Merlin Acquired by Blackstone

Blackstone Acquires Merlin

Merlin Entertainments has been acquired by US investment giant Blackstone Capital Partners for £102.5 million, from Hermes Private Equity. 

Merlin, based in Poole, Dorset, is one of Europe's leading operators of branded visitor attractions under the Sea Life, Dungeons, Seal Sanctuary and Earth Explorer brands. 

The company operates 28 attractions in eight European countries, and welcomed more than six million visitors in the year ended February 2005. 

In contrast with many others in the sector Merlin enjoyed one of its most successful years to date in 2004, with visitors up by more than a million, revenue up 26% to £44.9 million and EBITDA up by 37% to £14.5 million. 

Chief Executive Nick Varney said: "Merlin has experienced five years of consistent profit growth underlining our expertise in developing and managing branded attractions across borders. 

"We would like to take this opportunity to thank both Hermes Private Equity for its support over the last 15 months, and to say how pleased we are to be working with Blackstone, an international leader in the private equity market, in the future." 

Joseph Baratta, a Senior Managing Director of The Blackstone Group, said Blackstone was excited about the opportunity to back Merlin in the further roll-out of its high quality brands across Europe. 

"We believe that the European attractions and theme-park sector will enter a period of consolidation in the medium term and that Merlin is an excellent base from which to pursue follow on acquisition opportunities." 

And he added: "We also believe we have partnered with one of the best management teams in the sector led by CEO Nick Varney. Merlin has a clear growth strategy for the future and we look forward to supporting Nick and his team in leading Merlin through its next stage of development."