SF Group is a cinema and entertainment venue operator in

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. Behind the combined operations of

Major Cineplex Major Cineplex Group Public Co. Ltd. is the largest operator of movie theaters in Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. Combined with its subsidiary, EGV Entertainment, the company has 838 screens in 180 locations around Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos. Amon ...

and the EGV chain, SF Group is the second-largest cinema chain in Thailand, with more than 379 screens in 63 locations.

History

SF Corporation Public Company Limited, based in Bangkok, Thailand, was established as a limited company in 1998 by Suwat Thongrompo. The Thongrompo family is from

Eastern Thailand Eastern Thailand is a region of Thailand, bordering Cambodia in the east, Northeastern Thailand in the north, and Central Thailand in the west. Geography Eastern Thailand lies between the Sankamphaeng Range, which forms a natural border with ...

, where its Samarn Film Co operated cinemas since the 1970s in

Chonburi Chonburi (, , IAST: , ) is the capital of Chonburi Province and, as part of the district Mueang Chonburi District, Mueang Chonburi, the List of municipalities in Thailand, seventh-largest city in Thailand. It is about 100 km southeast of Ba ...

Rayong Rayong (, ) is a city (''thesaban nakhon'') on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand and the capital of Rayong province. It covers tambons Tha Pradu and Pak Nam and parts of ''tambons'' Choeng Noen and Noen Phra, all within Mueang Rayong dist ...

and

Chanthaburi Chanthaburi (, ) is a town ('' thesaban mueang'') in the east of Thailand, on the banks of the Chanthaburi River. It is the capital of the Chanthaburi Province and the Mueang Chanthaburi District. The town covers the two ''tambons'' Talat an ...

. The company become known as SF Cinema City in 1999 when it opened its first multiplex in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...

on the seventh floor of MBK Center.Amnatcharoenrit, Bamrung (May 24, 2002
"New family in the frame"
''

Bangkok Post The ''Bangkok Post'' is an English-language daily newspaper published in Bangkok, Thailand. It is published in broadsheet and digital formats. The first issue was sold on 1 August 1946. It had four pages and cost one baht, a considerable amount ...

'', via Siamfuture.com. The company is still primarily centered in Bangkok and the Eastern Seaboard provinces. However, in 2005, the company expanded to

southern Thailand Southern Thailand (formerly Southern Siam and Tambralinga) is the southernmost cultural region of Thailand, separated from Central Thailand by the Kra Isthmus. Geography Southern Thailand is on the Malay Peninsula, with an area of around , bo ...

by opening SFX Central Festival cinema in Phuket Town. A branch of SF Cinema City branch in the Jungceylon complex on Patong Beach followed in October 2007. Also in 2007, the company undertook an overhaul branding change, with the corporate name SF Group adopted in March 2007. - ‘SF World Cinema ‘, ‘SFX Cinema’, ‘SF Cinema’, ‘Emprive Cineclub’ - Apart from the cinema, the company also own and operate Food and Beverage business, Bowling business under ‘SF Strike Bowl’ brand, Rental Space business, Advertising business for both screen and non-screen surroundings and other related business. SF Group employ more than 3,000 employees and operate more than 379 screens throughout Thailand.

Theaters and locations

{{main, List of cinemas in Thailand#SF Group, l1=SF Group cinemas As of 2018, SF Group has 63 branches throughout Thailand, mainly concentrated in Bangkok and in

eastern Thailand Eastern Thailand is a region of Thailand, bordering Cambodia in the east, Northeastern Thailand in the north, and Central Thailand in the west. Geography Eastern Thailand lies between the Sankamphaeng Range, which forms a natural border with ...

. The chain's brands include: * SF World Cinema (SFW) - The group's flagship cinema located at CentralWorld Shopping Complex. * SFX Cinema (SFX) – "Boutique Chic" are more luxurious. * SF Cinema (SFC) – Large multiplex theaters that are packaged with restaurants, bowling lanes and karaoke booths, usually taking up an entire floor in a shopping centre. * Emprivé Cineclub - The group's luxurious flagship cinema located at Emporium Shopping Complex. * SF Multiplex (SFM) – These are smaller multiplexes located in

Future projects

Expansion plans by SF Group includes: * SF Cinema Chumphon – To be located at Tesco Lotus Chumphon

Bowling, karaoke and gaming business

* SF City - An entertainment complex bundled with

bowling Bowling is a Throwing sports#Target sports, target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a bowling ball, ball toward Bowling pin, pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). Most references to ''bowling'' are ...

alleys,

karaoke is a type of interactive entertainment system usually offered in nightclubs and bars, where people sing along to pre-recorded accompaniment using a microphone. Its musical content is an instrumental rendition of a well-known popular song. I ...

rooms and video arcades. * SF Strike Bowl -

Bowling alley A bowling alley (also known as a bowling center, bowling lounge, bowling arena, or historically bowling club) is a facility where the sport of bowling is played. It can be a dedicated facility or part of another, such as a clubhouse or dwelling ...

chain * SF Music City -

Karaoke is a type of interactive entertainment system usually offered in nightclubs and bars, where people sing along to pre-recorded accompaniment using a microphone. Its musical content is an instrumental rendition of a well-known popular song. I ...

rooms, with up to 100 in some locations, mostly tied to SF Cinema City and SF Strike Bowl locations

Restaurants

* Eat @ W Restaurant chain with the first location on the 9th floor of SF World Cinema, CentralWorld Bangkok.

Collectibles

For each ticket purchased at some SF Cinema and SFX branches, the purchaser receives a business-card-sized replica of a movie poster backed by a magnet. The magnets are collectors' items and are sold second-hand by movie-memorabilia dealers.

Digital Cinemas

SF Group offers digital cinema screening using Christie's CP 2K Digital Cinema Technology at the following locations: *SF Cinema MBK Center (Cinema No. 2, 5, 7) *SF Cinema The Mall Bangkapi (Cinema No. 13) *SFX Cinema The Mall Ngamwongwan (Cinema No.9) *SF Cinema The Mall Thapra (Cinema No. 3) *SFX Central Lat Phrao (Cinema No. 6, 8) * Emprive'Cineclub Emporium Sukhumvit (Cinema No.5) SF Group also offers digital cinema screening using Barco's DLP Digital Cinema Technology bundled with Dolby Digital 3D Screening Capability at the following locations: *SF World Cinema Central World (Cinema No. 8, No. 12, No. 14) *SFX Cinema Central Lat Phrao (Cinema No. 7) *SF Cinema The Mall Bangkapi (Cinema No. 14) *SF Cinema MBK Center (Cinema No. 8) *SFX Cinema Central Pattaya Beach (Cinema No. 5, No. 7) *SF Cinema Citymall Sunee Tower Ubon Ratchathani (Cinema No.7) *SF Cinema BigC Supercenter Samut Songkhram (Cinema No.3) SF Group currently owns a total of 14 digital projectors which is by far the largest number to date in Thailand.

Shopping Mall

* MAYA Lifestyle Center – The SF Group's new shopping centre, Located in

Chiang Mai Province Chiang Mai is the largest Provinces of Thailand, province (''changwat'') of Thailand by area. It lies in Northern Thailand#Regional classification of northern Thailand, upper northern Thailand and has a population of 1.78 million people. It ...

References

Cinema chains in Thailand Companies based in Bangkok Entertainment companies established in 1999 1999 establishments in Thailand Thai companies established in 1999