 | |
| Private limited company | |
| Traded as | LSE: MERL |
| ISIN | GB00BDZT6P94  |
| Industry | Visitor Attractions |
| Founded | December 1998 |
| Headquarters | , UK |
Key people | Sir John Sunderland (Chairman) Nick Varney (CEO) |
| Products | |
| Revenue | £1,688 million (2018)[1] |
| £327 million (2018)[1] | |
| £230 million (2018)[1] | |
Number of employees | 27,000 (2017)[2] |
| Parent |
|
| Website | merlinentertainments |
Merlin Entertainments plc is a British-based entertainments company headquartered in Poole, Dorset (England). It was listed on the London Stock Exchange until it was acquired by a consortium of Kirkbi, CPP Investment Board and The Blackstone Group in November 2019.
History
In December 1998, Nick Varney, Andrew Carter and the senior management team of Vardon Attractions (Vardon plc) completed a management buyout of the company to form Merlin Entertainments Group Ltd. with the backing of the private equity firm Apax Partners. Apax sold the company to another financial investor, Hermes Private Equity, in 2004.[3] In May 2005, the company was acquired from Hermes by a division of The Blackstone Group [4] which later started a major expansion. Over the years, Merlin acquired Legoland, Gardaland, an Italian theme park, and The Tussauds Group. The company was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2013.[5]
Legoland
When the Legoland theme parks came up for sale, Varney wanted to buy it but Hermes did not want to invest more capital. After the sale of Merlin to Blackstone Group, the company negotiated to buy control of Legoland for about £250 million in 2005, then merged it with Merlin.[6] As part of the deal, Kirkbi A/S, the investment arm of LEGO owners, took a share in Merlin Entertainments.[7][8]
Tussauds
In May 2007 Blackstone purchased The Tussauds Group, owner of the Madame Tussauds celebrity wax attractions, for US$1.9 billion; this company was merged with Merlin and has since been managed by Merlin.[9][10] After the Tussauds acquisition, Dubai International Capital, the previous owner, received a 20% stake in the combined entity as well as £1.03bn in cash.[11][9][12]
On 17 July 2007, as part of the financing for the Tussauds deal, the freeholds of Alton Towers, Thorpe Park, Warwick Castle and Madame Tussauds were sold to private investor Nick Leslau and his investment firm Prestbury, with a subsequent leaseback agreement.[13] Although the attraction sites are owned by Leslau, they are operated by Merlin based on a renewable 35-year lease.[9]
Florida
On 15 January 2010, Merlin Entertainments bought a defunct Winter Haven, Florida-based theme park, Cypress Gardens, and reopened it as Legoland Florida theme park.[14]
Reports in early October 2017 indicated that Merlin Entertainments was considering a takeover of Sea World in Orlando but on 11 October, the company said it was no longer involved in such discussions.[15]
Australia and New Zealand
In late 2010, it was announced that Merlin would purchase approximately A$116 million worth of entertainment attractions located in Australia and New Zealand from Village Roadshow Theme Parks and Attractions. The sale would include Sydney Aquarium, Sydney Wildlife World, Oceanworld Manly, Sydney Tower and the Koala Gallery in Australia, in addition to Kelly Tarlton's Underwater World in New Zealand.[16] On 3 March 2011, the deal was finalised.[17] This was followed by the $140 million acquisition of Living and Leisure Australia which owned several attractions in the Asia-Pacific region including UnderWater World, Melbourne Aquarium, Falls Creek Alpine Resort, Hotham Alpine Resort, Otway Fly, Illawarra Fly, Busan Aquarium and Siam Ocean World.[18][19]
On 28 June 2013, Merlin Australia's Madame Tussauds in Sydney placed a wax figure of the former Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, into a mock queue of the unemployed at a Centrelink office in central Sydney. Deposed by the Australian Labour Party in the evening of 26 June, and replaced by Kevin Rudd, the publicity stunt drew wide attention, but received some criticism for the "disrespect" shown to the office of the Prime Minister, and the first female political leader of Australia.[20]
Listing
