EAST London nightclubs are feeling the pinch as tough economic times bite and clubbers go out less often.
Nightclub owners said this week they had noticed a shift in trends as people were more money-conscious and spent less when going out.
In the past, clubs had queues of patrons, eagerly waiting to get in for a night of partying. But of late the numbers have declined and club owners are concerned at what this means for their venues.
Numbers Dance Club in Beacon Bay manager Daryn Mildenhall said even though their entrance fee was a third of their Johannesburg counterpart, many would-be revellers could not afford it.
“I think there are various factors – expendable income being at an all-time low is the most obvious though,” he said.
“The discounted drink nights are the most popular, which vindicates our views on expendable income. People are a lot more selective about which nights they go out.
“They simply cannot afford to go out all the time, as much as they may want to.”
Russell Thomson , manager of Incognito Lounge in Arcadia, said numbers were dwindling at his club and there was a significant decrease in turnover.
“ I’ve been in this business for years now but the past two or three years has been very bad. A lot of clubs are struggling to survive,” he said.
“Previously I would get between 500 and 1000 people a night, and with an entry fee of about R10 I would get a turnover of R10000 from door sales and between R25000 and R30000 from the bar. Nowadays, the bar turnover is down to R12000. People just don’t have the money to spend.”
Numbers will host Cape Town DJ and producer duo Pascal & Pearce tonight and Mildenhall hopes their appearance will bring a turnaround in the numbers. Even so, he says it will take a lot more than that to change the current state of the club scene. “Clubbing is an evolutionary thing. It constantly changes as the needs of generations change,” he said. —
EL nightclub all abuzz for Cape’s top DJ duo
By SHANAAZ PRINCE
NUMBERS nightclub manager Daryn Mildenhall is looking forward to the performance of Cape Town DJ duo Pascal & Pearce tonight .
“It is their first appearance in East London, so it really is significant – they are one of the most spoken-about acts in the country at the moment and they definitely offer an international flavour,” he said. “There is a lot of hype around this event, so we are expecting a really good turnout.”
Dave Pearce and Pascal Ellinas have played alongside international DJs such as Avicii, Paul van Dyk, Paul Oakenfold, Bass Kleph, Wally Lopez, Stupid Fresh, Calvertron, and Tom EQ to name a few.
They have released two studio albums through their label Just Music, and between the two albums and another four singles, they are among the top 10 status on the local top 40, with three of those singles in the top five. They said they were expecting an energetic night out for their first time in East London.
“We’ve always wanted to play in East London – it’s one of the few cities in SA that we haven’t played in ,” said the duo.
Despite the slump in the club scene at the moment, the duo hold fast to the notion that the scene, particularly in Cape Town, is growing.
“We’ve never really experienced the club scene in East London before – but obviously the big cities get all the big international tours, which helps shape the club scene to a certain extent,” they added. —
Hard times for revellers
Nightclub owners said this week they had noticed a shift in trends as people were more money-conscious and spent less when going out.
In the past, clubs had queues of patrons, eagerly waiting to get in for a night of partying. But of late the numbers have declined and club owners are concerned at what this means for their venues.
Numbers Dance Club in Beacon Bay manager Daryn Mildenhall said even though their entrance fee was a third of their Johannesburg counterpart, many would-be revellers could not afford it.
“I think there are various factors – expendable income being at an all-time low is the most obvious though,” he said.
“The discounted drink nights are the most popular, which vindicates our views on expendable income. People are a lot more selective about which nights they go out.
“They simply cannot afford to go out all the time, as much as they may want to.”
Russell Thomson , manager of Incognito Lounge in Arcadia, said numbers were dwindling at his club and there was a significant decrease in turnover.
“ I’ve been in this business for years now but the past two or three years has been very bad. A lot of clubs are struggling to survive,” he said.
“Previously I would get between 500 and 1000 people a night, and with an entry fee of about R10 I would get a turnover of R10000 from door sales and between R25000 and R30000 from the bar. Nowadays, the bar turnover is down to R12000. People just don’t have the money to spend.”
Numbers will host Cape Town DJ and producer duo Pascal & Pearce tonight and Mildenhall hopes their appearance will bring a turnaround in the numbers. Even so, he says it will take a lot more than that to change the current state of the club scene. “Clubbing is an evolutionary thing. It constantly changes as the needs of generations change,” he said. —
EL nightclub all abuzz for Cape’s top DJ duo
By SHANAAZ PRINCE
NUMBERS nightclub manager Daryn Mildenhall is looking forward to the performance of Cape Town DJ duo Pascal & Pearce tonight .
“It is their first appearance in East London, so it really is significant – they are one of the most spoken-about acts in the country at the moment and they definitely offer an international flavour,” he said. “There is a lot of hype around this event, so we are expecting a really good turnout.”
Dave Pearce and Pascal Ellinas have played alongside international DJs such as Avicii, Paul van Dyk, Paul Oakenfold, Bass Kleph, Wally Lopez, Stupid Fresh, Calvertron, and Tom EQ to name a few.
They have released two studio albums through their label Just Music, and between the two albums and another four singles, they are among the top 10 status on the local top 40, with three of those singles in the top five. They said they were expecting an energetic night out for their first time in East London.
“We’ve always wanted to play in East London – it’s one of the few cities in SA that we haven’t played in ,” said the duo.
Despite the slump in the club scene at the moment, the duo hold fast to the notion that the scene, particularly in Cape Town, is growing.
“We’ve never really experienced the club scene in East London before – but obviously the big cities get all the big international tours, which helps shape the club scene to a certain extent,” they added. —
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