Nightclub playbooks: How the night gets run.
Guides from people who run club nights: opening a room, licensing it, selling tables and tickets, and filling it week after week.
Opening the room
The plan, the name, the cover and the build, before the first night.
- How to open a nightclubOpening a nightclub, in the order the work happens.The business plan, what drives the cost, the licenses, the room, the team and the first nights, in the order you’ll meet them.Read the playbook
- Nightclub business planHow to write a nightclub business plan, with a template.What goes in each section, how to build the numbers from your own room, a fill-in template, and how lenders and landlords read it.Read the playbook
- Nightclub name ideasNightclub name ideas, and the checks before the sign goes up.What a good club name does, a name generator, 80 original names by style, and the checks before you commit to one.Read the playbook
- Nightclub insuranceInsuring a nightclub, and the gaps between the policies.General liability, liquor liability, assault and battery and the rest, dram shop laws, what the law requires and what moves the price.Read the playbook
Licences and the door
The licences to sell a drink, and the team that keeps the door and the room safe.
- How to get a liquor licenseHow to get a liquor license for a bar or nightclub.License classes, the application, background checks, public notice, fees and timelines, with sourced examples from several states.Read the playbook
- Premises licence and personal licenceHow a bar or club gets licensed to sell alcohol in England and Wales.Personal licences, the DPS, the premises licence application, 28 days of notice, hearings, fees by band, variations, transfers and TENs.Read the playbook
- Nightclub securityKeeping the room safe, the door calm and the record clean.In-house or contract, how many guards per guest, the capacity count, ID checks, ejections, incident reports and training.Read the playbook
- SIA licenceDoor security and the SIA licence, from the venue’s side of the rope.Who needs a door supervisor licence, the £204 fee and training, checking the register, contractors and the ACS, licence conditions and the door log.Read the playbook
Selling the night
Tables, bottles and tickets, priced so the night is paid for early.
- How bottle service worksHow bottle service works, from the venue’s side of the table.Minimum spends, deposits, table tiers, bottle prices, service charges, the host and server roles, and how to cut no-shows.Read the playbook
- Ticket pricing strategyHow to price a club night, from early bird tickets to the door.Early bird tickets, release tiers, VIP tickets, fees and who pays them, all-in pricing rules, promo codes, door prices and when to raise them.Read the playbook
Filling it, week after week
Promotion, promoters and the people who bring the crowd.
- How to promote an eventA club night’s promotion calendar, from the announcement to the door.A promotion calendar for a club night, event promotion ideas, promoters, email to past buyers, tracking links and how to sell out.Read the playbook
- Club promotersHow the deals work, who sells, and how to pay them.Door splits, per-head deals, guest list comps and table commissions, tracking who sells, paying promoters, and how to start out as one.Read the playbook
Your next event starts here.
Sell tickets, book tables and check guests in from one place.