Cineworld has confirmed the locations of the first six of its cinemas that are set to close down in the months ahead with hundreds of jobs at risk.
This move by the cinema chain comes amid a wave of store closures sweeping the UK which has hit the economy hard.
Here is a full list of the six Cineworld cinemas that are set to close:
- Glasgow Parkhead
- Bedford
- Hinckley
- Loughborough
- Yate
- Swindon Circus.
Britain’s high streets have been decimated by high street store closures
Wiki Commons images/ Mtaylor848
With this business decision, Cineworld is shutting down 25 of its 100 sites in the UK, representing a quarter of its portfolio..
The global cinema group also has locations in Ireland, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Israel and the US.
As it stands, Cineworld has 751 cinemas across these markets but will slash its current number of sites by around 100.
According to sources speaking to Sky News, the number of job losses will be “at least in the hundreds”.
City insiders told the channel that around six Cineworld closures will be closed immediately in a blow to movie lovers, with 25 earmarked to be shut down overall.
The cinema chain has previously been in preliminary discussions with the country’s biggest commercial landlords, including Landsec and Legal & General.
This latest round of closures is part of Cineworld’s wider restructuring plans.
Most creditors will have to agree to the cinema chain’s proposals to shut down a quarter of its locations.
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Cineworld will slash its portfolio by 25 per cent
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Outside of the cinema closures, rent reductions being looked at for around 50 of Cinema’s sites.
Only roughly 25 cinemas will be unaffected by this proposal if it is accepted and implemented.
A Cineworld spokesperson said: “We are implementing a restructuring plan that will provide our company with a strong platform to return our business to profitability, attract further investment from the Group, and ensure a sustainable long-term future for Cineworld in the UK.”