Know Before You Go

Looking for value at the concession stand

Without movie concessions there wouldn't be movies. The economics of the movie business mean that theater owners cannot survive on ticket revenue alone and need to make a killing at the concession stand in order to keep ticket prices at reasonable levels. Theaters typically pass on up to 60 - 70% of the box-office ticket sales directly to the movie studios. Factor in all of the overhead costs of running such a large business and you're not left with much, if anything. Therefore, in order to generate profits theater owners are increasing the amount of advertising that you see on the screen prior to the movie and, of course, charging excessively high prices at the concession stand. And the mark-ups are huge - of each dollar spent on snack foods and drinks, roughly 85 cents is profit.

In the current economic climate consumers are being extra-careful over how they spend their disposable income and never before has so much information been available to those who like to research online before choosing their entertainment option. Not so with the movie theaters. Theater owners now consider themselves very much part of the food and beverage business, yet are very reluctant to advertise their prices. Food and drink costs are almost impossible to find prior to visiting the theater and that's where we come in. Smartmoviefamily.com was developed with one goal in mind - to provide South Florida budget-conscious movie-goers with information they need in order to make an informed choice at the concession stand.