UK: Merlin Entertainments Promotes Fiona Eastwood to Chief Operating Officer for Midway & Resort Theme Parks
With immediate effect, Fiona Eastwood (photo) assumes the position of Chief Operating Officer (COO) for UK-based operator group Merlin Entertainments’ Resort Theme Parks-division. Since 2019, Eastwood has already served as COO for Merlin’s global midway attractions including SEA LIFE aquariums, Madame Tussauds-branded waxworks cabinets and LEGO Discovery Centres, also overseeing key acquisitions such as the acquisitions of Coex Aquarium in South Korea and operations of This is Holland in Amsterdam. In the future, she will be responsible for both business units as COO in parallel and will, among other things, manage the strategic growth ambitions for the resort theme parks belonging to Merlin, such as Alton Towers, Thorpe Park, Chessington World of Adventures (all based in GB), Gardaland (IT) and Heide Park (DE). Eastwood joined Merlin Entertainments in 2015 and began her career there as Global Marketing Director for Midway Attractions. Prior to that, she held various leadership positions at BBC Worldwide (a subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Association).
“I am thrilled that Fiona has been promoted to this new wider remit. Fiona brings with her a passion for the business alongside outstanding expertise in leading brands and IPs which is second to none. I’m looking forward to working with her and the wider team to deliver on the exciting growth strategy we have across both the Midway and our Resort Theme Park portfolio. Fiona has built a reputation throughout the live attractions and theme parks industry as a world class leader, extraordinary business driver and respected developer of a diverse and talented people first culture. […] Throughout Merlin she is celebrated for her work ethic, drive and people-first focus, and her continued ascent will not be a surprise to anyone who has the privilege to work with her,” comments Scott O’Neil, who took over as CEO of Merlin Entertainments on Nov 15th this year, succeeding Nick Varney.
“I’m passionate about making Merlin the greatest place to work. I will continue to bring my curiosity and love for this business and combine that with a commitment to delivering a diverse, inclusive, and engaged culture, that empowers teams to deliver joyful guest experiences and achieve brilliant results. We have the very best set of current brands to build and develop and an amazing pipeline of IP that will transform our growth strategy across both our Midway and Resort divisions. I’m looking forward to working closely again with Ian Crabbe (Managing Director of Resort Theme Parks) and Sabrina de Carvalho (UK and European Resort Theme Parks leads) alongside their excellent teams and I can’t wait to get out to meet the teams in person. […],” says Fiona Eastwood, looking forward to her new role. (eap)
