Item 1. Business
ITEM 1. BUSINESS.
The Combined Company is North America's largest regional amusement park operator with 27 amusement parks, 15 separately gated water parks and nine resort properties. Of the 42 amusement and water parks, 38 are located in the United States, two are located in Mexico and two are located in Canada. The parks are family-oriented, with recreational facilities for people of all ages, and provide clean and attractive environments with exciting rides and immersive entertainment. The Combined Company generates revenue from sales of admission to the amusement parks and water parks, from purchases of food, merchandise and games both inside and outside the parks, from the sale of accommodations and other extra-charge products, and other revenue sources. The Combined Company purchases rides and attractions, inventory, operating supplies, and services from a variety of suppliers both domestic and abroad.
The Combined Company's operations are seasonal. In a typical year at Former Six Flags and Cedar Fair, approximately 70% of annual attendance and revenue occurred during the second and third quarters of each year. As a result, a substantial portion of the Combined Company's revenues are expected to be generated from Memorial Day through Labor Day with the major portion concentrated during the peak vacation months of July and August.
The demographic groups that are most important to the business are families and young people ages 12 through 24. Families are believed to be attracted by a combination of rides, live entertainment and the clean, wholesome atmosphere. Young guests are believed to be attracted by the action-packed rides. The Combined Company conducts active advertising campaigns in its major market areas geared toward these two groups. The Combined Company's U.S. parks serve each of the top 10 designated market areas, as determined by a survey of television households within designated market areas published by A.C. Nielsen Media Research in spring 2024.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PARKS
Park Year
Developed/Acquired Location Designated Operating Area and Rank*
Cedar Point
Cedar Point Shores
(1) 1870 Sandusky, Ohio Cleveland (36)
Detroit (14)
Valleyfair 1978 Shakopee, Minnesota Minneapolis-St. Paul (15)
Dorney Park 1992 Allentown, Pennsylvania Philadelphia (9)
New York (1)
Worlds of Fun (2) 1995 Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (34)
Knott's Berry Farm
Knott's Berry Farm Soak City
(3) 1997 Buena Park, California Los Angeles (2)
Michigan's Adventure 2001 Muskegon, Michigan Grand Rapids (69)
California's Great America (4) 2006 Santa Clara, California San Jose (40)
San Francisco (5) Sacramento (29)
Canada's Wonderland 2006 Vaughan, Ontario, Canada N/A
Carowinds (5) 2006 Charlotte, N. Carolina and Fort Mill, S. Carolina Charlotte (20)
Greensboro (47) Greenville (57)
Kings Dominion (6) 2006 Doswell, Virginia Richmond (51)
Norfolk (46) Baltimore (22)
Washington, D.C. (8)
Kings Island 2006 Mason, Ohio Cincinnati (33)
Columbus (37) Louisville (58)
Indianapolis (38)
Schlitterbahn Waterpark and Resort New Braunfels (7) 2019 New Braunfels, Texas San Antonio (25)
Austin (28)
Schlitterbahn Waterpark Galveston 2019 Galveston, Texas Houston (6)
Frontier City
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Oklahoma City
2024 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (49)
La Ronde 2024 Montreal, Quebec, Canada N/A
Six Flags America 2024 Bowie, Maryland Washington, D.C. (8)
Baltimore (22)
Six Flags Darien Lake (8) 2024 Corfu, New York Buffalo (59)
Six Flags Discovery Kingdom
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Concord
(9) 2024 Vallejo, California
Concord, California San Francisco (5)
Sacramento (29)
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Park Year
Developed/Acquired Location Designated Operating Area and Rank*
Six Flags Fiesta Texas 2024 San Antonio, Texas San Antonio (25)
Austin (28)
Six Flags Great Adventure
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor New Jersey
Wild Safari Adventure
(10) 2024 Jackson, New Jersey New York City (1)
Philadelphia (9)
Six Flags Great America
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Chicago
2024 Gurnee, Illinois Chicago (3)
Milwaukee (43)
Six Flags Great Escape Resort (11) 2024 Queensbury, New York Albany (67)
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Phoenix 2024 Glendale, Arizona Phoenix (13)
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Rockford 2024 Cherry Valley, Illinois Chicago (3)
Milwaukee (43)
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Splashtown 2024 Spring, Texas Houston (6)
Six Flags Magic Mountain
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Los Angeles
2024 Valencia, California Los Angeles (2)
Six Flags Mexico
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Oaxtepec
2024 Mexico City, Mexico
Oaxtepec, Morelos, Mexico N/A
Six Flags New England 2024 Agawam, Massachusetts Boston (10)
Hartford (55) Providence (45)
Six Flags Over Georgia
Six Flags White Water
(12) 2024 Austell, Georgia
Marietta, Georgia Atlanta (7)
Six Flags Over Texas
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Arlington
(12) 2024 Arlington, Texas Dallas-Fort Worth (4)
Six Flags St. Louis 2024 Eureka, Missouri St. Louis (24)
Separately gated water parks are italicized.
