Boxoffice Pro - Winter 2020

Theater FOOD & BEVERAGE
HOW COVID-19
IS CHANGING
CINEMA
CONCESSIONS
Concessions Will Play a
Crucial Role in Cinemas’
Recovery. It Also Introduces
New Challenges.
BY DANIEL LORIA
As cinemas around the world
struggle with a dearth of new
studio releases during the Covid-19
reopening phase, exhibitors have relied
on concessions sales to mitigate the
financial impact of the pandemic. As a
result, operators are quickly adapting
to changing consumer habits in the
coronavirus era—a disruption that has
upended both long-standing practices and
new trends in cinema food and beverage.
“Prior to Covid we were experiencing
expanded menus, self-serve options, and
a focus on environmentally friendly,
reduced packaging with a move away
from plastics,” says Shelly Olesen, vice
president of sales and marketing at C.
Cretors & Company. “In this upside-down
world, post-Covid, many menus have been
drawn back to core concession items,” she
says. Olesen cites popcorn, beverages
(alcohol, in particular), candy, hot dogs,
nachos, and pretzels as being among the
most successful concessions during the
Covid recovery.
A pioneer in the popcorn business, the
family-owned company has dealt with
other global crises since its founding
in 1885. During its time in business,
Cretors has outlasted the financial toll
of two world wars, countless natural
disasters, and an assortment of historydefining
events—including the last global
pandemic to shutter U.S. cinemas, the 1918
flu pandemic. Throughout the course of
history, Cretors has kept its position in the
concessions business by sticking to what’s
always gotten them through the twists and
turns of global events: popcorn sales. “It
was popcorn and soda that helped keep
the cinema doors open during the Great
Depression, and we are pretty certain it
will be these champion items that do it
again,” says Olesen.
Popcorn and soda alone will certainly
not be enough to save cinemas from the
most serious crisis the industry has faced
since its beginnings. Until a vaccine
comes along, however, the tried-and-true
combo is exhibitors’ best bet, as the sector
faces additional months of uncertainty
ahead. This back-to-basics approach in
embracing classic staples is indicative
of a sector-wide retraction in food and
beverage sales, according to Larry Etter,
senior vice president at Malco Theatres
and director of education at the National
Association of Concessionaires. “We have
reduced the number of menu items offered
to accomplish the specific goal of moving
46 Winter 2020