The Triangle is getting a new choice for cheap movies.
Garner Towne Square 10 on Friday will stop showing the latest blockbusters and start screening second-run movies for $2.
There are only a handful of second-run movie theaters in this region, including Carmike Cinemas Blue Ridge 14 and the Raleighwood in Raleigh, and the Howell Theater in Smithfield.
The switch in Garner is partly a response to the recession. The 10-screen theater's business has suffered as competition increased and customers cut back on entertainment, general manager Robert Hughes said.
This summer has seen some hits, including "Transformers" and "Harry Potter" sequels. But national attendance for the summer season, which starts May 1, is down 4.4 percent from last year, reports Hollywood.com.
A new owner, Carolina Cinemas, took over in May and decided to try reduced prices to attract moviegoers.
Garner is a blue-collar kind of community, where every penny matters even more," said Hope Branch, district manager for Carolina Cinemas in Charlotte. "If you get enough people through the door, that's a lot of $2 tickets."
The Garner theater changed hands after antitrust regulators ruled last year that another, larger merger would have hurt competition for first-run movies in the area.
Regal Cinemas agreed to buy Consolidated Theatres for $210 million in January 2008. But in April 2008, the U.S. Department of Justice filed an antitrust complaint charging that the combined Regal-Consolidated would control too much of the market for first-run movies in several markets in North Carolina.
In Garner, Regal owned Garner Towne Square 10 and Consolidated owned White Oak 14, about 5 miles away.
The complaint alleged that if one company owned both Garner movie theaters, it would control all of that movie market, worth about $3.5 million in 2007 box office revenue. And the union could lead to higher ticket prices in that market and reduce the new company's incentive to maintain and upgrade its theaters.
Under a settlement with the Justice Department, Regal and Consolidated agreed to sell the Garner Towne theater, as well as the Raleigh Grande 16 and two theaters in Charlotte and Asheville.
Carolina Cinemas bought all four.
The independent chain has no plans to convert the Raleigh Grande to a second-run theater, Branch said.
It holds its own in that market," she said.
But the Garner theater's business has declined since White Oak opened, Hughes said. The newer theater has stadium seating, which audiences prefer.
The business of second-run theaters has evolved, making it more attractive for theater owners, Branch said. For example, it can take as little as a month for a new release to shift to second-run status.
Business has been brisk this summer at the Howell Theater in Smithfield, said Mickey Buffaloe, who has owned the Howell since 1999. Buffaloe recently raised ticket prices to $2.50 to offset higher costs, including the increased minimum wage.
He expects a new second-run theater will increase competition for his theater and for this region's biggest second-run theater, the Blue Ridge 14 in Raleigh. But he also pointed out that more people are seeking bargains in a down economy and shunning full-price movies.
First-run theaters charge $7.50 or more for an adult evening ticket. Matinees, children and seniors are a bit cheaper. Throw in popcorn or candy and a night out can top $50 for a family of four.
I hear from a lot of families that they can't afford to go to movies and pay full price anymore," Buffaloe said. "They're willing to wait and pay a little bit less."
On Friday, the lineup at Garner Towne Square on Timber Drive will include some of the biggest hits from this summer: "Star Trek," "X-Men: Wolverine," "Angels and Demons" and "Drag Me to Hell."
In the end, the $2 tickets should draw crowds, Branch said. As with the traditional movie-theater business, popcorn and other concessions will generate most of the profit.
Making the change was prompted by competition and the economic downturn, but it "is not a lay-down-and-give-up strategy," she added. "It was the best thing for us to do competitively.
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