ANDREW WEXLER,

President & CEO, Herschend Enterprises

Andrew Wexler is president and chief executive officer of Herschend Enterprises, and was first elected to the board in 2015. He joined Herschend in September of 2007 as a corporate vice president. In 2008, he moved into the role of chief financial officer and was promoted to CEO in 2015.

Andrew earned a BBA and Master of Accountancy degree from the University of Georgia, and obtained his MBA from the Harvard Business School where he graduated as a George F. Baker Scholar (High Distinction). His work experience includes time at Arthur Andersen and McKinsey & Company. Andrew was a co-founder and the chief financial officer of Derivion, a pioneer in internet-based billing, and the chief operating officer of Martin Capital, a real estate development and finance firm. He serves on the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s Travel and Tourism Advisory Council and has been named one of Atlanta’s “Most Admired CEOs” by the Atlanta Business Chronicle.

Andrew and his wife Kourtney live in Atlanta and have two grown children, Hamilton & Ashlyn.

KTIA: We’ll start with the most basic of questions regarding Herschend Enterprises becoming the majority partner of Kentucky Kingdom and Hurricane Bay: Why? What was it that attracted you and Herschend to the park and adding it to the renowned collection of Herschend theme parks and attractions? 

Several factors were at play in our decision to pursue Kentucky Kingdom. First, our purpose as an organization is to bring families closer together. Rarely do we find assets that are of the size, scope and quality of Kentucky Kingdom that allow us to fulfill our purpose, so when the opportunity became available, we pursued it. Second, we have owned the Newport Aquarium since 2008. We have experienced and understand the great opportunity to serve the Kentucky tourism market. We are very bullish on Kentucky tourism. Finally, the strong labor talent and business-friendly environment in the region means we have the human capital required to operate the property at excellence. 

KTIA: We’ll go from the ‘why’ to the ‘what,’ as in what plans do you have for Kentucky Kingdom, both short and longer term?

Major regional theme parks develop over time. They are very capital intensive and the time it takes to concept, design and install a major coaster can be as long as three years. The transformation process is gradual, but starting with such a strong foundation means we can get there faster than if we were starting from scratch. Ed (Hart) and the team have done an incredible job building an amazing park. I remember my first visit (and) thinking it did not look like it had much scale and scope when I arrived. As we walked around, the park kept going and going. I could not believe all that the park had to offer — from world class thrill rides to a water park to incredible facilities for groups. And the park was in fantastic shape. Everything was maintained extremely well. I say this to say that the park already has an incredible foundation as a fun family experience. 

Our first season is really about listening and learning. Our attractions are a product of what the communities we serve want and need. We execute it with an eye toward multi-generational family experiences. As we learn about the what families in the surrounding communities are looking for in a fun themed experience, we will develop the property to be a place they want to return and bring a friend.

KTIA: The press release announcing the Kentucky Kingdom acquisition noted the following from your Kentucky Kingdom strategic plan: “Building relationships with state and local tourism partners to increase awareness and entice travel to Kentucky Kingdom, Louisville and the Commonwealth.” Please tell us more about that part of your plan. 

We want to add value to every community in which we serve. You hear a new buzz phrase in the media today called “stakeholder capitalism,” which means your success is not just about financial returns but also about supporting your employees, guests, vendors and the communities around you. This is not new to Herschend. We have been doing business this way since our founding 70 years ago. Partnering with Louisville and the Commonwealth to let families from all over the region know that Louisville is a great place for them to visit and create fun memories together as a family will not only support the property but the entire community. 

KTIA: With Herschend’s Newport Aquarium, Dollywood and now Kentucky Kingdom, are there tourism synergies that are on the horizon among those and other Herschend attractions? 

We are evaluating how we can provide the best value to our guests. As we learn the market and what our guests want, we will look at how our properties in the region can work together to provide enhanced value and amazing experiences for the whole family. We work very hard to have product that suits multi-generational families. Every member of the family, whether they are 2 or 92, will enjoy our park. 

KTIA: As the CEO of a major company, what are some of your core management values and leadership principles, and how did they inform and guide you during the pandemic? 

Our culture is based upon love defined through the behaviors of patience, kindness, humility, respectfulness, trusting, unselfishness, forgiving, truthful and dedication. It is critical that we create an environment that our hosts, which is what we call our employees, feel positive and enthusiastic to be at work. We strongly believe that the guest experience can never exceed the enthusiasm of the host, so it is critical we create a great work environment. 

