3 Questions to Mark Stead, CFO of Euro Disney S.A.S. on 2013 Third Quarter Revenues
Can you explain the decrease in revenues for the Third Quarter of FY13?
Mark Stead: In the third quarter, our activities were impacted by the continued challenging economic context in Europe, most notably Spain, Italy and France, and to a lesser extent, by the adverse weather conditions, that weighed on our volumes. Attendance decreased 7%, of which half is due to Spanish and Italian markets, but we managed to maintain Guest spending, in line with our long term strategy. In the hotels, the decrease in occupancy was almost entirely offset by the increase in spending, notably driven by our recent hotel rehabilitations and the new World of Disney boutique in the Disney Village.
We are continuously adapting to the evolution of the economic environment and consumer behavior by markets.
Over the nine-month period we recorded a 1% increase in revenues. This performance was primarily achieved through increased Guest spending at the Resort and higher real estate revenues.
What is your strategy to mitigate the impact of the economic crisis, as the economic environment does not seem to be improving in Europe?
Mark Stead: In 2009, when the crisis began, we took the decision to keep a long term perspective. We decided to focus on two elements that were key to our long term performance. First, we continued to invest in the Guest experience, and in our Cast Members, who are key part of the magic of Disney. We believe that investing in our business will contribute, over the long term, to fuel growth and drive our business to sustained profitability. Second, we adopted a prudent approach regarding our operating expenses.
We still believe this is the right strategy for
Disneyland Paris and we continue to invest in the rehabilitations of all our hotels and the expansion of the Walt Disney Studios Park, while prudently managing our costs.
What is your outlook for the remainer of the year?
Mark Stead: The environment remains very challenging, as you may have read recently in the press. Disneyland Paris continues to attract millions of European families every year but we remain cautious about the Summer season. In the same time we strive to optimize our cost base to best reflect our current activity levels.
We continue to focus on long term investment in the Guest experience, the development of the Walt Disney Studios Park and the completion of all of our hotels rehabilitation. The fundamentals of our business remain strong and we are confident in our ability to build long term growth for Disneyland Paris.
I very many much doubt we'll ever see it again now as its been out of service to long and CM's are not even sure if its even in proper storage 
