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Interview with Candy Holland
- Thread starter Jordan
- Start date
Dave
TS Founding Member
Yeah cus Candy is the one who makes that sort of decision.....
..... Speak to marketing or the board of directors, Merlin lets them direct the creatives instead of the creatives.
TheMan
TS Member
- Favourite Ride
- NemiLerVion
This is why I posed it as a question.
Plus Studios is absolutely tiny - when you consider Candy is in charge of RTP (Thorpe, Chessington, Warwick, Alton, Heide AND Garda) it comes at no surprise that they reduce their workload by mirroring successful UK campaigns in parks abroad whilst working on projects in the UK.
Rob
TS Team
- Favourite Ride
- Steel Vengeance
Even though Studios is small I get the impression that they do come up with plenty of concepts for rides that never happen. And these concepts and themes often seem better than the ones we do get. I look forward to the day that a Merlin park gets a thrill ride with a theme that isn't dark in any way. Could be waiting a while though.
Ian
TS Team
- Favourite Ride
- Dizz, Bobby’s Yarn Land
I do sometimes feel sorry for Candy and co. at Studios. There's no denying that they have created some amazing concepts for attractions over the years (Even if too many of them are dark and grungy), but I do often get the impression that their ideas are always stifled by the pencil pushers at Merlin, and the creations never achieve their full potential.
It seems that only when there's some significant financial or repetitional gain at stake that they let the majority of the concepts come to life. Look at SAW. Ok, so it's not the most popular ride in the world owing to the hardware itself, but from a theming perspective it's probably one of the strongest attractions we've had from Studios to date. I always get the impression however, that were it not attached to a major franchise and had Lionsgate's money and reputation resting on it that ride would be a shadow of what we actually have.
I'm sure that creativity is not their issue. It's what they're allowed to do with it within the constraints placed upon them by the business. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if this was the reason the company recycles concepts so often. From the accountant's view they probably think 'Why should be fork out £5m for a new concept when we can alter an old one for £1m?'. It's completely the wrong attitude to take, but it seems to be the way Merlin operate.
Like I said though I do have quite a lot of respect for Candy. After all, she was one of the people who panned Sub-Terra V.1 and ordered it's revision to at least try and make it work with the limits they had. She does have great ideas and seems to have her head screwed on right, but she suffers like so many departments do from senior management who lack knowledge and understanding of their requirements to function at their best.
It seems that only when there's some significant financial or repetitional gain at stake that they let the majority of the concepts come to life. Look at SAW. Ok, so it's not the most popular ride in the world owing to the hardware itself, but from a theming perspective it's probably one of the strongest attractions we've had from Studios to date. I always get the impression however, that were it not attached to a major franchise and had Lionsgate's money and reputation resting on it that ride would be a shadow of what we actually have.
I'm sure that creativity is not their issue. It's what they're allowed to do with it within the constraints placed upon them by the business. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if this was the reason the company recycles concepts so often. From the accountant's view they probably think 'Why should be fork out £5m for a new concept when we can alter an old one for £1m?'. It's completely the wrong attitude to take, but it seems to be the way Merlin operate.
Like I said though I do have quite a lot of respect for Candy. After all, she was one of the people who panned Sub-Terra V.1 and ordered it's revision to at least try and make it work with the limits they had. She does have great ideas and seems to have her head screwed on right, but she suffers like so many departments do from senior management who lack knowledge and understanding of their requirements to function at their best.
IanB
TS Member
Its not a problem unique to Merlin though.
Both Disney and Universal do the same, although I do remember reading somewhere that Disney wanted to try and keep big ticket attractions unique to different parks around the world, although it has not really been applied with most stuff unique at each park getting shared with the other parks.
I guess unlike Disney and Universal though, Merlin parks do not have that big an international appeal, so using the same themes in their different parks goes more unnoticed by guests visiting the park, as they have not been to Alton Towers.
I guess the downside of spending so much on the theme can be seen on the Smiler, where cheaper hardware was purchased to allow a bigger budget for theming, and the whole ride suffers as the hardware ruins the experience.
