Texas-based dine-in chain Studio Movie Grill, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October of last year, has officially emerged from bankruptcy and named company CFO/COO Ted Croft as its new CEO.
Studio Movie Grill entered 2020 with plans for expansion, having received an investment in mid-2019 that would allow them to accelerate their growth; they announced plans in January 2020 to open five new locations over the following year. The Covid-19 pandemic and the aftermath thereof put a pause on SMG’s growth, and in October the chain filed for Chapter 11 and embarked on restructuring that would, in the words of founder Brian Schultz, “position Studio Movie Grill for long-term stability.”
SMG’s roster of currently open cinemas consists of 17 locations in five states, with two additional locations scheduled to re-open on April 29 (Indianapolis) and May 27th (Upper Darby, Philadelphia), respectively. Construction on a new location in Alpharetta, Georgia—a 14-screen cinema in that city’s Northpoint Mall—is slated for completion later this year.
Part of SMG’s restructuring is the naming of CFO/COO Ted Croft as its new CEO. Croft has been with Studio Movie grill since 2011 and has played a key role in the company’s expansion over the last decade. Says Croft: “This has been a challenging time for the industry and the brand. It’s a testament to SMG’s founder, team members, and our other stakeholders, that we’re standing here today delivering a best-in-class experience to folks getting out of their homes and safely back into theaters.”
In moving forward, SMG has also partnered with NATO to brings its own “Simple, Safer Ways to Enjoy the Show” safety and sanitation protocols further in line with NATO’s CinemaSafe program. Per SMG’s VP of learning and development Sheri Lawrence, “In a recent survey of more than 50,000 SMG Guests attending a location in the last 6 months, our ‘Simple, Safer Ways to Enjoy the Show’ safety and sanitation strategy earned SMG a 95% in cleanliness and 97% in safety.”
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