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CASE STUDY:
PortAventura
A European leader
in the leisure and
entertainment
industry
“After the successful experience with the
largest Italian theme park Gardaland, it is
of great pleasure for me to continue working
with Investindustrial on PortAventura.
After five years of cooperation with
Investindustrial, PortAventura has been
transformed from a theme park into
Europe’s third largest integrated destination
resort. A strong repositioning plan has
been implemented based on strengthening
the product offering, implementing a
more accurate commercial strategy and
optimising the cost base. The company is
today on the right path to meet its long
term value creation plan”.
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Case Studies
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ANNUAL REVIEW & SUSTAINABILITY REPORT
Sergio Feder
,
President of the Executive Committee
PortAventura
Building on the successful previous investment
in Italian theme park operator Gardaland,
Investindustrial acquired PortAventura in 2009.
PortAventura (
, established in 1995, is
the largest Southern European theme park and second largest
in Europe. The site comprises an amusement park with 40 rides,
over 100 daily shows, 43 shops and arcades, a water park, four
hotels with over 2,000 rooms and a 4,000 person convention
and conferencing centre. PortAventura is located in the north-
eastern coastal area of Spain (Costa Dorada), by the tourist
resort of Salou and is less than one hour from Barcelona.
The area is a major tourist destination which attracts visitors
from across Europe. The park attracts more than 3.7 million
local and international visits each year.
The acquisition was made possible through the close
relationship with La Caixa, the largest savings bank in Europe,
and its majority-owned investment company Criteria Caixa Corp.
Since Investindustrial’s entry, PortAventura has performed well
despite a very difficult economic environment. The company’s
positive performance is a result of the industrially-driven
approach of Investindustrial and the introduction of a proven
management team from Gardaland led by Sergio Feder.
The key drivers of the outperformance to date are the successfully
repositioned commercial strategy, improvements in the park
offerings of shops and food, the addition of a new kids area and
the tallest rollercoaster in Europe, the launch of an aquatic park
and an efficiency programme that has significantly increased
the profitability. In 2014, Investindustrial further developed the
relationship with KKR, after carefully selecting the firm as a 49.9%
partner in PortAventura to help take it to the next exciting level.
