$1 Popcorn and Drinks On Stimulus Night At Movie Theater Chain
Carmike Cinemas, which operates 2,276 screens in 36 states has declared Tuesdays "stimulus night" and will be offering $1 popcorn and drinks.
Starting March 10, the chain will sell 16-ounce sodas and 46-ounce popcorns for $1 each. Madness!
Discounts on concession are rare for theaters because that's where they make most of their money — but Carmike is hoping that $1 goodies will inspire loyalty and that customers will notice the improvements they've made to the theaters.
What do you think? Are "Stimulus Tuesdays" going to lure you to the movies on a weekday?
Carmike
Theater Chain Begins Recession Special: $1 Popcorn and Sodas [NYTimes] (Thanks, Phil!)
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Comments:
46 ounces of popcorn for a dollar? God bless America!
So the profit on popcorn is lets guess....100%, as compared to the normal 500%
A dollar? Well, at least they're still making 95 cents on each of those items. But hey, a dollar is better than $5. Oh well, too little too late. I stopped going to the theater in 1999.
I do not think that specific brand is in my state...but even if it was...the movies I would see are still NOT worth that dollar!
Let's see there are no movies I want to spend $12 to see, so $1 popcorn and beverages isn't going to get me into the cinema.
Tempting... Too bad I have more fun things to do on a Tuesday night. Too bad I only go to the movies like twice a year or so /and/ then only to the matinee. And the last time I went to the movie theatre, I used a coupon to get a free meal at a fast food place and I brought that food with me in my jumbo bag (milkshake and all). Teeheehee.
Before I go to the movies, I go to the bulk barn, buy a bag of cheap popcorn and hide it in my coat sleeve. My friend brings candy in her purse, claiming she is diabetic.
i think they would make more money if they would just charge a dollar less for consessions on friday night.... i might consider actually buying consessions instead of smuggling in my own candy and drinks.
mmmmm, 3 day old popcorn.
One time I stuffed a McDonalds double cheeseburger into my pocket so I could eat it in the theater. Once sitting and after the movie began, I started eating it. It smelled like cheese and people looked at me and overall I felt pretty bad about myself.
Three pounds* of popcorn?
*give or take the HDPD [Haagen Dazs Pint Differential]
Or is popcorn sold by volume?
I remember back in the day, they had $2.50 Tuesdays up in Canada (this was 15-20 years ago mind, so inflation would probably push the price point up a bit). If they brought back a similar promotion, I might be tempted. As long as tickets are as expensive as they are, I'll keep avoiding the theaters.
Cheaper popcorn ain't gonna do it.
The machines that makes the popcorn cost a lot of money for that they do. I have one in my home. Why I do not eat much popcorn it does make the house smell nice and I just give it to the chickens.
Yes the popcorn, oil, and oil topping is cheap but try the out lay of $3,000 for a small one and $12,000 for the really big ones. Ok yes you will make your money back fast.
One thing most people did not know that Star Wars 1(4) had for the 1st 3 weeks 100% went back to L. Films. Theaters start off paying anywhere from 90 to 80% of the ticket to the company for the 1st 2 weeks, then it works its way down from there. Never (from what I have seen) less then 60%.
@larrymac808: Definitely volume. Good Lord, three pounds of popcorn would be insanely huge. Or really, really buttery.
Can I order 5 bags of popcorn to go?
I would like to eat it while watching the History channel at home.
Tuesday night is always the slowest for the movie places - heck, my local movie place has for as long as I can remember had "Bargin Tuesdays" - where it includes a free 46 oz popcorn (plus I believe regular $.25 refill if needed)
Of course the "catch" is that almost always if you have popcorn, you need to buy a drink
We have the greatest theater chain here in the Southwest: Harkin's Theaters. For $4.25 you can buy a refillable cup that allows you to purchase $1 refills for the rest of the calendar year. I'm not sure how large the cup is, but it is much bigger than 16 oz. You can also purchase a T-shirt for $20 that entitles the wearer to free popcorn for the rest of the year. And the thing I love best: matinees show until 6pm every day, even on weekends when other theaters stop matinee prices at around 2pm.
@Ben_Q2: I'm going to have to disagree with you there.
1: My local Costco has a small movie-theater-style popcorn machine on a cart for $300.
2: Regardless of the cost of the machine, it's a fixed cost; considering the amount of popcorn a movie theater sells in a day, any fixed cost would be quickly made up.
3: This still wouldn't explain the markup on drinks, candy, hot dogs, etc.
The real reason for the high concession prices is what you brought up at the end of your post: theaters make no money whatsoever on ticket sales. Thus, concessions has to cover their entire overhead.
The Carmike in Ft. Wayne, Indiana has had a deal on Tuesdays for awhile now. You can bring your own popcorn tub of any size and have it filled for 50 cents. Of course, I'm pretty sure they are just using the popcorn that didn't sell over the weekend.
