Cinepolis India is ramping up its cinema footprint in the country, which remains significantly underscreened, presenting substantial growth opportunities amid a surge in box office revenues. India is among the key strategic markets for the Mexican multiplex chain, which is the only international exhibition player in the country. At the same time, film distribution is also becoming a growing part of the company’s business given the recent box office sucess of Hanuman Ansh.
In a recent interaction, Devang Sampat, Managing Director, Cinepolis India told businessline, “Currently, we operate 492 screens in India, out of which 49 screens are under the franchise-owned and company operated (FOCO) model. By the end of the next calendar year, we expect to increase the screen count to 551 screens, out of which 67 will be on the FOCO model.”
He added that India is a key strategic market for the Mexican multiplex chain as it remains underscreened offering a huge opportunity for growth. “We welcome around 40 million guests a year. In terms of footfalls, right after Mexico, India is second-highest. What makes India special for Cinepolis is also the fact that this is one of the few markets in the world where the audience base is still growing,” Sampat said.
Right Partners
The FOCO model is also helping the brand tap opportunities in newer markets including tier-2 and tier-3 cities. Sampat pointed out that expansion strategy is sharply focused on the right mall partners and catchments with strong returns on investments.
Talking about the strong performance of the box office in the year so far, Sampat noted that this has been due to a combination of Hollywood, Hindi and regional movies doing well. “I would not call it a one-off but the new normal. The frequency at which consumers come out to watch movies on the big screen depends on the content and that frequency has gone up,” he added
Big Numbers
Hanuman Ansh, distributed exclusively across the country by Cinepolis, is witenssing a strong run at the box office. The film had originally opened in 250 screens but given its strong performance, now it is playing in more than 2000 screens. “We rebuilt the release around demand, centre by centre. We held shows where occupancy was strong, added shows where bookings built up, and took the film back into markets it had left. It is now playing on more than 2,000 screens across every major chain and hundreds of independent cinemas. Distribution is a growing part of our business in India, and this is how we run it through data and audience insights,” Sampat had said in a statement.