In the last month alone, Dubai saw at least eight new nightlife venues sprouting in the city and in the upcoming year, almost every single player on the scene is planning one, or even multiple, new openings.
The city is clearly becoming a hub, a favoured choice for many investors, with countless brand names coming from all ends of the globe to seek prosperity in the land of the opulent.
“Dubai is now becoming more and more aggressively competitive. You have people from all around the world just willing to come here, and throw crazy money in the city on the hospitality industry. You just can’t even follow the openings anymore, let alone attend all of them,” says Mazen Al Zein, CEO and founder of Crystal Group.
“There’s a bubble. There’s a strong bubble and we never know when this bubble will burst. Most of the new places that open are trend oriented. They come in and then they go as fast as they come in, and that’s the problem, that’s what they call a bubble. Meanwhile, the very strong ones suffer because they have their business taken from them,” he adds.
Despite this, Crystal Group enjoys a comfortable position in the nightlife scene, with a loyal client base and multiple openings on the horizon. Currently based in Dubai, but originally from Beirut, it is undoubtedly one of the leaders in its field.
Competition is so high even the owners of the very popular People club and Sake No Hana cannot rest on their laurels. They are very aware of their competition and what clients need, and are continuously in search of unique concepts.
“We see a lot of growth in Dubai; yet, it’s becoming more and more competitive. This competition is leading us to be more careful as to how we handle big projects and to try to choose the most unique of them, always filling a gap in the market.
“We need unique concepts, unique locations, unique entertainment, and unique services. It’s not one thing that makes you successful, it’s being able to deliver the complete package,” Al Zein believes.
Indeed club and nightlife venues are developing all kinds of tricks and turns to keep us entertained and retain our interest. From live acts and trendy rooftop set-ups to elaborate food and beverage menus, every concept is on offer.
“Nightlife started with a cabaret culture. Then in the 90s it switched to being DJ oriented, but now we are seeing a switch back to cabaret and people are looking for live entertainment,” says David Lescarret, general manager of White Label, the marketing arm of Pragma group.
Pragma Group owns Cavalli Club in Dubai and Cirque Le Soir, and Lescarret’s theory explains why we are seeing this new breed of nightlife becoming popular in the city, especially among the recent openings like Music Hall and The Act.
Even Pragma’s infamous shift from Club 400 to Cirque Le Soir is a clear example, but the group is also aiming to build on this trend and is prepping for a new live jazz area to be in Cavalli Club by end of year.
“A lot of the nightlife is based on trends and they run towards the latest and the greatest, but the biggest DJ does not bring in the biggest crowd anymore. You have to secure your loyal clientele through roots marketing, one-on-one PR, a very unique offering and consistent service,” says Lescarret.
Club owners are finding themselves having to evolve and respond rapidly to keep up with the beat of the night. But in an ever-evolving market that is becoming more saturated than ever, is this still a lucrative business?
“It was a very lucrative business, but now, it is becoming more and more challenging,” states El Zein. “You have to monitor your ratios today. You have to monitor your costs. Even if you are doing the same level of sales as you were doing last year, you are still making less money.”
“This is because of the sharp increase in the cost of rentals, the cost of living and the cost of accommodation for your staff, transportation, visas and many other factors. So you really have to be very careful now and control your cost structure.
“The immediate impact of winning the Expo 2020 bid is that it made the cost of living and business higher for sure. But now, there’s a promise behind it that there would be much more visitors and residents coming to Dubai,” he says.
And Crystal group is getting well prepared and on their way to welcoming this new influx of visitors. This year alone, they are opening four new venues in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Last week they opened 40 Kong in the H hotel and this month they are getting set for the opening of Crystal in Sadiyaat Island’s St Regis.
In April-May they are scheduled to open their first unique Lebanese restaurant concept called Em Sherif. The venue will be located in The Address Downtown, with indoor and outdoor seating, shisha and an alcohol license. According to El Zein, it’s the first of its kind and will have a luxurious yet homey vibe.
And it doesn’t stop there: the group has also just signed a location for a beach club in the Rixos hotel on the Palm Jumeirah. The venue is scheduled to open this September, but the name has not been finalised yet.
“It might be called Crystal Beach Club but we are still in the arguing phase of that. The offering will be truly unique. It’s a 5,000 square metre property. So we will be operating as a pure beach everyday till 11pm. Then during the week as a lounge, and as an open air club in the weekend,” he explains.”
The opening of Crystal’s 40 Kong in January marked Dubai’s eighth opening in just a month, with the most prevalent being that of Iris, White and the GQ Bar.
“The opening of GQ Bar has been a fun but challenging experience. It is very different from Vogue Café, since it’s our first licensed venue,” says Seehal Anil Shah, CEO of Inspired Lifestyle, the biggest licensee for Conde Nast’s non-magazine business.
And before they even finalise the opening of their latest venue, they were already setting up for their next opening. A third venue is on the horizon for the new players in the nightlife scene: a licensed Vogue bar which will open by the end of this year.
“We are not trying to do a trendy place for just a short period of time. We are trying to build a place with a unique experience that you would want to come back to all the time,” Stated Shah.
All with lavish openings, brand names, and unique gestures of their own, the new venues are certainly giving the big players a run for their money.
But El Zein observes: “In a market like Dubai, you have to be very picky. Only if you have something quite special, you tackle a specific market and you know how to cater to it with consistency, will you stand out.”
So how many of the new kids in town will still be on the block this time next year? Only time will tell.
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