When CJ CGV, the No. 1 movie theater chain in Korea, opened its first theater in Shanghai in 2006, few expected it to achieve success since China’s movie theater market back then was not big enough and CGV’s brand awareness was low among China’s moviegoers. That is why it took two and a half years for CJ CGV to open its second theater in China.
About ten years later, however, CJ CGV has grown up enough to get an equity swap offer from China’s No. 1 theater chain Wanda Cinema. This is a symbolic event indicating that CJ CGV’s status in China has greatly enhanced over the past several years.
CJ CGV’s Chinese unit is currently running a total of 64 theaters in 31 cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan, and Qingdao.
Since its entry into the Chinese market, CJ CGV has poured as much as 400 billion won into the market. After suffering a loss for nine straight years in China, the company turned profitable this year, with this year’s operating profit estimated at 18 million yuan (US$2.78 million).
It expects its operating profit in China to expand by four to five times next year. Meanwhile, CJ CGV said on December 23 in a regulatory filing that the news of an equity swap with China's Wanda Cinema is "far from the truth."
