Wave Loch Case Study - Retail

CASE STUDIES - WATER PARK: Wet n' Wild Hawaii

Wet ‘n Wild Hawaii experienced over $900,000 in increased annual revenue the year they installed their FlowRider®.  They attribute nearly $700,000 of that revenue to the installation of the attraction. The effective integration of the FlowRider into their retail, food and beverage operations created a better than expected spike in revenues making their decision to buy the ride a financially sound choice.

OVERVIEW OF THE BUSINESS

Wet ‘n Wild Hawaii is the only waterpark in the state of Hawaii. Originally known as Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park, it opened its doors in May 1999. It is located on the island of Oahu, at Kapolei, about 12 miles from the famous waters of Waikiki, while the legendary surfing waves of the North Shore are a little farther away. That puts Wet ‘n Wild within range of the 900,000 residents of Oahu and 4 million annual visitors.

While it might seem strange to build a waterpark on an island ringed with beautiful beaches and surrounded by tropical waters, Hawaiian Waters opened with a bang, according to Natasha Emmons, who wrote for the www.allbusiness.com website:

“The new $14 million Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park, the first water-themed amusement park on the island of Oahu in Hawaii, saw 20% higher-than-expected attendance in its first month in operation and sold almost twice as many season passes as park management had originally planned.”

In March of 2008, Hawaiian Waters became Wet ‘n Wild Hawaii when it was sold for $27 million to Village Road Show, a Melbourne, Australia company that owns Sea World, Wet 'n Wild Water World, Warner Brothers Movie World, and Australian Outback Spectacular.

THE CHALLENGE

A waterpark in Hawaii has advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are a year-round operating schedule, a water-loving population and an endless flow of millions of thrill-seeking tourists. Some of the challenges that faced the waterpark were:

  • Competition. Hawaiian Waters is located near popular surf' spots and beaches on the west side of Oahu. Not only are these alternative destinations open to the public -- they're free.
  • Revenue. From Waikiki to the Polynesian Cultural Center to the North Shore to Pearl Harbor, Oahu has many places for tourists and locals to spend their money. How does Wet n Wild maximize the per capita expenditure within their park?
  • Events. There are many activities in the evenings in Hawaii, how do they create an atmosphere for their night time shows?

THE SOLUTION

Wet ‘n Wild Hawaii was looking for a market differentiator to meet their needs and what they found was the FlowRider. While Wet ‘n Wild knew they would generate significant ride revenue, the FlowRider’s effect on their F&B and retail sales greatly exceeded their expectations.

According to the General Manager at the time, Jerry Pupillo, the park had invested an additional $2 million in improvements with another $1 million for the FlowRider Double. He described why the FlowRider worked for Hawaiian Waters: “It's a challenge. Once you get the hang of it, it's an absolute blast. You have to have some strength, so for small kids it will be a challenge. It's a FlowRider Double and can hold two people. The landing is really soft. It's almost like a supertight trampoline. There's some give.”

“Positioning is everything,” according to Wave Loch’s Andrew Thatcher: “We reviewed a layout which showed the attraction in ‘a hole’, minimizing the viewing potential. We explained to them how to maximize their revenue earning potential, and recommended that they put it in a more prominent position near their Food and Beverage location. They did just that, and now attribute over one hundred and fifty thousand dollars in F&B sales to the FlowRider.” A significant boost.

RESULT

There’s really no other way to say it: The addition of the FlowRider to Wet ‘n Wild has had a profound effect on attendance revenue, as well as retail and Food and Beverage.

Wet ‘n Wild determined that installing the FlowRider supported increasing their gate fee by $1.  Since their annual attendance at the time was around 350,000 visitors the $1 fee resulted in an increase of approximately $350,000 in 2005. Despite the increased gate fee, they actually saw an increase in attendance of 3%.   Wet ‘n Wild also charged a one-ride fee of $3, or $10 for an all-day standup session and $5 for an all day bodyboard session for another $100,000 in FlowRider revenue in 2005.

It was the positive effect of the FlowRider on the retail and Food and Beverage that exceeded their expectations.  

RETAIL: The FlowRider created an emotional connection to the surfing lifestyle that was not typically present in a waterpark. According to Takuya Ohki, who was promoted to General Manager in August of 2008: “With FlowRider, we got Quicksilver/Roxy to be on board at our retail shop. In the past they did not want to be represented at local water park, but with the FlowRider they wanted to be part of us. Retail went up by $136,000, or 34%, and now we sell Billabong and Volcom as well. Our retail store is now a surf apparel store rather than a souvenir shop.”  

FOOD AND BEVERAGE: “Comparing 2004 and 2005 there was a 28% increase in Food and Beverage sales ($318,000) while attendance went up only 3%,” Takuya Ohki said “I feel FlowRider attributed about half of it.”  Simply put, the FlowRider is exciting to watch!  This spectator element helps keep people in the facility longer, which in turn pushes them into their next meal period.