Following Changzhou's goal in the "Jiangsu Super League," Changzhou's tourism sector has launched creative marketing campaigns to attract visitors. Beyond offering free admission to visitors with specific surnames, those holding Jiangsu Super League tickets or born in August can also enjoy complimentary access.
According to Tianmu Lake Tourism Resort, from August 17 to 31, all visitors nationwide with the surname Zhao will receive free admission to Tianmu Lake Landscape Garden and Tianmu Lake Nanshan Bamboo Sea scenic areas. Meanwhile, Flower Valley Fantasy scenic area in Changzhou is offering free tickets to both Zhao and Wang surname visitors, while China Dinosaur Park announced that Zhenjiang fans can exchange their Jiangsu Super League tickets for complimentary dinosaur park admission.
As multiple Changzhou attractions join the free admission campaign, what cumulative ticket revenue could be at stake? Taking Tianmu Lake as an example, current ticket platforms show that the combined ticket for Landscape Garden and Nanshan Bamboo Sea costs 168 yuan, or 260 yuan including boat rides.
According to data from the "2018 National Name Report," China has 28.6 million people with the Zhao surname. Based on these statistics, in an extreme scenario where all Zhao surname visitors travel to the destination, Tianmu Lake's ticket revenue exposure would reach approximately 4.8 billion to 7.4 billion yuan.
Given Tianmu Lake's current revenue levels, how many Zhao surname visitors could the company afford to host for free? Based on the company's 2024 revenue of 536 million yuan and ticket prices of 168-260 yuan, Tianmu Lake could accommodate 2.06 million to 3.19 million Zhao surname visitors, representing only 7% to 11% of the national Zhao surname population.
Industry analysts note that in reality, Tianmu Lake's maximum visitor capacity is limited, making the above scenario purely hypothetical.
**Potential Ticket Revenue Impact in Billions**
On August 17, Tianmu Lake Tourism Resort in Liyang, Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, announced via its WeChat official account that from that day through August 31, all visitors nationwide with the "Zhao" surname would receive free admission to Tianmu Lake Landscape Garden and Tianmu Lake Nanshan Bamboo Sea scenic areas.
Platform searches reveal that current combined tickets, with discounts applied, cost 168 yuan for Landscape Garden (excluding boat tickets) plus Nanshan Bamboo Sea, or 260 yuan including boat rides.
Based on the 28.6 million Zhao surname population nationwide, an extreme scenario where all such visitors travel to the scenic area would result in ticket revenue exposure of approximately 4.8 billion to 7.4 billion yuan for Tianmu Lake.
Several additional attractions have joined the free admission initiative. Beyond offering free tickets to Zhao surname visitors, some locations also provide complimentary access to Wang surname visitors. According to official announcements, following the Jiangsu Super League match where Zhao Lianping scored and Wang Haining provided an assist, Flower Valley Fantasy offers surname-based benefits from August 17-31, providing free admission to all Zhao and Wang surname visitors with valid ID.
Public security household registration data from January 2019 shows that mainland China's Wang surname population reached 101.5 million in 2018. Ticket platforms indicate that Flower Valley Fantasy's admission plus immersive Van Gogh Art Museum tickets cost 60 yuan. Under extreme circumstances, the attraction's free ticket policy for Zhao and Wang surname visitors could involve ticket revenue exposure exceeding 7.8 billion yuan.
China Dinosaur Park has also announced free admission for specific groups, stating that Zhenjiang fans can exchange their Jiangsu Super League tickets for dinosaur park admission on August 16 and 17.
**Listed Companies Behind the Campaign**
Driven by the Jiangsu Super League, Changzhou attractions have joined the free admission movement, with publicly listed companies and IPO candidates emerging behind these scenic areas.
For instance, Jiangsu Tianmu Lake Tourism Co.,Ltd. (603136.SH) is a Shanghai Stock Exchange main board company that went public in September 2017. The company is Jiangsu Province's first publicly listed tourism attraction enterprise.
Jiangsu Tianmu Lake Tourism Co.,Ltd. has experienced fluctuating performance over the past three years, achieving revenues of 369 million yuan, 630 million yuan, and 536 million yuan from 2022 to 2024, with corresponding net profits attributable to shareholders of 20 million yuan, 147 million yuan, and 105 million yuan respectively.
In the first quarter of this year, the company's revenue declined slightly while net profit increased year-over-year. Disclosed figures show first-quarter revenue of 105 million yuan, down 1.6% year-over-year, with net profit attributable to shareholders of 13.84 million yuan, up 26.45% year-over-year.
The Landscape Garden and Nanshan Bamboo Sea attractions involved in the Zhao surname free admission campaign generated revenues of 148 million yuan and 135 million yuan respectively last year, declining 17.47% and 7.58% year-over-year. However, both attractions maintained high gross profit margins of 69.72% and 71.22% respectively last year.
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