* Based on a 2024 survey of radio market population with designated market areas published by A.C. Nielsen Media Research.
(1) Cedar Point also features four hotels, three marinas, an upscale campground, and the nearby Cedar Point Sports Center which features both indoor and outdoor sports facilities. Cedar Point's four hotels include: Hotel Breakers, Castaway Bay Indoor Waterpark Resort, Cedar Point's Express Hotel and Sawmill Creek Resort.
(2) Worlds of Fun also features Worlds of Fun Village, an upscale campground.
(3) Knott's Berry Farm also features the Knott's Hotel.
(4) On June 27, 2022, Former Cedar Fair sold the land at California's Great America. Concurrently with the sale, Cedar Fair entered into a lease contract that allows the Combined Company to operate the park during a six-year term, and the Combined Company has an option to extend the term for an additional five years. The lease is subject to early termination by the buyer with at least two years' prior notice.
(5) Carowinds also features Camp Wilderness Resort, an upscale campground, and a SpringHill Suites by Marriott hotel located adjacent to the park entrance. The SpringHill Suites is a Marriott franchise operated by the Combined Company and is open year-round.
(6) Kings Dominion also features Kings Dominion KOA Campground, an upscale campground.
(7) Schlitterbahn Waterpark & Resort New Braunfels also features The Resorts at Schlitterbahn New Braunfels, which includes hotel rooms, suites, cabins, luxury suites and vacation homes.
(8) Six Flags Darien Lake also features Six Flags Darien Lake Hotel & Campground.
(9) Six Flags Discovery Kingdom also features marine and land animal exhibits.
(10) Six Flags Great Adventure also features Savannah Sunset Resort & Spa, an upscale campground with spa services.
(11) Six Flags Great Escape Resort also features Six Flags Great Escape Lodge & Indoor Water Park.
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(12) Six Flags Over Georgia, including Six Flags White Water Atlanta, and Six Flags Over Texas are not wholly owned. See Note 7 for further information.
The Combined Company has also entered into international agreements to assist a third party in the planning, design, development and operation of a Six Flags-branded amusement park and water park in Saudi Arabia to be named Six Flags Qiddiya City and Aquarabia Water Theme Park, respectively. The Combined Company receives fees under the agreements during the design and development period for the parks, as well as ongoing remuneration after the parks open to the public as compensation for exclusivity, brand licensing rights, and design, development and management services. The agreements do not require the Combined Company to make any capital investments in the parks. As of the date of this Form 10-K filing, the Saudi Arabia parks are expected to open in late 2025.
CAPITAL EXPENDITURES
The Combined Company believes annual park attendance is influenced by annual investments in the parks, including new attractions and infrastructure, among other factors. Capital expenditures are planned on a seasonal basis with most expenditures made prior to the beginning of the peak operating season. Capital expenditures made in a calendar year may differ materially from amounts identified with a particular operating season because of timing considerations such as weather conditions, site preparation requirements and availability of ride components, which may result in accelerated or delayed expenditures around calendar year-end.
COMPETITION
The Combined Company competes for discretionary spending with all aspects of the recreation industry within its primary market areas, including other destination and regional amusement parks. The Combined Company also competes with other forms of entertainment and recreational activities, including movies, sporting events, restaurants, vacation travel and family entertainment centers.
The principal competitive factors in the amusement park industry include the uniqueness and perceived quality of the rides and attractions in a particular park, proximity to metropolitan areas, the atmosphere and cleanliness of the park, and the quality and variety of the food and immersive entertainment available. The Combined Company's parks feature a variety of high-quality rides, attractions and restaurants with a family atmosphere to make them highly competitive with other parks and forms of entertainment.
