Leisure property trends: Is it the end for multiplex anchors?

Abstract

Closure of four multiplex cinemas in the UK during 2001 fuelled market speculation that the UK cinema sector is facing 'meltdown'. Such a scenario has potentially disastrous consequences for leisure park investments, for which multiplexes have so far been the only realistic anchor tenant. This paper examines recently published data to assess whether these fears are indeed justified. The current situation is examined within the context of long-term trends in consumer demand and the evolution of multiplex development together with published forecasts of cinema visits and screens up to 2005.