In the early and mid 80's, I worked part-time at a movie theatre in Edina, a suburb of Minneapolis. The threatre was the old Southdale Cinema, a four-plex. Maybe some Twin Cities Freepers remember the place.
At the time, we were paid $3.35 an hour and never ever received a raise. It was thought by mgmt "Hey, if you don't like the pay, then quit".
One day, one of the managers was feeling in a talkative mood and told us about what it actually costs to make popcorn and what we actually sold it for.
After all these years, I can't remember the number. But the margin was incredible, absolutely incredible. He told me "This is how we make a profit. We don't see that much profit off sales of tickets".
"But the margin was incredible, absolutely incredible. He told me "This is how we make a profit. We don't see that much profit off sales of tickets"."
I once heard that McDonald's makes all their profit on the drinks and fries (look at how cheap potatoes are!), and just breaks even on the burgers.
My brother was an usher at the local cinema while in High School (mid '70s). He said that a bucket of popcorn cost about $0.03, and sold for about $1.00-$1.50.