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Dolly Parton Intity Purchases Lumberjack Feud in Pigeon Forge


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A Dolly Parton company has purchased the Lumberjack Feud Dinner Theater and Show in Pigeon Forge Tennessee. The Parton vehicle also operates numerous Dixie Stampeed Dinner Shows and Pirates Voyage Dinner Attraction in various locations.

 

The Pigeon Forge market is tough for independent single theater operators due to the high cost of promotion and marketing.

 

The dominate player/operator of Pigeon Forge theaters, Fee Hedrick Entertainment, will take this news hard. The ground has shifted. With Parton moving to consolidate and co-market with Dollywood and Dixie Stampede, Fee Hedrick will find it more difficult to market and book folks into the various brands they own (Comedy Barn, Smoky Mountain Opry, Hatfield and McCoy Dinner Show, etc.).

 

Fee Hedrick has focused on capturing the evening hours entertainment of Pigeon Forge visitors. They promoted combo tickets and multi-show sales to capture/dominate the evenings of visitors. Now Parton will be situated to effectively market head to Hedrick.

 

Cedar Fair should be looking at second-gate evening opportunities such as dinner theaters and other attractions.

 

http://wate.com/2015/06/12/dolly-parton-buys-pigeon-forge-lumberjack-feud-dinner-theater/

 

 

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Dolly Parton entities also, I have been told by reliable sources, purchased the Regency Inn property located on the Parkway in front of the Lumberjack Feud parking lot. The investors who owned the Lumberjack Feud also are/were involved in The Island development located behind and across the river from the Lumberjack Feud. Chop, chop.

 

The Regency Inn website is gone. For a glimpse at that property please see:

 

http://www.booking.com/hotel/us/regency-inn-pigeon-forge.html

 

Feud parking lot use was of interest to The Island development. This sale suggests the LJF/Island investors may be beginning to sour on The Island project, or investment, since it means the loss of potential future parking lot use. Loosing the chance to acquire the Regency Inn location likely played into what looks more and more like a squeeze play.

 

Growth and expansion potential of LJF was limited once the Regency Inn property was off the table. Lack of adequate frontage visibility hampered the Feud's marketing efforts as well. The future options were splintering before their eyes.

 

Possible redevelopment of the Regency Inn site could further restrict or limit visibility of The Island development. Like felling timber. 

 

The Lumberjack Feud sale appears to have materialized quickly. It was a total shock and surprise to most employees, including long term employees and some members of the management team. Some employees were unaware of the sale as late as this evening. Investor/owners had been in Pigeon Forge for only the last two weeks, presumably negotiating the exit deal.  

 

Dixie Stampede had been quietly floating the idea of opening a second show, Pirates Voyage, in Pigeon Forge. This would have been a competitive threat to LJF given the marketing juggernaut of a Dollywood/Dixie/Pirates Voyage combo ticket package.

 

It is unclear if LJF will continue to operate as the Feud following the 2015 season. It is possible the remodel may be conversion to Pirates Voyage.

 

Dolly Parton investment vehicle running Dixie Stampede could also partner with Herschend Family Entertainment  (parent company to Dollywood) to bring the Harlem Globetrotters franchise, which they acquired approximately in October of 2013, to a dinner show arena in the LJF location.

 

News could get worse for Fee Hedrick Entertainment (operator of Pigeon Forge Theaters including Comedy Barn and Hatfield and McCoy Dinner Show) if Parton plans to move forward with plans for an additional dinner show theater resulting in three properties under the Dollywood/Dixie umbrella. They would then be able to "own" the evening time block of visitors for the duration of the average stay in Pigeon Forge.

 

Add to the mix the soon to open DreamMore Resort at Dollywood and the desire to sell multi-event tickets for a bigger picture of the competitive threat. 

 

The possible expansion of dinner theater options could also have an adverse effect on restaurant sales. 

 

That would be ripping a page right out of the Fee Hedrick playbook.

 

Ouch.

 

No doubt things will get more interesting in the coming days.

 

Timber!

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