Santikos Theatres will expand from 121 screens in the San Antonio, Texas area to 377 screens in seven states across the Southeast with the purchase of 17 new theatres, the company has announced. The theatre chain, founded in San Antonio in 1911, will acquire The Grand Theatres and AmStar Cinemas from New Orleans-based VSS-Southern Theatres, making Santikos the eighth largest theatre chain in North America.
The purchase will give Santikos theatres in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina along with Texas. It is Santikos’ first major acquisition and has been in the works since 2018.
“And we may not be done,” said Santikos CEO Tim Handren. Handren said the Southern Theatres were attractive because they were similar to Santikos theatres in their attendance numbers and were already upgraded with reclining seats. The new theatres will not be rebranded.
Santikos has returned to pre-pandemic visitor numbers, Handren said, and said those figures are outpacing the country as whole. He attributed that to Santikos delivering “a great experience,” but credited San Antonio with being a town full of movie lovers.
“And people know we operate for the benefit of the community,” he said.
The acquisition brings the number of theatres operated by Santikos from 10 – all in the San Antonio metro area – to 27, including locations Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina.
On top of operational changes, within the next couple of years, the newly acquired theatres will have the San Antonio touch, Handren said. Each renovation will include expanded fooand beverage options, luxury recliners and laser movie projectors.