By Gamal Hennessy
The state of the financial markets has a ripple effect on New York nightlife. The most immediate impact will probably be on the pervasive practice of bottle service. Certain clubs are already scaling back their bottle service promotions. While it might not disappear, bottle service won’t be able to survive as a widespread practice. How will the nightlife landscape change if the bottle goes the way of Lehman Brothers?
When you order bottle service, you’re basically paying for temporary prestige in a club. You and a few of your friends get to skip the line and sit at a table instead of standing. Your one (or more) bottles of liquor and mixers are served by an attractive waitress so you don’t have to fight for drinks at the bar. Your area is often defined by a velvet rope so you don’t have to mingle with commoners.
The cost of this prestige has no realistic relationship to the actual cost of the liquor. A $70-$80 bottle of Gray Goose can easily go for $500. When you buy bottle service, you’re sending the social message “I am a VIP. I can afford to be extravagant.” Club owners have profited from people’s need for prestige. One owner said that bottle service accounted for up to 70% of his bottom line revenue.
Bottle service has been a staple in nightlife for more than 10 years. It survived the bursting of the internet bubble and the war on terror. When the housing market began to soften, bottle service was still a widespread practice fueled by hedge fund managers, i-bankers, and corporate sponsored credit cards. The fall of several key financial houses in the past two months will probably dry up money available to FIRE workers (finance, insurance and real estate), who make up 20% of the nightlife patrons, so bottle service might not be able to withstand the current storm. It will be difficult for bottle service to survive if there the only people who can afford it are movie stars, drug kingpins and oil barons.
The backlash has already started taking shape. Prominent clubs like Prime are announcing a retreat from bottle service and a renewed commitment to ‘catering to the customer’. Prominent nightlife insiders are predicting that the overall club market will contract as poorly run clubs die off and well run spots adapt to the new environment. While the economics of bottle service compensate for the realities of operating costs, clubbers like me (who can’t justify the cost of bottle service) see a positive change for the better. The average club customer who couldn’t afford a bottle may no longer be treated like a second hand citizen. Clubs might become more about pleasure and less about posturing and prestige. History has shown that people continue to drink during bad economic times, so even the i-bankers will still belly up to the bar. They just won’t be able to separate themselves from the commoners.
Have fun.
Gamal
The state of the financial markets has a ripple effect on New York nightlife. The most immediate impact will probably be on the pervasive practice of bottle service. Certain clubs are already scaling back their bottle service promotions. While it might not disappear, bottle service won’t be able to survive as a widespread practice. How will the nightlife landscape change if the bottle goes the way of Lehman Brothers?
When you order bottle service, you’re basically paying for temporary prestige in a club. You and a few of your friends get to skip the line and sit at a table instead of standing. Your one (or more) bottles of liquor and mixers are served by an attractive waitress so you don’t have to fight for drinks at the bar. Your area is often defined by a velvet rope so you don’t have to mingle with commoners.
The cost of this prestige has no realistic relationship to the actual cost of the liquor. A $70-$80 bottle of Gray Goose can easily go for $500. When you buy bottle service, you’re sending the social message “I am a VIP. I can afford to be extravagant.” Club owners have profited from people’s need for prestige. One owner said that bottle service accounted for up to 70% of his bottom line revenue.
Bottle service has been a staple in nightlife for more than 10 years. It survived the bursting of the internet bubble and the war on terror. When the housing market began to soften, bottle service was still a widespread practice fueled by hedge fund managers, i-bankers, and corporate sponsored credit cards. The fall of several key financial houses in the past two months will probably dry up money available to FIRE workers (finance, insurance and real estate), who make up 20% of the nightlife patrons, so bottle service might not be able to withstand the current storm. It will be difficult for bottle service to survive if there the only people who can afford it are movie stars, drug kingpins and oil barons.
The backlash has already started taking shape. Prominent clubs like Prime are announcing a retreat from bottle service and a renewed commitment to ‘catering to the customer’. Prominent nightlife insiders are predicting that the overall club market will contract as poorly run clubs die off and well run spots adapt to the new environment. While the economics of bottle service compensate for the realities of operating costs, clubbers like me (who can’t justify the cost of bottle service) see a positive change for the better. The average club customer who couldn’t afford a bottle may no longer be treated like a second hand citizen. Clubs might become more about pleasure and less about posturing and prestige. History has shown that people continue to drink during bad economic times, so even the i-bankers will still belly up to the bar. They just won’t be able to separate themselves from the commoners.
Have fun.
Gamal
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