North West business briefs: Merlin Entertainment; Fog Lane Skatepark; Manolo; Party Hard Travel; JMW Solicitors
Blackpool Council has awarded a contract to manage the Sandcastle Waterpark to one of the world’s biggest entertainment companies. Merlin Entertainments, a global leader in location-based entertainment, has been successful in a tender application to become managing agent for the council-owned waterpark at South Beach.
The attraction is the UK’s largest indoor waterpark, with more than 18 slides and attractions in a tropical 84 degree climate. The waterpark will join Merlin’s seven other attractions in Blackpool including The Blackpool Tower, Madame Tussauds Blackpool and SEA LIFE Blackpool.
The acquisition of the Sandcastle Waterpark Blackpool supports Merlin’s strategy to establish clusters of attractions in key strategic locations, and further expands its offering within Blackpool, following the opening of a brand-new £1m attraction for young children, Peter Rabbit Explore & Play, which opened earlier this year.
Cllr Lynn Williams, leader of Blackpool Council, said: “The Sandcastle Waterpark is one of the council’s big success stories. Over the years, it has received significant investment to enable it to retain and grow its immense popularity with visitors and residents alike. On the national stage it is viewed as an exemplar attraction in terms of its accessibility for people with a disability.
“We have an established relationship with Merlin Entertainments in terms of operating some of our key tourism assets and we are confident that this appointment will take the Sandcastle Waterpark on to the next level.”
Kate Shane, regional director for Merlin Entertainments, said: “We are thrilled to be adding the UK’s largest indoor waterpark to our Blackpool portfolio. With eight top attractions already in Blackpool, we’re excited to put on our armbands and add a ninth to our guest offering. We firmly support Blackpool’s ambition to be the UK’s number one family seaside resort and this partnership is another step forward in delivering this vision.”
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Fog Lane site
An under-used and unsafe skatepark on Fog Lane, Didsbury, Manchester could be set to be developed into a new permanent, accessible and high quality skating space following a round of upcoming public funding.
Taking on the project are two Manchester brothers, Gareth Breeze and Christian D’Andrea, who want to help to improve the park and make it safe for all those wishing to skate in the local area. Manchester’s free-to-access, public-funded spaces for action sports are severely lacking, and skating is banned in large areas of the city centre. These two factors have resulted in skaters coming together to create DIY skateparks within the city, to provide a safe space to enjoy their sport for free.
Fog Lane Skatepark will embrace the collaborative spirit of these DIY skateparks and build a safe high quality skate park, for skaters of all ages, by crowdsourcing design ideas for the space from the skate community. In order to achieve this, the brothers will begin by engaging with the local community, via social media and meet-ups, to shape the design of the park, keeping the community at the heart of the project.
From there the final design will be created, with the help of skatepark builders, and an official fundraising goal will be set. The crowdfunding, grants and other donations will be used to build the skatepark and achieve the goal of redesigning and rebuilding a brand new safer skatepark. Once the fundraising for Fog Lane Skatepark is secured, Breeze and D’Andrea will be looking to collaborate with other Manchester artists to fill the space with street art and showcase the wealth of artistic talent within the city.
Gareth Breeze and Christian D’Andrea, of EBGB Studios, a family run Manchester-based creative studio, have volunteered their services for Fog Lane Park. Gareth said: “From the first time I nervously rolled into Bones – Stockport in 1999, to now trying to relearn old tricks, skating has always provided some form of escape and adventure. We’re determined to give back to the sport that has given us so much. We know that this campaign to redevelop Fog Lane Skatepark is likely to be a long one, and we’re both in it for the long haul.”
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Manolo, Liverpool’s new high end speakeasy bar with expertly created cocktails, has opened in the heart of the Ropewalks area.
Serving Caribbean-inspired cocktails, reimagined classics, wines, champagne and high end spirits, Manolo is largely table service with a small standing area for guests. With jazz, salsa and Hispanic music in the background early on in the evening, there will be more upbeat music as the nights progress.
Guests can expect classic cocktails including Negroni, Manhattan, Old Fashioned, Mai Tai, Mojito, Daquiri and Gin Martinis, which will all be served in pristine glassware. Manolo has also created its own version of the much loved Espresso Martini, Cosmo, French Martini, Long Island as well as a delicious Bloody Mary and Gin & Tonic.
