My husband and I operate two art cinemas we built ourselves, here in Corvallis, Oregon--a university town of about 50,000 people when school is in session. The Avalon Cinema has one screen and holds 110 theater-goers. The Darkside Cinema is a four-plex with each room holding 49. It's built on the second floor of a former department store, which we renovated in order to reuse downtown space in a cool old building.
Although this is a university town, most of our clientele are not students; they're young working singles and couples, aging boomers whose kids are old enough they don't need a babysitter, and retired seniors.
It's been interesting to watch the major studios whine about the decline in attendance. By contrast, we've been enjoying steady and even increasing attendance, and we think it might be because:
- The films we play are not Hollywood crap. We play a wide variety of "indie," alternative, foreign, documentary films, rated anywhere from G (Penguins, Millions...) to NC-17 (Bad Education, The Dreamers...).
- Our prices are well below the cineplexes—both for tickets and for snack bar items.
- Our popcorn is infinitely refillable.
- People can bring in their own food and beverages, as long as they pack out the trash they brought in.
- We have a well publicized policy of (good-natured) harassment for anyone who leaves their cell phone on.
- We're a visible part of the community, hosting benefits for non-profits and participating in civic issues to keep the downtown alive and thriving.
- We hire staff who bring their human-ness to the job. They interact with patrons in a friendly manner, not as corporate automatons. They know can make independent decisions about how to handle issues that come up.
- Customers can talk to the owner(s) face to face. We are not hiding in a 9-to-5 corporate office outside the area. And Paul writes really great content.
- Each week, we send an email to more than 2,000 subscribers, talking about upcoming films and what's happening with us and with the theaters. We never share email addresses, and we don't put ads in the weekly messages.
- We DON'T show commercials. Previews of coming attractions, yes. But never commercials.
So, even though we don't have stadium seating complete with cupholders, we have a loyal following in the growing Mid-Willamette Valley. And cushy, old-fashioned seats. Plus a sofa.
We're not perfect; we face challenging business issues like any locally owned, independent, on-a-shoestring business. But we feel pretty good about bringing quality film—without the BS—to a wide range of local cinephiles who show their appreciation every week.
Links to both theaters and some other nearby independents:
http://www.corvallismovies.com
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