CAMBRIDGE — As the COVID-19 pandemic started to become a memory, Triton Entertainment President Paul Wenger noticed many of the company’s 17 movie theaters showing clear signs of recovery.
Cambridge Premium Cinemas was not one of them.
“Cambridge was lagging compared to some of our locations in our portfolio,” Wenger said.
During the pandemic, priorities changed, which affected the theater industry, he said.
“I get the sense that people sort of forgot about the (Cambridge) theater after the pandemic,” he said. “And I think the perception was that the theater had maybe closed.”
When theaters opened back up to the public, “heavy restrictions” caused the industry to hemorrhage money, Wenger said. According to box office records , theaters in the U.S. and Canada earned an estimated $4.48 billion in 2021 compared to $11.32 billion in 2019.
Over time, as other theaters began to recover, Triton Entertainment looked into why Cambridge wasn’t.
Wenger said they discovered it had to do with money.
“People were really having to make some difficult decisions about whether or not they could take the family out for a night of entertainment at the movies,” he said. “We understood that what was probably impacting Cambridge specifically was the economic hardship.”
And so Triton Entertainment came up with a plan to improve the theater’s amenities while also offering prices that make it easier for a family to spend a night at the movies. Now, at any time of the day, customers of the Cambridge theater can sit back in a power recliner and enjoy a film with popcorn and soda with free refills for $14.
Wenger said the new concept, which was rolled out in mid-June, makes it so that admission tickets are always $7 — no matter what day or time — and a popcorn and soda combo is $7.
Along with the new concept, Triton Entertainment also made some changes to the Cambridge movie theater itself. Along with a facelift to the lobby, the theater now boasts power recliners and a self-serve popcorn station.
“We could have simply just slapped $7 on the admission price all day, every day and $7 on concessions and left the old facility the way it was,” he said. “But we didn’t want folks to come in and go, ‘Well now we know why we’re only paying $7.’”
The success of these changes are evident in the numbers. Wenger said the week of July 1, attendance was up 169% compared to the same week last year. The week before that, attendance was up 273% compared the the same week last year, he said.
“The variable is there were some really good films,” Wenger said. “But we have the ability to look at our other locations and compare those. They’re not seeing those kinds of percentages.”
Wenger said there is “no doubt” the community is responding positively to what Triton Entertainment is calling “cinema redefined.” Along with increased attendance rates, the company is noticing — through a zip code study — that people are traveling to the theater from farther away than before.
“So the concept is working,” he said. “And we’re happy to see that.”
Andrea Kelley-Freeman, the founder and CEO of Life’s Energy Wellness Center, said the nonprofit has been bringing its summer camp to the Cambridge theater for three years now. She said the new ticket price model has been a benefit, as the nonprofit raises money to take its campers to the movies every week.
With an increase in customer volume, the new ticket price model isn’t hurting the theater’s profits, Wenger said. This success is something Triton Entertainment hopes is here to stay.
“We need to make sure that this isn’t just simply a flash in the pan,” he said.
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