Matt S Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 I think that is possibly one of the best posts I have ever read on this forum. You are absolutely spot on. It makes me sad that most, if not all, of the venues in Sheffield have now fallen foul of the profit trap (which was inevitable I suppose) meaning that nobody wants to put on proper underground nights because they know they can make more profit on commercial nights. I believe this is why Future Funk had to leave DQ; even though it is among the best underground nights in Sheffield currently, unfortunately the crowd it attracts are not the kind of crowd that are going to spend vast amounts of money on over-priced drinks at the bar. At least with commercial music, the club owners and promoters know they will make a much more handsome profit on the bar takings, so it becomes far easier for them to adopt that policy instead. However you have to understand that a night like this, where people don't buy drinks, that even when busy (and I do mean REALLY busy) at DQ will make approx £3000 on the bar, after you've taken off VAT, paid staff and security and repurchased stock, you're only talking about £800 profit That's on a weekend night in a venue that cost hundreds of thousands! And Sheffield is notoriously quiet midweek, especially outside of term time. Destination venues aren't like vodka rev or varsity etc, they have a large amount of people who walk through the doors freely, whereas with destination venues it's just a small amount of people who stay for a long part of the night... The sad truth is these 'underground' nights are just not popular enough in Sheffield anymore.. Don't get me wrong, I used to love Headcharge at the arches... I think some forum members' perception as to the profitability of bars is way out.The guy who owns our place drives a taxi part time to earn some extra cash.. Get what i mean? Don't want to come across as defensive but you've never met me and to say future funk left dq because we are profit mongerers who charge too much for drinks is taking the mick a bit, if as a resident dj you want to plug futurefunk then don't do it by slagging us off maybe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rushup Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 Maybe us forum members should club together and buy our own venue... Half of us will want to book a DJ who nobody has ever heard of, make it free to get in and charge 50p for drinks. I'm sure we'd do a really great job of running the place into the ground... I've noticed venues often charge more for drinks when a dance event is on, due to a number of patrons getting inebriated in other ways... You'd be mad to keep your prices low for these nights. Some people forget and often romanticise about older nights. Headcharge was by no means a cheap night: £10 entry and £2.50 for a can of lager. I paid £3 for a can at a warehouse party last month, and they didn't have to pay for security, DJs or the venue! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UNDONE Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 I can only speak for ourselves but we're trying to do our best at bringing back that underground party vibe, hence the reason we've gone for the Fez. Witht the help of the owners of the club we've done our best to keep costs to a minimum. Undone isn't about making money for the promoters it's about providing an atmosphere where people can come down, listen to some great music and party 'til the small hours (including us!). All we ask is that the people of Sheffield support what we're trying to do or another potentially great night will be left to fizzle out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormy Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 However you have to understand that a night like this, where people don't buy drinks, that even when busy (and I do mean REALLY busy) at DQ will make approx £3000 on the bar, after you've taken off VAT, paid staff and security and repurchased stock, you're only talking about £800 profit That's on a weekend night in a venue that cost hundreds of thousands! And Sheffield is notoriously quiet midweek, especially outside of term time. Destination venues aren't like vodka rev or varsity etc, they have a large amount of people who walk through the doors freely, whereas with destination venues it's just a small amount of people who stay for a long part of the night... The sad truth is these 'underground' nights are just not popular enough in Sheffield anymore.. Don't get me wrong, I used to love Headcharge at the arches... I think some forum members' perception as to the profitability of bars is way out.The guy who owns our place drives a taxi part time to earn some extra cash.. Get what i mean? Don't want to come across as defensive but you've never met me and to say future funk left dq because we are profit mongerers who charge too much for drinks is taking the mick a bit, if as a resident dj you want to plug futurefunk then don't do it by slagging us off maybe? Dude I never realised how tight profit margins are in this business. I guess seeing DQ full all the time is only half the issue, like you said if people don't buy drinks (which IMO are very reasonably priced in DQ) then the tills don't ring. I shall make a concious effort next time im in to drink more beer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smithster Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 Don't want to come across as defensive but you've never met me and to say future funk left dq because we are profit mongerers who charge too much for drinks is taking the mick a bit, if as a resident dj you want to plug futurefunk then don't do it by slagging us off maybe? I'm not in any way slagging off DQ - I think it's a great venue and your drinks prices are pretty reasonable compared to some of Sheffield's clubs and bars. I'm not plugging Future Funk at all either (although I do know the promoter and, just so there is no misunderstanding, it wasn't him that told me what I posted). I simply posted what I was lead to believe by somebody else. It sounded plausible because it is exactly what happened in my home town a few years back. Every single club stopped putting on underground nights as they cottoned on to the fact that there was far more money to be made from commercial nights, and the dance music scene died a slow death. If you say that my information is incorrect then I will take your word for it. Sorry for any misunderstanding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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