Popcorn is salt of the boxoffice

Popcorn is salt of the boxoffice

"unconscionably big"

is right. This is no surprise. But it's still awe-inspiring to see that an industry (and probably several if you count sports arenas and the like) could be built on a product that is essentially a lot of air marked up 90+%

I wasn't aware of the exact breakdowns of the overall revenue from concessions and ticket sales (approximately 30/70). Or the exact figures behind the profit margins

"When taking out film exhibition and advertising costs, admissions yielded a 47.7% profit margin for Regal for the period, while concessions hit an 85% margin when factoring in their cost. "

When you look at the fact that people are willing to pay it, and when it can possibly make the difference between your business succeeding or not, I can see how it's tempting to take the money where you can get it. But as I've always thought, a properly run business shouldn't be made or broken by peripheral services. And to that end, theaters should not bail themselves out by charging exorbitant fees for popcorn just because they can. Or maybe the big theaters should because their big picture is different. But I never will.

Free concessions! (Or at least Free Popcorn)