Ymagis Group Expands CinemaNext Activities in Eastern Europe with Belarusian Partner Kraftwerk

Through its affiliate company CinemaNext Austria GmbH, Ymagis Group now holds a 60% stake in Kraftwerk. Alexander Handogin, who founded Kraftwerk in 2009 and acts as its Managing Director, also increased his stake in Kraftwerk, which has grown from 20% to 40%.

Based in Minsk, Kraftwerk is one of Belarus’ leading cinema and AV & sound integrators. In 2015, Kraftwerk recorded revenue of EUR 2 million. Kraftwerk’s seventeen full-time employees have become part of the Ymagis Group. In addition to its cinema activities, Kraftwerk is also known in Belarus as a market leader in audiovisual system installations at major cultural, entertainment and sports venues. Recent projects include the Minsk Arena, Concert Hall “Prime Hall”, Belarusian Statehood Museum and the National Biathlon Training Center Raubichi.

“We are delighted with our even greater partnership with Alexander Handogin and his team,” comments Jean Mizrahi, President and CEO of Ymagis Group. “Today’s successful conclusion of this agreement marks a new milestone in growing CinemaNext’s operations in Russian-speaking territories, where we are convinced of the tremendous long-term growth potential.”

“Six years ago, we collaborated on the first cinema multiplex project in the Republic of Belarus. We have now established ourselves, through Kraftwerk, as a leader in the Belarusian marketplace, which is known for its ever-increasing consumer appetite for cinema,” adds Till Cussmann. “Both Kraftwerk’s expertise and local market knowledge are perfect additions to our existing portfolio of products and services, ranging from project management to projection and audio-video installations. We anticipate solid growth for our business in the coming years driven by domestic and foreign investments in emerging shopping and cinema complexes across the country.”

“We are thrilled to be joining the CinemaNext team, and Ymagis Group as a whole,” says Handogin. “It allows us to maintain our growth strategy in the Republic of Belarus, targeting the cinema marketplace as well as our AV & sound integration market. Thanks to CinemaNext, we will be able to distribute and integrate major technology brands like Harman Professional products, Barco, Sony, NEC, Dolby and many others, providing bespoke solutions to clients."

Alexander Handogin now reports to CinemaNext SVP Till Cussmann.