Sim Leisure aims to put more zing into the entertainment space

PETALING JAYA: Sim Leisure Group Ltd will continue to introduce new attractions to KidZania Kuala Lumpur to uplift the local entertainment space.

Sim Leisure founder and executive chairman Datuk Sim Choo Kheng said renovations are ongoing at KidZania Kuala Lumpur.

Some of the attractions are closed and will replaced with new activities, according to Sim.

“Recently we introduced the city parade, drums and percussion, as well as our own television studio,” he told StarBiz.

In June, there were news about Sim Leisure purchasing KidZania Singapore from Khazanah Nasional Bhd.

He clarified that the sovereign wealth fund was not involved in the acquisition of the failed asset in Singapore.

This also became a buzz as Sim Leisure took a risk in purchasing the theme park without being able to check the condition of KidZania Singapore during the pandemic lockdown of 2020.

The theme park developer had acquired KidZania Singapore for a bidding price of S$110,000 from the liquidator for non-movable assets towards the end of 2020.

Based on a filing with the Singapore Exchange on June 12, Sim Leisure said it had secured an agreement with Sentosa Development Corp to lease the premises where KidZania Singapore is located.On another note, Sim said there would be fewer mechanical theme parks not only in Malaysia but globally.

“I think we are going through a transition period. Mechanical parks have been around for too long,” he said.

Sim said the concept has not gone through evolution and only minor changes had been made.

He said the rollercoaster business model has been a failure all around the world and this was attributed to the high investing costs.