Boxoffice - August 2019

TOP WOMEN IN GLOBAL EXHIBITION 2019
sustainability. How does that affect the way
you and the team do your jobs?
WG: Cinemark prides itself on putting the
customer first. It was really invigorating during
my onboarding to hear that message so consistently
throughout all levels and roles. When you put
the customer first, you do the right thing. You put
yourself in their shoes and make changes to give
them what they actually want. For instance, our
subscription program Cinemark Movie Rewards
provides tremendous value to moviegoers. Additionally,
we listen to what issues matter most to
our customers, which is why we invest so much
in sustainability. My team is charged with leading
with heart, understanding human trends happening,
and creating ideas to deliver and exceed
customers’ expectations.
Wanda, before Cinemark you were at the
Neiman Marcus Group. At first glance they
seem like wildly different industries. What
skills transfer, and what about Cinemark have
you found unique?
WG: I have spent my entire career in omni-channel
retail, including the exhibition industry.
While traditional retail and movie theaters may sell
different products, at the end of the day, whether
through online or in-store, we are creating a great
experience for our customers. I often joke that
at Neiman Marcus we had all the designers like
Chanel, Gucci, and Prada, each with their own
business needs, personalities, and idiosyncrasies.
Now, at Cinemark, we have major studio partnerships
with companies like Disney, Warner Bros.,
and Universal, each with their own product, personalities,
and nuances. I won’t disclose how they
match up, but you can imagine.
The biggest difference in the exhibition industry
and retail is that movie theaters don’t have to buy
inventory. That is the greatest challenge for retail:
collecting inventory and managing the markdowns.
In the exhibition industry, the movies
go away and the candy and popcorn don’t need
markdowns. While the products are vastly different
between retail and the exhibition industry, the
most significant similarity is predicting how each
of those products, whether that’s the latest designer
line or the next big blockbuster, will appeal to
the modern consumer. Additionally, at the end of
the day, both retail shopping and moviegoing are
forms of entertainment.
FILMHOUSE CINEMAS
OZIOMA SAMMIE-OKPOSO
HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGER
>> As the human resources manager at
Filmhouse Cinemas, one of Nigeria’s two
leading cinema chains, Ozioma Sammie-Okposo
(above) has a key role in an exciting emerging
market. For three consecutive years, the West
African territory has experienced doubledigit
admissions growth—a fact that didn’t go
unnoticed by NATO, which named Nigeria the
2019 Emerging Market Spotlight Award winner.
That growth is expected to continue; per Moses
Babatope, managing director of Filmhouse
affiliate FilmOne, the Nigerian market could
potentially grow from their current count of
approximately 200 screens to 5,000 over the
next decade.
How and when did you come to
work with Filmhouse? What line
of work were you in before?
I was with Odeon Cinemas in the United Kingdom
until the summer of 2010, when I moved
back to Nigeria to join the start-up management
team of Filmhouse Cinemas.
What drew you to the film business?
As a young adult just arriving in the U.K., I
needed a job. I also enjoyed seeing movies as a
hobby. So when I learnt of an opportunity at Ode-
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