santikos on military

Santikos On Military - Santikos Entertainment is offering one free movie ticket per day until May 31 to all active and retired military personnel. Santikos Entertainment

Santikos Entertainment is offering one free movie ticket per day to active and retired military personnel until May 31st.

Santikos On Military

According to a news release from the San Antonio movie theater chain on Friday, the promotion is a way to thank the "brave men and women" during National Military Appreciation Month. All active and retired military will have to provide proof of their service to redeem the offer, according to the statement.

Santikos Entertainment Mayan Palace

The entertainment company reopened its Palladium, Casa Blanca and Cibolo locations on May 2 after Gov. Greg Abbott announced that movie theaters can reopen at 25 percent capacity. The Mayan Palace 14, located at 1918 SW Military Drive, will be back in business starting Thursday, May 21.

In the theaters that have reopened, some seats and aisles have been closed to ensure social distancing. There are also only three times a day. Guests are encouraged to wear face coverings, but they are not required. You can buy tickets online or at a kiosk.

Next week, Santikos will unveil its "Military Series" where it will screen war movies like "Saving Private Ryan" at its locations. For showtimes and more information, visit santikos.com. 2020 was a gloomy year for cinemas. In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, the domestic box office dropped by 80% from 2019 as theatergoers stayed home in droves, choosing to watch shows and movies on streaming platforms like Disney Plus, Netflix and Amazon Prime.

Locally, Santikos Enterprises in San Antonio also felt the pinch, although it has been open since May with COVID-19 safety measures such as weekly virus testing for employees, and advanced hygiene and sanitation methods in its theaters. A typical year of revenue would have been around $110 to $115 million dollars, according to CEO Tim Handren. The number taken last year was only about a quarter of that. Not only is that bad for keeping the business open, but it also meant that no profits were donated to the San Antonio Area Foundation, to which Santikos contributes in accordance with the recent directive of the movie theater chain's owner, John L. Santikos .

Alamo Parkway And Loop 1604, San Antonio, Tx 78253

Looking ahead to 2021, Handren says "If we can get back to where we are at 50 percent of normal, that's great."

The introduction of a vaccine means that there is light at the end of a long dark tunnel, but what is on the other side? I spoke with Tim Handren via Zoom a few days before Christmas. We opened our conversation by talking about the details of a $50 million loan Santikos received in December from the federal Main Street Loan Program and a local sponsor, The Bank of San Antonio. Handren also suggests changes to the company's future expansion plans, and mentions new security measures in the theaters: "We are innovating in a very different way... It's not about sound and projection, it's about the protection and security of our guests and employees."

This transcript has been edited for clarity and length. To hear the full interview, use the audio player at the top of this story.

Nathan Cone: I'll start with a movie reference. In "Philadelphia," Denzel Washington goes on and says, "Okay, explain this to me when I'm six years old." And that's how I want to start. Tell me this as a six year old. What exactly does the $50 million loan you get from the Bank of San Antonio do for Santikos' books right now and in the near future?

Santikos Silverado Is A Place For Movies, Games, And Giving Back

Tim Handren: So let me give you a little background on where we were before we got this loan. So when John Santikos died in 2014 and left this gift to this community, his businesses, his real estate businesses, theater business, he was not without debt. There was a few hundred million dollars in debt that came with what John left behind... for building those theaters. So let's fast forward to 2020. We still have debt on many of these theaters. And because we are in an industry that the bankers considered very dangerous, they look at us as ... in banking terms, they call this "exercise" or "special asset." A special asset is a polite way of saying, we think you're in trouble and we don't think you'll make it. And so what they do - this is banking practice, I'm not making a judgment - but what they do is they tend to look at the healthiest companies first and they say we should take as much of the equity as we can. of your business to pay off your debt ... at a time when what we were trying to do as a business was keep all our money, cut all our costs and continue and survive. That's what many people in the entertainment business, hotel business, bars, restaurants, they all have to do. So our bankers literally sat on our necks and said "you have to pay your debt."

And we looked at this loan. It's actually called Main Street Loan through San Antonio Bank as our sponsoring bank. But it is actually a loan from the Federal Reserve System from Boston. They said "We want to provide a bridge to businesses that need it. We know you may have debt or you may have expenses that you cannot handle right now. We will provide up to $50 million dollars in loans. And what we are going to do for that loan we are not going to ask you to pay back the principal and interest for the first year so by getting this loan what we could do is to pay the bankers who owe us pay, and continue to pay, or service our debt. interest, no capital And in the second year we only pay interest And so what this buys us is time So from a cash flow perspective, I don't have to pay that debt down. what cash we have to pay for our employees and pay for our operating expenses But I don't have to worry about paying t it for the next 12 months and an extra 12 months of interest alone It's a big deal.

You mentioned a moment ago that there was a federal loan behind it, but the Bank of San Antonio had to approve it for you... is that the way it works?

We had to find a bank that was willing to work with us...and Bank of San Antonio...they stepped in at a time when we needed it because they felt our business was doing well, we are a strong company. And when they signed with us earlier this year, they liked what they saw. So, yes, they are the sponsoring bank to get us into the Federal Reserve application process and they bear a little bit of risk. They bear about five percent of the risk of the entire loan. They do not bear the full $50 million dollars in risk. They carry, to tell the truth, two and a half million dollars.

Coats Donated During The Cold Days, Warm Hearts Winter Coat Drive On Friday, January 3!

In addition to his theaters, Santikos owns multiple real estate properties throughout the community. Is that something that can be used to pay off future loans?

Those shopping centers already have loans against them. When I was talking about the Bank of San Antonio who knew us very well ... we refinanced a lot of our real estate debt around that mall with Bank of San Antonio beginning [2020]. And that's how they came to understand our business practices and how solid the company really is. So they are already deployed. Again, that was part of what the $200 million in debt that John left behind, that's part of.

Looking ahead to 2021, what kind of revenue do you need to generate, and do you hope to generate in the future to maintain a steady path up for operations and for loans that will mature? (Even if they are very favorable in the first two years of seasons.)

This is the crystal ball that everyone is trying to find. What will 2021 hold in terms of consumer behavior? If we can get back to 50 percent of normal by the end of 2021, that would be great. A typical year we would do about $110 to $115 million dollars in total revenue. And if we can get back to where we are at 50 percent of normal, that's great. That will put us in a position where we take care of all our expenses and depreciation. And then we can​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​back to the San Antonio Area Foundation, the net proceeds from our operation.

Here's Where To Play Live Trivia In San Antonio Almost Any Night Of The Week

I was talking about this at lunch