Recently, relentless economic buffeting and increasing levels of interference from landlords, local council and even government officials looks finally to have roused the often fiercely competitive nightclub landscape into unifying action.
Mark Fuller, long-term club owner and promoter behind such illustrious (and exclusive) London venues as Embassy and Sugar Reef has, in recent weeks, founded Club Union which when it is formally established should become the Association Of Club Owners.
Initially, the new body will focus on London’s West End and those high-end, celebrity-attracting haunts where paparazzi regularly decamp; nonetheless, its inception has already sparked support among key elements of the wider nightclub community.
“We are talking about the places that you have the paparazzi outside” Mark Fuller told one broadsheet earlier this month. “We [West End nightclubs] have always operated individually.
London's West End
“It became apparent to me that we never really talked to each other – obviously, because we are competitive. For the first time, we’ve all met. We intend to form an association of club owners in the West End area with a view to help ourselves.”
Indeed, since the summer when Fuller first started emailing industry players, a variety of London club owners have been meeting on a monthly basis to talk over the big issues affecting all of them. Fuller concedes that the country’s difficult economic climate has been a pivotal factor in the setting up of the association, but adds that the move is also about finding out what more clubbers expect from their nights out.”
“Yes, we have been affected and it is a reaction to less people coming into London” he explains. “When the recession came, we all thought we are a bit invincible but obviously when people don’t have large amounts of money to splash around, things change.
“We want to let people know London nightlife is safe, it’s fun, that we can give you a good value night out and give you affordable glamour.”
The idea of an industry-affirming trade body appeals strongly to those operators outside of London’s famous W1 and WC2 postcodes. “We’d be very interested in joining a nightclubs’ trade association” answers Laurence Malice, Creative Director at EGG London; a club that regularly attracts big-name DJs like Kerri Chandler, Junior Jack & Kid Crème and Terry Francis to nights including Blow and Muak. “We think it’s the way forward to best protect our interests and represent us at every level from licensing to planning.”
Junior Jack & Kid Creme
Malice continues: “We are lucky in that we have a very good relationship with the police and local council but feel an association could strengthen our industry, and also help us to go forward in these recession-hit times. It would also act as a channel of discussion and information, as many people do not really understand the nightclub business and what we do.”
Malice refers, of course, to the often poorly educated local authorities whose licensing legislation for clubs and live music venues is often wide of the mark and, in consequence, inefficient. But he is also perhaps aiming at the recent surge of DIY promoters who, empowered by internet broadband and its far-reaching, low-cost marketing potential, are attempting to run clubs before they can walk them; and, in turn, are generating unhealthy, unreasonable and unnecessarily aggressive competition on everything from alcohol supply to DJ costs.
Fuller’s interview picks up on this point. He stresses that an association will look at how its members can help one another commercially rather than trying to cut one another down – this, much to the detriment of the industry as a whole. After all, does not clubland still share the common goal of wanting to promote an unforgettable social and musical experience?
“Quite often we are set against each other on everything from booze supplies to landlords” Fuller laments, “it can only be good for the customer that we are talking to each other.”
For hugely popular Brixton club Dex, financial climate remains the number one concern. “A trade association would help represent the views of club owners on many different subjects, not least financial issues” says Dex’s Mark Williams.
Dex Nightclub
His focus is understandable. Earlier this year, London’s Buddha Bar and SeOne nightspots were forced to close following a decrease in customer spending; Matter was driven into ‘hibernation’ and even sister super-venue Fabric wobbled – dipping in and out of receivership. Elsewhere, massive regional nights like Shindig have started making less regular appearances. Young people, hit by rising unemployment and the subsequent inability to spend dosh on a night out, are staying in with Freeview TV and discounted supermarket booze.
“Nightclubs are one of the most under-represented voices in UK business” Williams adds, “and yet, at the same time, they contribute a great deal to the economy and wider cultural scene. Airing our views and working together can only be a good thing, helping ensure a stronger future for us all.”
Clubland, then, isn’t quite as unified as all those classic hands-in-the-air dancefloor adrenaline rushes would have you believe. Talk of supportive trade associations is particularly apt in the same week as the government’s brutal nationwide spending review but, economic downturns aside, there are the ever-present issues of crime (and therefore security and police relations) and greedy, standalone club operators to contend with – a brand new, super-motivated and well-experienced industry panel really might be the ticket.
It’s still early days but Fuller’s manoeuvrings have serious long-term potential to stretch and expand. Beyond the glamorous VIP haunts of the West End lie thousands of determined yet battered, bruised and largely unsupported nightclubs all in need of savvy representation. ‘Sweet harmony’ is hopefully around the corner….
Words: Ben Lovett
