A giant second only to Disney
MERLIN Entertainments is the world’s second largest attractions operator behind Disney.
The company is valued at £4.7billion, employs 27,000 people and runs 115 sites in 23 countries across four continents. It made £50million in the first six months of this year, from sales of £573million.
Based in Poole, Dorset, it owns some of the best-known names in entertainment from Sea Life, Madame Tussauds, Legoland, the London Eye, Blackpool Tower and Alton Towers.
The firm is run by chief executive Nick Varney, 53, who took home a pay package of £733,000 last year. The married father of four, who lives in Dorset, was originally an executive at a leisure firm called Vardon.
Merlin was created in 1999 when private equity firm Apax backed a management buyout of the attractions arm of Vardon.
Mr Varney and his team picked the name Merlin after the wizard, deciding it symbolised something that was magical but also ‘slightly naughty’.
Merlin floated on the stock market in 2013. Yesterday, its shares finished up 1.4 per cent – suggesting investors were expecting a larger fine.