That's not a bad deal, but it would depend on how much the ticket prices are. If you're bringing a date (or a family) and the price is the regular $8 per ticket, then the place we go to beats 'em hands down --
$2.25 - Matinee (all shows before 6pm)
$4.25 - All shows after 6pm
Large Popcorn is like $4.00, unlimited refills. Soda is $3.00, also unlimited refills. When we go I get 2 of each, one for my wife and I to split and one for my kids to split, and it works out to around $5.75 per person, including tickets, popcorn and soda. (We typically don't even get the popcorn and soda refilled, they're pretty large and we usually eat before we go)..
this is awesome! the carmike here (lexington, ky) shows movies (albeit they are not "first rate") for only $1. yes, $1. all the time!
A promo like this will get people to come, although not right away. Take a look at the restaurants/bars/pizza delivery/etc. in your area, and see what daily specials they have - at some point, people will begin to identify that night as special at that particular business, and the people will come.
Where I went to college, Wednesday was cheap pizza night (pizzas - delivered! - for 4 bucks) and Tuesday was cheap movie night (first-run movies for a buck at the theater, or rentals for 50 cents). Both of these business sold a LOT of product on these days. People just identified those days as days to focus on those businesses.
Two words: so there!
I like the idea.
Honestly, I do have a problem with those that sneak in food. The theaters do have to make a profit.
That being said, taking my two daughters to see Coraline, with the 3-D upcharge and a load of snacks, ran me $60.
Between the costs, the rudeness of other customers, and the apathy of the staff at most theaters, I really don't consider the cinema a preferable form of entertainment anymore.
I might be tempted, but they don't operate any screens in my area. It would be nice, however, if it prompted other theater chains to follow suit (are you listening, AMC?)
Last time I went to a "stimulus night" at a movie theater, Paul Rubens was there.
/rimshot
Consider me stimulated!
There's a local Carmike cinema thats been doing this for over a year, also on Tuesdays. Although it was, until recently, only $0.50, and you could bring your own bucket. Yes, bucket. Up to three gallons. Seriously.
Not I. Movies are too expensive. I'm not going to lay out half my hourly wage for a movie. That's just bad economics and $1 popcorn doesn't make up for it.
The Cinemark around the way from me has $4 matinee prices through 6pm. Blow that out your asses, boi!
The wife and I will usually go right after work or early on Sat/Sun, when we get a chance.
The concession prices are fairly cheap. They're directly fight against the AMC Grapevine 30 and the new Harkins in Southlake. Prices are great, as long as the movie is framed correctly and there's no scratches / sound issues.
Commercial Theater versus Home Theater?
Screaming Kids, Tall People in Front, Advertisements versus cuddling with the Wife in the privacy of my home watching a movie with no advertisements or obstructions?
Damn, Home Theater wins.
I haven't been to the movies in over 2 years, but this may be enough to bring me back. However, what am I going to see? It is very rare that I feel the desire to see a movie while it is in theaters. Hollywood mass produces pop culture junk with a heavy left wing slant. This may appeal to some people, but I'd rather find something else to do with my time. I started watching Asian movies a couple years ago and they really make good stuff. Korea makes great dramas, Hong Kong makes good mafia/cop flicks and China makes good action with a fantasy bent.
1. Movie theaters need more variety in what they show. Who cares if you have umpteen screens when the same 3 movies are playing on all of them? CIn today's world, chances are 2 of the 3 are based on a comic book.
2. They need to permanently reduce their concession prices to something closer to what you would pay in the store or if we were to go to the theater we will just bring our own food/drinks. Who pays for that overpriced junk?!?
3. Keep the kids quiet. Nobody ever kicks out the loud kids screaming to each other on opposite ends of the theater. This includes the parking lots!! Who wants to walk their family through a gaggle of teens in the parking lot? Theaters need to decide who their customers area. If they allow the kids to run amock then they have decided to cater to their business as far as I am concerned.
4. Keep the place clean. Years ago when I did go to the theater regularly, they were always nasty dirty.
Not the same kind of Popcorn machine. Heats up and starts popping in 2 mins or less (done by 3 from a cold start). They make them like this so they save on power. Over time depending on the sales. Yes it does pay for itself.
Hmm yeah, I'd say it would lure me in. But not as much as "Matinee Prices" on the weekends where movies are 5.00 during a few hours of daytime.
hmm they already have the 25 cent bring your own bucket popcorn night on tuesdays... so i feel like this is giving me the shaft...
To pull a classic consumerist style comment, lately I have only gone to the theater that is part of a very small chain in Maryland because they're cheaper and the money benefits a local business rather than a conglomerate.
@agent888: Breakdown of popcorn costs:
*Pimply kid to serve it to you: 50%,
*Interest on the loan for the seizure inducing neon vending booth you installed in late 2006: 30%
*Ushers to sweep up all the popcorn people leave on the floor after guzzling the gigondo-tub without so much as looking down: 19%
*Ingredients: 1%
@theblackdog: As much as I'd like to support a local chain, the locally run theater near me is a pigsty. The floors are dirty, the concession stand has had multiple health code violations, the seats are uncomfortable and the sound/projection systems are out of date. Unfortunately, with no competition, they have no reason to improve.
It would help, but just the ticket for a movie feels a little high these days. I don't usually eat concession food (again, for price reasons), but it's not a bad idea.