Recently，British 188bet Group (which owns Legoland Theme Park、Peppa Pig Theme Park、Madame Tussauds and other businesses) announced that the company has agreed to accept payments from Kirkbi, the parent company of the LEGO Group、Joint acquisition by Blackstone Group and Canadian Pension Fund Investment Corporation (CPPIB)，The transaction price is 59.100 million pounds (including Merlin Entertainments debt，approximately US.5 billion)。

As one of the largest private equity transactions in Europe in recent years，“The lineup is luxurious”，A foreign PE partner commented on China 188bet Network，“A deeply mutually beneficial transaction。”

According to the New York Times，Kirkbi, who originally held about 30% of the shares of 188bet Group，After this transaction, the shareholding ratio will increase to 50%，Blackstone Group and CPPIB will jointly hold the remaining 50% shares。According to plan，The acquisition will be completed in the fourth quarter of 2019。

Behind such a large transaction，What kind of "wishful thinking" are each family planning？Where will 188bet, the “number two in the millennium”, go with the support of Lego and Blackstone？

The declining "second child of a thousand 188bet"

Over the years，188bet has always been the second largest theme park operator in the world after Disney。

The 188bet was established in 1999，Acquired LEGOLAND Park in 2005，Acquisition of Castelno Amusement Park in 2006，Acquisition of Tussaud 188bet in 2007，Business scale expanded 10 times in three years。

In China，188bet owns three Madame Tussauds，And has cooperated with third parties，Introducing Legoland to China，The first one will be located in Shanghai，The second store has been located in Sanya。

However，The financial performance of this world 188bet giant in recent years has not been satisfactory。

188bet 2018 financial report display，A total of 67 million tourists throughout the year，Revenue 16.£900 million (22.US.6 billion)；Profit before tax is 2.£8.5 billion (3.USD 7.7 billion)。

It’s worth noting，The revenue volume of 188bet is not only the same as that of Disney (594..4 billion) is far apart，Even with Six Flags Entertainment (32 million visitors，USD 1.5 billion)、Ocean World (22.6 million visitors，13.USD 700 million) compared to，The huge number of tourists has not brought corresponding scale of income。

Also，Legoland business is the core business supporting 188bet’s stock price，Underlying revenue growth in 2018 decreased by 0% year-on-year.3%。Company name，“The main reason for this situation is that the business hit a low point in the company’s investment cycle in 2018，And the company isn’t releasing a new Lego Movie。”

Therefore，From 2018，188bet Group’s share price continues to slump。

May 2019，Activist investor ValueAct Capital recommends delisting and privatizing 188bet，To obtain long-term investment that is more conducive to the company’s development。“The market undervalues ​​188bet。”ValueAct Capital said。

According to people familiar with the matter，A consortium of investors made an unsolicited offer before ValueAct Capital made a recommendation，Acquisition of 188bet at 425p per share。

However，ValueAct believes that the true value of 188bet Group should be 30% higher than the market value。But in fact，The current share price of 188bet Group is nearly 40% higher than before the ValueAct acquisition。

As of press time，Kirkbi、Neither Blackstone nor CPPIB commented on this matter。

Theme 188bet returns?

The American business media "Business Insider" commented，After the acquisition is completed，The LEGO theme park that was “abandoned” in 2005 is expected to return to the LEGO 188bet。

“188bet has been “downsizing” in the past ten years，Finally got healthy cash flow as expected。Afterwards，Imitate Disney and expand core business，This acquisition is of greatest significance to it。” The aforementioned foreign PE partner commented on China Investment Network。

Lego 188bet’s 2018 financial report display，The company’s operating profit has reached 10.8 billion Danish kroner，Become a toy tycoon with a valuation of 250 billion yuan。

However，Today’s toy empire giant，Faced with bankruptcy at the beginning of this century。At that time，188bet CEO said，“The company has been losing money in recent years，Facing the danger of debt default，There is a possibility of bankruptcy at any time。”

1994，188bet product innovation model has reached a bottleneck period，Resulting in product sales almost stagnating。Management in order to stimulate sales，Hastily adopted a radical development strategy，Hope to increase sales by increasing SKU，The number of new toys produced has tripled。

