BONUS: Catalyzing Social Connection- IAAPA Chair Massimiliano Freddi’s Full Talk

0:00 Hello, and welcome to a special bonus episode of Green Tagged Theme parkin thirty. I'm Philip and it's just me today. Scott hasn't joining us for this one, because what this is is a full recording of something that we teased during our main show and then discussed in depth on our Patreon show. Recently, at the AYAPA North American Summit, we heard from Massimiliano Freddi, AYAPA Chair of the Board and CEO of Wonderwood. He delivered a truly inspiring perspective on how attractions can and should serve as catalysts for genuine social connection, from challenging phone addiction to encouraging face to face engagement. Freddie shared insights that sparked a lot of conversation for me and Scott on our Patreon page. So what I want to do is actually share the entire talk that I just recorded. The recording isn't professional, you know, just kind of just done with my phone, but I think that you can still understand what he's trying to say. And I just wanted to like bring you guys into the room with us to hear these words from Massimiliano Freddi. So I hope you enjoy hearing his full remarks unedited. Let's jump right in the MASSI Miliono Freddy from the Ayappa North American Summit. Here we go in three to one.

1:10 I'm the last one to talk today. So the point was, should I do a wrap up? Should I kind of highlight the things that I've learned and so on? And I said, okay, I want to say something original, and original means I want to scale you a little bit, because when you get out of this room and when you go back home, you me, we all we have a huge responsibility. We can't do things in the same way we used to do them until two days ago. We need to go back. We need to bring to our teams what will flirt, and we need to give ourselves instructions to be kept accountable over the next few months because hey, Michael chatlanem they can't organize the North America Summit every month because we just lose attention for okay, so we need to make sure that we put something new in place. Cool. So for the ones of you, so I'll do it at this I need to shoot be this direction. Yeah, yeah. For the ones of you who don't know me, one hundred percent. Just I've did a nice presentation I think in last November at the AYAPPA trade show in Orlando to introduce myself. I'm the chairman of the Ward twenty twenty five, which means I'm a member and a facility operator. I'm a volunteer for a Yappa. Is there anyone else in this room who has volunteered for a Yappa as a speaker in a committee wherever, as an ambassador? Could you raise your hands? Yeah? Well,

2:44 great opportunity for all the others to commit and do something for the entire real So this is the picture Robert I was talking about here. I was twenty three years old. I got hired as an internet first a Busineland at disone on Paris and interns at Disnonel Paris. At that time, we're not entitled to have a name tag. So this name tag has my name, marm Becas stolen from another cast member. Okay, so a friend of time was so kind to steal it from college, but then they did it also that that was my very first event. Then I became the general manager of a nice team park that nominated best team park in Southern Europe for the kids under the age of twelve. That was called Londia. Then I became a coach. I teach at university marketing my park, wonder vote my park, I mean fifty percent with my husband. Okay, so just why where he will kill me afterwards? Yeah, thank you the best. He shares the lows with me as well. Not too bad. So we've opened it in a fantastic moment. End of summer twenty nineteen. We survived, we tried. We just opened a second park on Lake Como, and so we are. We are very happy about that. Then in the end, when you volunteer for a year, sometimes you get also some nice bergs, like swimming with dolphins. That's beautiful. Okay, that's what I do. Read now, So I have a question, always looving you know, how would my strategy change if I could walk in their footsteps? These guests, these trust members, these are the people who's not me. I will come

4:15 in the morning and say, oh, it's fantasticated, it's terrific. Everybody will love it, and then I start to find resistance and sell that company. Even if if I run a company, but it's always resistance the real boss. It's not me, it's the guest. Not only because the guest pays for the ticket, but because they decide if they spread word of mouth or not, worst if they spread bad word of mouth. And that's all in my responsibility. So my entire presentation is all around empathy, it's around communication, it's around the things we need to do because we don't want to get pull and you don't want to make the same mistakes that I made. Okay, and I'm just looking about the last tennel twenty mistakes, not about the thousands like maybe over the last few years. Yeah, is there anyone else, it's a few mistakes recently. Thank you for not making me feel. No, we needed to have like a group in which weally we discuss our mistakes. Okay, So a few things that are happening. Climate, So first of all, first of all, climate is not changing. Climate has already changed. That's a fact. We've seen. It's all over the place. So we need to be used to something called the brand new standard. We saw it in safety.

