We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ben Cronly. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ben below.

Ben, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you recount a story of an unexpected problem you’ve faced along the way?

The Byrd Theatre is a movie palace and we recently had to replace our chiller. We had A/C until August of 2023. Our chiller on top of the roof died after 9 years in service. The refrigerant in the system mixed with the water shutting the system down. We had to replace the chiller but we first needed to get quotes from several vendors to be sure we were getting the best value. We did not have the funding to replace the unit. Luckily being a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation, we were able to raise the necessary funds in about 2 months. We finally signed a contract in February 2024 but the lead time to receive the chiller was approximately 4 months. I was very nervous about getting the new chiller in time for the summer. In July 2024, we received the new chiller and put it up on the roof. While we had the new chiller in place, the machine was not working properly. We had technicians come out almost daily to fix the problem but they couldn’t find the problem. Finally in August 2024, the technicians figured out the problem and resolved the issue. We now have a working chiller and A/C in the building.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Ben Cronly and I am the Executive Director of The Byrd Theatre Foundation. My background is in finance. I previously worked for a hedge fund manager as a research analyst. During my time at the hedge fund, I was also on the Board of Directors of The Byrd Theatre Foundation as Treasurer. I dropped off the Board and left my position at the hedge fund in 2022 to join the staff of The Byrd Theatre full-time. Within 6 months I was promoted to the position of Executive Director. As Executive Director I oversee the operations of the theatre as well as the restoration and fundraising initiatives.
The Byrd Theatre Foundation owns and operates The Byrd Theatre in Richmond, VA. The Foundation is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation and relies on the support of the public to continue to operate. The Byrd Theatre is a movie theater that opened in 1928. We primarily show repertory movies throughout the year with some second-run movies programmed each month. Our schedule for our public movies is typically Wednesday through Sunday nights at 7pm with a children’s movie on Saturday morning at 10am and a classic movie on Sunday’s at 2pm. Each month the programming committee comes up with themes for the upcoming months, for instance October is programmed with all horror and Halloween-themed movies while December will be all about Christmas and the holidays. One note about December, we have a long tradition of showing It’s A Wonderful Life several times around Christmas.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

I think the most effective strategy for growing my clientele has been daily posts on social media. My Social Media Coordinator posts about each movie coming up as well as different events and donation opportunities. Several of our Board members and staff always share The Byrd Theatre’s posts. We also have a weekly newsletter that tells the readers what is playing at The Byrd Theatre during the week the email is sent out.

Do you have multiple revenue streams – if so, can you talk to us about those streams and how your developed them?

The Byrd Theatre Foundation has multiple revenue streams. The first one being ticket sales from our public movies. Tickets cost the consumer $9 before any fees. The second revenue stream we have is concessions. Since 2021 we started selling canned alcohol. Other items for sale include popcorn, canned soft drinks, bottled water, and an assortment of candy. The third revenue stream we have is private events. The theatre is able to be rented any day of the week but the vast majority of renters book their event when the theatre is dark as the costs to rent are less. Some of our private events include weddings, movie parties, gaming parties, film premieres, and corporate events, to name a few. The last revenue stream The Byrd Theatre Foundation has is donations. As a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation, we rely on the generosity of the public to support our ongoing operations as well as the restoration of the building.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.byrdtheatre.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebyrdrva/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/byrdtheatre/

Image Credits

Randy Melton