CHINA: Wang Jianlin Chairman Dalian Wanda Group Promises To Invest $14.7 Billion In Tourism

Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group Co Ltd said on Friday it will increase its investment in the southern province of Hunan by 100 billion yuan ($14.69 billion) to build a mega cultural and tourism project and 15 shopping malls.

Wanda, owned by China's richest man, Wang Jianlin, said most of the investment will go to Changsha, Hunan's capital city. It will add five more "Wanda Plaza" shopping malls in the city, and spend 50 billion yuan to build a "Wanda City" - a development that usually includes theme parks, shopping malls, hotels and residential projects.

"The entry of Wanda Plazas will significantly raise the business standard in Hunan cities, stimulate consumption, increase stable tax income and create a lot of jobs in the service industry," Wanda said in a statement. They will "enhance the transformation and upgrade of Hunan's economic structure."

Wanda is building similar projects around the country, betting that China's rising incomes will drive more domestic tourism. Wang said that Wanda would look to build at least 20 such complexes in China.

The group last saw the opening of a tourism park in the eastern city of Hefei in September.

Wang has been open about his rivalry with Walt Disney Co which opened a $5.5 billion resort in Shanghai in June.

Wanda Cultural Tourism Planning & Research Institute and Xishuangbanna Water Park were recently awarded a Leading Edge Award from the World Waterpark Association (WWA).

WWA, headquartered in United States, is the only authoritative organization in the international waterpark industry.

On October 19, Wanda Hotels & Resorts held its 2016 exhibition in Wanda Sofitel Beijing. 100 hotels owned by Wanda comprehensively showed the elegant demeanor of the four owned luxury hotel brands – Wanda Reign, Wand Vista, Wanda Realm and Wanda Jin to the industry.

On November 11, Wanda Group signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Changsha Municipal Government of Hunan Province. Under the agreement, Wanda Group will invest another RMB100 billion in Hunan with the construction of Wanda Cities and Wanda Plazas across the province.

The Group will invest RMB60 billion in Changsha with RMB50 billion allocated to the construction of a Wanda City. In addition, Wanda will also look into organizing international sporting events in Hunan. Together with the group’s earlier investments, Wanda is set to invest a total of over RMB120 billion in Hunan. The agreement signing ceremony was attended by Xu Dazhe, acting governor of Hunan Province, and Wang Jianlin, Chairman of Wanda Group.

Changsha Wanda City will be the second Wanda City to be built in central China following Nanchang Wanda City. It will be designed and constructed in accordance with the highest international standards and, once completed, it will drastically strengthen the tourism sector in Changsha, making it a world-class vacation destination and adding a new super IP to Changsha, which is called China’s Entertainment Capital.

Wanda Group plans to invest RMB50 billion to build 15 Wanda Plazas in cities across the province including Changsha, Yueyang, Hengyang, Changde, Zhuzhou, Chenzhou and Yongzhou; 5 of which in Changsha. This also marks the group’s first investments in Yueyang, Zhuzhou, Chenzhou and Yongzhou. With the new Wanda Plazas, the Group will have complete coverage of Hunan. The Wanda Plazas will significantly improve Hunan’s commercialac sector and promote consumers’ spending in the area. This, in turn, will ensure stable tax sources, create jobs in the service sector and promote the economic transformation of Hunan.

CHINA: £2billion Wanda City Has The Country's Largest Roller-coaster And Aquarium

Wang Jianlin

While Shanghai Disneyland may be set to launch next month, China's richest man this weekend unveiled a rival theme park - Wanda City which cost $3billion (£2.05billion).

Wanda Group's executives launched the homegrown attraction in the southeastern city of Nanchang and hailed the centre as a representative of Chinese entertainment culture in the face of foreign influences.

Wanda City's sprawling site includes an outdoor amusement park, an indoor theme park, an shopping centre with cinemas, restaurants, hotels and the world's largest ocean park.

The 80 hectare outdoor theme park has China's 'fastest, highest and longest roller coaster and the highest drop tower', according to a statement on the company's website.

There's also stage shows and parades as well an interactive cinema complex where visitors can fight 3D monsters.

For the 10million guests that the park is expected to receive, Wanda Group has unveiled 50 restaurants and nine hotels - though only five of these are currently open.

The Nanchang culture tourism city 'is one of many to come, with year-round accessibility and the incorporation of Chinese local culture' according to the statement.

A second attraction will open in Hefei, east China, in September this year.

It will be followed by another five projects to be unveiled in the next three years.

By 2020, the group is expected to have 15 Wanda City projects within China as well as another five overseas.

As a leading player in Chinese firms' globalisation push, the property group has invested heavily in the film and cinema business and has spoken openly about its nationalistic mission to fend off Disney in the Chinese market and become an entertainment brand recognised around the world.

In remarks at Saturday's opening, Wang Jianlin, Wanda chairman and China's richest man, did not mention Disney by name but said Chinese people 'fawned' over Western imports.

Wanda's massive 2sq km site includes an outdoor amusement park, an indoor theme park, an shopping centre with cinemas, restaurants, hotels and the world's largest ocean park

Wang said: 'Chinese culture led in the world's for 2,000 years, but since the last 300 years, because of our lagging development and the invasion of foreign cultures, we have more or less lacked confidence in our own culture.'

He added: 'We want to be a model for Chinese private enterprise, and we want to establish a global brand for Chinese firms.'

Earlier this month, he told Chinese state television in an interview that Disney's foray into China would crumble under more competitive pricing from his group, and warned that the 'the frenzy of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck and the era of blindly following them has passed.'

Wanda's deal-making has been similarly prolific as it quickly diversifies away from China's weakening real estate market.

The group purchased U.S.-based AMC Theaters cinema chain in 2012 for $2.5 billion (£1.71 billion).

Earlier this year, it paid $3.5 billion (£2.4 billion) for Legendary Entertainment, the Hollywood studio behind the Batman franchise, as it ramped up its international push.

Seeking to capitalise on China's rising middle class, developers are planning dozens of Chinese theme parks, along with projects from U.S. firms like Universal Studios, DreamWorks and Six Flags.

But instead of seeking to capture China's top tier cities like Beijing or Shanghai, Wanda has built parks in smaller but still sizable cities like Wuhan

In Wuhan, Wanda regularly presents the 'The Han Show' — a Cirque du Soleil-style acrobatic performance that's based on the traditional culture of the Han, China's largest ethnic group.

Disney is set to open its own resort in Shanghai in June, which will become the largest Disneyland in the world.

A second attraction will open in Hefei, east China, in September this year. It will be followed by another five projects to be unveiled in the next three years

By 2020, the group is expected to have 15 Wanda City projects within China as well as another five overseas