Relax and sink into a deeply reclining cushioned sofa, rest your head on a soft pillow and pull up the warm, silky blanket. Take a sip from your favourite chilled drink and grab a handful of cheesy popcorn from the overflowing bucket on the table attached to your seat. As you breathe in the familiar aromas in the chilled air, your eyes slowly adjust to the dim light as the screen flickers to life.
It's showtime in one of the 520 cinemas operated by Thailand's largest lifestyle and entertainment company, Major Cineplex Plc, which celebrated its 20th anniversary earlier this year. In the next decade, the Major empire is poised to grow even larger, and not just in Thailand.
"The growth area for the cinema industry is in Asia. Everyone is focusing on this region as double-digit growth will only be in Asia," said Vicha Poolvaraluck, the founder and chairman of SET-listed Major.
There was a time not long ago when many people thought that movie piracy would be the death of cinemas. But the cinema industry itself has undergone a transformation and going to the movies is a lot more appealing now than it was one or two decades ago.
"Before, people were afraid of piracy, but now they understand that going to the movies is much different than before," said Mr Vicha.
People today like to go out to enjoy the movie experience, he says, especially in Asia where many people live in small apartments or condos and don't spend much time at home. While the movie industry in Europe and North America is at a mature stage, Asia is home to a huge, younger and increasingly affluent audience.
"Half of the people in Vietnam are younger than 35 years old while the average age in Thailand is about 38. This is very young. We do not have the ageing problem [of developed economies] and we are the consumers of the world," he said.
The rise of India and China alone is enough to ensure high potential growth for the entertainment industry. India produces more movies than any other country — as many as 1,200 a year — but has only about 13,000 cinemas, compared with 30,000 in China, which has a similar population.
"I believe that the growth potential in India is mammoth. Indians love movies and the market share for Bollywood movies in India is over 90 %," said Mr Vicha. "India is an extremely powerful market in terms of size and movie culture."
The lure of Bollywood is so strong, he says, that movie producers do not even have to pay for their television advertisements. People look forward to new movie trailers so much that television stations can count on a jump in viewer numbers when a hit film comes out.
That helps explains why India is one of the markets Major is pursuing. The Bangkok-based company holds a 6.41% stake in Indian's leading multiplex cinema company PVR Limited (PVRL) and 49% in PVR blu-O Entertainment Ltd, a joint venture with PVRL, with over 100 bowling alleys and karaoke centres across India.
"I have been going back and forth to India for seven years," said Mr Vicha. "When we entered the market, PVR had only around 70 theatres; now it has almost 400. The profit there has grown five-fold for us."
In China, between 3,000 and 5,000 new screens have been added in each of the last three years, and the country will have 50,000 screens before long.
"China is becoming the major driver of the global movie industry," said Mr Vicha. "Within three years, the country is expected to be the biggest market for movies in the world, surpassing the United States."
For Hollywood producers, China has become the priority market because a blockbuster on the order of a Fast & Furious movie can make profits of $300 million or more. To stay a step ahead of the pirates, studios make sure their movies are dubbed, subtitled and ready to release in key Asian markets at the same time as they hit North American screens.
While Major does not have any plans for China at the moment, Mr Vicha says the huge size of the Chinese market will spur demand for more movie content of all kinds, and in this area Thai-produced films have potential. Major has its bases covered through the film distribution subsidiary M Pictures Entertainment Plc.
"It's our role to lead the Thai film industry abroad," said Mr Vicha. "We can't just think locally anymore, we have to think globally. That's why we are bringing Major to the CLMV (Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Myanmar) markets because if we don't provide the outlet for [Thai films], it will be difficult for them to grow.
"It's a cross-cultural attempt. The snowball effect will be seen as more people in the region are exposed to Thai movies through our outlets."
Currently, the market share for Thai films screened in Thailand is only 35% while in Korea, local films have a 60% share, showing that there is still a potential for growth both domestically and internationally, he said.
GROWING REGIONALLY
"When Major decides to enter a market, it has to be a big hit," said Mr Vicha. "We have to deliver the experience beyond their expectation: the kind of experience that will 'Wow!' them."
His vision is to always position Major as the best in the business. "It's all about branding and positioning. We are confident that we offer the best product and the customer will choose us despite the higher price." In Cambodia, Major has partnered with the local operator Platinum Cineplex to set up a joint venture called Major Platinum Cambodia, which has partnered with Aeon, the Japanese shopping mall developer, in Cambodia. It now has seven theatres in Phnom Penh including one cinema with reclining box-seat chairs and one with 4DX screens.
But Major didn't decide to enter Cambodia overnight, despite the potential. "It took me four years to find the right partner and location," Mr Vicha said, adding that he turned down many offers from local malls and cinema operators.
While one would expect movie tickets in Cambodia to be priced low in line with local incomes, Major in fact charges prices similar to those in Thailand and still sells very well. "We can never underestimate our customers," he said.
Mr Vicha also visited Laos four times last year to learn more about the market, and in Vietnam he is patiently waiting for the right time, partner and location. "The best way is to play safe," he says. "Many places in the CLMV markets don't even have a well-established department store yet."
In the Philippines, the market is quite different as cinemas are built as magnets to attract large groups of people, with extremely cheap tickets and low-quality films. It's not the sort of market that interests Major at the moment.
Major Cineplex in Phnom Penh, the company's first big overseas venture, has seven screens and 1,560 seats.
GROWING LOCALLY
Mr Vicha has expanded his empire by logically choosing the right businesses that are related to his core cinema business and slowly building an entertainment portfolio, such as bowling, karaoke, ice skating rinks, film distribution, advertising and property development. With a stake of 34.5%, Mr Vicha is the largest shareholder in Major, which has been listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand since 2002.
Major has a 91% stake in M Pictures Entertainment Plc and 50% in the karaoke service K Arena Co Ltd. It also holds stakes in the neighbourhood-mall developer Siam Future Development Plc (SF), the ticket sales channel Thaiticketmajor Co Ltd (TTM) and the Major Cineplex Lifestyle Leasehold Property Fund (MJLF).
Last year, Major posted a consolidated net profit of 1.08 billion baht on revenue totalling 9.05 billion baht, up from 1.05 billion baht in profit on 8.23 billion in revenue the year before.
Mr Vicha said the company aimed to expand by 60-70 screens annually, to about 600 screens this year, 700 next year and 1,000 by 2020, 900 of which will be in Thailand. Locally, most of the growth will be outside of Bangkok.
"Thailand has 77 provinces and Major is only present in 33 provinces," said Mr Vicha. "There are so many left for us to explore."
He likens provincial audiences in Thailand to those in India, where moviegoing is a major social activity. "It's always a big event. One car will pack seven to 10 people as they come with their friends or family. They consume more popcorn and we see these branches as a major driver of our business."
In contrast, Bangkok residents' lifestyle is similar to that of people in New York, Tokyo and London — not much time, always in a rush, fighting traffic, eating out and mingling with friends. Many people watch movies alone just to pass time.
But Mr Vicha also sees movie culture as a way to build relationships. "What is better than going to the movies to spending time together for few hours after a good dinner?"
His dream, however, goes far beyond building 1,000 or 2,000 cinemas. "My success will be complete when the Thai cinema industry grows larger, becoming the forth-largest industry in Asia from China, Japan and South Korea. That is my dream."
For Mr Vicha, the cinema business will never die despite the growing concern about piracy, television or online viewing. "Cinema always is at the top of the list when we talk about the lifestyle of the new generation. It's all about the experience."