Parkz News New Dreamworld CEO: Ardent Leisure takes a gamble with divestment expert with no theme park experience

[Parkz News]

New Dreamworld CEO: Ardent Leisure takes a gamble with divestment expert with no theme park experience

The direction of Dreamworld has been entrusted to a former club and casino executive whose last role saw him tasked with selling off the company's entire assets.

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[pushbutton]

Well if as I have long suspected their real objective is to sell Dreamworld, I really hope they get on with it very soon and sell it to an organisation that specialises in theme parks and that's good at it!

 

[Brad2912]

I feel if it’s sold it will more than likely be to a developer for the land value alone, not another operator... it’s not exactly going to give much bang for shareholders buck in its current state as a theme park in recovery mode 

[pushbutton]

7 minutes ago, Brad2912 said:

I feel if it’s sold it will more than likely be to a developer for the land value alone, not another operator... it’s not exactly going to give much bang for shareholders buck in its current state as a theme park in recovery mode 

Well I really hope you're wrong!

There has been fairly significant recent investment in the Lego store, SkyVoyager, and now the waterpark improvements, so that gives me hope!

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

15 hours ago, pushbutton said:

fairly significant recent investment in the Lego store, SkyVoyager, and now the waterpark improvements

Lego store is still "just a shop" which could be used for anything. hell - you could put it on the 2019 season of 'the block' and turn it into a luxury apartment.

from what i've heard i-ride isn't super expensive in the scheme of things, and we all know waterpark investments are far cheaper than other theme park attractions.

Movie World just dropped $30Million on a hyper coaster. THAT is fairly significant investment.

[pushbutton]

1 hour ago, AlexB said:

Lego store is still "just a shop" which could be used for anything. hell - you could put it on the 2019 season of 'the block' and turn it into a luxury apartment.

from what i've heard i-ride isn't super expensive in the scheme of things, and we all know waterpark investments are far cheaper than other theme park attractions.

Movie World just dropped $30Million on a hyper coaster. THAT is fairly significant investment.

Agreed. Just saying I hope Dreamworld doesn't close. It would be a massive loss to Queensland  (and Australian) tourism, and I think it would be highly unlikely that a theme park of that size would ever be seen again in Australia.

Also it would give VRTP a monopoly which would enable them to vastly increase their prices, whilst possibility lowering their investments since there'd be nothing to compete against.

[New display name]

@AlexBstop using common sense.

What money has DW sunk into the water park?  The last I heard was the "planning" of the water park expansion & dark ride was progressing.   I haven't seen any funds allocated to the expansion or dark ride. 

The previous stage 3 WWW expansion required a development approval due to the increase size to the original approval.  (a development approval would take around 12 weeks to get)

There is no current development approval which leads to a few ideas.

DW haven’t finished planning the expansion.

The plans aren’t ready to be lodged for a development approval.

The extension isn’t as extensive as the killed off stage 3.

Parkz members expectations with the size of the expansion won’t be met.

Edited October 24, 2018 by Skeeta

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

53 minutes ago, pushbutton said:

It would be a massive loss to Queensland  (and Australian) tourism

Bullshit. How many overseas tourists do you think are planning holidays to the buttfuck end of the earth to come to Dreamworld? It's a stop on a larger vacation for most.

Sure, domestic tourism - it draws people, but Surfer's has always drawn people, which is why tourist traps were built there - including theme parks. Surfer's will survive without Dreamworld, if it came to that - without much more than a blip - VRTP would benefit, as people would no longer have to split their decisions on which park \ group to visit, but people would still come to the gold coast - there'd just be less variety.

35 minutes ago, Skeeta said:

What money has DW sunk into the water park? 

Well, they've put up fences. Have you seen what TFH charge for fence hire these days?

[pushbutton]

38 minutes ago, AlexB said:

Bullshit. How many overseas tourists do you think are planning holidays to the buttfuck end of the earth to come to Dreamworld? It's a stop on a larger vacation for most.

Sure, domestic tourism - it draws people, but Surfer's has always drawn people, which is why tourist traps were built there - including theme parks. Surfer's will survive without Dreamworld, if it came to that - without much more than a blip - VRTP would benefit, as people would no longer have to split their decisions on which park \ group to visit, but people would still come to the gold coast - there'd just be less variety.

Well, they've put up fences. Have you seen what TFH charge for fence hire these days?

I make the mistake of attempting to engage in a civil conversation with AlexB and this is what I get!

[New display name]

41 minutes ago, AlexB said:

Well, they've put up fences. Have you seen what TFH charge for fence hire these days?

TFH must be cheap because 50% of DW is fenced off.  

The fences have been put up because they are about to start the extensions you say.  Some might say the fences have been put up to hide the junkyard and to hide the accumulation of broken and removed ride parts.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

29 minutes ago, pushbutton said:

I make the mistake of attempting to engage in a civil conversation with AlexB and this is what I get!

...and I made the mistake of expecting you to make realistic statements based in fact and common sense.

