Stay afloat
CIE undertook various measures to recover from COVID-19 and, for example, held conversations with artists to reschedule some concerts. At the time of suspending activities, the group had 283 face-to-face events for sale, of which only 48 were canceled.
From October 2020 to date, new face-to-face events have been put on sale, including the Electric Daisy Carnival Festivals and the Pa’l Norte festival, also scheduled for the month of November at the Fundidora Park in the city of Monterrey, Nuevo León .
On the cost and fixed expenses front, CIE reduced its operating structure by 48%, which meant that its staff went from 2,160 people at the beginning of 2020, including executives and key personnel, to 1,130 people at the end of 2020. In other fixed expenses, such as rents, compensation for the operation of buildings and maintenance, negotiations were carried out, which allowed generating savings of 37%.
The good news is that 91% of the public keep their purchased tickets, with the expectation of attending the events in the future, which for the specialists is a sign of the confidence that the spectators will return to the company venues, which controls the Foro Sol, the Metropolitan Theater and the Palacio de los Deportes, among others.
In addition, in these 15 months Operadora de Centros de Espectáculos (OCESA), a subsidiary of CIE, held virtual events with national and international artists, as part of a trend that various production companies promoted to generate income during the crisis.
Iván Santiago, CEO of BlackBull Advisor, adds that another favorable point for the company is that it managed to maintain a stable debt, since it went from 2,625 million pesos in the first quarter of this year to 2,634 million pesos during the first three months of this year.
These shares were also reflected in CIE’s shares on the Mexican Stock Exchange, which although last year reached minimum prices below 4 pesos, they have managed to recover.
“The pandemic affected all of CIE’s business lines and as a result, year-on-year sales fell dramatically, but the actions taken by the company have been appropriate and this will give them an impetus to resurface,” he says.
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