Merlin had planned to go public in the early 2000's, but market turbulence postponed those plans. Instead, Blackstone sold 20% of the company to the private equity firm CVC Capital Partners, reducing Blackstone's holding to 34%. CVC acquired another 8% from the Dubai investment fund which is no longer involved with the company, giving it 28% in all. Kirkby, a Danish family trust that owns LEGO, also increased its stake, emerging as the largest shareholder, with 36%. CVC paid a price that valued Merlin at £2.25 billion[21] - more than six times what Merlin and Legoland together were worth when Blackstone acquired them five years earlier. Blackstone's investment was by that point worth more than three and a half times what it had paid.[22]
On 8 November 2013 Merlin floated 30% of the company on the London Stock Exchange valuing the private equity-backed company at almost £3.4bn.[23]
In June 2019 the company's board agreed to recommend a takeover offer of £4.8 billion from Kirkbi, CPP Investment Board and The Blackstone Group.[24] The takeover was approved by the high court in November 2019.[25]
Properties
Theme parks
| Name | Location | Year Opened | Year Acquired | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alton Towers Resort | Staffordshire Moorlands, UK | 1860 | 2007 | Acquired in Tussauds Group deal. |
| Thorpe Park | Chertsey, Surrey, UK | 1979 | 2007 | Acquired in Tussauds Group deal. |
| Chessington World of Adventures Resort | Chessington, Greater London, UK | 1987 | 2007 | Acquired in Tussauds Group deal. |
| Gardaland Resort | Castelnuovo del Garda, Italy | 1975 | 2006 | Purchased in 2006 under Blackstone. |
| Heide Park Resort | Soltau, Lower Saxony, Germany | 1978 | 2007 | Acquired in Tussauds Group deal. |
| Legoland Billund Resort | Billund, Denmark | 1968 | 2005 | Acquired in Blackstone deal. |
| Legoland California | California, USA | 1999 | 2005 | Acquired in Blackstone deal. |
| Legoland Deutschland Resort | Günzburg, Germany | 2002 | 2005 | Acquired in Blackstone deal. |
| Legoland Dubai Resort | Jebel Ali, Dubai, United Arab Emirates | 2016 | - | Opened as part of the Dubai Parks and Resorts development in Jebel Ali. |
| Legoland Florida Resort | Winter Haven, Florida, USA | 2011 | 2011 | Cypress Gardens acquired and rebranded. |
| Legoland Japan Resort | Nagoya, Japan | 2017 | - | New-build theme park. |
| Legoland Malaysia Resort | Johor Bahru, Malaysia | 2012 | - | New-build theme park. |
| Legoland Windsor Resort | Windsor, UK | 1996 | 2005 | Acquired in Blackstone deal. |
| Warwick Castle | Warwick, UK | 1978 | 2007 | Acquired in Tussauds Group deal. |
Midway attractions
| Name | Location(s) | Year Opened | Year Acquired | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Treetop Adventures | Australia | 2005 | 2010 | Canopy walkways acquired in MFS Living and Leisure deal |
| Blackpool Tower Circus | Blackpool, UK | 1894 | 2011 | |
| The Dungeons | Alton Towers Amsterdam Berlin Blackpool Edinburgh Hamburg London San Francisco Warwick York Shanghai |
2019 - 2013 2011 - 2000 1974 2014 - 1975 |
1992 | |
| Eye Brand | Blackpool London Sydney Orlando |
1894 2000 1981 2015 |
2011 2007 2011 2015 2018 |
|
| Falls Creek ski resort | Victoria, Australia | 1946 | 2011 | Acquired in MFS Living and Leisure deal |
| Hotham Alpine Resort | Victoria, Australia | 1925 | 2011 | Ski resort acquired in MFS Living and Leisure deal |
| Madame Tussauds | Amsterdam Bangkok Beijing Berlin Blackpool Chongqing Hollywood Hong Kong Istanbul Las Vegas London New Delhi New York Orlando San Francisco Shanghai Singapore Sydney Tokyo Vienna Washington DC Wuhan |
|||
| Sea Life | Birmingham, Blackpool, Bray, Brighton, Great Yarmouth, Gweek, Hunstanton, Loch Lomond, London, Manchester, Scarborough, Weymouth, Berlin, Hannover, Königswinter, Konstanz, München, Oberhausen, Speyer, Timmendorfer Strand, Benalmadena, Blankenberge, Gardaland, Helsinki, Istanbul, Jesolo, Paris, Porto, Scheveningen, Legoland Billund, Bangkok, Busan, Nagoya, Iskander Puteri, Shenyang, Kelly Tarltons, Melbourne, Mooloolaba, Sydney, Arizona, Carlsbad, Charlotte-Conco, Grapevine, Kansas City, Michigan, Minnesota, Orlando and San Antonio. | 2008 |
Bus operation
In February 2016, Merlin purchased a 15% shareholding in Big Bus Tours.[26]
References
- ^ a b c "Preliminary Results 2018". Merlin Entertainments. Retrieved 2019.
