Next Tier 1 club to drop to Tier 2/Club Dillution?

[hurleyvan]

I was in Vegas for a quick 24 hour work trip yesterday and ended up meeting up with my Aunt at Marquee. Showed up at 1030 as a hotel guest and got in right away. This never happened a year ago. Walked around and they had at least 3-4 main room table and one dance floor table empty at 1115. To note, no headlining DJ last night (6.28)

Decided to look at the Drai's line and gamble at the Cromwell and the Drai's line was unimpressive. Everyone got in pretty quickly at 11:30. Line didn't really seems that long.

Marquee for the longest time was a cluster fuck to get in. They would stop letting people in and held a long line late into the night. I remember going to Light when it first open and the line stretched all the way to the Casino floor. Line stayed long all the way to 1am. Went to Hakassan last year and there was a huge line to get in and they stopped letting people in. Haven't been back since Drai's opened though.

So my question is this. Have we reached a point of having too many super clubs where people have so many options now it's not worth waiting in line? Where people choose the night based on economics and time? Does it in fact matter to have top DJs in the club to sell out those nights and those tables?

With Pure undergoing remodeling, will they open up as the next Tier 1 club? Can the market support another Tier 1 club and if not, which club will drop down next or will none of them be de-throned?
Assuming that these are the current Tier 1 clubs:
Marquee
XS
Light
Hakassan
Drai's

[Cle]

Going to catch some shit for this, but I think Drai's will be the first to drop. Even though they are the newest and the current "hot spot" I don't think they have the names coming through the door, and the property support to be at an epic level.

Second would be Hakkasan, they have been loosing talent left and right, some back to XS some moving someplace else all together. But, I think they atmosphere and 3-4 big names they have going on will keep them at a tier 1.

I don't think pure will be tier 1 though, just something about it doesn't ring right. That's like Luxor bringing back RA and hoping it was an instant hit. Should have just closed, redesigned and rebranded.

[Rhythmz]

I don't think any of the T1s will close altogether. From what I've seen in my recent trips, we are seeing some smaller clubs taking more damage. For example, I remember last summer Surrender would sell tables in the entire venue (outside and inside). I recently did a trip for a bigger weekend this summer, and most of the outdoor areas were closed, and the inside tables were going for relatively low minimums.

Going back to my original response, I don't think we will be seeing of the T1s closing any time soon. I'm pretty sure the bigger clubs will simply respond to demand by not spending as much on talent, lowering table minimums, and adjusting pricing. With such a large initial investment, it does not make sense to close. After all, it seems that all the T1s are still making money (perhaps less money, but still profitable). Of course, I don't have nearly enough knowledge to be confident about this... just my two cents.

[hurleyvan]

I'm not saying they will close but more like turning in to Tao or Tryst. Tier 1 clubs for a few years and now considered by people on this forum as "tier 2"

[iamkhai]

It will take a lot for the current list to drop. I agree that Drais will be the first one to loose interest. Remember it's the new kid right now so people are buzzing about it. However with that said, I think they made a huge mistake in their pricing and that will ultimately be their downfall. They should have started out with lower prices since they don't have the DJ talent. And even though Hak has the talent (though some have left), I think they will need to adjust their pricing as well for the non-top DJs. Especially now that there is LET. A 3k quote isn't 3k it's 4.2k which is huge. And rumor has it that some of the waitresses are negotiating to get an increase from 15% to 18% (waitresses get 15% of the bill, the other 5% goes to busers and runners) which would increase the grat from 20% to 23%.

But back on track, imagine what is going to happen when SLS opens with whatever club they are going to put in, Pure re-opens with the refurb, and N9NE group finally decides what they are going to do over at Palms with their 3 empty clubs. I think there is room for another mega club that could even have some decent names headlining, but just basically rule with much lower mins than everyone else.

[Cirilo Medina]

450+ for a 30$ bottle of alcohol? These clubs will make money no matter what. Saturation just means better deals for us consumers

[dnix]

Drais is banking on the EDM craze being a fad. Which is probably will be, but if it isnt, Im sure they will adjust.

[OmarLittle]

Marquee Day Club does not seem to have the talent it once did. Not sure why that is...change of direction?

[hurleyvan]

Yeah. I haven't been to Marquee Day Club since last year but how has it been on days with no major headliner?

[Dyur21]

What type of effect has pre-sale tickets had on the whole line situation? I was last in Vegas in 2012 and the lines were ridiculous, that was right before hak and light opened. I am going to vegas in a few weeks and it seems like pre-sales and the talent have impacted the line situation in a somewhat positive way.

It is interesting how previous club destinations such as the palms have become wastelands of failed venues in a relative short period of time.

[Chali2Na]

What type of effect has pre-sale tickets had on the whole line situation? I was last in Vegas in 2012 and the lines were ridiculous, that was right before hak and light opened. I am going to vegas in a few weeks and it seems like pre-sales and the talent have impacted the line situation in a somewhat positive way.

It is interesting how previous club destinations such as the palms have become wastelands of failed venues in a relative short period of time.

Pre-sales are a godsend. It still blows my mind that people don't take advantage of it (speaking in general, not about people on here, obviously). You get in quick, and if the club is at capacity, you get priority over GA once they start letting people in again. You can even get their early, get a stamp, bounce, then come back. Still get priority in the re-entry line.

As for the Palms venues, they weren't failures. They just got passed up over time.

[hurleyvan]

As to the Palms clubs, their shelf life didn't seem that long. I would say that had a 3 year window of being the top clubs. As soon as Pure, Tryst, and Tao opened up they started losing a lot of talent. The next set of clubs really hurt Pure. Tryst and Tao found its own niche by playing more Top 40/Hip Hop but they didn't have the lines out the door like Marquee and XS. Pure on the other hand is undergoing remodeling for a reason. It was a huge pain in the ass to get in in 2003-2005 and now fell off the map.

I would love for Drai's and all of the other clubs to have a huge price adjustment. But would it be better for the club to have open spots than to lower prices across the board. Who knows. I just don't see the market supporting so many super clubs other than major holidays.

[JuiceJH]

To be honest I don't think i've ever waited in a line more than 10 minutes with presales and i've showed up at all different times

[krepali]

Tryst and Tao found its own niche by playing more Top 40/Hip Hop but they didn't have the lines out the door like Marquee and XS.

Correct me if I don't remember well after all these years but I remember the lines at TAO were dramatic... especially when their door was at the balcony out of the Venetian and the GA line was wrapping around the corner of said balcony... and there were no guarantees that you were getting in - unlike XS where everyone gets admission (for a price)

[krepali]

You get in quick, and if the club is at capacity, you get priority over GA once they start letting people in again.

Hmmm not everyone allows reentry (at least EBC - Hak - Wet do not and I don't know who else)