An Austin, Texas-based movie theater chain that caters to the cinematic experience with in-seat dining options and a full-service bar may be up for sale.
Alamo Drafthouse, founded in Austin during the 1990s by entrepreneur and film producer Tim League and his wife, Karrie League, is hitting the open market, according to Hollywood news outlet Deadline. A spokesperson for Alamo Drafthouse did not respond to requests to comment from CoStar News.
Variety, a Hollywood trade magazine, said Alamo Drafthouse reportedly reached out to film studios in the Los Angeles area and asked them about any interest in buying the movie theater chain.
Alamo Drafthouse being on the market could be a watershed moment for the movie theater industry. Movie theaters have struggled to pull in audiences since the start of the pandemic in March 2020.
Alamo Drafthouse filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in March 2021 from its creditors to restructure as it sought to survive what the pandemic wrought on the industry.
Gower Street Analytics, a company that researches and reports on worldwide box office numbers, showed 2024 was off to a slow start for movie ticket sales. The global box office for January 2024 collected $2.25 billion, a significant drop from the $3.6 billion in ticket sales for January 2023, according to Gower Street Analytics.
Alamo Drafthouse has about 40 locations across the country, with the majority in Texas but also theaters in California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, New York and North Carolina. Its theaters in the Lone Star State include five in Austin, one in Corpus Christi, five in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, two in El Paso, Texas, one in Houston, and two in San Antonio.
The movie theater chain has a section on its website dedicated to real estate for people thinking about buying a franchise. Prospective franchise owners must have a net worth of at least $10 million and have $3 million on hand in cash to be considered for a franchise location.
Alamo Drafthouse’s real estate requirements call for any new franchise owner to have a building between 40,000 square feet and 45,000 square feet in size on 1 acre of land. The theater must also have eight to 10 screens and between 800 and 1,000 seats.
Alamo Drafthouse opened its first-ever location at 409 Colorado in downtown Austin in 1997. The space was later converted into a creative office for Walmart, but the property was sold in 2020 and later demolished to make way for an office and residential tower.