Quotes
Dennis has been interviewed by numerous media publications including, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Washington Post, LA Times, London Times, China Post, Bloomberg, Park World and Fun World. Here are just a few published quotes:
Dennis Speigel is president of Cincinnati-based industry consultant International Theme Park Services Inc. Rather than dealing with the tremendous challenges associated with huge debt, Speigel says Six Flags officials can finally focus on a growth strategy. “It took management’s eye off of the ball,” says Speigel about Six Flags’ debt woes. “They couldn’t focus on growing the business.” But now Speigel says Six Flags has trimmed its debt “down to a manageable level.”
"Fiesta Texas president says financial woes are in ‘rear-view mirror’" - San Antonio Business Journal - May 21, 2010
Dennis Speigel, president of International Theme Park Services of Cincinnati, a theme park consulting company, said it appears Apollo got an excellent price for Cedar Fair. He said he expects Cedar Fair to continue to do well. "Our industry during 2008 and 2009 has shown as a business, and as an industry, it's very resilient," Speigel said. "It's not recession proof, but it's recession resilient."
"Cedar Fair purchase is hardly a done deal" - Sandusky Register - December 21, 2009
Dennis Speigel, president of industry consulting firm International Theme Park Services Inc., said that by investing in Cedar Fair, Apollo Global Management has shown it believes theme parks will be profitable in the future. "It says that [the equity] group feels we have bottomed out as an industry," he said.
"Equity firm to buy Knott's Berry Farm's parent" - Los Angeles Times - December 18, 2009
“For over two years, we have been questioning the numerous theme park developments in Dubai,” comments Dennis Speigel of International Theme Park Services. “SeaWorld, Universal, Lego, Paramount, Warner Bros, Marvel, Six Flags and DreamWorks all announced they would be building multi-million/billion dollar projects. Dubai and our industry got caught up in a licensing/intellectual property engagement frenzy.
"Busch puts Dubai plans on hold" - Park World - March 3, 2009
While it won't disclose the size of the investment, International Theme Park Services consultant Dennis Speigel predicts they could easily spend $500 million to get it right. The specter of a dead Harry could dampen some of the fun. But Universal Parks Chairman and CEO Tom William says the 20-acre attraction is "going to be a game-changer" and pledges to do "the biggest and best job on this as on any job we've ever taken."
"The Twisted Economics Of Harry Potter" - Business Week - July 2, 2007
"It's just a grand slam deal for Disney," said Dennis Speigel, president of International Theme Park Services, a consulting group in Cincinnati that brokers theme park purchases. "It adds a great stable of characters to the already-strong business they have. … If I were Universal, I would be very concerned right now. We're talking about more powerful direct competition to Universal right in their backyard."
"Disney's Marvel purchase could shake up Florida theme parks" - The Tampa Tribune - August 31, 2010
"In our industry, this is about as large as it gets outside of the Disney realm," theme park consultant Dennis Speigel said. Speigel said the latest merger means visitors win. "They're going to get a larger product offering. They're going to get character exposure, and characters are a big part of the theme park industry," he said.
"Cedar Point Owner To Purchase Kings Island" - WLWT - May 22, 2006
“You don’t build, people stop coming,” says theme park consultant Dennis Speigel. “This is a mature industry, and we’ve reached maximum penetration in most markets. You can’t afford to lose people.”
"La Ronde's wild ride" - The Gobe and Mail - April 29, 2010
"It's a very difficult market in which to operate a theme park. I say that based on the history and not just a gut feeling," said Speigel, president of International Theme Park Services, a Cincinnati firm. Speigel, who studied the park as both Jazzland and Six Flags, says he is watching closely this time around, too. "It was an ill-conceived concept in the wrong location and it just should not have been built. It's just one of those things you ought to bury it and let it go."
Speigel thinks the eastern New Orleans site was always a bad idea. "To regenerate a theme park on that site is going to be almost impossible. I was never personally sold on that location for the Six Flags theme park and the Jazzland Theme Park," Speigel said. He thinks it would take an initial investment of more than $300 million to operate a successful theme park at the site. "It's on the wrong side of the city. It just doesn't look like that was the way that the growth was going."
"The failures of the Jazzland and Six Flags theme parks have not quelled dreams for another eastern New Orleans complex" - The Times-Picayune - September 6, 2009
Dennis Speigel, a theme-park consultant in Cincinnati, said the unwinding of Universal and GE is to be expected. Other park operators have undergone a similar process after being sold, he said, such as when CBS Corp. sold its Paramount theme parks to Cedar Fair Entertainment Co. in 2006. ``When a park is sold, it goes through a decommissioning process. It's everything from intellectual property to insurance to buying power,'' Speigel said. Speigel said some of GE's presence within the parks could be assumed by Comcast. The key will be not to let any ownership instability affect the parks, he said. Uncertainty ``creates consternation in the parks. It doesn't allow them to really continue some of their capital planning and other necessary operational issues that give them continuity, because they never know who's going to be running the show and calling the shots,'' he said. But ``if Comcast comes in and has long-term plans for them, then I think the parks are OK.''