I really think Merlin need to stop looking at new attractions as a 1 year investment, and look at them as a 3 year investment. The first year is where the ride is built and made operation with basic theming. During closes season after the ride has opened, the theming is added, tweaks made as required, and the 2nd year its open it still attracts customers as it has been given a new experience, and after the 2nd year in closed season, little touches are made here and there to finish the ride off. You spread the cost of building the ride, and you make sure the initial investment stays refresh for 3 years to keep attracting guests over a longer period of time.
Ian
Both Disney and Universal do the same, although I do remember reading somewhere that Disney wanted to try and keep big ticket attractions unique to different parks around the world, although it has not really been applied with most stuff unique at each park getting shared with the other parks.
I guess unlike Disney and Universal though, Merlin parks do not have that big an international appeal, so using the same themes in their different parks goes more unnoticed by guests visiting the park, as they have not been to Alton Towers.
I guess the downside of spending so much on the theme can be seen on the Smiler, where cheaper hardware was purchased to allow a bigger budget for theming, and the whole ride suffers as the hardware ruins the experience.
I really think Merlin need to stop looking at new attractions as a 1 year investment, and look at them as a 3 year investment. The first year is where the ride is built and made operation with basic theming. During closes season after the ride has opened, the theming is added, tweaks made as required, and the 2nd year its open it still attracts customers as it has been given a new experience, and after the 2nd year in closed season, little touches are made here and there to finish the ride off. You spread the cost of building the ride, and you make sure the initial investment stays refresh for 3 years to keep attracting guests over a longer period of time.
Ian
TheMan
TS Member
- Favourite Ride
- NemiLerVion
So then Candy is constrained by the bean counters? Well then Varney should be vilified for it!
Just give me half hour in a room with that man. Go on Merlin, do it. Let me ask him direct to his face why a man who sat in the same room as Nemesis was conceived in can lose all sight of his organisations constraints on creativity, and stifle the very people who could come up with something equally as spectacular and then properly back them to do it!
I still hold Merlin up as an OK value product with their passes, let's be fair, but let's not pretend the quality has not suffered and that it's getting really silly the moment they start to recycle absolute classics that should be left WELL ALONE.
And he knows it. I hope he cringed when he saw that logo! That was not some generic theme or something like Disney and Universal where they are already MADE from things that exist, franchises, IPs etc (remembering Disney ITSELF is one) - that's the idea, it works well for that - this was a piece of art, something unique and remains so, to pillage it in this fashion is an absolute disgrace.
I apologise if my question was taken as an accusation, it was pointed yes, but Merlin have disgusted me for this - first Fanta-gate, now this. What did Oblivion ever do to them anyway??!
Just give me half hour in a room with that man. Go on Merlin, do it. Let me ask him direct to his face why a man who sat in the same room as Nemesis was conceived in can lose all sight of his organisations constraints on creativity, and stifle the very people who could come up with something equally as spectacular and then properly back them to do it!
I still hold Merlin up as an OK value product with their passes, let's be fair, but let's not pretend the quality has not suffered and that it's getting really silly the moment they start to recycle absolute classics that should be left WELL ALONE.
And he knows it. I hope he cringed when he saw that logo! That was not some generic theme or something like Disney and Universal where they are already MADE from things that exist, franchises, IPs etc (remembering Disney ITSELF is one) - that's the idea, it works well for that - this was a piece of art, something unique and remains so, to pillage it in this fashion is an absolute disgrace.
I apologise if my question was taken as an accusation, it was pointed yes, but Merlin have disgusted me for this - first Fanta-gate, now this. What did Oblivion ever do to them anyway??!
Ian
TS Team
- Favourite Ride
- Dizz, Bobby’s Yarn Land
I highly doubt that the whole blame can be placed at one person's door. Whilst Nick Varney is one of the most prominent figures within the organisation I wouldn't expect that for one minute the business is operated in a sense of 'what I say goes'. At the top of Merlin is a board of directors, all of whom will have a say and stake in the direction of the company. This is not uncommon by any means.
