Kinzel: "People have to eat"

Wow... does this guy have some balls or what? From the 2Q conference call transcript:

The weakness is in merchandise and games and admissions per capita.Food prices we’ve been able to pass along very easily the increasesthere and when people come to the park they have to eat. They’re herefor an average length of stay of anywhere from six to nine hoursdepending on the park, so they’re always going to have hopefully onemeal and a couple of soft drinks during the day and some ice cream.

So I was wrong about food prices driving down per cap, but is heinsane? Does he realize that consumers read this stuff too? God forbidthe mainstream media should ever grab that quote.

This says a lot tome about what he thinks of his "guests." He might as well stand at thegates and say, "I think you're stupid, and I'll take your money now,thanks."

Consumers will eventually have enough. Then what?

Wow... that is just wrong. Makes me not ever want to eat in the park again... just to stick it to "the man"...

Oscar Meyer may become my new best friend at the park...

Apparently he hasn't watched the parking lots very closely. The number of families who (like us) do the cooler/tailgate thing seems pretty high at all the parks this summer. The only thing we ate in park was frozen custard. I think the park would do best by making the meals more of a value, then more people would be likely to eat "in park" rather than pack their own.

I know those sentiments by Dick don't come as a surprise to you Jeff. This isn't anything new from his thinking...though expressing it publicly does smack of an arrogant mistake.

Look at employee housing. Can't you just see him in a meeting saying, "hey...the employees HAVE to sleep. Why should we invest money in these old dormitories? They are going to sleep whether they are nice or not."

Or, in a Park Ops meeting, "hey...we don't have to maintain the lights in the Magnum tunnel (scenery in Disaster...take your pick). The rides are there and they will line up for them whether those little things work or not."

Or in an HR meeting: "hey...if the American kids won't work here with the long hours, poor pay and less than warm surroundings then we'll just go find some foreign kids who don't know better."

This really doesn't come as a surprise at all. As a former employee it is par for the course. As a shareholder...limited as that might be...this is just another red flag that says he should be getting off the ride and heading down the exit ramp.

I have a feeling that he'll either wish he hadn't said this or try to spin it down the road. A very poor choice of words.

A business is a business. A lot of people in the business of course are going to think of things like this. Everyone loves some sort of money here and there. From what I hear Dick Kinzel is a very nice man and seems to be a good business man. I'm still spending money in the park for lunch and dinner. I would hate to have to go all the way to the parking lot to eat.

Is anyone even surprised he was thinking this??

Oh, and you want to know why there is a weakness in games and merchandise?

$5 FOR A FREAKING GUESSING GAME? Are you out of your mind? I saw guessers standing around all day long when I was there and rarely...RARELY...did I see people paying to play.

The prizes aren't worth squat. (If they are worth more than squat then they need to find cheaper prizes.) Stick a $1 prize up there...charge $2-$3, put a kid with some personality on the microphone and you will make a fortune. I can't even begin to calculate how much money I made for Geauga Lake back in the day. Plus, it gets the midway all juiced up when crowds are standing around watching people playing.

The only people who looked like they were having less fun than the weight guessers were the timeshare people...but don't get me started on that.

I was a guesser. I wanted to play the game just for the nostalgia's sake. But, there was no way on EARTH I was paying $5 for that.

I honestly don't know what the heck Kinzel is doing with this company but everything I have seen and heard makes me just cringe. Numbers dropping, talented people with years and years of experience leaving.

Ok...off my soapbox now.

I go to the parking lot for a couple of reasons. One is obviously to eat. The other is to get away from the crowd and noise for about an hour. I bring a small table and lounge chairs to sit in. I have done this for quite a number of years.

I used to take the cooler to the picnic area, but you cannot find a clean table. And I hate all the seaguls and birds flying around in there. So, I do not care how much DK raises the food prices, I will continue to pack a cooler. We do on occasion buy a drink and/or snack, but that is it.

I do however agree that this would not matter as much if the VALUE and QUALITY of the food purchase were a great deal better. Make people feel like they are getting the BEST for their purchase, and they will probably not mind the paying the extra cost. If you don't, then these are the types of complaints that you will get.

Well, there you go. I can't disagree with anything in this thread.