MARKETING AND PROMOTION
The Combined Company attracts its guests through multichannel marketing and promotional programs at each of the parks, which are designed to increase market penetration. These programs are tailored to the unique characteristics of each market and to maximize the impact of specific park attractions and product introductions. Marketing and promotional programs are updated each season.
The Combined Company also seeks to develop long-term corporate sponsorships and co-marketing relationships with well-known national and regional brands that align with its values and strategy. This results in the development of strategic alliances with mutually beneficial advertising programs.
LICENSES
The Combined Company holds exclusive long-term theme park usage rights in the U.S. (except for the Las Vegas metropolitan area and the state of Florida), Canada and Mexico to certain Warner Bros. and DC Comics animated characters. The Combined Company also has exclusive amusement and water park usage rights in the U.S. and Canada to the Peanuts comic strip characters. These license agreements require annual license fees and royalty fees on inventory sold that uses the licensed characters, which are subject to periodic scheduled adjustments, including CPI increases in some cases. The license agreements also include rights of the counterparty to terminate the agreements under certain circumstances.
GOVERNMENT REGULATION
The Combined Company's operations are subject to regulatory requirements, such as those relating to employment practices, environmental requirements, and other regulatory matters. The Combined Company is subject to extensive federal and state employment laws and regulations, including wage and hour laws and other pay practices and employee record-keeping requirements. The Combined Company may be required to incur costs to comply with these requirements, and the costs of compliance, investigation, remediation, litigation, and resolution of regulatory matters could be substantial.
The Combined Company is also subject to federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations such as those relating to water resources; discharges to air, water and land; the handling and disposal of solid and hazardous waste; and the cleanup of properties affected by regulated materials. Under these laws and regulations, the Combined Company may be required to
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investigate and clean up hazardous or toxic substances or chemical releases from current or formerly owned or operated facilities or to mitigate potential environmental risks. Environmental laws typically impose cleanup responsibility and liability without regard to whether the relevant entity knew of or caused the presence of the contaminants. The costs of investigation, remediation or removal of regulated materials may be substantial, and the presence of those substances, or the failure to remediate a property properly, may impair the ability to use, transfer or obtain financing with respect to the Combined Company's property.
Currently, management believes the Combined Company is in substantial compliance with applicable requirements under these laws and regulations. However, such requirements have generally become stricter over time, and there can be no assurance that new requirements, changes in enforcement policies or newly discovered conditions relating to the parks or operations will not require significant expenditures in the future.
The Combined Company acquires rides, attractions, inventory, and supplies from foreign countries. Changes in import tariffs and trade policies may result in increased costs and potential market disruptions that could result in the inability to acquire certain goods timely or at all. Many of the Combined Company's rides and attractions require specialized manufacturing. In addition, the Combined Company's seasonal workforce includes foreign employees under certain visa programs. The Combined Company may be unable to recruit and hire adequate personnel if these visa programs become unavailable.
MAINTENANCE AND INSPECTION
All rides are inspected daily by both maintenance and ride operations personnel before being placed into operation for guests. The parks are also periodically inspected by the Combined Company's insurance carrier and inspected by either state or county ride-safety inspectors or hired third party inspectors that submit the third-party report to the respective state agencies. Additionally, all parks have added ride maintenance and operation inspections completed by third party qualified inspectors to make sure the Combined Company's standards are being maintained.
HUMAN CAPITAL
As of December 31, 2024, the Combined Company employed approximately 5,000 full-time employees. This represents a reduction of approximately 3% compared to the combined number of full-time employees at Former Cedar Fair and Former Six Flags as of December 31, 2023. Throughout 2024, Former Cedar Fair, Former Six Flags and the Combined Company employed approximately 93,000 seasonal and part-time employees, many of whom are high school and college students. Some seasonal employees are housed in owned dormitories at Cedar Point, Kings Island, Carowinds, Kings Dominion and Valleyfair. From time-to-time, rented dormitories are also utilized at both Former Cedar Fair and Former Six Flags parks. As of December 31, 2024, approximately 2,275 of employees were represented by labor unions. Management believes it maintains good relations with its employees.
