SHOW REPORT
Having received an honourable mention award for the
IAAPA 2009
Barnyard family ride, Zamperla reported that the show overall was “not too bad,” Alberto Zamperla also noting that his team discussed “a few important projects with important customers for the next few years, so we feel confident in the future.” And he continued: “The economic world
crisis has been affecting also the amusement business - reduced pro-capita expenditure by park visitors on one side and financing difficulties for the renovation of existing parks or the realisation of new projects on the other side, are making life difficult for ride
Alison and Dan Jamele at Media Mation enjoyed a successful IAAPA Attractions Expo
Among the many visitors to the InterPark stand during the show were Rainbow Productions’ Simon Foulkes and David Scott, seen here with InterPark publisher John Fosbrooke (right)
manufacturers. This being the general premise, it was not a surprise for anybody that the IAAPA show in Las Vegas did not produce spectacular results. But this does not mean that it was a disaster, at least for those companies like Zamperla which rely on international customers. “The situation is certainly dramatic if we look at the US market only. The amusement business here is living through a particularly serious crisis and this market has almost disappeared from the exhibition floor were it not for US companies like Disney and Universal. Lucky enough, the IAAPA show is getting more and more international, attracting customers from all over the world and particularly from China, so I can proudly say that the Zamperla booth was very busy. It must also be noted, anyway, that
the general exhibition costs, always particularly high in Las Vegas, have contributed to making this show less attractive than usual; many ride manufacturers, including Zamperla, attended the show with smaller booths and have reduced the number of exhibited rides. “As for Zamperla more specifically,” he went on, “I must say that despite the general situation depicted above, this trade show has re-confirmed that we are on track, moving forward positively enough and that our efforts in coming up with novelties are being rewarded.” At Fabbri Group, Edward Cromheecke
stated: “The first day of the show was good, with many people here. Most were from the
The fully operational TrioTech XD Theatre created a lot of interest at the show
Asian market. Of course it is very difficult for the US market at the moment. We concluded some contracts on the first day which is unusual so we are very happy with that. These were contracts for 30m and 50m Boosters for Mexico and Germany.”
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Swiss company Intamin/Ride Trade continues to enjoy
involvement in a variety of major projects around the world (see IAAPA show news article) and the company’s Sascha Czibulka commented: “We’ve noticed a significant increase in attendees from Asia. All the important players from South East Asia, Korea and Japan reflect where things are going well. There is also an increase in visitors from Europe, although it is sad no-one from the executive board at Merlin Entertainments is here with all the parks they have.” A “very successful IAAPA” was reported by 5D
International, where David Vatcher noted that, like many suppliers, they had come to the event with low expectations. “However we were delighted to find that there was a
good attendance of serious buyers and decision makers from North America, Europe and Asia,” he said. “The calibre of our meetings was of the highest quality. This, in addition to our announcement on the first day of the show that 5D International has been selected by Six Flags to develop a new generation of thrilling family attractions for their 50th Anniversary in 2011, provided for a very successful IAAPA with excellent business prospects for 2010.” Also pleased at how busy the show turned out to be
was OmniTicket Network, where UK director of operations John Davies commented: “The main comment to make is to say how pleasantly busy the show was. The quantity and quality of visitor to the booth was high. We took many good, positive enquiries from the US, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. This would tend to suggest that many visitor attractions are beginning to pull upwards from the recession and are feeling optimistic for the future. The only downside would be the additional costs (due to union handling fees) of exhibiting in Las Vegas.” Dutch manufacturer KMG enjoyed visits from “large
numbers” of customers and potential buyers, according to Peter Theunisz, over four very busy days and felt many European visitors made the trip to Las Vegas. “Not only travelling showmen but also park managers
and park owners found their way to KMG,” said Theunisz. “The overall impression was that investors have more faith in the future and deals were made for 2011 at this show. We sold one transportable ride to Norway, one transportable ride to the US, a park model ride to the US and a park model ride to the Netherlands.” Currently KMG is developing an 80m (262ft) high transportable ride, on four semi-trailers. No details could be
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