Six Flags’ future in a Disney, Universal dominated theme park world

The theme park business, like many others, is consolidating and changing along with consumer habits.

In the wake of Covid-19, and as consumers more carefully choose where they’re spending their money, smaller theme park operators have struggled to compete with the bigger players in the amusement industry like Disney and Comcast’s Universal, which have seen huge gains from parks‘ divisions.

Addressing those challenges was one of the drivers behind the proposed $8 billion merger between Cedar Fair and Six Flags, announced in November. The combined company would put over 40 attractions, from iconic Knotts’ Berry Farm to Magic Mountain to Canada’s Wonderland, all under one ownership, as well as intellectual property from Peanuts, Looney Tunes and Marvel.

Cedar Fair CEO Richard Zimmerman said at the time of the merger that the combination would be “driving increased levels of demand and in-park value and spending.” Six Flags CEO Selim Bassoui said it would “unlock new potential for our parks.”

While the Department of Justice said this week it has launched a review of the merger — which comes at a time when big deals are facing higher levels of anti-trust scrutiny from regulators, investors and consumer interest groups — industry experts and park aficionados say this is sort of combination that the park operators need.

Smaller parks have struggled

In recent years, smaller parks have struggled to attract and retain guests, especially as the bigger players chart out massive plans. In October, Disney stated it plans to invest roughly $60 billion in its parks division over the next decade. Universal said in August it would be investing $17 billion in its Florida theme parks over the next 10 years and is set to open a new expansion of its Orlando Park featuring a Super Mario attraction.

One sign of the difficulties: Cincinnati, Ohio’s historic Coney Island, meant to mirror the New York icon of the same name, shuttered at the end of 2023 after serving park-goers since 1886. 

Coney’s closing ended an era for Cincinnati-based theme park consultant Dennis Speigel. Speigel worked his first job at Coney Island and later found himself the assistant general manager of Kings Island, a park now in the Cedar Fair portfolio. After the success of that park, he was dispatched to Virginia, where he oversaw the opening of a…