The Combined Company's employee guidelines and policies are founded on its cornerstones of safety, service and cleanliness and its core values of integrity, courtesy and inclusiveness. Management's highest priority continues to be the safety and well-being of all guests and employees. The Combined Company is committed to equal opportunity employment and prohibits harassment or discrimination of any kind. Management has adopted an open door policy to encourage an honest employer-employee relationship, which includes a confidential hotline available to all employees. As part of its core values, Former Cedar Fair published two Environmental, Social and Governance ("ESG") Strategy Reports, with the most recent report issued in 2023. Prior to the Mergers, Former Cedar Fair established an enterprise-wide ESG framework which includes the prioritization of five key strategic pillars: Safety, Associate Happiness, Community, Environment, and Operations and Governance. As part of the Safety pillar, the Cedar Fair Safety Model was established, which enhances the Company's longstanding commitment to workplace safety. The Cedar Fair Safety Model emphasizes employee accountability for safety, conducting safety risk assessments, implementing best practices, training, credentialing safety employees, and assessing mitigation tactics. The safety initiatives have been advanced by focusing on better data systems, improving existing safety training, and launching the Safety Grants Initiative, which is a supplemental source of funding to encourage innovation in safety. As part of the Associate Happiness pillar, the Associate Happiness Model was established, which frames the efforts to provide a positive employee experience using the components of authenticity, diversity, equity and inclusion. The Associate Happiness initiatives have been advanced by launching a series of new awards and recognitions, launching and streamlining training programs, and implementing an awareness month program.
The Combined Company maintains training programs for new employees, including safety training specific to job responsibilities. The Combined Company participates in the J-1 Visa and H-2B Visa programs providing cultural and educational exchange opportunities for its employees. The Combined Company also has partnered with Bowling Green State University to create the Six Flags Resort and Attraction Management program (formerly known as the Cedar Fair Resort and Attraction Management Program), a bachelor's degree program, which is housed in downtown Sandusky, Ohio in a facility jointly owned by the Combined Company and a third party developer. The bachelor's degree program prepares students for management careers at the Combined Company's parks or similar establishments. Management encourages a promote-from-within policy.
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AVAILABLE INFORMATION
Copies of this annual report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, and current reports on Form 8-K and all amendments to those reports as filed or furnished with the SEC are available without charge upon written request to the Investor Relations Office or at investors.sixflags.com .
The website investors.sixflags.com is used as a channel of distribution of information. The information posted through this channel may be deemed material. Accordingly, investors should monitor this channel, in addition to following news releases, SEC filings, and public conference calls and webcasts. The contents of the website, including without limitation the ESG Strategy Report referenced above, shall not be deemed to be incorporated herein by reference.
The SEC maintains an Internet site at http://www.sec.gov that contains the Combined Company's reports, proxy statements and other information.
SUPPLEMENTAL ITEM. Information about Executive Officers
Name Age Position(s)
Richard Zimmerman 64 Mr. Zimmerman serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Prior to the Mergers, Mr. Zimmerman most recently served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Cedar Fair since January 2018 and a member of the board of directors of Cedar Fair since April 2019. Prior to becoming Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Zimmerman served as President and Chief Operating Officer of Cedar Fair from October 2016 to December 2017 and served as Chief Operating Officer of Cedar Fair from October 2011 to October 2016. Prior to that, he was appointed as Executive Vice President of Cedar Fair in November 2010 and as Regional Vice President of Cedar Fair in June 2007. He has been with Cedar Fair since 2006, when it acquired Kings Dominion. Mr. Zimmerman was Vice President and general manager of Kings Dominion from 1998 through 2006.
Selim Bassoul 68 Mr. Bassoul serves as the Executive Chairman of the Board. Prior to the Mergers, Mr. Bassoul served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Former Six Flags since November 2021 and was the Chairman of the board of directors of Former Six Flags from February 2021 to November 2021. Mr. Bassoul served as President and Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman of The Middleby Corporation, a manufacturer of food service and processing equipment, from 2001 to 2019. Mr. Bassoul previously served on the boards of Diversey Holdings, Ltd. as a director and non-executive chairman, 1847 Goedeker Corporation, Confluence Outdoor, Piper Aircraft, Inc., and Scientific Protein Laboratories LLC.
Brian Witherow 58 Mr. Witherow serves as the Chief Financial Officer of the Company. Prior to the Mergers, Mr. Witherow served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Cedar Fair since January 2012. Mr. Witherow began his career with public accounting firm Arthur Andersen. He left public accounting in 1995 to join Cedar Fair as Corporate Director of Investor Relations. He was promoted to Corporate Treasurer in 2004 and named Vice President and Corporate Controller the following year.