5:31 Right now, whoever operates a water park, operations are so much more complicated than they used to be twenty years ago. I was born and raised in a country where from June until September you wouldn't have a drop of rain. And right now we have thunderstorms every day. It's tropical. We were not used to that. Or you have regions like Sicily where it's not raining even during wintertime, so you don't have water, and I mean you don't have drinking water. Okay, so people, how would they drink in ten years time? Now, that's that's a big question. So I'd love to have a crystal ball. I would have to be able to be here and tell you, hey, we know what's inside that crystal. We know what will happen. Bad news, we don't. But the good news is that sometimes when we try to think that our work, our industry doesn't have any future, then the future pops up.

6:23 COVID time. I'm always I can perceive covid time when Netflix launches this, this streaming of sorry, let's us streaming of it. It's streaming off. You can exercise at your home with Nike, best best people ever to train you. Everybody thought, okay, Jim's will die afterwards. Nobody will ever buy a one hundred dollars packs monthly past if they can only spend fifteen dollars on Netflix. What has happened afterwards. Twenty twenty four best year globally ever for the Jims. So in real life physically mm hmm. We thought that our kids would never leave their solfas comfortable sofas because they just want to play video games all day. Yes, sometimes it's even true, but they also leave. And I think that the Disney partners or not very Far Universe or many of our power facilities, you name it. In twenty twenty three we had an all best season, sever and several of us at also they are a good season twenty twenty four, which means that this was not true.

7:22 So yes, we are in a super digital word. AI is doing will do a huge revolution. But we still love contact between human beings. That's what we are so a recent research veries from twenty twenty four mental sets there is. The big trend is the relationship renaissance. It's beautiful to say so it means that there is a new giggenslocked consumers to seek connection with purpose. Hey, it's not only about connection. It's connection with purpose is changing, inevitable change. People are looking for stronger and long lasting connections.

8:07 They need to grow resilient. We all know that they walk people around them. Yeah, so that's a little bit of what's happening now. On the other hand, research from the end of twenty twenty three seventy one percent. That was a global research. Three main areas China, United States, United Kingdoms. We are from three regions of the world. Three thousand individuals were asked about several things, and one of the things was what do you think is the worst? They said, this is the worst feeling lonely. Seventy one percent of the people. Seven out of time. They say, loneliness isn't epidemic, that's the new virus. Had a nice chat today with a young professional in this room and she's an amazing contributor to the twelvel industry. Where are you?

8:56 I don't see you anymore? She escaped, You're here there, hit and there. We have been talking about what it means to feel lonely. Hey, have you ever tended the place for the first time in which you feel lonely? You don't know anybody, don't know the jerk on the language, you don't know people. But now the issue is that we feel lonely even with the people we love because we lost the capability of showing love of hockey people. That's really so there is a world will always use tinderization of society. Okay, yeah, you love because if you see the ransom of you, I know that. So when I said in theorization, I mean I mean this swiping gesture on Tinder, it's from I don't know, left to right, right to left, Terrico. And on Instagram we wipe you know from well from talk about it means we dedicate more time in choosing the movie on Netflix than on one at the time we are ooky to watch the movie itself. Do we all agree that happens the same happens to everything. So there is another trend that was called like this lonely phone addicts. We run in the same room, we are not in the same We're not being present. Now this guy's here at listen. They make multi billion investments, and do you make this investment to keep people at looking at their faults all the time.