Varney seems to receive much of the flack for these sorts of decisions, but I don't see any conclusive evidence that every decision made is done so by him, or in a way that he approves. Of course, acting as the face for the organisation he no doubt does have to save face on occasion and often announce or promote changes and developments which he is not 100% committed to. He's hardly going to stand there and say "Oh yes, we're removing perk X, Y, and Z from the Annual Pass. I think it's utter crap, but this is what the company wants." (Though this is something I think Morwenna deserves credit for. She wasn't afraid to put her hands up and admit that she screwed up and knew it.).
I'm sure that there are many situations where Varney is highly opinionated. Let us not forget that it was him who ordered the removal of the Fanta branding from Oblivion (Supposedly heard to say "Get this *explicit* off my ride"). As pointed out by TheMan, Varney was involved in some of Towers' most successful projects to date. He clearly knows what is good and what is bad. Unfortunately, as a prominent director with a board, investors, and shareholders to answer to, there are undoubtedly times where he will be unable to voice his honest opinions, and as a result be bought into the firing line, be it fairly or not.
In short I don't think that the issues with Merlin can be blamed on one person, nor should a single person have to shoulder that responsibility. I'm in no way defending either party in this. I would argue that there have been plenty of cases which have shown how out of touch individuals are with the businesses practices (FantaGate or Sub-Terra for example. Why were these issues not known at a higher level before they were allowed to develop?). However, if Merlin is to move forward and get past these issues sacking one high-profile person will not fix it. The company instead should be looking at its internal procedures, and figuring out where changes can be made to improve communication of ideas and policies.
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Anyway, I feel that we've rather strayed from the point of this topic, which is Candy Holland's interview. Back to the matter in hand
DiogoJ42
TS Member
- Favourite Ride
- The Metropolitan Line
Give me fifteen minutes in a room with him and a few select household items, and he will never ruin another project again...
James
TS Founding Member
Sadly Varney probably does not get involved with anything at all. People like him are so high up they can just sit in an office all day filling in "paperwork" (aka doing nothing) and earn 10x as much as a hard working manager. Not for me to say he does nothing of course, but I doubt he has that much involvement on what goes on within Merlin, he probably isn't aware of anything in individual parks. It was a miracle he got involved with the Fanta sponsorship with Oblivion a few years back... unless that massive petition and a formal letter sent to him from enthusiasts never happened he would have never known anything more about the Fanta sponsorship apart from it was bringing in money.
Varney probably has opinions, but can't voice them and probably doesn't care that much any more, as long as he does what needs to be done to make the company look stable then he probably couldn't care less what happens deep in the parks. To be fair to him if I were in his job role I probably wouldn't care either. You kinda throw out your opinions when you're at the height of your career and have a generous income.
It seems to be no secret people like Candy are retrained a hell of a lot. I remember Wardley mentioning last year a circus theme for a woodie for Towers was created by Candy and looked amazing. It does seem like she truly has a lot of amazing ideas, but Merlin directors and constant budgetary restraints stop her from having full creative flow, which is depressing for a company that claims to be "second to Disney". You can see with new creations like The Smiler that the concepts themselves are good, solid ideas. But the budget restraints stop these concepts from becoming fully realised.
I think we should be glad they concentrate on original themes for the UK, and pass over our old themes to other worldwide parks. It's not ideal, but then it's better than the tables being turned. Merlin will see old themes being used as a good cost saving measure, most of the material is already on file and there to hand, and 90% of guests in these other parks will not be aware a ride in the UK has the exact same theme. It doesn't affect anyone. Just annoys enthusiasts like us lot.
Varney probably has opinions, but can't voice them and probably doesn't care that much any more, as long as he does what needs to be done to make the company look stable then he probably couldn't care less what happens deep in the parks. To be fair to him if I were in his job role I probably wouldn't care either. You kinda throw out your opinions when you're at the height of your career and have a generous income.
It seems to be no secret people like Candy are retrained a hell of a lot. I remember Wardley mentioning last year a circus theme for a woodie for Towers was created by Candy and looked amazing. It does seem like she truly has a lot of amazing ideas, but Merlin directors and constant budgetary restraints stop her from having full creative flow, which is depressing for a company that claims to be "second to Disney". You can see with new creations like The Smiler that the concepts themselves are good, solid ideas. But the budget restraints stop these concepts from becoming fully realised.