The percentage of visitors to Australia from overseas, who come here specifically to visit a shithouse themepark that can't keep it's rides open is directly proportionate to the number of brain cells inside the head of someone who thinks Dreamworld is a major factor in overseas tourism destination choices.

18 minutes ago, Skeeta said:

TFH must be cheap because 50% of DW is fenced off.  

 

The fences have been put up because they are about to start the extensions you say.  Some might say the fences have been put up to hide the junkyard and to hide the accumulation of broken and removed ride parts.

 

I never said they were about to start extensions. I never said that was the reason for the fences...

18 hours ago, pushbutton said:

and now the waterpark improvements

 

3 hours ago, AlexB said:

we all know waterpark investments are far cheaper than other theme park attractions.

 

1 hour ago, Skeeta said:

What money has DW sunk into the water park?

 

1 hour ago, AlexB said:

Well, they've put up fences. Have you seen what TFH charge for fence hire these days?

 

[Jakev8]

Seriously all they need to do is install a hydro-coaster at wet'n'wild and i'm all good for dreamworld closing up shop.

Wouldn't mind owning a block on

"Rocky Hollow drive" 😁

[Brad2912]

The biggest loss in reality to the closure of DW is jobs on the northern end of the Gold Coast, with about 800+ people employed across the park - Many of whom are young - it does leave a hole, in an area already with relatively high unemployment.

from a domestic & international tourism perspective its closure would see other operators simply gain some market share, therefore more $$ to spend on attracting more people, I don’t think there would be an any panic in the tourism industry realistically.

For locals it would be a loss as it’s part of the fabric of the GC, but something else will come along, just as it did when other ventures have failed over the years. 

I think we all want a thriving and well managed DW, but the reality of that occurring appears to be getting bleaker 

[New display name]

1 hour ago, AlexB said:

I never said they were about to start extensions. I never said that was the reason for the fences...

That part wasn't for you and is why it's got a new paragraph.  We don't have a "@everybodyelse"

[MacPark]

20 hours ago, pushbutton said:

Agreed. Just saying I hope Dreamworld doesn't close. It would be a massive loss to Queensland  (and Australian) tourism, and I think it would be highly unlikely that a theme park of that size would ever be seen again in Australia.

Also it would give VRTP a monopoly which would enable them to vastly increase their prices, whilst possibility lowering their investments since there'd be nothing to compete against.

The lack of competition would be the biggest worry. Village would have no reason to invest in new attractions and as you said can charge what they like. Also besides what other people have stated here, Dreamworld make alot of money from overseas. They have a whole division that work just with the Asian market to bring in tour groups and market to Asia in general. Dreamworld do alot of tour groups from China and its a big part of the business.

[Brad2912]

The Gold Coast is still attraction rich minus DW and that alone would discourage VTP from raising prices in the event DW closed. As for investment, most business realise you have to spend money to make it, especially in tourism, VTP hasn’t been competing on rides & attractions with DW for years, so again I don’t envisage any reason why that would drop off. SW and PC cater for the Asian tourism market just as much (if not more) than DW

[ads086]

Maybe Village can pick up Dreamworld and use it as a car park, then build a monorail or use buses to shuttle people to the park. They can then expand into their current car park at Movieworld.

 

[Ryno]

I feel that Dreamworld is doomed. Would be a miracle to rejuvenate the park and the only thing that can do that is $$$$$ and someone with Theme park experience leading it. Both two key factors are sadly missing.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

^And that's precisely why they aren't "doomed". In it's current iteration with it's current owner perhaps, but all signs - from Weiss to the new CEO suggest that Ardent is preparing for sale when the timing is right.

With our dollar as it is right now, an international buyer would pick it up for a song... and hopefully that buyer is both theme park experienced, and has the cash to splash in our suppressed market.

[pushbutton]

3 hours ago, AlexB said:

^And that's precisely why they aren't "doomed". In it's current iteration with it's current owner perhaps, but all signs - from Weiss to the new CEO suggest that Ardent is preparing for sale when the timing is right.

With our dollar as it is right now, an international buyer would pick it up for a song... and hopefully that buyer is both theme park experienced, and has the cash to splash in our suppressed market.

Completely agreed. I wish there wasn't so much negativity about Dreamworld. It needs the opposite from those who are supposed to be among its biggest supporters!

[Mark Shaw]

On 25/10/2018 at 7:35 AM, MacPark said:

The lack of competition would be the biggest worry. Village would have no reason to invest in new attractions and as you said can charge what they like. Also besides what other people have stated here, Dreamworld make alot of money from overseas. They have a whole division that work just with the Asian market to bring in tour groups and market to Asia in general. Dreamworld do alot of tour groups from China and its a big part of the business.

That is a fair point, however, another way of looking at things from a VRTP perspective would be that by removing the competition, your return on future investments would be more assured.  It is hard to second guess on attractions investment 2 years out when you don't know what your competitor has up their sleeve". I'm a "build it and they will come glass half full" guy though and not everyone who controls the purse is. 

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

41 minutes ago, Mark Shaw said:

not everyone who controls the purse is. 

Message received and understood.