Madrid, Wednesday, 26 November 2025.
Paramount’s 2025 licensing push with Parques Reunidos and Merlin signals a clear pivot: studios are monetising familiar IP across multiple operator platforms to drive family visitation and repeat trips. Most striking is Merlin’s commitment to open the UK’s first dedicated PAW Patrol land at Chessington in 2026 — a pre-school anchor that will include four rides, themed accommodation and bespoke retail. Parques Reunidos is simultaneously embedding Paramount zones across Europe and has joined the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Network, showing operators pair IP investment with inclusive design. For retail professionals, the near-term playbook changes: higher capital earmarked for branded build-outs, tighter licensing and merchandising agreements, bespoke SKU assortments for younger demographics, F&B concepts aligned to character storytelling, and stricter accessibility compliance that influences layout and product choice. Key commercial levers to monitor are licensing fee structures, phased rollouts affecting inventory timing, capacity-driven SKU planning, and opportunities for exclusive IP merchandise and premium guest experiences.
IP-first partnerships: what was announced and when
Paramount’s 2025 licensing push took two high-visibility forms: a strategic partnership with Parques Reunidos to embed Paramount-branded themed experiences across its European portfolio, and a separate agreement with Merlin Entertainments to create the UK’s first dedicated PAW Patrol land at Chessington World of Adventures, scheduled to open in 2026 [1][2]. Parques Reunidos announced the alliance and cited recent rollouts including an A Quiet Place maze at Movie Park Germany and a new Nickelodeon area at Mirabilandia, framing those as the opening investments under a longer-term deal with Paramount [1]. Merlin’s announcement specifies a PAW Patrol land at Chessington that will include four themed rides, character-driven guest accommodation, and bespoke retail and dining concepts, positioning the project as a pre-school anchor for family visitation in 2026 [2].
Operational and inclusivity signals from Parques Reunidos
Parques Reunidos paired its Paramount-themed content strategy with an explicit accessibility move by joining the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Network, signalling that operators are sequencing IP investments alongside inclusive operations and guest-service programmes [1]. The operator described the Mirabilandia Nickelodeon area and the Movie Park Germany Halloween maze as early examples of the new strategic relationship, emphasising agility in launching projects to evolve the company’s family value proposition [1].
Merlin’s product and demographic targeting: pre-school as a strategic segment
Merlin frames the PAW Patrol land as a deliberate bid to broaden appeal to families with pre-school children — a market segment Merlin identifies as central to its future growth plans — by delivering multiple rides, themed accommodation and a tailored retail offer that extends the brand experience beyond daytime attraction visits [2]. The company emphasised its strategy of partnering with global IP owners to ‘‘bring these premium brands to life in key locations’’ and cited recent IP collaborations such as Minecraft as precedent for IP-led expansion [2].
Commercial mechanics that will shape retail and F&B
For retail and food-and-beverage professionals, the practical implications of Paramount’s two-pronged licensing approach are concrete: higher upfront capital for branded build-outs, tighter licensing clauses governing merchandising and food-and-beverage integration, bespoke SKU assortments aimed at younger demographics, and character-led F&B concepts designed to extend per-guest spend and dwell time [GPT][1][2]. The Merlin release explicitly mentions customised retail and guest accommodation as part of the Chessington plan, which implies contractual controls over on-site product assortments and the likely creation of exclusive IP merchandise lines and themed F&B menu items tied to the PAW Patrol property [2].
Design, capacity and accessibility as commercial levers
Developing attractions for younger children changes capacity-planning assumptions: shorter, repeatable ride cycles, higher throughput per hour for small-footprint attractions, and family-centric queuing and retail layouts — all of which affect SKU velocity, inventory turnover and point-of-sale configuration [GPT][2]. Parques Reunidos’ public description of immersive experiences and family-area investments, combined with its Sunflower Network membership, indicates operators will integrate accessibility standards into both attraction and retail design to meet regulatory requirements and reduce reputational risk when hosting families with special-access needs [1][GPT].
Investor and planner considerations: licensing fees, rollout phasing and revenue mix
Key commercial levers investors and park planners should monitor include licensing fee structures (fixed minimum guarantees versus revenue-share models), phased rollout timelines that influence purchasing and inventory calendars, and the split of revenue between admissions, accommodation, retail and F&B tied to branded lands [GPT][1][2]. Merlin’s explicit plan for integrated accommodation and bespoke retail at Chessington shows a cross‑product revenue strategy rather than a single-admissions uplift, while Parques Reunidos’ staged investments (maze, Nickelodeon area) illustrate a phased approach that spreads capital and operational impacts across multiple seasons [2][1].
Market context: studios monetising IP across operator platforms
The Paramount–Merlin and Paramount–Parques Reunidos pairings are part of a broader industry pattern: studios are monetising recognised IP by licensing to multiple operators, while park groups use those licences to segment audiences and encourage repeat visitation through new targeted lands and refresh cycles [3][1][2]. Industry releases from Merlin and Parques Reunidos position these deals as strategic moves to attract family cohorts and to deliver predictable, brand-driven guest experiences that support premium pricing, longer stays and ancillary spend [2][1].
Timing and near-term execution risks
Merlin’s public timetable sets the PAW Patrol land for opening in 2026, which creates a compressed development timeline for design, permitting, construction and fit‑out of themed retail and F&B spaces [2]. Parques Reunidos describes incremental openings already delivered under the partnership, such as the Halloween maze at Movie Park Germany and the Nickelodeon area at Mirabilandia, indicating a staggered rollout model that spreads capital and operational risk but requires careful inventory and merchandising phasing to match each opening [1]. Planners should flag construction‑to‑opening lead times and supplier lead times for bespoke merchandise when structuring licensing contracts and merchandise purchase orders [1][2][GPT].
Tactical takeaways for retail and F&B teams
Operational recommendations for retail and F&B teams include: negotiating merchandising exclusives and phased replenishment schedules with licensors, designing flexible SKU assortments that prioritise repeatable best-sellers for families, aligning point-of-sale systems to support bundled experiences (tickets + retail + accommodation), and ensuring product and service accessibility in line with operators’ stated inclusivity commitments such as the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Network [1][2][GPT].
News sourcing
This article draws on operator press releases and company statements from Parques Reunidos and Merlin Entertainments describing their respective Paramount partnerships, plus market reporting that situates the moves within a wider industry trend of studios leveraging IP across multiple operator platforms [1][2][3].
Bronnen