TORONTO — Unbiased cinemas in Toronto and Ottawa are arising with other ways to generate money as COVID-19 restrictions drive them to close their doorways for a second time for the reason that pandemic started.
From providing patrons the possibility to have their names grace cinema partitions for a worth, to promoting concession stand staples on the entrance door, the theatres say they’re doing what they will to remain afloat.
“Something we will do, we are going to do as a result of we will’t be open for screenings or leases,” mentioned Josh Stafford, the proprietor of the Mayfair Theatre in Ottawa.
Ontario introduced tighter guidelines for Toronto, Peel Area and Ottawa on Friday in a bid to deal with a surge in COVID-19 circumstances. The measure included having cinemas shut for 28 days.
On the Mayfair, clients pays to have their names on a theatre wall, in addition to on couches, above emergency exits and even toilet stalls.
The Ottawa theatre started permitting clients to purchase naming rights to seats throughout the first shutdown of cinemas ordered by the province within the spring and offered out spots for all its 325 seats. The Mayfair is now providing patrons the possibility to have their names on plaques on a wall.
“These are beginning to promote lots which is simply very good. In order that’s one factor we’re doing to get in a number of {dollars},” Stafford mentioned.
The Mayfair additionally supplied a video-on-demand service by way of hyperlinks offered from impartial distributors throughout its first shutdown and is contemplating it once more, Stafford mentioned.
“The weird factor is, we’re a film theatre, we by no means anticipated to be a streaming service or a video retailer type of factor however a lot of our patrons made use of it,” he mentioned.
Just like the Mayfair, the Fox Theatre in Toronto additionally supplied naming rights for seats throughout the first shutdown and offered out all accessible spots. It’s now providing popcorn and sweet, in addition to beer and wine from a front-door concession stand to herald money throughout the present shutdown.
Proprietor and programmer Andy Willick mentioned the meals gross sales solely cowl a small proportion of the theatre’s typical income however each little bit helps.
“Our neighborhood has been actually supportive throughout our closure,” he mentioned.
The Paradise Theatre, one other impartial cinema in Toronto, has created what it calls a “Bottle Store” the place clients can store for wine, spirits and cheeses out of the foyer or by supply.
“With us not capable of function Paradise Theatre because it was meant, we had no selection however to pivot,” normal supervisor Keegan Ferguson mentioned in an electronic mail.
The theatre additionally gives patio eating at its restaurant, which Ferguson mentioned has been the corporate’s “lifeblood” throughout the pandemic.
Stafford, on the Mayfair in Ottawa, mentioned he hopes the COVID restrictions solely final a month.
“We’re simply type of standing by and hoping for the perfect,” he mentioned.
This report by The Canadian Press was first printed Oct. 15, 2020.
This story was produced with the monetary help of the Fb and Canadian Press Information Fellowship.
Denise Paglinawan, The Canadian Press
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