Merlin Entertainments General Discussion

Sat Mar 17, 2012 12:05 am

Isnt this ment to be a discussion about improving fastrack?

i think the time slot idea is good but instead of having a slot for each ride have one for the area. dark forest, forbidden valley ect. give people a 2 hour slot for each area (10:00am -12:00pm, 10:15am - 12:15pm ect ect) varying the price according to rides on them. that way people can play their day better around the timeslots and alton could manage the ammount of people queing for them.

Sun Mar 18, 2012 3:20 pm

They are indeed £16 - that's what they were being sold for at Lego.

It feels much more sturdily built than those from the last two years, but for me at least it was every bit as leaky

SpinballEdders · Fri Mar 23, 2012 7:48 pm

Has anyone got a full list of songs from WWTP radio at Thorpe?

Sat Mar 24, 2012 8:38 pm

Stealth once broke down after I brought the ticket and I had to leave before rush hour so I got the fast track refunded

Wed Mar 28, 2012 12:03 am

Does anyone here actually fully understand how Merlin Studios works or operates in relation to the theme parks?

I have heard a lot about the company charging hugely inflated prices for basic jobs - which seems stupid considering that the theme parks are a part of the same umbrella corporation...

In my view, Studios should be not for profit - with any profits being invested in the attractions. That or they should run at a small loss with the loss being made up by the attractions. This would surely free up cash to be spent on theming new attractions etc?

I can't be the only one who just doesn't get it xD.

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Wed Mar 28, 2012 6:28 am

I don't know anything about the price of creating theming for the park. I do however know that whatever theming is created should be done as cheaply as possible and without the price affecting the quality of the end product. I know that if I worked there that I'd do everything in my power to create as much theming as possible to make the attractions as immersive as possible. Each new project would be a new lease of life and money wouldn't come into it for me.

I'd love to know more about Merlin Studios. I'd love to work in theming, so this topic is of particular interest to me.

Wed Mar 28, 2012 7:16 am

From my past experience when I used to work at the resort...

A good example of how they operate is to use signage. We wanted new signage made, they quoted a ridiculous price! Totally unjust!

In the end, it was much, much cheaper to go to a local professional signage company than doing it through Studios... Which is what we did!

Think that sums it up to be honest...

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AstroDan · Wed Mar 28, 2012 7:24 am

Indeed. Often, things aren't done due to costs of anything from Merlin Studios. A basic height board from them is a fortune.

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Wed Mar 28, 2012 7:40 am

Why though? Surely they'd want to do work for as little as possible to maximise the amount of work that they get from Merlin and to have their work in all of their attractions. Surely that would be a better feeling rather than just stuffing your pockets? Or do they work in a different way to other theming/design companies?

Wed Mar 28, 2012 10:29 am

Does seem just a little silly...

Wed Mar 28, 2012 12:19 pm

The best way to explain it, is that they work as a separate company within Merlin. They work within their own budgets and work for profits.

Why it's like this I don't know. But it's why so many of the little things around the resort go without attention. Even something as small as a new themed paint job or sign has to be approved for budget. Why do you think Cariba Creek signs still remain..?

If Merlin worked more like Disney with a team of Imagineers and scrap the Studios as it is, it would greatly improve EVERY aspect of the resort and all parks/resorts. Not gonna happen though

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Wed Mar 28, 2012 1:14 pm

Can anyone who does business explain why this isn't an absurd way to run a company?

Because to us laymen, it seems utterly bizarre.

Unfortunately I heard they're scrapping most of the theming on Wodan as Roland Studios were charging too much.

DiogoJ42 · Wed Mar 28, 2012 1:27 pm

It only makes sense from an accounting viewpoint. The BBC did the same thing years ago, and sold off all their equipment, studios, staff etc to newly created internal companies. They then charge each other for services and the money just keeps moving round in circles within the overall corperation. That way the books look like you are making a profit, and keeps shareholders / fat cat bosses happy... even though in reality you are loosing more money than you did before when you were one big happy family. It's the same logic as making your staff redundant then re-hiring them as freelancers at a higher rate. :no:

It's no surprise that Chessington no longer use Studios, and get external companies to do all their theming work.

Wed Mar 28, 2012 8:22 pm

It just seems a bit silly. All the Merlin attractions need the studios!

Why don't they just charge at cost price + labour. No need for them to make a profit.

Wed Mar 28, 2012 9:04 pm

BigAl wrote: Why though? Surely they'd want to do work for as little as possible to maximise the amount of work that they get from Merlin and to have their work in all of their attractions. Surely that would be a better feeling rather than just stuffing your pockets? Or do they work in a different way to other theming/design companies?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Welcome to the world of business... Of EVERY company...

Wed Mar 28, 2012 9:24 pm

Benzin wrote:
BigAl wrote: Why though? Surely they'd want to do work for as little as possible to maximise the amount of work that they get from Merlin and to have their work in all of their attractions. Surely that would be a better feeling rather than just stuffing your pockets? Or do they work in a different way to other theming/design companies?
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Welcome to the world of business... Of EVERY company...

I didn't realise that companies needed money. Sorry.

You do realise that there's a distinct difference between only seeking as much money as possible and earning money whilst building up a reputation and creating attractions to be truly proud of? Remember Tussauds, no?

Wed Mar 28, 2012 9:42 pm

It's always about making money. And why the hell would it not be?

The difference is the approach you take to make it.

Merlin have the wrong approach. Tussauds had a better one.

Wed Mar 28, 2012 9:49 pm

A company quite obviously has to make money to survive and grow, but that shouldn't mean that it affects how you do things to the extent where you're putting people off because you don't want to do things at a reasonable price. What's the point in them if the attractions turn to other places to get things done? They could earn more if they lowered their prices as more of the attractions would be able to afford things. If Merlin Studios wasn't a separate company then the whole discussion regarding money would be out of the equation. As others have said, look at how Disney does things.

Thu Mar 29, 2012 1:01 am

Sometimes it makes sense for each department in a company to run its own profit & loss account but when other parts of the company avoid it due to high costs then they really do need to change how it is set up.

Here are some costs Merlin Studios charged for Spinball
Q-Line Games - £50,000
Q-Line Audio - £20,000
Q-Line Entrance Feature - £5,500
Thumper Bumpers - £35,000
Q-Line Fence Painting - £8,000

Thu Mar 29, 2012 6:44 am

Bloody Hell, £8k to paint some fence!?! That's properly shocking...