During the pandemic, we were forced into what we called “hibernation.” We wanted everyone to know the current situation was temporary, which is important. As we made decisions, we passed them through a lens of caring for our employees. In situations when discussing tough decisions regarding a host or hosts, we often talk about the grocery aisle. We ask the question, “If you run into a host walking down a grocery aisle, will you be able to look them in the eye and talk to them or will you hide your eyes and turn the other way hoping they did not see you?” If you cannot look a host in the eyes and be confident you did your best to treat them fairly, then you are not leading with love.

KTIA: Tell us about some of the key decisions you and Herschend made to weather the storm of the pandemic. 

We made several tough decisions throughout the pandemic. Every company’s number one priority was survival. Our industry was among the hardest hit given the nature of our business and that it included large gatherings of people. We went into hibernation with furloughs. While we knew that the enhanced unemployment benefits from the U.S. government would supplement most of our hosts, one thing that would not be addressed was healthcare. So, we paid 100 percent of healthcare costs for all employees on the plan. We were also one of the first in our industry to reopen, but did so with protocols and procedures in place to keep our hosts and our guests safe. I am so proud of our team and the shared sacrifice from everyone in the company to help us navigate the crisis. 

KTIA: Are there lasting tourism changes that will result from the pandemic, or at some point do you expect that everything will return to pre- pandemic normal? 

I do see some short-term changes in behaviors and habits, such as driving versus flying. Those will return to normal over the next year or two. Other trends, such as the growth in outdoor activity and soft adventure travel was already occurring, but the pandemic has accelerated the growth. I believe the shift to outdoor experiences will continue for the foreseeable future. 

KTIA: One change — and hopefully a temporary one — is the labor shortage that many in our industry are experiencing. How is that affecting your attractions and what advice can you offer to others in the industry to manage and overcome it? 

Labor has been a significant challenge for us and others in our industry. We have seen applications at some properties drop as much as 60 percent. This forces you to focus on what you believe are the most important elements of the guest experience. Unfortunately, this likely means you are going to disappoint some guests. We have leveraged many best practices to increase the applications such as increased pay and signing bonuses. We also are working harder to retain the people we do have with retention bonuses and special spot bonuses. The human resource team has gotten creative on programs as well. For example, at one property, we are partnering with a school system in a rural town to provide transportation for their students to a property to work. These students would not have any opportunity to work in their small community. We pay for the school to provide the bus and the driver so the students have an opportunity to work. Creative programs like these are being used by businesses to try and close the gaps. 

KTIA: With Kentucky Kingdom, Herschend is in a partner relationship with state government, including the Tourism, Arts & Heritage Cabinet. Many businesses in our industry find themselves dealing with government in various and different ways. What advice would you offer to tourism business leaders in developing positive and collaborative relationships with government agencies and public officials? 

It is important to make sure you have alignment of objectives. This will allow you common ground to solve problems. Partnerships are hard. Inevitably you will find that you and your partner do not agree. It is in these moments that you work to remember the original purpose in which you can both align. For us, we exist to bring families closer together. We do it in a manner that should build the community around us that is positive. Finding alignment of purpose is the most important. Second is having humility. To be successful in a partnership, you must understand that it cannot always be about you and your success. You must unselfishly ensure your partners are successful, too. Fortunately, for us, we value having a positive impact on our communities, which is usually the purpose of the government agencies we work with, so we can find common ground on many issues. 

KTIA: Herschend is committed to family entertainment. What insights can you offer about family travel, such as how best to attract the family market and any changes you are observing with family travel? 

The Millennial Mom is the decision maker for most family travel and entertainment plans. So, first thing is to make sure you connect with her and she understands your product offering. The Millennial Mom has a hierarchy of needs which start with the children’s wellbeing. The experience must be safe. She will then want to feel the experience will be fun for the children. So, while the other family members may not make the decision, they do have “veto” rights. Thus, it is important to connect with the rest of the family at some level so they do not try to block the experience. We focus on broad family experiences. We want Mom to pick us and everyone from the grandparents to the young children to get excited about the trip. Having broad appeal is not easy, but we feel it is a major differentiator of ours and allows us to accomplish our purpose as a company… bring families closer together.

KTIA: What is the best personal trip you’ve ever taken and why? 

I have been very blessed to travel with my family to many fun locations. To answer this question, I huddled with them to see what they said. We have very similar lists, but we agreed our trip to Hawaii was our favorite. Not only was the natural landscape gorgeous, but we had incredible activities that we could all do together, including hiking, whale watching and, of course, eating.