Warren Theatre in Moore sold to Regal Cinemas

[Bobby821]

It looks like several Warren theatres including the Moore Warren has been sold. Not sure if this is a good or bad thing I suspect quality and service will eventually suffer. Here is the link.

http://www.kansas.com/news/business/...151485057.html

[DCARS]

If you read the story about 3/4 of the way down, he says that he is not selling the two new, yet to be built Oklahoma City theaters. That is good news to hear.

[SoonerDave]

It looks like several Warren theatres including the Moore Warren has been sold. Not sure if this is a good or bad thing I suspect quality and service will eventually suffer. Here is the link.

http://www.kansas.com/news/business/...151485057.html

I realize this is a reactionary post, but I have no doubt the place will go to the crapper in short order. The whole point in Warren touting his personal care for each site was because conventional chains couldn't or wouldn't do it anymore, and now he's sold out to them. Great.

[bchris02]

Regal Entertainment Group is one of if not the best of the national multiplex operators. I don't see it "going to the crapper" at all, at least based on my experience with flagship Regal Cinemas when I lived in Charlotte.

OKC has never had a well-operated Regal. They do a great job in other markets. Hopefully they give the Warren the same treatment.

If AMC was buying it, I would be more worried.

[DCARS]

Do we know if they are going to change the name? I know the story says that he doesn't plan on selling the two new theaters that have not been built.

[Pete]

Regal Entertainment Group is one of if not the best of the national multiplex operators. I don't see it "going to the crapper" at all, at least based on my experience with flagship Regal Cinemas when I lived in Charlotte.

OKC has never had a well-operated Regal. They do a great job in other markets. Hopefully they give the Warren the same treatment.

I disagree.

They mainly purchase bankrupt theaters (that's how they got so big so fast) and after acquiring the Edwards chain in California, did very little to bring them current.

Your experience was probably with theaters they bought which were already nice.

[bchris02]

I disagree.

They mainly purchase bankrupt theaters (that's how they got so big so fast) and after acquiring the Edwards chain in California, did very little to bring them current.

Your experience was probably with theaters they bought which were already nice.

Bummer. Yeah you are probably right on that.

At least there is the new northside Warren which will still be owned by him.

[Ginkasa]

Regal is a large enough chain (and consists of enough previously independent chains) that quality is going to be largely dependent on region or even individual theatres. Hard to say how this will pan out for the two Oklahoma theatres, but I'm not optimistic.

[Pete]

The upshot is Regal is buying the 7 existing Warrens (1 in Moore, 1 in Broken Arrow and the rest in Kansas) but will still be developing and owning the theaters planned for North OKC and Midwest City and any future locations.

I suspect the Moore location will ultimately be rebranded to Regal.

[Ginkasa]

That seems odd to me. Strategically seeking off locations to unload dead weight or what not makes sense, but to dump all of your existing locations but still intend to remain in the same business with as yet unconstructed locations does not. At least to me.

[Pete]

I agree, it's weird.

I hope they actually plan on following through with the new OKC locations. I suppose this sale has been in the works long before they made those announcements, so that's a good sign.

[SoonerDave]

I agree, it's weird.

I hope they actually plan on following through with the new OKC locations. I suppose this sale has been in the works long before they made those announcements, so that's a good sign.

It would make complete sense if the Moore Warren were an underperformer. But everything I've read about it indicates it's a superior performer even on a national basis, particularly with its IMAX.

Makes me wonder if something *else* is going on in that area that turned Warren off about retaining that property. At some point, there has to be *some* explanation, unless Regal just threw a ton of money at him.

Yeah, I know, its just a movie theater. But, dangit, it's just frustrating to see something sold off to someone who almost certainly won't hold it to even a fraction of the same standards.

[Pete]

^

Or, precisely because it is such a good performer, they were able to cash out for a very good price.

[Zuplar]

That seems odd to me. Strategically seeking off locations to unload dead weight or what not makes sense, but to dump all of your existing locations but still intend to remain in the same business with as yet unconstructed locations does not. At least to me.

Yeah this honestly seems ass backwards to me.

Very disappointed in this news, the Moore Warren Theatre is the only theater I've gone to in the past 5 years. I mean I'll continue to give them a shot, but as soon as I see it going downhill, I'll just stop going to the movies. Hardly anything ever worth going to see in the theaters anyways, The lone exception for me has been Star Wars.

[SoonerDave]

^

Or, precisely because it is such a good performer, they were able to cash out for a very good price.

Certainly possible, but the way Warren has held these theaters to close to the vest over the years, so careful about the details and maintenance of every detail, it just sounds so screwball to hear he just sold out to a chain with a....less than spectacular reputation. It's like he's just kicking it to the curb.

[SoonerDave]

Regal Entertainment Group is one of if not the best of the national multiplex operators. I don't see it "going to the crapper" at all, at least based on my experience with flagship Regal Cinemas when I lived in Charlotte.

