because I see Six Flags in the long term turning into a supermarket of entertainment. We have almost 35 million people [annually] spending up to 10 hours a day at our parks. That’s a very captive audience, in fact more captive than any other entertainment option. So smart marketers should begin to see Six Flags as a meaningful way to reach people.

Q: Will Six Flags’ connections with [Microsoft Corp.’s] Bill Gates and [movie producer] Harvey Weinstein play any role?

A: Absolutely. Bill Gates is one of our largest shareholders and he’s got one of the hottest consumer products out there in the Xbox 360. I would like to see him use Six Flags as a platform to sell that product.

And [board member] Harvey Weinstein, of course, is focused on family entertainment; “Spy Kids” has been one of his most successful franchises. So if we can put his brain and his creative skills to work at Six Flags there’s no telling what kind of new guests we can attract.

Q: It’s a pretty crowded market out there, and your emphasis on the family sounds similar to Disney’s. How will Six Flags stand out?

A: I think we’re going to be more diversified than our competition. Universal is about shows; if you go to Disney, it’s family. Here, it’s rides and family all put together to equal a best experience.

Q: Some analysts have suggested that the underlying land could be more valuable than some parks themselves. Given that, as well as how crowded the marketplace is, are you considering selling off parks?

A: We hired [real estate advisory firm] Staubach Co. to really get a grip on all our holdings and they’re due out with their report at the end of March. And then we’re going to evaluate each case and we’ll see what makes sense.

There are some parks that just might specifically be better as an asset sale rather than as an ongoing operation. But I think the excess real estate is our first step. The shutting down parks, I think that’ll be rare. But I think any time you acquire or inherit 30 of anything, there’s a couple that for whatever reason aren’t best to keep going the way they are.

Q: Do you see any connections between your work at ESPN and your work here?

A: ESPN is about brand building. It started as a small Connecticut sports channel and developed into a big, massive sports entertainment brand. It was about men. It’s now about casual sports fans and women [too].

That’s what we’re looking to do at Six Flags: build our brand, stretch our brand, attract more families on top of our teenagers, associate ourselves with sponsors and partners that bring strong brand heritage themselves. I want a strong family entertainment brand and then there’s no telling where we can take it.