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Company Profile
Muvico: Judgment Day
A chain of luxury movie theaters brings fame and fortune to its founder, a visionary immigrant. But the founder and his investors fall out.
The sequel
Hashemi, meanwhile, will launch his ambitious new concept, IPic Entertainment -- "The Great American Destination" -- this summer in Milwaukee. Hashemi, as he did at Muvico, says you must give people a reason to leave their homes. "The theaters that are going to survive are the ones that give you an experience," he says. "You have to offer service and amenities they can't find in their homes."
Hashemi thinks the industry needs to change -- fast. He forecasts the window between a movie's theater and DVD releases shrinking to essentially nothing, and he readily cites the numbers, Wall Street studies and studio executives' comments to buttress his point. In IPic, he believes he has a draw. It will combine in a single facility a tony restaurant, bar, luxury bowling, a live stage auditorium with cabaret-style seating and also will have six to 10 luxury movie theaters, with every seat a love seat and every row 54 inches behind and 24 inches higher than the row in front.
"The theater is a small portion of the revenue in this facility," Hashemi says. "It's about a night out of entertainment and about having options to choose. I want to build a product that's around for the next 20 to 30 years."
Tickets -- priced double the local going rate -- for assigned seats will be purchased online along with concessions that will be delivered to patrons at their assigned seats. Popcorn and valet parking will be free with ticket purchases. The live stage will be used for comedy, music or meeting events.
Children and teens will be allowed in only for shows before 6 p.m. and will be allowed to bowl only until 9 p.m. His entire focus is on the profitable demographic ages 21 to 45. He intends to avoid drawing teens, whose presence works against the image and ambience of upscale shopping and dining centers where he plans to locate. He anticipates opening four in 2008 and six a year thereafter in the
nation's top 50 markets.
For capital, he has tapped south Florida investors. Developers are fronting construction costs.
Hashemi says his wife is recovering. "Thank God she's doing well," he says. "Once my wife's treatment was done, I got on this full time. I've been working like a dog since then."
To be continued ...
