I've been covering the theme park/amusement park industry for years, but there has rarely been a day quite as big as this one. While the industry is always changing with new rides being introduced all the time, it's rare that the industry changes in such a major way as it just did. As I write this two of the largest amusement park companies are announcing that they have agreed to become one massive entity as Six Flags and Cedar Fair are merging. The merger was rumored yesterday, but it was unclear then how likely this all was to happen.
In what is being touted as a "merger of equals" Cedar Fair and Six Flags are each making up almost exactly half of a new company that will exist under the Six Flags name. This means that Cedar Fair, the company that currently owns iconic parks like Cedar Point and Knott's Berry Farm, will cease to exist, though there's no expectation that the parks themselves will change drastically.
The Competitive Landscape Of The Industry Has Changed
This is a big deal for a number of reasons. The size of the new Six Flags is obvious, as the one company now runs more than 50 locations between amusement parks, water parks, and resorts. Ultimately, it reduces competition in a big way as there is one less company out there trying to attract guests. One has to wonder how the handful of parks that are not now part of the four major players in the industry with Disney, Universal, and SeaWorld, making up the rest, will be able to compete.
There are few places in the country where we see real competition between the two companies, so the good news is that we probably won't see any existing parks sold off or closed. It will certainly be interesting to see how the company approaches something like Magic Mountain and Knott's Berry Farm, which are not too far apart but have very different consumer strategies. Cedar Fair and Magic Mountain are across the country from each other but have been in regular competition for the title of biggest roller coaster park in America, and now one company will get to decide just which one gets to be that.
How A Cedar Fair And Six Flags Merger Could Impact The Guest Experience
But those guests potentially have a lot to look forward to. Six Flags has a significant licensing deal with Warner Bros. which has allowed them to use DC Comics and Loony Tunes characters in their parks, while Cedar Fair owns the Peanuts license. It was specifically revealed during the conference call that this deal will allow the IP to cross to the other parks. We could see specific attractions from certain parks, complete with their names, get built at the former competition locations.
Of course that could also lead to one of the first big changes. Cedar Fair uses Peanuts characters and licenses on its rides for younger guests, while Six Flags has the Loony Tunes. While this will likely continue for as long as the current contracts last, it would seem that eventually, we could see all the parks transform into one or the other.
The big question at hand is, will one of these two companies become dominant when it comes to their approach? While both Cedar Fair and Six Flags are what I would call amusement parks, as opposed to theme parks, Cedar Fair parks tend to have a stronger focus on themes and storytelling with their attractions than Six Flags. Could we see more "storytelling" built into Six Flags parks, or could we see less of it in Cedar Fair parks in the future?
Things have been rough financially speaking in the theme park industry since the pandemic, and while attendance has bounced back at locations like Walt Disney World, it has struggled elsewhere. SeaWorld had previously attempted to purchase Cedar Fair, but the bid was rejected. SeaWorld is now dealing with a pair of expensive lawsuits that raise questions regarding its financial state.
The merger is expected to be completed sometime in the first half of 2024. It's unclear how quickly after that things will begin to visibly change for the audience, but things certainly will change.
