Steve Glum, the Chief Marketing Officer, Ace Cafe North America, joins us in the studio to talk about his role at the motorcycle-focused café in downtown Orlando. He shares stories from his time at Ripley’s including a run-in with the famed fertility statues, his time at Hard Rock, and what it was like being part of the opening staff at WDW’s Pleasure Island.
We also discuss TASTE! Central Florida. The annual event that helps raise funds for Second Harvest Food Bank and Coalition for the Homeless. Taking place August 19, 2017, at the World Center Marriott on 536 TASTE! is the premier foodie event of the year and this year is no exception. We also get new details on BOTH Oklahoma Joe’s BBQ joints coming to Central Florida and hear new details on future of the Ace Café brand.
With new Quarterly Earnings Reports from Disney, SeaWorld, and Merlin all within the last few weeks. Ken looks at the numbers and the news surrounding each company. He touches on the Merlin Busch Gardens rumors, talks about the below estimate revenue coming out of Disney, and all the no good, very bad news coming out of SeaWorld.
Kevin Yee talks about The Great Movie and Universe of Energy and Ken shares his thoughts on hotel security. Plus a gruesome double murder at a resort shocks a small Florida community that hasn’t seen a single murder in nearly two decades.
Revenue below estimates: $14.24 billion vs. the expected $14.42 billion, according to Thomson Reuters
Earnings Per Share above estimates: $1.58 vs. the expected $1.55
Operating Income
Media and networks: $1.84 billion vs. $1.99 billion expected, 22% decline YoY due to ESPN issues Parks and resorts: $1.17 billion vs. $1.09 billion expected (18 percent year-over-year growth) Studio: $639 million vs. $636.6 million expected Consumer and interactive: $362 million vs. $394.6 million expected
“Operating income growth for the quarter reflected an increase at our international operations, while results at our domestic operations were comparable to the prior-year quarter. Segment results benefitted from the timing of the Easter holiday, which fell in the third quarter of the current year compared to the second quarter of the prior year.”
Disney point to “to labor and other cost inflation, increased operations support costs, new guest offerings and the dry-dock of the Disney Fantasy in the current quarter” for their higher output. This was offset by increased guest spending related to “increases in average ticket prices for sailings on our cruise ships and admission to our theme parks, as well a higher daily average hotel room rates and food and beverage spending”.
$373.8 million in revenue vs. expected $394 million
Net loss of $237.0 million for the first half of 2017 includes a non-cash goodwill impairment charge of $269.3 million. The company expects to achieve targeted $40 million in net cost savings by the end of 2018, is identifying additional areas for cost reduction.
Net loss of $175.9 million for the second quarter as admission revenue fell 6%
revenue up 19.4 percent to $893 million (£685 million).
Pre-tax profit unchanged at $65 million (£50 million).
London attractions saw domestic visitation “immediately and significantly reduced” following attacks but “cautious on international visitation over the key summer trading period given the lag between international bookings and visitation.”
Merlin chief financial officer Anne-Francoise Nesmes regarding Busch Gardens buy – “It takes two parties to do a deal so we do not know what SeaWorld’s intentions are but we do believe that those assets are interesting and we could certainly do a lot with them particularly around accommodation, so to us it’s about having the right discussion with a willing partner and making sure we have the right financial return.”
Six Points include grow current attractions, make them destination resorts, synergize, new midway and Legoland attractions, and acquire.
In this restaurant news round-up, Ed and Ken discuss all the latest rumors and news about area tourism foodie news. We discuss everything from Meg Crofton joining Cracker Barrel to new Arby’s and much more. Plus reviews from Satu’li Canteen, Planet Hollywood, and many more.
I often cover issues related to pay and the struggles of Central Floridians in the local tourism industry here on Orlando Tourism Report and if any if you have even listened even once then you know that I’m passionate about ensuring we have a strong tourism workforce. But that can only happen if they’re healthy, happy, and willing to stay here.
In Central Florida, 1 in 6 people struggle with food insecurity. 44.5% of Florida households cannot afford basic needs such as housing, childcare, food, health care, and transportation – the vast majority of these families are working. As we work to ensure better pay in the hospitality industry, and in return better pay across the board in Central Florida. there is something else we can do to ensure that ALL Central Floridians are able to fall asleep every night with full stomachs.
The newly re-branded TASTE! Central Florida is this Saturday, August 19, 2017 from 6:45 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. I’m convinced this is the BEST foodie event of the year in Central Florida. If you’re a fan of the various food and wine events at the local theme parks you’ll love TASTE! It has well over 100 local restaurants who showcase the amazing creativity of their chefs with bite-sized dishes using the finest of ingredients.
Yes, tickets at $150 are a bit pricey but that’s honestly less than I spent at Epcot’s Food & Wine fest last time I went there and the proceeds from this go to a great cause. Both the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida and Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida are supported by the event. Approximately 498,000 individuals turn to Second Harvest’s food pantries and meal service programs to feed themselves and their family each year.
This year’s event will include OTR favorites like Yak & Yeti, Universal Orlando, STK, Satu-Li Canteen, SeaWorld, Raglan Road, Paddlefish, and tons of other local restaurants.
The food (and wine!) isn’t the only reason to go to the event. A silent auction has plenty of amazing Central Florida focused items with donations from many of the area’s hospitality leaders. A wine ring toss, the Edible Orlando Giving Tree, a wine cellar giveaway, and many more events take place throughout the evening helping make this one of the most enjoyable evenings of the year. And unlike the parks you don’t have to stand outside when going from booth to booth.
There’s a lot more we can and should be doing to ensure that the 113 million more meals needed per year to fill the hunger gap in our community is a thing of the past but TASTE! is a great first step in that direction. This year, instead of a hot and muggy day of food and wine in a theme park (or on top of it), why don’t you visit the air-conditioned foodie wonderland of TASTE! Central Florida.
TASTE! Central Florida takes place this Saturday, August 18 from 6:45-10:00PM at the Orlando World Center Marriott (the world’s largest Marriott!).
Ed and Ken go through a run down of the latest hotel news from around Central Florida. From Sanford, to UCF, to Apopka, to 192 there’s plenty of new hotels going up. One of the biggest projects is the new $750 million Margaritaville Resort on 192. Jim Bagley, the Project Manager of Margaritaville Resort Orlando, calls in and talks about all the huge projects that are a part of the new Margaritaville Resort, including a massive new water park.
