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You must not have read my post completely. My point was that if you can break even on a weekday, stay open, and that it takes surprisingly little to break even or have the same costs as if you weren't open. Due to the high cost of oil, do you shut off your HVAC system on the days you're closed, or are you paying that cost any ways? How much more would it really cost to keep the building heated at a comfortable temperature vs. turning the thermostat very low, then burning a bunch of oil to bring the temperature back up to comfort when you ARE open.

I'm sure I don't say this often enough but this forum is really wonderful. Both Mike Spaeth and Narrow Gauge have differing viewpoints but they put them both out with cohesive arguments for either side. Which is exactly what I need. I need to hear the pros and cons so that I can make the best decision for my business and that is exactly what I get here. Kudos to the forum!

Back to the question at hand: I think utility costs and staffing costs are actually pretty high compared to the lackluster weekday sales I get. On the other hand, though, there are some non-financial considerations as well as Mike pointed out. I'm going to run some figures here to see the financial considerations more clearly and see where that leads me.

[This message has been edited by leeler (edited August 29, 2007).]

No problem. That's why I enjoy these forums!

Thanks for all your input....I think consistency is important as well. I know if a business has flucutating hours it's hard to remember "when" they are actually open but if you open and you see nobody coming on a Monday, why be open? It's a tough call.

I might do 7 days a week when we first open and do a late afternoon show and one evening show to catch the High School Kids or stay at home Mom's and the Seniors who have their Wednesday lunch at the community center next door. I've thought of doing a "Bring your Baby" show one day a week for Mom's who don't go to the movies for fear of their small ones crying and bothering others. Just a thought....

Thanks for the input!

Tom

We have a 5-screen in a small town (15,000-20,000). We use the following schedule when school is in session:

Friday - 3 sets (1st show 4:00, last show 10:00)
Saturday - 5 sets (1st show 11:30, last show 10:00)
Sunday - 4 sets (1st show 11:30, last show 8:00)
Monday-Thursday - 2 sets (1st show 4:00, last show 8:00)

Hey Mike, compared to my 3,500 and 600 actual town residents, your small town is a metropolis.

Ha ha, wow. That's small...