Finnish SuperPark debuts in Iconsiam

Finnish SuperPark debuts in Iconsiam

Mr Tanskanen promotes the new Bangkok branch. Pitsinee Jitpleecheep
Mr Tanskanen promotes the new Bangkok branch. Pitsinee Jitpleecheep

SuperPark, a Finnish indoor activity park, is scheduled to open its mega-indoor park in Bangkok this weekend, offering a fun lifestyle for all age groups.

Juha Tanskanen, the company's chief executive, said during his visit Bangkok on Wednesday the company will officially launch SuperPark, spanning 4,000 square metres, to the public on the sixth floor of Iconsiam mall this Saturday.

"We know how important family and friends are to people in Thailand. Family is at the heart of the SuperPark story. Taneli Sutinen, a Finnish businessman, was sitting in a cafe with a newspaper one day when his 4-year-old daughter grabbed him by the arm and insisted he come play with her. Tangled among the child-sized tunnels and slides, he had a light bulb moment: why not create an activity park where children and adults could play easily side-by-side? The Superparking lifestyle was born," Mr Tanskanen said.

SuperPark is a place where adults, teenagers, children, parents and even grandparents can all play and have fun together, he said.

"We've allocated our highest investment budget to build the Bangkok branch because we see huge market potential. There are a few indoor parks here where customers of all ages can play together under one roof. In addition to the large population, the country welcomes many foreign tourists per year," said Mark Kumarasinhe, chief executive of SuperPark Asia. He did not disclose the investment figure, saying only that it cost several million US dollars to build the facility.

SuperPark at Iconsiam is its third largest branch after sites in Finland and Hong Kong.

The Bangkok location offers over 25 fun and healthy activities under one roof.

It features three areas, with the adventure area promoting play activities for younger children and parents, including the Flying Fox (zip wires), Tube Slide (giant slide) and Kid's Adventure City (Finnish design play tower).

The game area offers SuperTennis, or entrants can swing for the fences in augmented Baseball 2.0. Another option is to hone your jump shot at Street Basketball.

Performance is measured by radar and other digital systems.

The third area is freestyle hall, where teenagers can venture into the 7m-tall SuperBigDrop, try Skate and Scoot World, throw hands at AI boxing, schuss using the SuperSki simulator, or do a triple lutz while ice skating. Prices range from 220-650 baht depending on the time and day.

SuperPark opened in Finland in 2012 and now has 16 branches. Of the total, 10 are in its home market and six are abroad, with two in China and one each in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.

Mr Kumarasinhe said the company plans to open 2-3 new indoor parks next year, eyeing South Korea, the United Arab Emirates and India. SuperPark envisions hundreds of complexes in 5-10 years.

He said indirect competitors of SuperPark are indoor playgrounds like HarborLand operated by LT Group, with one on the fifth floor of Gateway Ekamai opened in June, another at Terminal 21 Korat in October, and CentralPlaza WestGate slated for the end of this year.

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