MARKET REPORT: ASIA
Fantawild’s Boonie Bears characters, featured as the main mascot in all its parks, are an example of a home grown IP in China
lands banks amongst Chinese developers, has 10 active projects anchored by the Shimao-Dreamworks Animation Park in Nanjing. Several other core Chinese real estate developers who have ventured into theme parks include Guangdong-based Evergrande Group, which is directly involved in at least five attractions, and Country Garden, which has announced a strategic partnership with Haichang for future projects. This interest in theme parks, however, is not just contained to
private companies. The state-owned Luneng Group is currently developing the Wenchang Shanhaitian resort area in Hainan which is slated to include two theme parks produced in conjunction with BBC Worldwide. Furthermore, China Poly Group, with its recent acquisition of AVIC Real Estate, indicates potential for the company to venture into the theme park space. The Poly Group is reportedly contemplating a “Poly National Defense Park” which is a befitting theme for the company givens that one of its core business arms is in defence manufacturing. In light of the surge in development across the nation, attractions
are increasingly pressed to develop unique selling points. One of the most effective ways to distinguish a product is to incorporate a widely recognised brand or intellectual property (IP). The promotional value of IPs are now more recognised and favoured with many themed attractions beginning to feature domestic media properties and characters. Chinese businesses are increasingly eager to develop their own home grown IPs and explore ways to apply them to a wide range of themed attractions. One of the more popular and valued domestic brands is the Boonie Bears, an animated cartoon and movie series featuring a family of bears, which has now become the main mascot for Fantawild’s family of parks. OCT has also signed a deal with the popular Cookie Sheriff animation series to leverage its characters as key personalities at its numerous Happy Valley parks across China.
PARK WORLD Handbook & Buyers Guide 2017
RAISING THE BAR In terms of international branded theme parks, Shanghai Disney Resort, which opened in June of 2016 to great fanfare, is on track to meet and even exceed the 10 million visitor attendance target set for the first full year of operations. Shanghai Disney dramatically raised the bar in terms of world class product and service quality as well as admission pricing. This success has emboldened more international media brands and operators to enter the Chinese market through joint ventures and licensing deals. Universal Studios, Six Flags and Nickelodeon have already broken ground and it is only a matter of time before other major studios, operators and international IP owners cement their deals in China. The international media brands and studios are not only targeting China for location based entertainment. These companies see theme parks as a strong stepping stepping stone to introduce and promote their products to Chinese consumers, while eying the vast cinema, merchandising and digital streaming platforms in the long term. Agriculture-themed attractions are also staring to emerge as viable park concepts. Farm attractions of all types and sizes are being dreamed up and encouraged by government policy as part of China’s “Beautify Countryside” vision. This vision is being promoted to help develop rural and scenic communities by encouraging city residents to visit and spend money in the countryside. Similarly, the waterpark sector in China is growing at a rapid pace with international brands such as Village Roadshow’s Wet ‘n’ Wild, which is to open in Hainan this summer, entering the market for the first time. Although the country already boasts the world’s busiest waterpark (Chimelong Water Park in Guangzhou) together with several other ambitious projects, development is not
Shanghai Disney Resort is on track to meet or exceed 10 million attendance in its 12 months of operation
23
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92
