A Popular Nightclub On St-Laurent Gives New Insight On The Nightlife Scene In Montreal
The success continues 10 years later
Happy birthday Rouge Bar! The iconic nightclub located on St-Laurent boulevard just celebrated its 10th anniversary as one of the most acclaimed destination in the city for an older more sophisticated crowd looking to dance the night away.
Recognized as a big player in the scene, Rouge Bar is a well-known club that Montrealers keep returning to. Alexandre, François and Fabio are not only behind the success of Rouge Bar, but also Peopl Club, Le North End – Bar à Huitres, and B-Side Bar & Terrasse just to name a few.
We sat down with the three men that made it all happen to get a closer look at what it’s like to run a successful hospitality business in Montreal.
Yasmine: Congratulations on the 10th anniversary, the place looks great! What can you tell us about the new decor ?
Thanks! We usually work with Stéphanie Bélanger, she helps us out with our interior design. We choose to renovate in order to stay relevant. We wanted the place to have more of a “club” feel to it. The LED ceiling is imported straight from Italy, we’re the first establishment to have it in Canada. It looks awesome.
Yasmine: The scene in Montreal is contantly evolving and the consumers expectations and taste are all over the place. Many entrepreneurs are trying to come up with a new concepts to accomodate this new generation of consumers. It seems like everyone is opening a new place to see how it’s going to do. Any thoughts about this ?
It’s true, a lot of people decide to start a business in this particular industry because the concept of owning a restaurant or bar is “cool”, but in the end, it’s the client’s experience that matters. You’re actually building a memorable experience for someone else, not yourself, and when you focus on the others, you become way more critical of what you do, which causes you to be more careful and in sync with what people want.
Yasmine: Do you think some people start a business in the nightlife industry for the wrong reasons causing them to forget what’s really important ?
Montreal is not the biggest city, the pie doesn’t get bigger. We’re just cutting thinner and thinner slices. When too many people get involved in the scene, they just cause the slices to be even smaller, which isn’t the best thing for them from a lucrative point of view. It will also affect people that are doing it for the right reasons, and it has a repercussion on the whole pie. We’ve been noticing it for a couple of years now, but we think things will even out with time.
Yasmine: Since you’ve been around for a decade, how would you compare the nightlife scene back then versus the right now ?
Back in the days, it was all about being a destination. “Let’s go on St-Laurent!” or “Let’s go on Crescent!” and back then it was also already predetermined where people would go out before they left their house. You would go someplace and know what to expect. Compared to right now, it all depends on how you feel in the moment and where you decide to casually take a walk. Patrons are ready to walk around and change places several times. We think this is caused by the rise of social media and instant messaging. They can now decide 5 min before midnight where to meet up while they are parking their car.
People don’t appreciate as much as they used to, and it’s a society thing. Next time you go out, look around and notice how many of your friends spend all their time on their phone instead of enjoying where you guys are. They don’t interact as much, and they are more judgmental of their surroundings because social media gives them the power to voice their opinions to the world.
The client is not as loyal as before, he wants more and less at the same time, which affects the dynamic. He’s more picky and impatient, although the industry offers them way more than it used to. It’s about trying to find a balance.
Yasmine: Any thoughts on the type of clientele you guys had back then versus now ?
The crowd was much older before, and they were bigger drinkers as well! Nowadays, a lot more people are cautious about their health. Money wise also: people think more about where to invest their money, whether it’s a condo, a car or a vacation.
Desires become needs. Between the newest iPhone, a Louis Vuitton bag, and spending 300$ for one night out, they have to make choices. Back then, money was used to go out and have a blast; now they need it for the iPad mini.
Yasmine: You guys have been growing for the past 10 years whereas so many places opened and closed during that period of time. What do you think it is that made you guys as succesfull as you have been for the past 10 years ?
The act of adapting the business and its evolution. Don’t wait for a client to say something negative about the place, it’s all about adapting your venue and changing up the formula before the client realizes it, that way he continues to enjoy the establishment.
It’s harder to acquire clients than to keep current ones. You also need complimentary skills within the team. I’m convinced that François would never do what I do and vice versa, same goes with Fabio. A lot of the time, people that decide to hop on the nightlife wagon are, for example, 3 friends that share the same interests and skills, which leads to an unsuccessful management of the place.
What’s interesting is that we became friends thanks to the business: our 3 personalities are super different but each of us has a role to play and it works like a charm.
Yasmine : What can party animals expect from Rouge in the future ?
The same home-y feeling and as always a good client experience. I have to give us some credit; Rouge Bar is still a renowned destination. When I’m in Toronto for work and I mention that I’m also a partner in Rouge, everyone knows what I’m talking about and it’s so flattering.
When they come to Montreal, they instantly come to Rouge and that, for me, is the proof that we’re doing something right. Bachelors/bachelorettes parties are a huge thing for us. We have so many bookings for it, and they come from far! We got groups of people all the way from New York or even Miami! They heard about us and they love Montreal so they chose to celebrate it at Rouge, and it’s an amazing feeling.
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