"GE, Universal Orlando could cut ties once sale to Comcast closes" - Orlando Sentinel - February 28, 2010
“The great thing about this deal is Blackstone is keeping the management team intact, so you don't have this shuffling of the deck, which creates issues and confusion for the consumer,” said Dennis Speigel, president of Cincinnati-based International Theme Park Services. “Blackstone is a smart organization, but the key here is they understand the operating challenges of this industry,” Speigel said. “Yeah, they're going to manage it in a profitable way, but I don't think they'll micromanage because (Busch Entertainment) has a damn good track record.”
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime buy,” Speigel said. “Originally, this deal was estimated to be between $3.5 and $4 billion, and they got it for $2.7 billion, and the parks are in pristine condition.”
"SeaWorld parks sold in $2.7 billion deal" - San Diego Union- Tribune - October 8, 2009
Dennis Speigel, president of theme park consulting firm International Theme Park Services, forecasts attendance will be down as much as 9 percent in 2009. This will hurt not only sales of admission tickets, which accounts for half of theme park revenue, but also food and beverage revenue, which tends to offer high margins. That has forced theme park operators to discount heavily to draw guests. 'You see Disney right now and it's discounting more deeply, more broadly than they ever have in their history,' Speigel said.
"Schwarzman sees big returns in roller coasters" - Forbes - October 18, 2009
"They are the identifiable icon of SeaWorld and responsible for generating hundreds of millions of dollars to that organization," said Dennis Speigel, an industry consultant at International Theme Park Services.
Marine Park Operator Faces a Big Dilemma - The Wall Street Journal - March 9, 2010
The company had $2.3 billion in long-term debt at the end of the second quarter on June 30. Interest on that debt would be more than $200 million a year, said consultant Dennis Speigel, president of International Theme Park Services in Cincinnati. "They're saddled with such huge debt," Speigel said. "It's really going to take some creative board room strategizing on the parts of investment bankers."
"Six Flags puts itself up for sale" - USA Today - August, 25, 2009
Freestyle shouldn't reopen even if it receives the additional investment, said Dennis Speigel, an industry consultant with no business ties to the park. The park was ill-conceived and cannot succeed in its location no matter what it does, Speigel said. The park is too far from the beach, the Strand's main attraction, he said.
"It's probably the largest catastrophe in our industry," said Speigel. "Quite frankly the park shouldn't reopen."
"Freestyle Music Park opening hinges on investors" - The Sun News - March 30, 2010
But industry consultant Dennis Speigel wonders if Hard Rock can make those numbers in a troubled economy and when the industry is saturated with attractions. "It's a very hefty price at $400 million and the projections they have published are very ambitious," he said. "Very few theme parks, with the exception of a handful, and primarily the Disney and the Universal Parks, have ever opened exceeding 2 million people in the first year." There's a theme park within a 2 1/2 hour drive of most major metropolitan areas, added Speigel, president of International Theme Park Services based in Cincinnati. "The people coming to Myrtle Beach probably have a major theme park close to them, whether they are coming from Canada or coming from Charlotte," he said. "I don't know if there is anything there that absolutely tips the scales in favor of somebody saying 'I can't leave Myrtle Beach without going there."'
"New Hard Rock Park mixes rides with rock 'n' roll" - USA Today - May 16, 2008
Amusement park consultant Dennis Speigel said “it’s a good time to have a ride of that nature and stature introduced. (Amusement parks) live on repeat business and repeat business lives on product introduction.” Still, Speigel said, “it’s a mature industry now. We’re not seeing the growth at the front gate that we saw 20 years ago.”
Cedar Fair overpaid when it spent $1.24 billion in 2006 to acquire Kings Island and four other parks from Paramount, said Speigel, president of International Theme Park Services Inc. of Cincinnati. But he said Cedar Fair “is a well-run company with a great history of profitability. They will weather this situation, no question about it.”
"Kings Island banking on new roller coaster" - Dayton Daily News - April 10, 2009
Dennis Speigel is president of International Theme Park Services Incorporated, an amusement park consulting company. He says the trend of smaller parks thriving in the recession applies to other parts of the country as well. “The boardwalk parks over on the east coast have done very well the last two years for two reasons. They’re capturing some of the tourism that’s still coming into those areas, but they’re also becoming the local stay-cation visitation spot,” he said. “And, certainly, having that free gate during this recession in 2009 has helped them a lot.” Bigger parks are still drawing millions of people. Disneyland drew nearly 15 million visitors in 2008, while SeaWorld drew about four million. Still, Speigel says attendance at larger parks stayed relatively flat in 2008 and didn’t improve much in 2009.
"Small Amusement Parks Doing Big Business During Recession" - KPBS - April 15, 2010
Turning Neverland into a theme park would take several years and cost hundreds of millions of dollars, said Dennis Speigel, president of International Theme Park Services Inc., a Cincinnati-based consulting and management firm. "You could spend half a billion dollars in the blink of an eye for your rides, theaters, restaurants, bathrooms and parking lots," Speigel said. "It would be a huge gamble betting people would come out in big numbers."
"Uncertain Future for Jackson's Neverland Ranch" - ABC News