This blog post on the Las Vegas After Hours Nightclub Industry (which made this blogger think of the ultimate Las Vegas party goer Paris Hilton) is based on a great article over at the Las Vegas Weekly. Called “Beyond Drai’s: A look at the past and future of afterhours clubs in Las Vegas,” the article sheds light on how Las Vegas developed as a true 24-hour party city.
According to nightlife expert and marketing veteran Jack Colton . “Clubs would start dying out or you’d be ready to go to the next place, and that’s where the afterhours kicked in. So you’d go to Seven or Drai’s or the Empire Ballroom just because that was the next place to go to.”
But the industry really didn’t take off until marketing veteran Tony Verdugo and current Light Group CEO Andy Masi (Bank Nightclub, Bellagio) started having after hours parties for the Southern California party crowd and at places like the House of Blues and the Spearmint Rhino.
“The appeal was the 24 hour-ness of Vegas, whereas in SoCal last call is at 1:30, 1:45,” Verdugo told the Las Vegas Weekly. “So we’d come throw these big parties until three-ish and then after it would keep going for the staff. It caught on then that that time was happy hour for industry people working in Vegas as well.”
But note, the Spearmint Rhino’s a strip club, and since not every person wants that kind of party place, a number of new mega-clubs opened, and more, as the Las Vegas “themed” hotel era evolved.
Today, places like Mandalay Bay, where this blogger had his blogger party at Mix Lounge, have 24 hour clubs. Take a look:
But the after hours clubs aren’t dead. Verdugo: “I’ve watched nightlife evolve in Vegas so that you’re only treated good if you’re spending a lot of money. Just because someone can’t spend 10 or 20 grand on a table doesn’t mean they aren’t important. How is a bar back or busboy gonna be able to spend that on a table? But they make your club run. My focus is on local love. We try to greet them by name, we give them a place to sit. We’re gonna give the party back to the people. The people are the party.”
Stay tuned.
Bill Carroll