Taco
10-08-2009, 01:20 PM
SeaWorld parks sold in $2.7 billion deal
Visitors unlikely to notice changes as private-equity firm takes over
By Lori Weisberg (http://www3.signonsandiego.com/staff/lori-weisberg/)
Union-Tribune Staff Writer
2:00 a.m. October 8, 2009
A new owner will soon take over SeaWorld, but fans of Shamu and the other celebrity marine mammals are unlikely to notice anything different when they visit the San Diego attraction.
The announcement yesterday of the $2.7 billion acquisition of current owner Anheuser-Busch InBev's entertainment subsidiary by The Blackstone Group ended months of speculation about SeaWorld's future.
Regarded as second only to The Walt Disney Co. among theme park operators in the United States, Busch Entertainment Corp. oversees 10 attractions, including SeaWorlds in Orlando, San Antonio and San Diego and Busch Gardens in Florida and Virginia.
Officials with Blackstone, a huge New York private-equity firm with significant amusement park holdings, saw the purchase as sensible given its experience in the entertainment arena. Among its investments are 50 percent stakes in Universal Studios Orlando and Merlin Entertainments Group, which operates Legoland in Carlsbad and the Madame Tussaud's wax museums.
“Our business model is very simple, which is to create value through operational improvement,” Blackstone spokesman Peter Rose said. “We have experience operating theme parks, so we'll be examining the operation closely to find ways to improve it, so if anything, the visitor experience will be enhanced.”
Busch Entertainment President Jim Atchison made it clear yesterday that his operation will remain a separate entity within Blackstone with no change in management and no plans for job cuts.
“There are no plans to diminish or dilute the way we operate,” Atchison said. “Blackstone pursued this transaction because they valued our emphasis on quality and guest service, and they want us to maintain that.
“We will be very much the same kind of park we've been before. Over time, you will see changes in new attractions, and Blackstone made it very clear of their intent to continue to invest in the parks.”
San Diego's SeaWorld attracted more than 4.1 million visitors last year, and Busch Entertainment's amusement parks together have about 25 million visitors yearly.
The future of Anheuser-Busch InBev's entertainment holdings had remained cloudy since Belgian brewer InBev purchased Anheuser-Busch last year for about $52 billion.
The entertainment venues were not considered a core part of the brewing business, and Anheuser-Busch InBev has been selling assets to pay down debt related to the purchase.
In a statement yesterday, Carlos Brito, chief executive of Anheuser-Busch InBev, said the sale “represents another important milestone in our commitment to de-leverage the company and will also allow us to continue to focus on our core brewing business.”
Theme park industry analysts said the Blackstone purchase is a savvy move and augurs well for SeaWorld and the other attractions.
“The great thing about this deal is Blackstone is keeping the management team intact, so you don't have this shuffling of the deck, which creates issues and confusion for the consumer,” said Dennis Speigel, president of Cincinnati-based International Theme Park Services.
“Blackstone is a smart organization, but the key here is they understand the operating challenges of this industry,” Speigel said. “Yeah, they're going to manage it in a profitable way, but I don't think they'll micromanage because (Busch Entertainment) has a damn good track record.”
Given today's economically troubled times and the downturn in consumer spending, Speigel said he believes Blackstone was able to strike an attractive deal.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime buy,” Speigel said. “Originally, this deal was estimated to be between $3.5 and $4 billion, and they got it for $2.7 billion, and the parks are in pristine condition.”
The acquisition of Busch Entertainment is expected to close by early 2010. It will include a cash payment of $2.3 billion to Anheuser-Bush InBev, which also will be entitled to up to $400 million in Blackstone's initial profits from its investment.
Leisure and entertainment consultant Thor Degelmann said he is confident Blackstone will be willing to make the investments needed to ensure visitors will keep returning to the SeaWorld parks.
“This just creates a new ownership group, but the beauty of that is they have deep pockets,” said Degelmann, co-owner of LEDO International, a Newport Beach firm. “This business needs reinvestment because you need to reinvent yourself every couple of years to keep attracting people back.
“They'll certainly be ready to invest more capital than InBev would have because it's not (InBev's) line of business.”
Since taking over Legoland four years ago, Blackstone's Merlin Entertainments has undertaken a number of improvements, including a new 36,000-square-foot aquarium that opened this year. Legoland is also seeking to build a 5½-acre water park on its grounds.
Atchison of Busch Entertainment said his division has an “aggressive attraction schedule” planned for each of its 10 parks, including a new dolphin show that will debut in San Diego in May, featuring bottlenose dolphins, exotic birds and acrobatic performers.
“Blackstone is aware of the pipeline of new attractions and concepts of what we're working on,” Atchison said, “and they're committed to growing the business with some of our plans and developing others.”
One difference some SeaWorld visitors might notice when coming to the park will be the departure of the Clydesdale horses, which will remain the property of Anheuser-Busch InBev.
