Biggest leisure park owner in Romania eyes expansion, new projects

Greek investor Alexandros Poulakis has invested some EUR 26 million in two leisure parks in Romania, Divertiland and Playland, which entertain almost 200,000 visitors each year. He talked to Romania-Insider.com about his operations and future plans, which include the expansion of his current facilities, as well as new projects. Alexandros Poulakis saw Romania’s great potential in 2004 when he first visited the country. “I like the people, the history and culture are amazing, and the human potential is also a very important factor when establishing a presence in a country for the long term,” he told Romania-Insider.com. Later he decided to invest here, in a sector that is still little developed: leisure. “At a local level, the amusement park niche has a great growth potential, this is why we thought of providing entertainment options all throughout the year (both in the summer and winter season) via Divertiland and Playland.” He opened Divertiland, one of the largest amusement parks in Romania, in 2013, following a EUR 25 million investment. The sum covers all preparatory work on the location, rebuilding the infrastructure, setting the buildings, construction of new annexes, investment in equipment, and employee training. Divertiland now has 22 waterslides, a wave pool, and a sand beach, along with a heated pool for children, a new food corner, and more leisure activities such as yoga and swimming classes. To make it more accessible for visitors coming from Bucharest as well as from the neighborhoods, Divertiland’s developers also set up train, bus, and microbus stations, and a parking lot with 1,000 places. “The substantial investment aims to position the brand at the forefront of the entertainment industry. Every year we invest in the expansion and maintenance of the park,” Alexandros Poulakis, who is also CEO of Divertiland & Playland. In just three years, the waterpark has become one of the most popular summer fun destinations in Bucharest. Poulakis estimates more than 130,000 visitors in the 2015 season, 10% more than last year. Divertiland’s owner says that the economic crisis has caused a shift in consumer behavior in the past years: people gave up holidays and trips abroad and other more expensive programs. Meanwhile, they embraced quality time spent in the vicinity of their homes, namely in cinemas and amusement parks. Encouraged by the Divertiland project’s results, the Greek entrepreneur decided to invest in another one, which would cover the winter leisure niche. “During the summer we focus on our aqua park project, located in Militari, while for the off-season (September – May), the focus moves to our indoor project, called Playland,” Alexandros Poulakis said. He has invested close to EUR 1 million in this second project, which is located in a 5,000 sqm warehouse in Pipera, in northern Bucharest. Divertiland Playland, which is the biggest indoor amusement park in Romania, attracted some 60,000 visitors during its first season. The park is open between September and May. “Our investments so far have been financed through a mix of bank loans and own funds,” Poulakis said, adding that the time needed to recover the investment in such sectors varies from 10-15 years since the completion of all developments. The Greek entrepreneur said he would continue his investments in Romania, and would also seek new opportunities in the local market. “Although a second project sized as Divertiland does not exist at this moment, we are working on expanding the existing facilities, while looking at new projects in Romania, both for Bucharest and the rest of the country. More details in this respect will follow at the right time,” Poulakis said. He has also been looking to expand to new business sectors, such as the F&B, agriculture, and retail.