{"id":827035,"date":"2025-06-14T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-14T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=827035"},"modified":"2025-06-13T15:10:23","modified_gmt":"2025-06-13T13:10:23","slug":"the-130-year-old-south-african-company-that-remains-a-household-name-in-entertainment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/business\/827035\/the-130-year-old-south-african-company-that-remains-a-household-name-in-entertainment\/","title":{"rendered":"The 130-year-old South African company that remains a household name in entertainment"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Despite recent challenges, Ster-Kinekor has defied the odds and remains South Africa\u2019s leading movie exhibitor, being part of the country\u2019s entertainment history for over a century.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ster-Kinekor’s roots can be traced back<\/a> to 1896, when the first motion pictures were screened at the Empire Palace of Varieties, Johannesburg’s first custom-built 510-seater theatre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over time, the company evolved into the country’s cornerstone of cinema culture, adapting to new technologies and consumer behaviours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first dedicated cinema opened in 1910, marking the start of a new era for film in South Africa. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, progress soon met with adversity as the Great Depression took hold. In the aftermath, with optimism beginning to return, American entrepreneur I.W. Schlesinger established the African Theatres Trust. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Around the same time, Kinemas (S.A.) Ltd emerged as a rival, sparking a competitive period in local cinema. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two companies merged to form African Consolidated Theatres Ltd, coinciding with the entry of international studios like Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and 20th Century Fox into the local market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A major shift occurred in 1955 when African Consolidated Theatres was sold to 20th Century Fox. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fourteen years later, in 1969, the studio sold the business to South African financial services group Sanlam, which already owned Ster Films and Ster Theatres. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At that time, government regulations required the entities to operate separately as Ster and Kinekor. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But in 1970, the two were allowed to merge, officially forming Ster-Kinekor just as television was being introduced to South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the next few decades, Ster-Kinekor expanded steadily and adapted to the fast-changing entertainment landscape. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2008, the company began digitising its operations, launching 3D cinema offerings and, in 2011, introducing Ster-Kinekor Mobi, followed by apps and the premium Cine Prestige experience in 2012. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The company continued to innovate with initiatives such as IMAX ticket validation stations, self-service catering, and including beer, wine, and coffee at Cine Prestige sites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These upgrades reflected its ambition to enhance the cinema-going experience and keep pace with global trends in entertainment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Overcoming the odds<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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However, despite its innovations and brand loyalty, Ster-Kinekor faced significant challenges in the 2020s. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The COVID-19 pandemic triggered lockdowns that halted moviegoing. At the same time, the rise of streaming services transformed consumer habits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This was compounded by Eskom’s persistent load shedding and the Hollywood writers’ strike, further complicating the company’s recovery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The crisis prompted a Section 189 process in 2023, raising fears of mass retrenchments. However, the outcome was less severe than expected, with under 60 employees affected, and only two cinema locations closed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One year later, the business had regained financial stability, with CEO Mark Sardi reporting a healthier balance sheet and stronger year-on-year performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cinema attendance steadily improved between 2021 and 2023, although revenue growth in 2024 remained modest. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This was largely attributed to delayed release dates for major blockbusters, some of which were pushed out by 12 to 18 months. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sardi pointed out that new habits formed during lockdown also contributed to a slow rebound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you got onto the drug of watching a streaming service at home, and you\u2019re worried about travelling through traffic lights that don\u2019t work to a cinema that may or may not be on, it does become a bit of a disincentive to go,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Still, there\u2019s reason for optimism. PwC forecasts that box office revenues will return to pre-Covid levels by the end of 2027 and exceed 2019 levels by 2028. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A new strategy <\/h2>\n\n\n
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Ster-kinekor CEO Mark Sardi<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Ster-Kinekor has been actively reshaping its strategy to accelerate that recovery. Cost-cutting, content optimisation, and creative customer incentives have all played a part.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Throwback Thursdays, offering R50 movie tickets, bundle deals between Monday and Wednesday, revised theatre rental prices, and upgraded tech systems have all helped reinvigorate consumer interest. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sardi noted that there are now, on average, 20% more \u201cbums in seats\u201d than there were a year ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although the company is closing its Cavendish and Gateway sites, expansion is still part of its strategy. Four new locations are expected to open in 2025. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ster-Kinekor is also exploring<\/a> alternative uses for some cinema spaces, including non-traditional entertainment like axe-throwing arenas and rage rooms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, Ster-Kinekor remains South Africa\u2019s leading film exhibitor. It boasts 57 commercial cinema complexes in South Africa and six additional sites in Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With 40 years of on-screen advertising experience, it also provides conferencing venues and live-streaming services. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Its infrastructure includes 19 Cine Prestige theatres, seven IMAX screens, 303 digital screens, and 121 3D-enabled screens, offering more than 87,000 seats countrywide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With a loyalty base nearing two million, its iconic blue branding and cinema doors remain open. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ster-Kinekor cinemas<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ster-Kinekor remains South Africa\u2019s leading movie exhibitor, being part of the country\u2019s entertainment history for over a century.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":827061,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9872],"tags":[2407,853,7038],"class_list":["post-827035","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-pwc","tag-south-africa","tag-ster-kinekor"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/827035","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/92"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=827035"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/827035\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":827065,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/827035\/revisions\/827065"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/827061"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=827035"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=827035"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=827035"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}