- ^ "Merlin Way". Merlin Entertainments. Archived from the original on 21 February 2017. Retrieved 2017.
- ^ "Blackstone Acquires Merlin Entertainment". blackstone.com. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 2015.
- ^ "Blackstone Acquires Merlin Entertainment". Blackstone.com. 23 May 2005. Archived from the original on 30 October 2017. Retrieved 2017.
- ^ "Merlin Entertainments Group acquires Italy's Gardaland". Coaster Buzz. 16 October 2006. Archived from the original on 5 April 2016. Retrieved 2016.
- ^ "Business | Troubled Lego sells theme parks". BBC News. 13 July 2005. Archived from the original on 2 October 2017. Retrieved 2017.
- ^ "Why you shouldn't buy shares in Legoland owner Merlin Entertainment". Telegraph.co.uk. 30 October 2013. Archived from the original on 27 March 2015. Retrieved 2015.
- ^ "Tour Legoland California". CaliforniaResortLife.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2016. Retrieved 2015.
- ^ a b c 12:01AM BST 18 Jul 2007 (18 July 2007). "Merlin conjures up leaseback deal". Telegraph. Archived from the original on 14 November 2017. Retrieved 2017.
- ^ "Blackstone Buys Madame Tussauds Chain". Washingtonpost.com. Archived from the original on 20 September 2016. Retrieved 2017.
- ^ King of Capital, p. 313.
- ^ "Tussauds firm bought in £1bn deal". BBC News. 5 March 2007. Archived from the original on 5 December 2008. Retrieved 2010.
- ^ "Alton Towers sold in £622m deal". BBC News. 17 July 2007. Archived from the original on 23 August 2007. Retrieved 2010.
- ^ "Cypress Gardens Sold to Legoland". 15 January 2010. Archived from the original on 17 January 2010. Retrieved 2010.
- ^ "Legoland and Alton Towers owner Merlin Entertainments waves goodbye to SeaWorld deal | City A.M". City A.M. 11 October 2017. Archived from the original on 1 February 2018. Retrieved 2017.
- ^ AAP (17 December 2010). "Village Roadshow sells Sydney Attractions". Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 20 December 2010. Retrieved 2010.
- ^ AAP (3 March 2011). "Plans for a Madame Tussauds in Sydney". Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 7 March 2011. Retrieved 2011.
- ^ Ooi, Teresa (20 December 2011). "Merlin Entertainments Group conjures $140m James Packer bid". The Australian. Archived from the original on 27 December 2011. Retrieved 2012.
- ^ Danckert, Sarah (13 February 2012). "Merlin ready to wrap up Living and Leisure deal". The Australian. Archived from the original on 16 February 2012. Retrieved 2012.
- ^ "A wax figurine of Julia Gillard at Centrelink isn't a publicity stunt, it's just plain stupid - and offensive". The Sydney Morning Herald. 28 June 2013. Archived from the original on 30 June 2013.
- ^ CVC Capital Partners press release[dead link], 24 June 2010.
- ^ King of Capital, p. 314.
- ^ Why you shouldn't buy shares in Legoland owner Merlin Entertainment Archived 27 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine The Telegraph, 30 October 2013
- ^ "Legoland owner Merlin Entertainments agrees £4.8bn offer". BBC. 28 June 2019. Retrieved 2019.
- ^ "Court approves deal for Merlin Entertainments". Insider Media. 1 November 2019. Retrieved 2019.
- ^ Merlin eyes Big Bus Tours takeover following £24.6 million state deal Archived 27 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine The Daily Telegraph 25 February 2016
External links
This article uses material from the Wikipedia page available here. It is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.