Euro Disney hopes to ride out bad times

[Evil Minion]

[article from London]

After a difficult two years blighted by difficult trading conditions and poor attendances, the "cast members" and executives who work for Euro Disney are hopeful the Paris theme-park operator is heading for a more stable future.

The group, which on Thursday reported a narrowing of first-half net losses from €108.9m to €80.9m ($104.5m), has finished a complex financial restructuring that has released funds for investment in new attractions.

The latest addition, Space Mountain 2, opened two weeks ago at the main Disneyland park. Like the Aerosmith Rock n' Rollercoaster in the adjoining Walt Disney Studios park, it has proved a big hit. But pleasing visitors who come to the group's two parks is not a big concern for André Lacroix, Euro Disney's chairman and chief executive, because first-time guests invariably leave happy, intent on returning. The problem is how to attract more guests in the first place.

"If you look at our core target market, it is made up of about 122m Europeans. Out of this core market, less than a third have made the trip here," he said.

Walt Disney, which owns 39.7 per cent of Euro Disney, has found it easier to attract visitors to its US parks although Mr Lacroix said this was because the US was a mature theme-park market.

"We have been operating for 13 years, but in the US they have been operating for 50 years. We are at the beginning of the life cycle for this product and establishing a new concept [like Euro Disney] takes time."

Changing holiday trends in Europe could work in the group's favour he added. "People are taking more holidays that are shorter in length, which suits us. There is an opportunity to grow by increasing penetration to first-timers in every country."

Euro Disney's problems came to a head in the summer of 2003. "We had a difficult time and revenues had declined by 11 per cent that summer because of the Iraq war. We put a new team in place and found a way to stop the revenue decline."

New initiatives such as themed "seasons" that run in traditionally quiet trading periods have been introduced and a new ride will be added every year until 2009. Yesterday's results show a slight improvement in visitor numbers, with 5.7m coming to Euro Disney's two parks in the six months to the end of March, up from 5.6m in the same period last year. However, the group has enjoyed more success in increasing visitor spending, and lifting the occupancy rates at its hotels, helping to lift turnover to a record €494.1m from €471.1m.

Increased labour costs, reflecting the impact of the French minimum wage and the ending of subsidies relating to the group's adoption of a 35-hour working week for its employees prevented a further narrowing of net losses. "These are mandatory law changes that we can't do anything about," said Jeff Speed, finance director.

He added that the group had not set a deadline for a return to profitability but said that "significant investment" had been committed for new attractions until 2009.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: rebuilding the same attractions will not generate excitement.
Mr Lacroix, if you want to increase attendance at the resort you have to build new attractions not found anywhere else, including other Disneyland parks in the world. Dust off some of those old "phase 2" and "phase 3" expansion plans from 1992. Most of those shows and rides have never seen the light of day. Isn't it about time to bring them to life ?

Sometimes I wish I could be the CEO of The Walt Disney Company, if for no other reason,
to give Euro Disney the original entertainment it sorely needs.

[Dustysage]

Very well said Evil one. Just think how many Americans travel to Europe every year. Few of them think to visit the Disney Resort in Paris. Why? Because they think it is the same as the parks in the US. If Disney built enough unique rides in Paris, not only would they attract more European visitors, but they'd pull in more Americans as well (desirable because Americans spend more on an average vacation than the average European does)

[pussnboots]

*wants to delete post but can't, feels rather silly*

[poupouille]

I think Andre Lacroix is spot on. My family and friends all lives in Paris suburb and yet they have never been to Disneyland Paris.

They know vaguely that there a similar place in the USA. They don't even know that there are two locations in the US where you can find Disney theme parks. They are not even sure what they would find if they were going to Disneyland Paris. They know that it's a place where everything has been reconstituted (fake), looks pretty, with rides that are: a) too scary for my mum b) too tame for my brother and sister. And I bet they can't even name one ride in the park, except "some kind of train that goes around a mountain".

Obviously for us disney buffs it seems almost impossible that such people could exist but they do :-)). If Disneyland Paris can convince them to visit then they would go a long way to help them recover.

Now I'd like to believe that lot's of americains are visiting France in droves but I'm not sure that would still be enough :-)

So I think it's more of an image problem that just the quality/uniqueness of the rides.