Uhm, no. They're more like the bottom-dweller real estate holding company that picks up failing stripmalls to squeeze whatever lingering revenue might be available from them, doesn't care if they deteriorate into oblivion. It might be worse than a WalMart for Movies.

[jerrywall]

The Norman regal has moldy ceiling tiles, crappy seats, overpriced concessions, and mediocre screens. Maybe they do things better elsewhere but this is disheartening to me.

[Urbanized]

I agree, it's weird.

I hope they actually plan on following through with the new OKC locations. I suppose this sale has been in the works long before they made those announcements, so that's a good sign.

I would guess Regal didn't want to be involved with taking over development mid-stream, or is not wanting to be in the development business at all right now, and that there is an agreement for Regal to purchase those after completion. He sold his flagship(s) in Wichita, for goodness sake. Sounds like he is looking to be out of the theater operations business.

[Ginkasa]

The Norman regal has moldy ceiling tiles, crappy seats, overpriced concessions, and mediocre screens. Maybe they do things better elsewhere but this is disheartening to me.

To be fair, this was largely true when that theatre was part of Hollywood Theatres before Regal purchased that whole company. With Warren just up north, I doubt Regal would have considered that theatre specifically was worth renovating.

I think the best we can hope for here is that Regal more or less allows business to continue as usual and we don't see much of a change other than branding.

[TU 'cane]

My family and I were very disappointed when we heard this news. We are hoping the one in Broken Arrow doesn't suffer. When we make it over there, it's a full on experience since we usually eat, drink, and then enjoy our movie. The amenities, decor, etc. all add to the ambiance and we really hope quality is kept up.

It seems Warren wanted to drop these locations off the books and is going to re-invest in more theaters, per his comments.

[jonny d]

My family and I were very disappointed when we heard this news. We are hoping the one in Broken Arrow doesn't suffer. When we make it over there, it's a full on experience since we usually eat, drink, and then enjoy our movie. The amenities, decor, etc. all add to the ambiance and we really hope quality is kept up.

It seems Warren wanted to drop these locations off the books and is going to re-invest in more theaters, per his comments.

I would agree with you, but he sold every one of his current theaters. Every single one. Unless he is wanting to start over from scratch, it seems weird to me (or that he just wants to retire).

[Questor]

I'm also really sad about this news... I just don't see how this makes things better in the long haul. At best, I think we hope things remain the same.

Now that being said... some positives that occur to me... if you look at the statements in the press supposedly attributed to Regal, this is part of a larger strategy for them to try to get into the high-end theater business. So it is possible they may actually leave things alone, learn what makes the Warren's tick, and then try to replicate that elsewhere. Another positive... I used to despise the Hollywood Spotlight 14 in Norman. After Regal took it over, they did improve it considerably... I recently watched a movie there that I couldn't find at the Warren and was really surprised that the seats seemed newer, and the projection systems had clearly been upgraded to digital systems. So maybe they are serious about wanting to try to add a high-end component to their business.

As far as why would Bill Warren sell... some of the comments he makes in some of his interviews about being courted by Regal leads me to believe he got a pretty awesome multiple of profits for his theaters. He might have tried to hang-on to the Moore Warren, but I'm guessing it is such a strong performer there was a lot of pressure to put them in the deal. A reporter in Kansas mentions that Warren was clearly emotional during his interview... and that he spoke about wanting to do a new concept and to do bigger and better things... it would make sense to sell everything off if he got a huge payout for it, and wants to go in a slightly different direction now and maybe start entering major markets that he has stayed away from such as Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, etc. If you look at all of his current holdings (now sold) they are small and medium sized cities. OKC is his jumping-off point to larger cities. The theater market has changed a lot... more and more companies are doing what the Warren does, but a lot of them, like the project getting underway in Edmond from the chain I can't think of the name of, will allow alcohol throughout the theater. That is a different model than what Warren has been doing... it is probably a much more lucrative model. I think he's cashed-out to change-up his model and to focus on larger cities. Another possibility is that he is old, and needs to exit the business entirely. In which case he may have swung a secret deal with Regal to complete his remaining theaters, get them operational, and then sell them off as well and retire.

[Urbanized]

^^^^^^
Just because we don't know about it here doesn't mean that it is "secret." Not all motives are nefarious.

[Questor]

1. Your comment added nothing of value; 2. There was nothing intended to be negative in my post, I was discussing business strategy; 3. "Just because we don't all know..." is literally the definition of secret.

[Urbanized]

No, you don't know about it because it wasn't reported, and because you most likely don't know the people involved in the deal (nor do I, or most of the people here). That doesn't mean anyone is keeping anything "secret." A secret implies an intent to withhold information, sometimes even through misdirection. There is no evidence of that here; there is only idle speculation on our part. Just because the entire world doesn't happen to know something doesn't mean it's a "secret."

Also, nice job leading off your response with an insult.