Cineworld may need more money if doors close again
Cinema operator fears renewed virus restrictions as studios delay major releases
Updated 24 September 2020
Reuters
LONDON: Cineworld said on Thursday it might need to raise more money if it is required to shut its theaters again following fresh pandemic curbs, as the world’s second-biggest cinema operator swung to a first-half loss, sending its shares down 17 percent.
The British company, for which the US is the largest market, said it was in talks with lenders to avoid an impending loan default, and flagged risks to its ability to continue as a “going concern” as studios delay major releases and people stay away from theaters.
“If governments were to strengthen restrictions on social gathering, which may therefore oblige us to close our estate again or further push back movie releases, it would have a negative impact on our financial performance and likely require the need to raise additional liquidity,” the company said.
Cineworld shares were down 17.5 percent at 42.3 pence in early trade.
New curbs could be a major setback after the cinema chain reopened 561 of its 778 sites. It had highlighted the strong performance of Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” earlier this month, and had said it was looking forward to other big movie releases.
But Walt Disney on Wednesday postponed the release of superhero movie “Black Widow” and Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story” until 2021 in another setback to cinema operators. “Mulan” also skipped most theaters and went directly to Disney’s streaming platform.
The world’s largest cinema chain, AMC, and Comcast Corp’s Universal Pictures agreed in July that the studio’s movies would be made available to US audiences at home after just three weekends in cinemas.
Cineworld Chief Executive Officer Mooky Greidinger, however, said his company would follow the usual route.
“Our policy regarding the theatrical window remains unchanged as an important part of our business model, and we will continue to only show movies that respect it,” he said in a statement.
The cinema operator posted a pretax loss of $1.64 billion for the six months ended June 30, from a profit of $139.7 million last year as its cinemas were shut from mid-March until August.
RLC Global Forum helping retail experts exchange knowledge around new tech, industry leaders say
Updated 6 sec ago
Rashid Hassan
RIYADH: New technologies used to improve customer experience and day-to-day operations are driving Saudi Arabia’s retail transformation, industry leaders have told Arab News during a high-profile gathering in Riyadh.
On the sidelines of the RLC Global Forum, key players in the sector spoke to Arab News about how artificial intelligence is playing an increasingly important role as tech-savvy consumers look for integration between the virtual and physical worlds.
They also praised the role of the forum in bringing stakeholders together to exchange knowledge and ideas, which is driving forward retail offerings in the Kingdom and beyond.
The two-day RLC Global Forum started on Feb. 3 under the strategic theme “Growth Crossroads,” and brought together more than 2,000 global leaders, policymakers, and innovators from over 40 countries to define the next chapter of growth across retail, consumer, and lifestyle industries.
Speaking to Arab News, Majid Al-Gothmi, acting CEO of shopping centre management company Red Malls, said: “The Saudi retail sector is changing under Vision 2030. The transformation has helped our growth.”
He agreed that digital tools, AI, and new technologies are being used to improve customer experience and day-to-day operations.
“It’s helping us a lot in actually profiling our customers, understanding them, and providing better services to the younger generation,” said Al-Gothmi.
“Gen Z constitutes a major component of the retail market. We can see that 70 percent of the consumers are Gen-Z — they do most of their shopping online, over 60 percent of them,” he added, going on to say that his company’s focus is on “future proofing” shopping malls by integrating technology along with physical space that allows people to mingle comfortably and seamlessly.
Al-Gothmi described the RLC Global Forum as “an excellent platform gathering all the developers, retailers, brands, and most importantly, policymakers.”
He added: “This is a first, I think, where they share their insights, challenges, and exchange solutions, which helps the whole industry to move faster.”
Stefania Lazzaroni, CEO of Italian luxury brands association Altagamma Foundation, told Arab News that she expects steady growth for high-end products and experiences in the Kingdom.
She said: “There’s a new trend about hospitality, fine dining, longevity, and health spa beauty. These are the key factors that are growing. And we believe fine dining, hospitality and spa health as well will be a new trend even in this area. Honestly, they have been doing well for a couple of years.”
Stefania Lazzaroni, CEO of Altagamma Foundation. AN
Lazzaroni asserted that digital tools, AI and new technologies are being used to improve customer experience, as “the luxury client is very specific about what they want.”
She added: “Artificial intelligence is really perfect for us. We have a lot of counterfeiting all around the world, so technology can really support luxury brands in protecting their brands.
“So we are very pro artificial intelligence, which is changing the game and giving more strength and potential for luxury brands.”
The CEO explained that AI is also useful for talking to Gen Z, “which will be the clients of the future.”
She added: “So today with social media, TikTok, and so forth, there is an explosion of beauty, Gen Z is very much active on this.”
Abdel-Salam Bdeir, CEO at the Saudi Co. for Hardware, agreed that the retail sector is changing under Vision 2030 transformation.
He told Arab News: “We are building new technologies for AI to be used and demand planning and inventory optimization, marketing, and pricing optimization, margin, maximization.
“Even in security cameras, communication with customers, shopping behavior targeting certain sectors of customers, we are building all that as we speak.”
Bdeir believes technological progress brings both opportunities and challenges, among them the risk of fewer jobs.
He said: “With major international platforms entering the market, not only the jobs, but money goes to other markets. That’s why the United States, UK, France, Italy, Spain, and Germany put strict regulations on international platforms first to meet safety standards for the consumer and environmental standards, and second to secure jobs for locals.
“They also put higher tariffs, customs duties, on developing markets like India, Egypt, Turkiye, Brazil, Mexico, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Malaysia.”
Bdeir added: “So what is in my opinion, necessary is for the regulators to do what European countries and developing markets did to protect jobs, consumers and the economy.”
