The revenue of Russian cinema bars in the first half of the year amounted to more than 7 billion rubles

According to Business Rus’, the revenue of Russian cinema bars in the first half of the year amounted to more than 7 billion rubles, while for the entire 2022 – 6.5 billion rubles, the company’s vice president Iskander Aminov told Kommersant. Karo does not provide absolute figures, but claims that in the first half of the year, the chain’s movie bars earned an amount “comparable to the total revenue of the entire 2022.”

“Cheburashka,” released in early 2023, brought audiences back to cinemas, and demand for bar products increased, notes Iskander Aminov. “The family audience is the most loyal to purchases,” confirms Olga Proskuryakova, vice president for marketing management, cafes and cinema bars of the Karo cinema chain. Market growth was also influenced by pent-up demand, changes in the mood of the audience, and also the democracy of cinema as a form of entertainment, says Mr. Aminov. At the end of the year, market participants expect growth of 30–35%, but growth will slow down in the second half of the year.

Cinema bars are an important line of business for cinemas; they account for about 35% of revenue and a significant share of profit. If film distributors take half of the box office receipts, then cinemas do not share the proceeds of movie bars with anyone. Delovaya Rus is their largest wholesale supplier; the group estimates its share of this market at 60–65%. In 2019, according to Delovaya Rus, the revenue of movie bars increased by 12%, to 22.4 billion rubles, and in 2018, as Kommersant reported on March 4, 2019, it fell by 6–12%, up to 20 billion rubles. In 2021, revenue fell in proportion to cinema box office receipts – by 60%, to RUB 9 billion. (see “Kommersant” dated May 28, 2021).

Yulia Yurasova