Comments on: Sneaking Candy Into Movie Theaters: Frugal Or Cheap?

By: Andrew

Andrew — Sun, 06 May 2012 02:37:38 +0000

I don’t mind admitting that I bring my own candy in when I’m at the theater. My reasoning?

A) Theaters near me obviously make loads of money off of ticket sales. (most theaters near me charge $12+ per ticket – at a chain in Arizona called Harkins, it’s $7. I doubt the studios are charging the huge companies like Regal and AMC more than they are charging a small company like Harkins.)

B) I’m a college student. I’m lucky if I can afford a movie ticket in the first place. I can’t afford to pay triple or quadruple the amount just so they make ridiculous profit. The store I buy my $1 box of candy from is making a profit off of it, so why does the theater feel it should be able to make triple the profit the grocery store makes? Because they know they can charge it and people will pay it.

I do, however, always buy a drink. For two reasons: I’m always thirsty, and I know how much profit they make on sodas. I’m a manager at Arby’s and we make more than 300% profit on soda. A movie theater sells a drink for around $4, whereas my 300% calculation is based on a $1.59 drink, putting their profit at around $750%. By the time I’ve left the theater, they have made ridiculous profits off of me without me buying their overpriced candy.

By: Nope

Nope — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 15:23:19 +0000

Thats what the ticket price is for. You pay the ticket to “rent” the space (hence admission or “admit one”). Anything to do with the snacks is basically extra. So they overprice the snacks and tell you that food isn’t allowed inside basically forcing you to buy it if you want something to eat during a movie. Just like many entertainment venues such as sport stadiums they abuse the location and rules they make in their favor. its almost like a trap. I’d say hey if you can sneak in the food and beverages more power to you, save a few bucks.

By: How America’s Thriftiest Families Save Money

How America’s Thriftiest Families Save Money — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 12:24:30 +0000

[...] likes to hit the $1 movie theater, and when they do, they like to sneak in a few treats. Whether sneaking candy into a theater qualifies as frugal or cheap was the subject of a hot debate here at Frugal Dad just a couple weeks [...]

By: Gunther Rollins

Gunther Rollins — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 19:54:29 +0000

Work something out with management? We aren’t free to do what we want? What kind of pansies are you? You ARE free to do whatever you want. As long as you aren’t tearing up the theater seats and yelling profanities during the flick, damn right you can bring food in. Hell, I’ll bring a 4-course meal and a cooler full of ice cream if I want, because this is the free world – not communist Russia or a Chinese prison camp. Just because there’s a sign doesn’t mean it’s right. Go follow signs and live like a sheep if you want. I’ll be exercising my free will and jaywalking all over town.

By: Free Summer Activities for Kids

Free Summer Activities for Kids — Wed, 19 May 2010 09:05:15 +0000

[...] local theater offers popcorn for a dollar and drinks for a dollar). You won’t even have to sneaking in candy at the movies! Not all theaters participate, but it’s definitely worth looking into in your [...]

By: Falnur

Falnur — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 07:28:45 +0000

“Who cares what people think about bringing in snacks to the movie theatre. I don’t go very often and I don’t like many of the snacks the theatre has…so, I bring my own. You’re not going to stop me so …I’ll continue to do what’s best for me. Sorry, but that’s the way things are now. Deal with it.”

buxita, I wonder if you were the one trying to run a business and people ignored your posted policy’s and then told you to ” deal with it ” if you tried to enforce the policy how you would react. Would you simply let them ignore the policy or would you deny them entrance to your business?

Bottom line. If theaters do not make good money, and I mean REAL good money, at their snack bar they will close or be forced to shift to being a ” Discount Theater ” that can’t get a print for 5-10 weeks after the ” 1st Run ” theaters.

It is insanely expensive to operate a theater and most to the revenue from ticket sales goes to the studios. Your big urban multi-plex theater might, if their lucky, get to keep $2.50 out of the $12.00 they charge for their ticket. AND if they tried lowering their ticket prices the the studios would simple not give them the movie on the break and everyone would drive across town to see the film at the theater that has the ” New ” film. Most film goers simply will not wait.

Oh something in the news this week, two major theater chains, AMC and Regal I think, announced this week that they are going to be enforcing a strict ” No outside food or drink ” policy. This is not a “New” thing for them, they have had this policy for a long time, they are just making a point to alert people that they are going to be cracking down.

By: Chris

Chris — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 16:45:35 +0000

I have absolutely no problem with bringing food into a movie theater. The prices they charge are ridiculous. If the prices were more “realistic” more people would buy food and drinks. It is really nice having a dollar store across the street from the theater. You can buy the large box of Hot Tamales or Dots for $1 as opposed to $4.00 or $4.50. Hey,how about this idea… The movie theater buys their candy at the dollar store for $1.00 and sells it for $2.00 at the theater. For $1.00 more, most people would not bother making an extra stop.

By: Mary Smith

Mary Smith — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 05:11:41 +0000

When I was a kid, going to the movies was a special treat. My mother always told us “You go to the movies to see the film not to eat.” So it always blows my mind to see people walk into the theatre and go directly to the concession stand to load up, even if they just left the dinner table.

By: kare

kare — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 02:53:42 +0000

You know, people would be more willing to buy snacks at the theater concession stands if they’d drop the prices a bit.

Even if they were higher than the store price, but not the crazy amount they are now.

Even with a lower price, the theaters would make more, because far more people would give in the the convience of buying on the spot.

By: tillmancisco

tillmancisco — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 02:31:58 +0000

LOL this is funny my cousin and I were just talking about this the other day……I say purchase you items prior to getting into the movies. It’s not being cheap it’s being smart !!There is a recession going on, bad enough we are paying way too much money for the tickets. so when you add the snacks into that total bill you almost spent around 30 to 50 bucks on one nights entertainment. I would rather keep that 50 bucks go buy some shoes and wait till the movies comes out on dvd and pay for a previously viewed copy from hollywood video for $5.00.