Union-Tribune
http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/oct/08/visitors-unlikely-notice-changes-private-equity-fi/?metro
Visitors unlikely to notice changes as private-equity firm takes over
By Lori Weisberg (http://www3.signonsandiego.com/staff/lori-weisberg/)
Union-Tribune Staff Writer
2:00 a.m. October 8, 2009
A new owner will soon take over SeaWorld, but fans of Shamu and the other celebrity marine mammals are unlikely to notice anything different when they visit the San Diego attraction.
The announcement yesterday of the $2.7 billion acquisition of current owner Anheuser-Busch InBev's entertainment subsidiary by The Blackstone Group ended months of speculation about SeaWorld's future.
Regarded as second only to The Walt Disney Co. among theme park operators in the United States, Busch Entertainment Corp. oversees 10 attractions, including SeaWorlds in Orlando, San Antonio and San Diego and Busch Gardens in Florida and Virginia.
Officials with Blackstone, a huge New York private-equity firm with significant amusement park holdings, saw the purchase as sensible given its experience in the entertainment arena. Among its investments are 50 percent stakes in Universal Studios Orlando and Merlin Entertainments Group, which operates Legoland in Carlsbad and the Madame Tussaud's wax museums.
“Our business model is very simple, which is to create value through operational improvement,” Blackstone spokesman Peter Rose said. “We have experience operating theme parks, so we'll be examining the operation closely to find ways to improve it, so if anything, the visitor experience will be enhanced.”
Busch Entertainment President Jim Atchison made it clear yesterday that his operation will remain a separate entity within Blackstone with no change in management and no plans for job cuts.
“There are no plans to diminish or dilute the way we operate,” Atchison said. “Blackstone pursued this transaction because they valued our emphasis on quality and guest service, and they want us to maintain that.
“We will be very much the same kind of park we've been before. Over time, you will see changes in new attractions, and Blackstone made it very clear of their intent to continue to invest in the parks.”
San Diego's SeaWorld attracted more than 4.1 million visitors last year, and Busch Entertainment's amusement parks together have about 25 million visitors yearly.
The future of Anheuser-Busch InBev's entertainment holdings had remained cloudy since Belgian brewer InBev purchased Anheuser-Busch last year for about $52 billion.
The entertainment venues were not considered a core part of the brewing business, and Anheuser-Busch InBev has been selling assets to pay down debt related to the purchase.
In a statement yesterday, Carlos Brito, chief executive of Anheuser-Busch InBev, said the sale “represents another important milestone in our commitment to de-leverage the company and will also allow us to continue to focus on our core brewing business.”
Theme park industry analysts said the Blackstone purchase is a savvy move and augurs well for SeaWorld and the other attractions.
“The great thing about this deal is Blackstone is keeping the management team intact, so you don't have this shuffling of the deck, which creates issues and confusion for the consumer,” said Dennis Speigel, president of Cincinnati-based International Theme Park Services.
“Blackstone is a smart organization, but the key here is they understand the operating challenges of this industry,” Speigel said. “Yeah, they're going to manage it in a profitable way, but I don't think they'll micromanage because (Busch Entertainment) has a damn good track record.”
Given today's economically troubled times and the downturn in consumer spending, Speigel said he believes Blackstone was able to strike an attractive deal.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime buy,” Speigel said. “Originally, this deal was estimated to be between $3.5 and $4 billion, and they got it for $2.7 billion, and the parks are in pristine condition.”
The acquisition of Busch Entertainment is expected to close by early 2010. It will include a cash payment of $2.3 billion to Anheuser-Bush InBev, which also will be entitled to up to $400 million in Blackstone's initial profits from its investment.
Leisure and entertainment consultant Thor Degelmann said he is confident Blackstone will be willing to make the investments needed to ensure visitors will keep returning to the SeaWorld parks.
“This just creates a new ownership group, but the beauty of that is they have deep pockets,” said Degelmann, co-owner of LEDO International, a Newport Beach firm. “This business needs reinvestment because you need to reinvent yourself every couple of years to keep attracting people back.
“They'll certainly be ready to invest more capital than InBev would have because it's not (InBev's) line of business.”
Since taking over Legoland four years ago, Blackstone's Merlin Entertainments has undertaken a number of improvements, including a new 36,000-square-foot aquarium that opened this year. Legoland is also seeking to build a 5½-acre water park on its grounds.
Atchison of Busch Entertainment said his division has an “aggressive attraction schedule” planned for each of its 10 parks, including a new dolphin show that will debut in San Diego in May, featuring bottlenose dolphins, exotic birds and acrobatic performers.
“Blackstone is aware of the pipeline of new attractions and concepts of what we're working on,” Atchison said, “and they're committed to growing the business with some of our plans and developing others.”
One difference some SeaWorld visitors might notice when coming to the park will be the departure of the Clydesdale horses, which will remain the property of Anheuser-Busch InBev.
Union-Tribune
http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/oct/08/visitors-unlikely-notice-changes-private-equity-fi/?metro