Hello. For a while, I have wanted to open up a zoological theme/ amusement park. I have researched the costs of some parks and how much their startup was, and the one I can remember best was DAK which cost $800 million. Even just excluding rides, around how much would even just starting a zoo cost now? Also, how would a person like me get funding for a business like this?
I would start by reading this thread by @Batto who actually did start his own animal collection and talks about the process. I would say, unless you know some billionaires that are willing to fund you, the idea that your going to create a huge zoo/amusement park isn't very likely. Batto says as much in his thread, but creating something small and building upon that slowly is possible. There are many small privately run zoos around, but they all have taken time to get to where they are now. How to found a zoo [Welt der Gifte] That being said, I see you posted a very similar topic before and didn't get much response. I don't think there's going to be to many people here that can tell you how to start an animal theme park like you describe. For one, there just isn't that many parks out there like what you describe for a reason. On top of that, the people who did start those parks probably aren't on this forum. If you are truly set on this goal it will take a lot of hard work and determination. The first step would probably be to create a full blown plan that you can then bring to investors that would be interested in funding such a project.
Sorry to disappoint, but a the goal of a zoo is to help conservation, which means it kind of has to be a sort of charity in its own right, which basically means it cannot make profit. So unless you are secretly a multi multi millionaire or multi billionaire...
Not sure why you responded to me as I'm not the one trying to open a zoo, but zoos definitely can be for profit here in the U.S. as there are many privately owned, for-profit zoos here. Many here also serve almost zero conservation or educational purpose beyond showing animals to the public. Other than what seems to be a self imposed definition of zoos you have created, a zoo has to serve zero conservation purpose in its goal if it likes. Not saying its right, just the way it is.
Thank you @NSU42 for referring to me. If I might add a little bit on the conservation aspect @amur leopard brought up: no, it's not the single role of a modern zoo to help conservation. If one is to follow Heini Hediger's definition, the main tasks of a modern zoo should be Recreation Education Research Conservation However, as @NSU42 correctly pointed out, in all honesty, quite a bunch of zoos fail to live up to these tasks. However, depending on the country your zoo is in, the local legislation will ask you for proof that your institution contributes to both conservation and research to grant you your zoo license. Zoos are businesses, even more so since the traditional zoo director with a background in zoology or veterinary medicine is being replaced or complemented by directors with a background in business management, finances etc. Loro Parque or Pairi Daizi, to name two major European examples, wouldn't exist in their current form if they did not create a profit.
