Six Flags Engages Veteran Sponsorship Consultant to Land Retail Energy Deal

Six Flags has retained Larry Weil, energy sponsorship and branding veteran, to find a potential retail energy sponsor and partner, which may include supplying Six Flags properties with commodity as well.

Weil, President of Sponsorship Universe, helped build Branded Retail Energy which developed branded retail energy supply programs with the University of Texas (Longhorns Energy) and several other universities, and Weil previously negotiated a number of sponsorships for retail suppliers.

Weil told EnergyChoiceMatters.com that until now Six Flags has offered some one-off sponsorship opportunities for specific events at their parks.

However, Weil said that Six Flags is now bundling a comprehensive set of assets including messaging, outbound marketing, branded features, signage, and media packages to create a season-long offering.

Weil reported that it will also be possible, but not required, for the supplier to provide Six Flags' properties with electricity requirements, subject to meeting competitive pricing requirements and existing contracts.

Weil is assisting Six Flags in pursuing agreements for Six Flags properties (including water parks) in Texas, New Jersey and Illinois. Currently, the electricity RFPs are under review and have not yet been awarded for 2014.

Weil noted several unique benefits of the Six Flags sponsorship opportunity, including more dates, longer average event days (8 hours vs. 3-4 hours), more season pass holders, and less repeat attendance compared to other venue and event sponsorships available to retail suppliers. Ride queues provide video monitors for sponsor messages.

In particular, Weil said that the peak season for the parks is the summer, which coincides with "switching season" in the retail market. Six Flags sponsorships are frequently, "a fraction of the cost of a deal with a major sports franchise," Weil said.

The parks included in the sponsorship package have over 1.2 million season pass holders, and a large database of pass holders. The sponsorship package may include retail energy messaging and offers integrated into Six Flags' outbound messages and existing programs.

Unlike with sports venues, with designated start and stop times, the Six Flags theme parks provide a chance to engage customers at their leisure, and guests are free to stop and engage in what interests them. Onsite enrollment, a booth, or an education/information center are all options that would be open to the sponsoring retail supplier.

Interested retail suppliers should contact Weil directly