MAGAZINE

An early night

It has been a little while since I spoke with a leader of a nightlife business. The last interviewee to be operating in this space was Daniel Ellis, co-founder of Nottingham’s Fletchergate Industries, who we profiled at the beginning of this year. Through my enjoyable chat with him, I discovered a multi-brand-led set-up doing a pretty decent job of keeping the East Midlands party going well into the early hours.

Yet, just like the rest of the on-trade, times are tough for those who specialise in hospitality after dark. Even tougher than it is for pubs, some would argue. One doesn’t need to delve too deeply into Google to discover the nightclub closure numbers seen since Covid-19. However, following years of decline, this year’s Night Time Economy Market Monitor, produced by CGA by NIQ and the Night Time Industries Association, showed that Britain’s late-night licensed premises actually held steady over the last year or so. Why is that? What’s changed?

Well, in a word, bars. Despite club closures, bar numbers have actually been on the up, as savvy operators pivot to address the demands of modern-day consumer socialising. While many trade bodies (rightly) point the finger at government when highlighting the amount of late-night venues that are having to close their doors for good, the debate over whether consumer interest can sustain the nightlife industry of years gone by is an interesting one. 

For this issue’s lead interview (page 20), I spoke with Russell Quelch, CEO of NEOS Hospitality, the business to rise from the administration ashes of Rekom UK. In a former existence, the outfit Quelch worked for was only known for its large-scale nightclubs across the country. Covid abruptly put an end to that and, five years on, the newly acquired business has set its sights almost entirely on bars. What was surprising when chatting to Quelch, as you’ll read in the piece, is that not once did he attribute this change of direction to the trading environment caused by decisions in Westminster. Instead, he talked about the people who ultimately decide the success and future of a business, the guests. 

Tristan O’Hana - Editor