SF Group

Infobox Company
company_name = SF Group
company_logo =
company_type = Private
foundation = 1999
location = Bangkok, Thailand
key_people = Suwat Thongrompo, president
Suvit Thongrompo, managing director
Suvannee Chinchiewchan, Deputy Managing Director
Supat Ngamwongpaiboon, Marketing Director
industry = Movie theaters
Bowling alleys
Karaoke booths
products = SF Cinema City (SFC)
SFX Cinemas
SF World Cinema (SFW)
SF Multiplex (SFM)
revenue =
operating_income =
net_income =
num_employees = 1500
parent =
subsid =
homepage = [http://www.sfcinemacity.com www.sfcinemacity.com]
footnotes =

SF Group is a movie-theater and entertainment-leisure venue operator in Thailand. Behind the combined operations of Major Cineplex and the EGV chain, SF Group is the second-largest theater chain in Thailand, with more than 150 screens in 22 locations.

History

SF Group is a privately held company owned by the Thongrompo family, headed by Suwat Thongrompo as president and his younger brother Suvit Thongrompo as managing director.

The Thongrompo family is from Eastern Thailand, where its Samarn Film Co operated movie theaters since the 1970s in Chonburi, Rayong and Chanthaburi.

The company become known as SF Cinema City in 1999 when it opened its first multiplex in Bangkok on the seventh floor of MBK Center. [Amnatcharoenrit, Bamrung (May 24, 2002) [http://www.siamfuture.com/ThaiNews/ThNewsTxt.asp?tid=1282 "New family in the frame"] , "Bangkok Post", via Siamfuture.com.] The still centered mainly in Bangkok and the Eastern Seaboard provinces, in 2005, the company expanded to southern Thailand, opening SFX Central Festival cinema in Phuket Town. An SF Cinema City branch in the Jungceylon complex on Patong Beach followed in October 2007.

Also in 2007, the company undertook a major branding change, with the corporate name SF Group adopted in March 2007.

Theaters and locations

:"Main article: SF Group cinemas"As of 2007, SF Group has 24 branches throughout Thailand, mainly concentrated in Bangkok and in eastern Thailand. The chain's theater brands include:
* SF World Cinemas (SFW) – "Ultra Chic" is the concept behind the company's new flagship location at CentralWorld. It features 15 screens consisting of two First Class screens and one Grand Theatre with over 900 seats that can also be converted into a performing-arts theater. It is designed by Gensler architects. [Rungfapaisarn, Kwanchai (July 5, 2006) [http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2006/07/05/business/business_30008015.php "SF Cinema projects Bt2-bn plan"] , "The Nation".] The cinema opened in January 2007.
* SF Cinema City (SFC) – Large multiplex theaters that are packaged with restaurants, bowling lanes and karaoke booths, usually taking up an entire floor in a shopping center.
* SFX Cinema – "Boutique Chic" is the concept behind these multiplexes, which emphasize luxury. Branches include the The Emporium, Central Plaza Lat Phrao and Central Festival Phuket.
* SF Multiplex (SFM) – These are smaller multiplexes located in eastern Thailand.

Future projects

Expansion plans by SF Cinema City includes:
* SFX Cinema Chaengwattana – To be located at the Central Group's new shopping center, Central Plaza Chaengwattana, in Amphoe Pak Kret, Nonthaburi Province.
* SFX Cinema Pattaya Beach – To be located at the Central Group's new shopping center, Central Festival Pattaya Beach, in Pattaya, Cholburi Province.
* SF Cinema City Sriracha – To be located at the new shopping center, Harbour Mall, in Amphoe Sri Racha, Cholburi Province.
* SF Cinema City Cholburi – To be located at the Central Group's new shopping center, Central Plaza Cholburi, in Amphoe Muang, Cholburi Province.
* SF Cinema City Khon Kaen – To be located at the Central Group's new shopping center, Central Plaza Khon Kaen, in Amphoe Muang, Khon Kaen Province.

Bowling, karaoke and gaming business

* SF City - An entertainment complex bundled with bowling alleys, karaoke rooms and video arcades
** SF City - Jungceylon, Phuket Thailand
* SF Strike Bowl - Bowling alley chain with more than 210 lanes.
** SF Strike - MBK Center, Bangkok, (28 lanes)
** SF Strike - Jungceylon, Phuket (16 lanes).
** SF Strike Bowl - The Mall Bangkapi, Bangkok (38 lanes).
** SF Strike Bowl - The Mall Ngamwongwan, Bangkok (42 lanes)
** SF Strike Bowl - The Mall Bangkae, Bangkok (28 lanes)
** SF Strike Bowl - The Mall Ramkhamhaeng, Bangkok (26 lanes)
** SF Strike Bowl - Central Plaza Rattanathibeth, Nonthaburi (8 lanes)
* SF Music City - Karaoke rooms, with up to 100 in some locations, mostly tied to SF Cinema City and SF Strike Bowl locations.
** SF Music City - MBK Center (100 rooms). The facility also has a vocal training and a dance training school located within the same premises.
** SF Music City - The Mall Bangkapi, Bangkok (40 rooms)
** SF Music City - The Mall Ngamwongwan, Bangkok (18 rooms)
** SF Music City - The Mall Bangkae, Bangkok (16 rooms)
** SF Music City - Central Plaza Rattanathibeth, Nonthaburi (28 rooms)

Restaurants

* Eat @ W Restaurant chain with the first location on the 9th floor of SF World Cinema, CentralWorld Bangkok.

Collectibles

For each ticket purchased at some SF Cinema City and SFX branches, the purchaser receives a business-card-sized replica of a movie poster backed by a magnet. The magnets are collectors' items and are sold second-hand by movie-memorabilia dealers.

Digital Cinemas

SF Group offers digital cinema screening using Christie's CP 2K Digital Cinema Technology at the following locations:
*SF Cinema City MBK (Cinema No. 7)
*SF Cinema City Bangkapi (Cinema No. 13)
*SF Cinema City Ngamwongwan (Cinema No. 11)
*SF Cinema City The Mall Thapra (Cinema No.3)
*SFX Central Lat Phrao (Cinema No. 6,8)
*SFX Cinema The Emporium (Cinema No. 3,5)SF Group also offers digital cinema screening using Barco's DLP Digital Cinema Technology bundled with Dolby Digital 3D Screening Capability at the following locations:
*SF World Cinema (Cinema No.8, No.12, No.14)
*SFX Cinema Central Lat Phrao (Cinema No.7)
*SF Cinema City Bangkapi (Cinema No.14)
*SF Cinema City MBK (Cinema No.8)

SF Group currently owns a total of 14 digital projectors which is by far the largest number to date in Thailand.

ee also

* Cinema of Thailand
* List of cinemas in Thailand

References

External links

* [http://www.sfcinemacity.com/default.asp SF Cinema City]