Tim Fisher 65 Mr. Fisher serves as Chief Operating Officer of the Company. Prior to the Mergers, Mr. Fisher served as Chief Operating Officer of Cedar Fair since joining Cedar Fair in December 2017. Prior to joining Cedar Fair, he served as Chief Executive Officer of Village Roadshow Theme Parks International, an Australian-based theme park operator, since March 2017. Prior to this appointment with Village Roadshow Theme Parks International, Mr. Fisher served as Chief Executive Officer of Village Roadshow Theme Parks since 2009.
Brian Nurse 53 Mr. Nurse serves as Chief Legal & Compliance Officer and Corporate Secretary of the Company. Mr. Nurse joined Cedar Fair as Executive Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and Secretary in November 2021. Prior to joining Cedar Fair, he served as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary for World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (WWE), an integrated media and entertainment company, from September 2018 to November 2020. Prior to joining WWE, Mr. Nurse served as Vice President, Associate General Counsel and Secretary at Nestle Waters North America, Inc., a former division of Nestle S.A. which is a multinational food and drink corporation, from 2012 to 2018. Prior to that, he was Senior Legal Counsel for North American beverage/soft drink brands at PepsiCo, Inc., a multinational food, snack and beverage corporation, from 2003 to 2012.
Christian Dieckmann 47 Mr. Dieckmann serves as Chief Strategy Officer of the Company. Mr. Dieckmann served as Cedar Fair’s Chief Strategy Officer from 2023 and joined Cedar Fair in 2014 in a role focused on strategic growth, business development and innovation. Prior to joining Cedar Fair, he began his career at GE Capital, the former financial services division of General Electric, including roles in the company’s Financial Management Program and Internal Audit teams in both the U.S. and Europe. He later worked at Bain & Company where he advised Fortune 500 and private equity clients on strategy, M&A, merger integration and performance improvement. Mr. Dieckmann also served as Chief Strategy Officer at Liminal Space, an early-stage technology company in the immersive entertainment industry.
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Name Age Position(s)
David Hoffman 56 Mr. Hoffman serves as Chief Accounting Officer of the Company. Mr. Hoffman served as Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer of Cedar Fair from 2012 until the consummation of the Mergers. Prior to that, he served as Vice President of Finance and Corporate Tax since 2010. He served as Vice President of Corporate Tax from 2006 through 2010. Prior to joining Cedar Fair, Mr. Hoffman served as a business advisor with Ernst & Young from 2002 through 2006.
Ty Tastepe 62 Mr. Tastepe serves as Chief Digital and Technology Officer of the Company. Mr. Tastepe served as Chief Information Officer at Cedar Fair since 2021. Prior to joining Cedar Fair, Mr. Tastepe served for over two years as Senior Vice President, Chief Information and Digital Officer for Altar’d State, a women's clothing retailer. Prior to that, Mr. Tastepe spent nearly two decades delivering large-scale digital transformation programs at global entertainment and hospitality brands such as Universal Parks and Resorts, Hilton Worldwide, and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. From 2001 to 2011, Mr. Tastepe held technology leadership roles at Disney Parks that included worldwide sales and travel operations, revenue management and marketing.
Monica Sauls 45 Ms. Sauls serves as Chief Human Resources, People & Culture Officer of the Company. Ms. Sauls joined Cedar Fair as Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer in March 2023. Prior to joining Cedar Fair, she served as Senior Vice President and Chief People Officer of Bojangles, a regional chain of fast-food restaurants, from 2020 through March 2023. Prior to that, Ms. Sauls served as Senior Human Resources Strategic Business Solutions Leader for Duke Energy, an electric power and natural gas holding company, from 2018 to 2020. From 2014 to 2018, she served as Senior Executive and Leadership Development Director for Boeing, a global aerospace company and manufacturer. From 2009 to 2014, she served as Human Resources and Talent Management Manager for Walgreens, a national pharmacy store chain.
Robert White 65 Mr. White serves as Chief Commercial Officer of the Company. Mr. White served as SVP, Chief Commercial Officer at Cedar Fair since 2023. Mr. White joined Cedar Fair in 2018 and served as Senior Vice President of Business Intelligence and Regional Vice President responsible for operations at eight of Cedar Fair’s theme parks. Prior to joining Cedar Fair, Mr. White served as Chief Operating Officer at Village Roadshow Theme Parks from 2011 until 2018.