Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Marino.
Hi Lauren, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Scarefest Scream Park really started right in my front yard. Long before it was a premier autumn destination, it was just my father, John Marino, elaborately decorating our home every Halloween. He had a passion for entertainment, turning our house into the neighborhood must-see, and in 2003, he took a leap of faith to turn that beloved hobby into a full-scale business. We moved around to a couple different locations until finally settling in Lenox Township as Scarefest Scream Park in 2006. This fall, we are officially celebrating our milestone 20th anniversary season, which feels incredible looking back at those early days.
Growing up alongside a family-owned business means you see every single layer of what it takes to make it run. I watched it grow from a fun hobby into a successful, thriving business. Over the years, my role naturally evolved from helping out where I could in the ticket booth and in the attractions to taking on the creative and logistical challenges of the park. Today, as the Operations Manager, I oversee the day-to-day logistics, hiring of over 300 employees, guest experiences, marketing, and the development of our special events—like our ‘Ghouls Night Out’ and ‘BBQ, Bourbon & Boos,’ nights.
Getting to where I am today has been a journey of balancing tradition with growth. It’s about honoring the incredible foundation my dad built 20 years ago while constantly pushing the envelope with new entertainment, smoother operations, and unique community events. It’s a massive team effort, a true family labor of love, and I couldn’t be prouder to help lead Scarefest Scream Park into its next chapter as we celebrate two decades of scaring Michigan!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has definitely not been a smooth road! Running a seasonal business comes with an intense, unique set of pressures. Even though Scarefest only operates for about 19 days out of the entire year, it requires nearly year-round work to make those few weeks come together. People see the lights and the actors in October, but they don’t see the months of construction, safety planning, and logistics that happen in the dead of winter.
Because our operating window is so incredibly tight, there is massive pressure to perform instantly. When we implement a new feature, a new attraction, or a new operational flow in the park, we don’t have the luxury of a long feedback loop. We can’t experiment for a month, look at data, and slowly fix things; we have to get it right immediately. A single rainy weekend or a technical glitch during our short run can impact our entire year.
We’ve also had to survive some massive, existential challenges. During the 2008 financial crisis, we faced an incredibly scary reality where we almost lost the very land Scarefest sits on. Years later, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, we were fully preparing for the possibility of not being allowed to operate at all. Instead of giving up, we put our heads down and designed a rigorous, safe operational plan that allowed us to open our gates and give people some much-needed escapism.
On top of the economic hurdles, there’s the daily reality of running a business with a strong-willed Italian family! We all care so deeply and have such intense passion for the park, which is a beautiful thing, but it also requires a delicate balance to navigate everyone’s ideas and opinions. Surviving economic shifts, a global pandemic, the pressure of a seven-week season, and family business meetings for 20 years hasn’t been easy, but it’s exactly what has made us resilient.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
At its core, Scarefest Scream Park is a full-scale Halloween festival—we are so much more than just a single haunted house. What makes us unique is that we have something for everyone. Whether you are an old-school horror fan looking for campy jump thrills or someone who just wants to soak up the autumn atmosphere with some great entertainment, you can find a home here.
We feature four distinct, major attractions: the Castle of the Dead haunted house, the Hayride of Doom, the Forest of Darkness, and the Terror Zone Maze. But what truly sets us apart from a typical 15-minute walk-through haunt is our lively central midway. We have a bar tent serving adult drinks, live music and DJs, food trucks, a massive bonfire, outdoor scary movies, carnival games and tons of photo ops. You don’t just come to get scared and leave; you come to spend an entire evening out with friends and family.
Brand-wise, I am incredibly proud of how far the business has come in recent years and the direction we are headed. We have put a massive amount of energy into expanding our vision beyond traditional scaring by launching dedicated special events like ‘Ghouls Night Out’ and ‘BBQ, Bourbon & Boos.’
Most importantly, we have deliberately designed these events to uplift other small businesses in our community. We know firsthand how incredibly hard it is to get started in business, and what it takes to survive long-term. Because of that, we use our platform and our popularity to highlight other local vendors, food trucks, and makers that we think our guests will love. It is our way of giving back to the small business community as we grow. I want readers to know that Scarefest Scream Park is a dynamic, evolving tradition—and as we celebrate our 20th anniversary this year, we are more dedicated than ever to providing an unforgettable night out that supports the amazing community around us.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
The most important lesson I’ve learned is that just because another haunt is doing something, doesn’t mean we should do it. It is incredibly easy in this industry to look around at what everyone else is building or buying and feel the pressure to copy it. But we’ve found that true success comes from staying in our own lane and focusing on being pioneers in our own right.
We do that by tuning out the industry noise and tuning directly into the people who matter most: our guests and our staff. I am obsessed with feedback. During the season, I am constantly surveying our guests, asking for real-time feedback on the ground, reading every single online review and comment that comes in, and closely listening to the firsthand insights that come through our customer service desk during operations. Equally important, we check in deeply with our staff to hear their perspective on how the park is running.
By building our business around real data and raw, honest feedback from the people actually experiencing Scarefest, we are able to innovate in ways that uniquely serve our community. It keeps us ahead of the curve because we aren’t chasing trends—we are building exactly what our people love. Leading with an open ear has taught me that your community will always tell you exactly how to grow if you are willing to listen.
Pricing:
- Single Ticket – $20
- Speed Pass Ticket – $30
- VIP Wristband – $90
- Special Event GA Ticket – $20
- Special Event Deluxe Ticket – $35
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.scarefestscreampark.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scarefestscreampark/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scarefestscreampark
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@scarefestscreampark4436
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@scarefest.scream.park
