Merlin sees London trading still being impacted by terror attacks

THE OWNER of Madame Tussauds, Merlin Entertainments, has said that trading in London is still being impacted by the wave of terror attacks last year.

The group, which is also behind the London Dungeon and the London Eye, has seen visits fall at attractions in the capital in the year to date.

“Visitation in our London division remains down year on year reflecting the strong trading in the comparative period and continued impact from the 2017 terror attacks,” the firm said in a trading update.

Merlin saw a 17 per cent plunge in visitor numbers last summer after the attacks took place during its critical trading period. It also blamed poor weather and an early Easter for affecting trading at its theme parks, which include Alton Towers and Thorpe Park. However, Merlin stressed that overall trading within the division was in line with expectations. In March, Merlin reported a 5 per cent fall in annual operating profit at its Midway unit – which includes the London attractions – to £152m, with like-for-like revenue dipping 1.2 per cent.

Merlin Entertainments said at the time that it will redirect £100m of investment away from its attractions between 2018 and 2021, putting the cash into developing new hotels instead.

In March, Nick Varney, CEO of Merlin Entertainments, said: “Against a difficult trading backdrop, we continued to make good strategic progress.

“We opened 383 new accommodation rooms, six new Midway attractions, including the launch of a new brand, ‘Little BIG City’, in Berlin, as well as a new LEGOLAND park in Japan.”