New to the board and wanna say hi

[j's]

Just want to say hi. My name is Jason and I'm from Vancouver BC Canada.

I've been going through the forums the last few weeks and this is my first post. I've found this forum to be very helpful and the people knowledgable.
I am looking into opening a nightclub/gentlemen's club in the city of Richmond BC. This will be my first venture in this area of business. Hoping to be open first quarter of 2008.

I am the sole owner currently, but would entertain the idea of investors and not partners. I have already found the location and am currently in negotiations with the landlord regarding aquiring the location. I have a 350 person liquor license that allows for live entertainment and strippers. Food service is optional as it is a liquor primary license.

My plan is to run it as a gentlemen's club for 4-5 days of the week and a nightclub the other 2-3 days.

I have the following questions and any help or comments would be greatly appreciated.
Do any of you have experience in operating or designing the layout of the club so that it can be easily adapted for either the nightclub or gentlemen's club setting?
Would it be smater financially to keep it as either just a nightclub or a strip club or the combination of both with desgins set in place for other live events or functions?
If running the duo club, how would you setup security for the different nights?
There is no existing kitchen and it would cost roughly $90,000.00 CDN to retrofit one in the back. Is a kitchen neccessary and would it justify the extra investment?


The population in Richmond is upper-middle class and my design for the club would reflect that. I believe that there is only 1 other club in the whole city currently, and the last time I drove by there, it appeared to be out of business. There are currently only karaokes and lounges in this area and some illegal drinking places.

Any answers, comments, or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

TIA

[crizco]

I would say you need to define your direction before you start pouring money into this venture. If you go the gentlemens club route know all the laws for that area and visit some of the other ones in the area to see how much they are pulling in and how they make in revenue for your area.

You need to pick one or the other because often a gentlemens type club alienates alot of potential clientelle. Some people just dont want to be seen going into a venue like that. What do you truly want to do? Keep it simple dont try to combine the two it becomes difficult and also confuses your clientelle also.

If there is currently no other clubs in the area I would say start with a nightclub. You will generally get less headaches from local politics and residents. Where is the nearest Dance Club or live music venue? A kitchen wouldnt be necessary in a nightclub depending on how you do it but might be necessary if its fits the area. Some places succeed as a fancier restaurants during the day and have more of a lounge nightclubby feel after dark. Start by scouting the area a little bit better and asking people in the area what they think they would visit. Is there any colleges nearby? Do people go into the big cities for bar type partying or do they keep it local? In my area many older people will keep it local but 20-27 yr olds will drive a long way to party.


Hope some of that helps
Chris

[j's]

There are a few other clubs in the province that are using the combination of strip/nightclub and they are quite successful. There are no other dance clubs around and I'm not sure about the live music.
The location I'm looking at was previously a nightclub/lounge and they were very busy on the club nights and so-so for the other 5 nights. Hence the reason why I am leaning towards the strip/nightclub. There is no other strip club in this city. People would have to go into vancouver or another city to go dancing or to see strippers.
There are 2 or 3 colleges, many hotels(location is on the main strip and close to the airport), and 5 mins away from the casino resort.
I am hoping to create an atmosphere where people will be comfortable in, no matter which night it may be. But this may be the hardest part.

I thank you for your input Chris, and I will keep them in mind.