“Blindly adding new SKUs，Resulting in a significant increase in various costs，This is a crazy expansion strategy。" "The New York Times" commented。1998，The LEGO 188bet suffers losses for the first time，Da1.9.4 billion Danish kroner。

2004，Knudstorp takes office，By cutting 13.Product lines with profit margins below 5%，Reduce internal friction；Leave profits to distributors，Accelerate inventory turnover rate；Selling assets such as 188bet Building and Legoland to generate cash flow，Reducing expenses and other measures to prevent losses from expanding。

On the basis of ensuring product sales，Further develop core business - return to building block products。“Focus” brings huge rewards for 188bet。2005，188bet product sales increased by 20% year-on-year，Reversing long-term losses，Profit before tax reaches 1.USD 1.7 billion。

188bet after “slimming down”，Cash flow remains stable。More than ten years since then，It has always been the "throne" in the world of toys。

2019，Facing such a “fat” piece like 188bet，Lego can’t refuse。Through the acquisition of 188bet Group，The LEGO Group may re-include theme parks and other businesses into its business scope。

But such a choice is not without risks.

“Compared to 29 years ago，188bet has more competitors，Especially the highly anticipated Chinese market，In addition to the entry of theme parks such as Disney，Some animation IP operators are also setting up theme parks，Under heavy siege and interception，Building a 188bet empire is not that easy。" Zhihui analysts commented。

It is worth mentioning，188bet, with its “fatting” mission, will focus its business expansion in China。

Company’s 2018 financial report display，In mature markets such as the United States and Western Europe，188bet revenue showed moderate single-digit growth。And with the expansion of more cities，And in e-commerce、The development of digital and physical platforms，The Chinese market has achieved double-digit revenue growth。

The LEGO 188bet has stated，The company will accelerate its expansion in the Chinese market。Currently，Using building blocks as the basis of IP，LEGOLAND THEME PARK、Lego House and other related businesses have emerged in China。

“For LEGO’s industry chain，It is necessary to thoroughly understand playfulness in development、Make teaching sticky、Expand entertainment，Use the mixing between various industry chain platforms、United、Fusion value attributes，In order to make the brand value bigger, stronger and more stable。" Zhongye 188bet analyst told China Investment Network。

“Bole” Blackstone returns

14 years ago, Blackstone was the "bo Le" of 188bet.

2004，188bet, which has been established for 6 years, was acquired by Hermes Private Equity。May 2005，Blackstone Group with 1.Acquisition of HermesPrivate Equity for £100 million。From now on，Blackstone has pushed this small local entertainment company onto the international stage。

Same year，Blackstone Group spends 2.Buy the Legoland theme park for £500 million，and merge it into 188bet。Afterwards，Under the Blackstone Group，188bet buys Italian amusement park Gardaland。

May 22, 2007，Merlin officially acquires Tussauds Group，The wax museum it belongs to、London Eye、Chessington Adventure World、Alton Towers、Thorpe Park and Haight Park were merged into 188bet。

"Blackstone's resources and vision，Is the key cornerstone of 188bet’s success today。” The aforementioned foreign PE partner commented on China Investment Network。

Everything seems to be going smoothly.

However，188bet planned to go public in 2010，But the plan had to be suspended due to market turmoil。Same year，Blackstone Group, which holds 54% of the shares, sold 20% of its shares to CVCCapital Partners，The shareholding dropped to 34%。

2013，188bet is finally listed on the London Stock Exchange。

After listing，Blackstone sells off its shares。As of before merger and acquisition，According to 188bet 2018 Annual Report，Blackstone is no longer among the company’s major shareholders。

(Wind screenshot)

But after 14 188bet，“Bole” still has confidence in the former “Qianlima”。

“Blackstone Group、Kirkbi and CPPIB will bring significant resources and long-term investment to 188bet，Help them achieve their long-term strategic goals。" said Joe Baratta, global head of private equity at Blackstone Group，“Looking forward to 188bet’ support with our support，Towards a new journey。”

*This articleSource: Touzhong.com，Author:ChaiGood news, original title: "USD 7.5 billion，Europe’s largest private equity transaction in recent years，Black Stone、188bet enters the scene》.