Six Flags is struggling. Why NFL’s Travis Kelce is joining investors to make changes

by

Six Flags, the struggling theme park company, faced increased pressure this week when Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce sided with an investor group demanding improvements to the park experience for visitors.

Kelce, a longtime Six Flags enthusiast, shared that he has cherished memories of visiting the parks with loved ones. He explained that he was excited by the opportunity to create similar experiences for future generations and couldn’t resist getting involved.

Travis Kelce was raised in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, not far from the Six Flags-operated Cedar Point amusement park. Besides being a Super Bowl winner, he’s also well-known as Taylor Swift’s partner, the host of “Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?”, and co-hosts the “New Heights” podcast with his brother, Jason.

As a huge cinema fan, I was surprised to read that Travis Kelce is now part of an investment group backing Six Flags. It seems the timing is interesting, considering Six Flags has been going through a rough patch and their CEO, Richard Zimmerman, is actually leaving this year.

Executives believed a recent $8 billion merger – uniting Six Flags Magic Mountain and Cedar Fair, the company behind Knott’s Berry Farm and California’s Great America – would lead to improved financial performance.

Since the merger, the company has been run by leaders from Cedar Fair. They’ve focused on reducing a large debt, selling parks that weren’t doing well, and attracting more visitors.

Travel & Experiences

Valencia’s amusement park is popular because it offers a wide variety of thrilling roller coasters, including classic wooden ones, looping coasters, unique single-rail designs, and even rides with seats that spin you a full 360 degrees.

Honestly, we’re still waiting to see a real comeback. Just last month, our CEO, Zimmerman, admitted that sales weren’t where we hoped they’d be for the last quarter. He said bad weather and tough times for shoppers were to blame, but it’s frustrating to hear that progress is still so slow.

Six Flags experienced a net loss of $99.6 million in the last quarter, a significant drop from the $55.6 million profit it earned during the same period last year. The number of visitors to its parks also decreased by 9%, falling to 14.2 million.

Six Flags reported an increase in visitors this summer. Between June and August 31st, 17.8 million people visited their parks, a 2% rise compared to last year. However, revenue decreased by 2% to $1.1 billion during that same period. The company explained this was partially due to discounts and promotions used to attract more guests.

There’s growing concern about the future of Six Flags, specifically how many of its parks might close or be sold. People are also worried that the quality of the parks is declining due to layoffs of key leaders and the cancellation of popular events.

California

The planned combination of Six Flags and Cedar Fair means that Magic Mountain and Knott’s Berry Farm, two famous theme parks in Southern California, will be owned by the same company.

Next, there’s Kelce’s involvement: he’s part of a group of investors—including Jana Partners from New York, retail expert Glenn Murphy, and tech executive Dave Habiger—that collectively owns around 9% of Six Flags.

Six Flags has responded to shareholder feedback, stating they value the input as they work to attract more visitors, improve the park experience, and increase profits for investors.

Six Flags, the largest amusement park operator in North America, is now at an inflection point.

The company is dealing with strong competition for people’s free time and is responding by investing over $1 billion in new rides and attractions over the next two years. This includes a new roller coaster at Magic Mountain in Valencia. They’re aiming to position themselves as a more budget-friendly amusement park option, significantly cheaper than visiting Disney or Universal.

California

Great America in California, which is owned by Six Flags, likely won’t be open during the winter of 2025, based on a recent message to season pass holders.

Six Flags is working to significantly reduce expenses and has restructured its management by switching to a regional system. As part of this change, in May they let go of Jon Storbeck, the president of Knott’s Berry Farm, and Jeff Harris, president of Six Flags Magic Mountain. Barbara-Lea Granter, who managed California’s Great America, also left the company in May.

The company plans to cut its workforce by 10%, resulting in the loss of approximately 135 full-time positions at its California parks by the end of June.

This year, California’s Great America significantly reduced its live shows and canceled popular seasonal events like its summer Carnivale, Halloween’s Tricks and Treats, and the Christmas celebration, Winterfest. Guests can now enjoy Tricks and Treats and Winterfest at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo instead.

During a May meeting with investors, Six Flags leaders explained their plan to improve the performance of their struggling parks.

Six Flags sees a big opportunity for improvement at Magic Mountain. Attendance has dropped 15% since 2012, but the company believes a multi-million dollar renovation of the Hurricane Harbor water park, along with other improvements, could double attendance, according to Christian Dieckmann, their chief commercial officer.

Business

Following the recent $8 billion merger of Six Flags and Cedar Fair, the leaders of Knott’s Berry Farm and Six Flags Magic Mountain have been removed from their positions as part of efforts to reduce costs.

People have wondered about the future of Magic Mountain for years, and back in 2007 there was even public discussion about potentially selling the park to make way for new buildings.

As a big theme park fan, I was really interested to hear what Six Flags shared with investors. Their CFO, Brian Witherow, explained they’re focusing on getting more people to buy season passes and come to the parks more often. It makes sense – he pointed out that season pass holders spend around $275 a year, which is way more than the $85 a typical day visitor drops. So, it’s a smart strategy for them!

Land & Buildings Investment Management, a major investor, has previously suggested that Six Flags could make more money by selling some of its land.

The shareholder, who had previously disagreed with the merger, explained that a difficult integration process combined with unusually bad weather created a very negative outlook.

Before merging with another company, Cedar Fair sold the land under California’s Great America theme park in 2022 to a real estate firm in San Francisco. They signed a lease allowing the park to operate until mid-2028, with a possible extension to 2033. Once the lease is up, the park will close.

Business

Silicon Valley theme park Great America cuts 184 jobs.

I was really surprised to hear that Six Flags is closing Six Flags America and Hurricane Harbor in Maryland this year. They’ve announced it will have its final operating day on November 2nd, and then they’re planning to sell the land. It’s sad to see it go!

Jana announced it intends to work with Six Flags’ leaders to strengthen their marketing and daily operations, update their technology, review current leadership, and consider buying other companies.

Having someone of Kelce’s stature will help raise more awareness of the activist group’s efforts.

There are also leadership changes happening at Six Flags. Selim Bassoul, the company’s executive chairman, and Daniel Hanrahan, the lead independent director, will both leave the board of directors at the end of the year.

As part of a deal, Six Flags appointed Jonathan Brudnick, a partner at the investment firm Sachem Head Capital, to its board of directors on Friday.

California

Six Flags Magic Mountain’s famous “Superman: Escape from Krypton” roller coaster, known for being one of the fastest and tallest of its kind, has closed down permanently.

I’m really excited about our investment in Six Flags! I truly believe in the company and its future, and I think it’s currently undervalued, meaning it’s worth much more than the market realizes. There are a lot of ways we can unlock that value. I’m looking forward to working with the other board members to build on Six Flags’ amazing history as a leading amusement park company in North America.

Jana Partners has previously taken an active role in other companies, like CooperCompanies, a medical device business based in San Ramon, California. They previously urged CooperCompanies to merge its contact lens business with Bausch + Lomb, as first reported by the Wall Street Journal. This same firm is now involved with Kelce, according to the report.

In a statement, Jana managing partner Scott Ostfeld said they are excited to collaborate with Six Flags’ leadership to increase the company’s value for everyone involved.

Read More

2025-10-23 18:32