Service has taken inspiration from the likes of 5-star hotel bars, to New York speakeasies and world class cocktail bars around the globe. Bartenders with vast experience in luxurious cocktails will ensure guests have a memorable experience.
Nick Thomas, director of Manolo, said: “Manolo is bringing an entirely different offering to Liverpool. Inspired by the Caribbean, the venue offers a variety of exceptional cocktails that hark from the region, as well as reimagined classics with Manolo’s own take on the originals. It’s a venue with an intimate atmosphere, where the service focuses on our guests and ensuring everyone has a great time in a relaxed setting.”
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Agenda
Manchester-based youth travel brand Party Hard Travel has surpassed its 2022 targets – taking 10,000 new bookings in less than three months – and adding urban club night Agenda to its event package. The business is hailing the 2022 summer season a success, with an increase on pre-pandemic booking levels.
The travel brand operates in eight destinations in Europe: Ayia Napa, Ibiza, Kavos, Magaluf, Malia, Malta, Sunny Beach and Zante. Since the final release of the Party Hard Ultimate Packages in mid-May it managed to secure 10,000 new bookings in less than three months.
Jodie Pilgrim, COO, said: “Summer 2022 has been intense and brilliant. As for most travel operators, it has been a leap of faith but the demand for clubbing holidays hasn’t wavered. When we opened bookings in May we took over 900 bookings in our first full day, and reached our target bookings by mid-summer. After the trials of the past few years, to get back to doing what we do best, giving our customers the best week of their lives, feels amazing, as does smashing our 2022 target.”
More than 3,000 people applied for in-resort roles for the summer 2022 season, which Party Hard Travel whittled down to 12. Pilgrim oversees recruitment for the clubbing operator and said the 2022 resort team was incredible. Also, in April this year, it was announced that Party Hard Travel had been acquired by London-based tech firm The Booked it Group, owner of brands including Licklist, and provider of technology solutions to the leisure, activity and hospitality markets.
Co-founder of the travel firm, Nathan Cable, who started the firm alongside university friend Barry Moore in 2014, maintains an active role in the development of the Party Hard Travel brand. Cable has also taken a role on the Booked it Group’s board of directors. Brad Nobbs, CEO and co-founder of The Booked it Group, said: “This is a great result for Party Hard Travel, and we’re proud of the team and what they have achieved. Planning for 2023 is already under way, and we look forward to establishing even stronger links with the travel trade.”
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From left: Sam Ballin, Stephen Taylor-Heath, Graham Small
Law firm JMW Solicitors has advised Pitch In For Ukraine as it raises funds for President Zelensky’s United24 initiative, which distributes critical funds for urgent life-saving programmes across Ukraine.
The world-first initiative is using digital collectibles to support donations – every donor will receive a Pixel of the Pitch (PoP), an individual 22cm pitch square engraved with their name and edition number, a unique piece of football history while providing urgent aid to Ukraine. JMW’s sports law specialists have provided legal advice on licensing agreements with Ukranian football clubs, including Shakhtar Donetsk. The firm also benefits from a digital assets team, which was able to contribute specialist expertise and knowledge.
The team, which included Stephen Taylor Heath, Sam Ballin and client partner, Graham Small, evaluated the content that must be provided by each club, including crests and stadium imagery, and advised on licensing relating to design, development, manufacture, distribution, sales and marketing of the assets. The first Ukranian pitch available for collection is Shakhtar’s home turf, The Donbass Arena.
Stephen Taylor-Heath, head of sports law at JMW Solicitors, said: “It’s fantastic to be able to support Pitch In For Ukraine in its campaign to raise critical funds for humanitarian aid as the conflict continues. It is not only a great cause but is an interesting and very innovative way to raise money using unique digital collectibles – we’ve no doubt that the campaign will be hugely successful in supporting United24 and we’re pleased to have been able to play a small part in getting it off the ground.”
United24, President Zelensky’s national funding initiative, provides urgent humanitarian support across Ukraine. The Kyiv School of Economics Foundation is the fiscal sponsor for Pitch In For Ukraine and will be handling donations. The campaign has also recruited Tymofiy Mylovanov as president, economic advisor to president Zelensky and a regular media commentator on the ongoing conflict.