10:24 There's the biggest challenge we have. These are our guests, and I want to address to you one key information. Look at this lie, this bun sorry. From relationships to phone shapes, one out of five people look at their phones while having sex. Twenty percent of you, my dear friends, you have a watch that's vibrating, yes, vibrating the no, No, you know, like what just doing that? Okay, so you are there. I know, Michael, Thank god I have a steak a department then never knows what I'm going to say, thank god. Okay. The same seventy one percent of the people we said learning as is a piglemic. We also have a seventy one percent of the people sometimes I would say it's overlapping, that prefer to spend more type of their form than connect with someone in person. That's a thing here. Oh, an average person checks are from fifty eight times a day. I think I'll be two hundred times a day. I'm worse than that. Other research twenty twenty four they every recent data. Maybe you have not seen some of those. Only twenty three percent of the employees feel engaged at work one hour four For the rest of the people, work sucks. Hey, these are

11:59 the people that work our guests. These are the people that are on board with us to build on our future. I from the very first moment I checked in here at the Grand California hot Hotel, I felt that discuss members they truly care, they are truly engaged. It means that the guys in the businey are doing the tremendous work and that and hey, I have worked for other of these really results around the glow. It's not like that everywhere. And I think we need to reflect on solutions because have our business written review twenty twenty four. Lonely people deliver on bad work. So it's then too to me what are we searching right now? Why is it also about why do we feel lonely? We want someone else to save us? We are not good at picking our butts on our own, can't do it and tell it. Hey, we need to do something in a different way. So what do we need to do. We need to work on brandy values? Why venues? Because values are not a driver of visit, but values are a driver of connection and belonging. And we as people, we do ninety eight percent of what we do, we do it because either we want connection, either we want belonging, or because we want tallus. It's one of these three things.

13:25 Values are the driver. Now we opening on your very good brand. We have been for twenty thirty years. We've all been fans of what they do and then we say yeah, of course, they say, we don't want to cause unecessariena and all that. And then this guy decides to do one thing before I die. I create a foundation. I don't need my company to the foundation, so there will be no edge fund able to buy my company, and the values that we've built over time they will stay forever. That's fantastic. Look at these kids here. Okay, so they are in a theme park. Where is this thing park located? Guess where?

14:07 You know? You? John? Oh? Whoa? Where the Netherlands? Okay? Well, okay, Ujah versus the devolance? Where else could it be? Okay, I want friends Germany? Okay? Can I tell you? It's in Sweden? Now ah? Oh, we know. So this park it's called Hyja Rock. It's in the middle of nowhere, literally the middle of nowhere. You're right there, and this park is all where some themed and now who are these kids? They are the Emerald tasholders. But there is one thing. You can't buy an Emerald pass holder by deciding that servant. You can't buy a mammal pests by deciding it. You need to apply as a citizen of the city and you undergo an interview and you need to bring your own costume. Now, if you are really part of the store, you get accepted and you can BUYO and My Best, which is like a citizenship. How is it different different when the narrative, the story we tell and this is a tiny little park. You know, it's maybe two hundred or three hundred thousand visitors per year, So it doesn't take to be Disney to imagine that we talk about fellus and belonging and all that. Yes, that's our boss. Customer experience is on top of our organizational chart, our boss, I have three seconds left. Now I've already opta five minutes. And then now you didn't

15:38 want to go to the bus? Now, okay, So five big trends by ACCE you study that came out at the beginning of this year. Now look at that tree. Number one, cost of hesitations, which means we have so many options that we are scared as hell to choose. So we have many of a pitzeria long manue and what do we order a cheese pizza? Okay? Too much? Second, the parent trap. I love what I've heard from Chris earlier today about these new play areas inside to ho town, like are there more incidents than someone and the answer is no, So it means that we are all over afraid of stuff. We are growing a generation of silly people and we are already a silly people just because we are afraid of somebody's sing us whoever it is our own kids and we're not trained that for life.

16:37 Big issue, Big issue. Third, if patients are coming, I want it all. I want it now, full start, full stop stock guys, that's my opinion. Turn down. With all the dignity of work, work needs to find again the dignity and right now when I see that one person out four, only one person our four. Is kind of okay where they work, Guys, we suck as employers. I admitted myself. I had three hundred ideas and I only put one in place and not able on so many days to have engagement from our team members for real Tree of a five social rewilding. We want to feel the heartbeat again and not every day can be like a concert in downtown Disney. Too bad, I love that, but this is what we want. We want to feel real. So what are attractions right now?