I was just at the park the other day and I went out to my car to go grab a water out of my cooler.. I passed at least five families doing a cook out.

This guys needs to step down or get made too.

I have a little portable grill that I think I might be bringing this halloweekends. I don't know.

Pre-microwave some potatoes so all you do is throw them on the grill and reheat.

Pre-bake some garlic bread so all you have to do is reheat.

Marinate chicken all the way to the point. Bring salt, pepper, hot sauce, butter, and your golden.

ChrisC. said:

This guys needs to step down or get made too.

We can just tell him he's getting made like they did to Tommy.

Of course, that didn't work out too well for Tommy, but it would solve part of the leadership problem.

I'm glad I wasn't the only one who saw at least part of the Kinzel quote about food. I saw it in the Drive-By Media, so it is out there. Problem is that it isn't on Page One, and newspaper circulation sucks.

I'm also glad I wasn't the only one offended by that quote. I am done with Cedar Point food service, and don't plan on buying from any food stands for at least the rest of the season!

While I don't believe in the wacky conspiracy theories about Geauga Lake, I am starting to agree with those nuts that Kinzel needs to go! He is making far too many mistakes, and his ego is a problem.

-Sam

^Yeah I also try to limit my food stand purchases. This is just going to make me not purchase anymore stuff. Going to get my free tap water and thats it. Well untill they start charging for that.

It really isn't that big of a deal to pruchase ONE overpriced meal. While I do agree the prices are ridiculous, but some are over reacting.

Avalanche Sam said:
I'm glad I wasn't the only one who saw at least part of the Kinzel quote about food. I saw it in the Drive-By Media, so it is out there. Problem is that it isn't on Page One, and newspaper circulation sucks.

I'm also glad I wasn't the only one offended by that quote. I am done with Cedar Point food service, and don't plan on buying from any food stands for at least the rest of the season!

While I don't believe in the wacky conspiracy theories about Geauga Lake, I am starting to agree with those nuts that Kinzel needs to go! He is making far too many mistakes, and his ego is a problem.

-Sam

I am also begining to see the problem here. Everyone on this Website can figure out that either they should lower prises or increase quality. In Kinzel's defense since he has taken over the rides at CP have been great since Magnum until now(i think he took over around then). I guess i never looked at him in terms of a buisness man, just the guy who had amazing roller coasters built.

I am not all that familier with other CF food prises. Are the other CF parks at least comparable to other companies or is it a chainwide thing?

I only ate once at Cedar Point in the park this year, when Subway first opened, but then I notice that they are skimpy on the toppings and we ended up paying 35 dollars for 2 people to eat! That's insane!

We now take a cooler, leave it in the car packed with some ice and eat in the parking lot, sit down in a nice A/C car and relax for about an hour before coming back to the park, it breaks up the day and I only buy maybe 7 dollars worth of something to drink in the park when I'm thirsty.

For some reason I can't stay away from those frozen daquri drinks at Hannah's before I leave the park for the day :)

I'malilrichboy77 said:
It really isn't that big of a deal to pruchase ONE overpriced meal. While I do agree the prices are ridiculous, but some are over reacting.

Park visitors are already getting hammered by the cost of gas just to get to the park, and then parking, admission, games, among other things. Now they have to pay above stadium prices for crap food? Like he said, considering that people are at the park for the entire day, they HAVE to eat at some point, so he's essentially admitting to price gouging. How is this not a big deal? I'm fine with paying a higher price for food than normal, but CP prices are simply outrageous.

ChrisC. said:
I was just at the park the other day and I went out to my car to go grab a water out of my cooler.. I passed at least five families doing a cook out.

Before we know it they'll make it illegal to cook out in the parking lot... fire hazards and such.

TopThrillChris...don't you think it might be important that the guy leading a billion dollar plus company be a business man...and not just the guy who builds amazing coasters?

Actually, I think Kinzel is a good business man...and handled the much smaller two, four, five park company pretty well. But, I think his creation has gotten too big for the creator and he needs to pass the torch.

He is a micromanager, to be sure. And, that might have worked pretty well when the company was small. But, that style of leadership does not work in a large company and I think we are seeing tell-tale signs of that.