Good news for Ster-Kinekor

Ster-Kinekor completed its Section 189 and restructuring processes at the end of May, and it laid off far fewer staff members than it had initially anticipated.

It has also reduced the number of cinemas destined for closure from nine locations to two.

This is according to Ster-Kinekor CEO Mark Sardi, who said the company reduced its costs and headcount by around 20 to 25%.

“We initially assessed that 226 jobs might be affected. However, we ended up retrenching just 52 employees, and these were largely head-office based,” he said.

“A positive outcome in that we managed to mitigate the overall impact on headcount.”

He added that the company is in talks with landlords and partners at some cinemas marked for closure to consider alternative options.

“Initially, Ster-Kinekor was considering closing nine of its cinema sites, but at this stage, only two sites have been impacted — Boardwalk in Richard’s Bay and the Greenstone Mall,” said Sardi.

“Of the remaining sites identified, the company is currently in discussions with landlords and partners to consider different entertainment and education strategies within the cinema space.”

He added that when sites close, Ster-Kinekor tries to deploy impacted staff to its other cinemas.

Ster-Kinekor announced its plan to cut costs, including retrenching staff and closing several cinemas in April 2024.

It said it needed to restructure in the face of declining audience attendance at its cinemas.

“Ster-Kinekor Theatres has had to review its cost structure to ensure the continued survival and sustainability of its business,” the company said.

Ster-Kinekor said affected positions would include those in the CEO’s office, marketing, sales, human capital, business operations, content, finance, head office, regional operations, and information technology.

Mark Sardi, CEO at Ster-Kinekor Theatres.

The cinema chain said factors like the challenging economic environment, load-shedding, and the Hollywood strikes had significantly reduced cinema attendance.

Sardi alluded to the impact of the Hollywood strikes in his latest feedback to MyBroadband, adding that Ster-Kinekor is diversifying its screening to help bolster attendance.

“The impact of the trikes was to halt production of movies and create a 12 to 18-month delay in releasing titles originally scheduled for release in 2024,” he said.

“This has negatively impacted our steps to recovery. However, we have launched ‘Throwback Cinema’, which is designed to re-release classic titles at R50 per ticket to remind our customers of the unparalleled experience in a cinema.”

Ster-Kinekor relaunched Throwback Cinema in early May 2024, starting with screenings of Chicago.

It screened one older classic per week, with tickets priced at R50. It screened Meet Joe Black in the week starting 17 May 2024, followed by Notting Hill the week after.

Back to the Future 1 was the most recent throwback title at Ster-Kinekor, with its run ending on Thursday, 6 June 2024.

Other old titles set for reruns include the remaining Back to the Future films, Gladiator, and The Mummy.