17:42 What is our responsibility? We need to be the capitalyst for so shot recognition, reconnection. Sorry, and how do we do that? We need to force hold dejoks. And that's the thing that I really really really really invited to do. We need to decide. Our guests won't decide, our team members won't decide. But this is what we are seeing right now. And there are so many facilities that I see where it's normalized that team members can have their phones in their pockets. And not only is a big risk for safety, but I think it's a big risk because we are taken away their capability of being priced in the movement and welcoming our guests. So here we have one of our two parks is on a mountain, very bad internet connection. We don't want to give free Wi Fi because we know that in the moment we give them Wi Fi, they will put YouTube to the kids while they're eating. And this is not what we want to do. This is not why they pay us.

18:53 They are not paying us to give them only you know, the longer hot dog and the most beautiful things. They are paying us to sometimes lend them a little bit and tell like, hey, you decided to invest one day in a park in an attraction. You pay, the ticket, you pay, the fuel, you pay, the highway, the plane, the hotel and so on. And what you're doing, you're staring at your fall. No, we need to find a way to bring a new togetherness. So the way we have done it that is some of the trends we have followed. First, we need to make sure that adults can be kids again. We have been saying this forever, but this is more true today than have Second, we need to be capitalists for them, for the authentic food. Food is one of the main ways we can do that. We need to bring the oxymoods contrast the thing they don't find usually like going with your pajama to a mair to the miyami zoom. We need to make sure that we immerse them, and we can immerse them when we make them do something.

19:58 This is a chocolate museum in the Hamburg in Germany that went from being number thirty five or something like this in the trip Advisor chart to becoming number two. How they did that they decided you could no longer visit the museum on your own. It would only be for guided tours. And the guides are amazing. They are fun, they are engaging. One of the main highlights. You make your own chocolate blah and you bring it home with you. Search for uniqueness. Now this is a doughnut in the end, but it's a unique doughnut and as a salad can also avoid to be said the guys, do you remember fifteen years ago while we said, okay, we need to have the healthy options in Urmennium. So instead of the fries, who can get a salon? But did you ever take a look at those salads? Whoever will take a salad reassurance?

20:52 You know, the small guys? Do you want to see a sam the money might I knew you would sing that one, okay, but the auction walls can be be give me a manner of midnight, So that's okay. So look at these guys. Now, this thing London, three thousand people every day of the month for over two years, almost three years. Can you counter? Now these people are paying to watch big screens projecting fake omas because it's even not then it's a whole they call it the whole crops. Okay, but we know that that's a CGI version. Now the thing there if you go there, and you should be going there, You will notice why the people go there. They don't give up think about app They are staying together. They are spending two hours sweating, screaming, singing, hugging each other and remembering the best moments are even the worst. The winner takes it all, so the worst moments of their lives. That's the thing. This is the industry in which we are. We are in the industry where research for us. This guy Brenda in New York City, he is, He has been doing it for fifteen years.

22:12 He collects anonym stories. You go there, there's a branch, sheet of paper at Washington Park or wherever he is. You write down one page of whatever is on your mind today. He has collected hundreds of thousands of stories. Trust send them. Travel. Travel is now the moment in which we unplatform our life, self betterment, life affirming moments. That are the new trouble requirements. We want to feel seen. And do you know that? Of course you might, You might know that, But that's that's repeated. Not that I only talk about sex, but that's pretty important because it gives us sense. You know, there has never been a moment in the world where people have had less sex than right, now, okay, the younger generations, it's really we are no longer reach to have too many, too many kids earth, not because they became wiser in using condoms, but because they are boding sense, which means that the physical connection is less and less and less. We want to feel seen. We don't know what it's like to be touched or to touch somebody else. Now, this is not an invitation for tonight. We have work powers, we have other things to be cool. So I want to leave you to the joy your afternoon. I will love always reiterate that the six most expensive words and business are We've always done it that the way we need to remember that this is so dangerous. I would love

23:44 you to go home with less convictions that before, and a few more doubts what ifs, so no excuses, and I think we can only winness pell together. Thank you, sir,