SF Group
- For the Swedish film company, see AB Svensk Filmindustri.
| File:SFNewlogo.jpg | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Movie theaters Bowling alleys Karaoke booths |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Headquarters | Bangkok, Thailand |
Key people | Suwat Thongrompo (president) Suvit Thongrompo (managing director) Suvannee Chinchiewchan (deputy managing director) Supat Ngamwongpaiboon (marketing director) |
| Products | SF Cinema City (SFC) SFX Cinemas SF World Cinema (SFW) SF Multiplex (SFM) |
Number of employees | 2500 |
| Website | www.sfcinemacity.com |
SF Group is a cinema and entertainment venue operator in Thailand. Behind the combined operations of Major Cineplex and the EGV chain, SF Group is the second-largest cinema chain in Thailand, with more than 200 screens in 30 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 cinemas 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.[1] The company is still centered mainly in Bangkok and the Eastern Seaboard provinces, although 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
As of 2014, SF Group has 41 branches throughout Thailand, mainly concentrated in Bangkok and in eastern Thailand. The chain's brands include:
- 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 centre.
- SFX Cinema (SFX) – "Boutique Chic" are more luxurious.
- SF World Cinema (SFW) - The group's Flagship cinema location located at CentralWorld Shopping Complex.
- Emprivé Cineclub - The group's luxurious flagship cinema located at Emporium Shopping Complex.
- SF Multiplex (SFM) – These are smaller multiplexes located in eastern Thailand.
Future projects
Expansion plans by SF Group includes:
- SFX Cinema The Crystal Park Ekamai - Ramintra – To be located at The Crystal Shopping Mall, on Pradit Manutham Road in Bangkok Province.
- SFX Cinema CentralPlaza Nakhon Ratchasima – To be located at the Central Group's new shopping centre, CentralPlaza Nakhon Ratchasima, in Amphoe Muang, Nakhon Ratchasima Province.
- SF Cinema City Coliseum Surat Thani – The Former is Coliseum Cineplex, SF Group has come to provide improved management and a fully SF Cinema City in Surat Thani Province soon.
- SF Cinema City Terminal 21 Korat – To be located at the Siam Retail Development's new shopping centre, Termial 21 Korat, in Nakhon Ratchasima 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 Strike Bowl - Central Festival Pattaya Beach,Chonburi (16 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. 2, 5, 7)
- SF Cinema City Bangkapi (Cinema No. 13)
- SF Cinema City Ngamwongwan (Cinema No. 6, 8, 9)
- SF Cinema City The Mall Thapra (Cinema No. 3)
- SFX Central Lat Phrao (Cinema No. 6, 8)
- SFX Cinema The Emporium (Cinema No. 3, 4, 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)
- SFX Cinema Pattaya Beach (Cinema No. 5, No. 7)
SF Group currently owns a total of 14 digital projectors which is by far the largest number to date in Thailand.
Shopping Mall
- Maya Lifestyle Center – The SF Group's new shopping centre, To be located in Chiang Mai Province.
See also
References
- ^ Amnatcharoenrit, Bamrung (May 24, 2002) "New family in the frame", Bangkok Post, via Siamfuture.com.