ACX Cinemas, which include Aksarben Cinema, ACX Cinema in Elkhorn, and ACX Pioneer 3 Theater in Nebraska City (along with cinemas in Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, and Wisconsin), all fall under the corporate umbrella of Main Street Theatres, Inc.
The business earned its name when owners Bill and Colleen Barstow realized that many of the theaters they purchased were on “Main Street” in their respective cities. It’s a name that points toward the hometown beginnings of the company, which now includes 54 screens across various states and four restaurants. It all started in 1988 in Plattsmouth, when Bill Barstow was readying to complete his enlistment in the Air Force.
Stationed at Offutt Air Force Base, Barstow heard that a single-screen theater in Plattsmouth was for sale. Mike Barstow, Bill’s son and executive vice president of Main Street Theatres, Inc., explained, “The theater went on sale, and they kind of borrowed the down payment across three different credit cards, bought the theater, had the guy self-finance it, and that was kind of how they figured out that business. Then they grew into Nebraska City and a couple other small towns across Nebraska and Iowa and bought and sold theaters over the years.”
The company has grown exponentially over the years, even managing to survive and thrive during the COVID-19 pandemic. They opened a 14-plex in Sioux City in 2004, Aksarben Cinema in 2010, and the ACX-12 in Elkhorn opened in 2020 featuring the Backlot Pizza + Kitchen, serving Detroit-style pizza.
In addition to the cinemas, Main Street Theatres also owns four full-service restaurants with another restaurant opening soon, along with some cocktail bars. Inkwell, in partnership with Tyler Schaeffer, has two locations now: one in Omaha, and another in Chicago.
Once they realized that their cinemas brought in so many people, who then turn around and go eat nearby after the movie, the Barstows capitalized on the massive potential available to them.
Making the paradigm shift from theater to restaurant owners wasn’t difficult for the Barstows. “It started a little bit before COVID,” Mike Barstow explained. “We had a restaurant we partnered in at Aksarben Village that opened in 2014 or 2015. We opened Backlot Taphouse in 2019.” They already had the project in the works, but with the pandemic, they decided to “double down” on the restaurant space to diversify their business.
They continue to make improvements to their existing facilities and to grow thoughtfully. They’re currently working on adding some golf swing simulators to a facility and are in the process of folding Site One Brewing in Downtown Omaha into their company.
Mike Barstow explained that the future of the company doesn’t necessarily look focused on cinemas or restaurants, but rather, on both. And they’re not apprehensive about trying new things as a family business.
“We like to do the hard stuff and figure it out and get into it,” he said. “I think we’re very hands-on and a ‘boots to the ground’ kind of family.” It’s an appropriate analogy for a family company that grew from a military member’s thoughtful exit plan from military service.
To learn more, visit acxcinemas.com.
This article originally appeared in the October/November 2024 issue of B2B Magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.