I think we should be glad they concentrate on original themes for the UK, and pass over our old themes to other worldwide parks. It's not ideal, but then it's better than the tables being turned. Merlin will see old themes being used as a good cost saving measure, most of the material is already on file and there to hand, and 90% of guests in these other parks will not be aware a ride in the UK has the exact same theme. It doesn't affect anyone. Just annoys enthusiasts like us lot.
Rob
TS Team
- Favourite Ride
- Steel Vengeance
Varney needs Merlin as a whole to be successful. As long as that is happening then as far as he in concerned he's happy. Expansion of Merlin and their brands will be his biggest interest I'd imagine. Many other things will be delegated down and down to 'appropriate' levels.
TheMan
TS Member
- Favourite Ride
- NemiLerVion
You guys do realise not all firms run this way right?
I'm not being funny but this is not par for the course, there are other ways of working and not everyone is like Varney etc IF he is indeed as @James mentions.
I am all for profit making, it's an entertainment company, it's leisure, it's fun - make money! I far rather there were more companies making money by delivering joyous times to people so I am not anti big money making companies at all. They stimulate economies, bring jobs etc - this is good, I like this.
HOWEVER, just because this is the case, does not excuse the top man placing himself firmly up his own bottom whilst obvious things like MAJOR investments in their new parks are recycling classic attractions. Instead of doing this, they should make things like Oblivion a stand out attraction of the BRAND.
It's frankly idiotic, pointless and without justification, imagination or true marketing flair. There is no excuse and I'd like to see Varney remove his head from his bottom and prevent stuff like this happening to one of their most iconic and, by the way, STILL unique attractions! It's not like there are loads of dive machines built around a dark theme with a lead character than plunges riders 180 foot into a deep hole!!!
Seriously, as enthusiasts this should be universally condemned.
Stop bastardizing Oblivion!
I'm not being funny but this is not par for the course, there are other ways of working and not everyone is like Varney etc IF he is indeed as @James mentions.
I am all for profit making, it's an entertainment company, it's leisure, it's fun - make money! I far rather there were more companies making money by delivering joyous times to people so I am not anti big money making companies at all. They stimulate economies, bring jobs etc - this is good, I like this.
HOWEVER, just because this is the case, does not excuse the top man placing himself firmly up his own bottom whilst obvious things like MAJOR investments in their new parks are recycling classic attractions. Instead of doing this, they should make things like Oblivion a stand out attraction of the BRAND.
It's frankly idiotic, pointless and without justification, imagination or true marketing flair. There is no excuse and I'd like to see Varney remove his head from his bottom and prevent stuff like this happening to one of their most iconic and, by the way, STILL unique attractions! It's not like there are loads of dive machines built around a dark theme with a lead character than plunges riders 180 foot into a deep hole!!!
Seriously, as enthusiasts this should be universally condemned.
Stop bastardizing Oblivion!
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Ian
TS Team
- Favourite Ride
- Dizz, Bobby’s Yarn Land
You seem to have completely missed our point here.
How exactly do you know that Varney is sitting there and letting it go by without knowing? For all we know he could well be putting up a protest and kicking up a stink about it, but he's hardly going to tell any of us that is he? He's paid to run the company how the board wants it to be, and keep the shareholders happy. Not to publicly pan the rest of the organisation when he disagrees with the board.
You may say 'well why doesn't he quit?', but what exactly is that going to achieve? All the will happen is the board will find someone else who's willing to direct the company the way they want it.
I find it unlikely that he is oblivious to new major developments taking place around the business. Smaller things like marketing and sponsorship perhaps, but odds are he knows exactly what is going on at Gardaland right now for example. Wether or not he likes it is irrelevant. If the company accountants have made a projection that the new ride is going to bring £Xmillion into the businesses bank accounts the board will be happy. He's hardly going to tell the creatives 'Stop what you're doing and do this. It'll cost more, but at least it'll be unique.'. The shareholders and board will not see it like that. They instead will see lost revenue, and will put it down to the director's intervention.
At the end of the day, Varney may just be covering his arse to keep his job (And on those kind of salaries wouldn't you too?!). But he is easily replaceable, and his going against the flow and being removed as a result is not going to move the company forward.
As I said in my previous post, removing one person isn't going to fix the business.