A sale of authentic cinema chairs by Eclipse in Lifford is proving to be a hit with movie lovers.
Thirty seats have already been snapped up with a further batch of around 20 due to be advertised this weekend.
The chairs have been in storage since Eclipse carried out a major renovation of its premises. But rather than throw them out, management instead decided to dust them off, clean them up and pass them on.
The chairs went on sale on Saturday retailing at €75 individually, €100 for two and €130 for three. And according to director of Eclipse Cinemas Lifford-Strabane, Daniel Barrett, the demand has been unexpectedly high.
“The chairs have been kept as spares since we carried out our renovation and it has got to the stage where they are taking up room.
“But rather than pay for a skip we wondered if anyone would want them. And it turns out that they did,” Mr Barrett said.The majority of the seats have been purchased individually or in small numbers by families hoping to recreate that cinema feel at home.
“They have all been sold privately and it’s generally people who have a room and they want to turn it into a home cinema. We also had someone carrying out an attic conversation who bought ten and then someone else who bought them for a bar they have created at home.
“Our first buyer was here within 20 minutes of us advertising them. He saw the message and came straight out and bought two.”
The chair sale is the latest innovative way Eclipse has found to keep at least some money coming in during the pandemic.
In a further bid to help parents recreate that cinema experience at home they have been selling popcorn via a takeaway service similar to local chip shops and pizzerias.
“The takeaway and delivery service has been keeping us going. We’ll never get rich off it but it has been popular at times,” Daniel Barrett added.
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