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Jazz tends to be pretty intellectual and mathematical, so you would need a location where the population has a high education level. Food and drinks would need to be sophisticated.
I don't see anything in common between jazz and blues, so it seems like an odd juxtaposition of music for your future clientele. They are for different audiences.
Another big issue is going to be finding bands to play. You are going to need a location where bands are available. That's not just anywhere.
In the meantime, I suggest that you work in bars to see what is involved and also start taking some small business and restaurant management classes. There is a lot to running a successful bar. It's a lot more than drinks and music.
Jazz tends to be pretty intellectual and mathematical, so you would need a location where the population has a high education level. Food and drinks would need to be sophisticated.
I don't see anything in common between jazz and blues, so it seems like an odd juxtaposition of music for your future clientele. They are for different audiences.
Another big issue is going to be finding bands to play. You are going to need a location where bands are available. That's not just anywhere.
In the meantime, I suggest that you work in bars to see what is involved and also start taking some small business and restaurant management classes. There is a lot to running a successful bar. It's a lot more than drinks and music.
Excellent comments.
Thank you all. Given me lots to think about. Just what I was looking for.
I love hospitality and having the opportunity to bring a smile to people's faces.
This venture would be something that I wouldn't mind putting time and energy into.
As many of you mentioned....I do need some experience on the business operations side of things.
Its a tough racket, get a job in an existing joint and see all what there is to it.
Jazz is a particular hard choice, it appeals to an older crowd which doesn't like to go out to bars that often. Getting enough of them to come out to make it profitable is one thing in New York with 15 million people, in a smaller city, its a lot harder.
I think you'd do better to open a punk rock club or a strip joint. Dames taking their clothes off is always popular.
Strip clubs are known getting raid by law enforcement
I would first start by working at a blues/jazz club to learn every aspect of the business. Literally from the ground up. Learn what mistakes not to make on someone else's dime. Going in thinking just because you went to business school makes you a successful business man can be disastrous
Strip clubs are known getting raid by law enforcement
If girls are giving extras in the back. You may occasionally have a cop or two stop around but you don't get raided for no reason. It's not as if they added a clause to the 4rth amendment that no search and seiure without probably cause *except strip clubs and massage parlors.
Jazz tends to be pretty intellectual and mathematical, so you would need a location where the population has a high education level. Food and drinks would need to be sophisticated.
I don't see anything in common between jazz and blues, so it seems like an odd juxtaposition of music for your future clientele. They are for different audiences.
Another big issue is going to be finding bands to play. You are going to need a location where bands are available. That's not just anywhere.
In the meantime, I suggest that you work in bars to see what is involved and also start taking some small business and restaurant management classes. There is a lot to running a successful bar. It's a lot more than drinks and music.
The roots of Jazz is blues. Musically there is much in common. Music is a spectrum - and most people I know who listen to traditional or acoustic jazz (Miles, Rollins, Coltrane) also listen to blues. Some who listen to modern electric blues might not ever listen to jazz - these people often came from rock and learned the blues roots of rock. Think Yardbirds, Muddy Waters, SRV. I think it makes sense though to be both a jazz and blues venue. A jazz club doesn't need curtains and box seats. It needs a good stage, good sound, and good seating. It doesn't need luxury. I saw Sonny Rollins performing in a steel building with folding chairs - and loved it.
If the OP is thinking smooth jazz then his audience is much broader and less discriminating (though smooth jazz fans sometimes think they are truly cool, even though they are not). I won't pay anything to see smooth jazz live.
I think the OP's idea is a fun one, but very risky and difficult to make successful. I have never run such a business, but I see the lack of jazz (and blues) clubs as a sign of the difficulty actually making a living. You have to run a bar and book live music. Neither are automatic successes. You have to keep your building costs low because it is going to be difficult to maintain a full calendar of acts.
There are some good points above. In particular with jazz, the club better be in a city where jazz musicians are known to be interested in. You won't get Winton Marsalis to just change his tour to come to your club unless it is some place he might already be willing to travel to.
I think the OP needs to learn the business from the inside. Get a job for an existing live music club. Get a handle on the economics - booking hassles, alcohol permits, box office issues, etc.
If you have zero experience in the bar world and you do not have anyone that does have experience to willingly invest with you then it will be difficult. Running/managing a bar/club is much tougher than one would realize. If you want to do things quickly you will need experience to help you out.
You also have to envision what sort of club/bar you want to be. Where would it drum up good business? Does it have adequate parking? A steady stream of customers? Does it serve food? How many employees? What type of loan? Short and long term plan? Who is going to manage the accounting? Who is going to want to play at your venue?
In order to be a Jazz club you will need to be niche and have a steady stream of customers. Most successful clubs aren't just one thing or the other, and if they are, they aren't usually that successful.
I think too often people want to turn their hobbies into a business. I get the whole argment about do something your passionat about however running a jazzz club is not sitting around listening to jazz music, its running a hospitality business. Are you passionate about managing food service employees, running a payroll, keeping an eye on your cash business to make sure people aren't stealing. The business has very little to do with jazz and very much to do with managing a restaurant/bar. If you don't have a background in the industry chance are very high you will fail. LIke other posters have suggested go work in a bar for a year before even attempting to do this.
I think there is nothing worst than turning a hobby into a business, I've known too many people who have started guitar stores and they think it will be fun just sit around all day and playing guitars. but they learn the hard way that running a guitar store is all about dealing with customers who want a guitar for less than you paid for it, dealing with inventory, shoplifting, merchandise damaged by careless customers and so on.
I would first start by working at a blues/jazz club to learn every aspect of the business. Literally from the ground up. Learn what mistakes not to make on someone else's dime. Going in thinking just because you went to business school makes you a successful business man can be disastrous
Thanks all.
Absolutely agree. My first move is going to be to try to find a part-time gig in one of the clubs near my home city. I am hoping to find a mentor that is already in the business.
I have worked in restaurants before and am used to working with customers. Never had chance to work behind scenes with finances, in a bar setting, or in any capacity where I would need to book musicians.
I love music and people and this is probably the only venture that I would think I genuinely would enjoy doing on my own as an entrepreneur.
You all have given me tons to think about.
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