Montreal’s Promoter Tongue – Nightlife Insights and the Importance of Values in the Industry
Whether at Joverse on Tuesdays or at Ecole Privée on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, you may have seen him around working hard and taking care of patrons while making sure everything is running smoothly. However, being a promoter is so much more than that. I got the amazing opportunity to sit down with one of Montreal’s biggest promoters in the game, Tongue, and get his opinion on the nightlife industry. He’s been doing it for over a decade, which means he’s seen the scene evolve. Things change but his outlook on work doesn’t.
What is a promoter
There is a misconception nowadays regarding what promoters are and what their job is. A lot of people have a specific image tied to the use of that word due to the market changing organically its definition over the years. Going out to party until 3am and bringing 20 friends along isn’t the core of their purpose: it’s all about what more can they do for the clients’ experience.
Welcoming people, hosting clients and taking care of guests is a big part of their skill set, and this is how trust gets built. An honest promoter opens the door to the possibility of building a strong and loyal relationship between him and the client, which should always be considered important. Just by how he acts and describes his work, it’s easy to see that Tongue truly incorporates his personal values surrounding respect into his relationships, whether life or work related.
Who he is
Needless to say that Tongue embodies the real meaning of being a promoter, although he goes above and beyond what the job entails; one of the many reasons for his success. He differentiates himself by having his own vision of the business and sharp point of view, and brings that into every project he takes part in.
As previously mentioned, his work doesn’t stop at bringing people to the venue and having fun; there’s always an opportunity to bring to the next level the hot spot he reps by giving owners and colleagues ideas as well as insights since he’s directly in contact with the crowd. Wanting people to actually know about the establishments he works with, the vision they put forward and their brand is one of the many aspects of his work ethic that puts him at the top of the game.
Everywhere I work, I want a personal relationship with the people I work with. It’s extremely important to me.
Authentic, humble, focused and passionate, it comes as no surprise that he excels at building strong relationships and durable brands. His hard work and innate business flair mixed with his expertise make him a valuable team player that exceeds expectations, no matter the project he collaborates on. For him, the best part of being a promoter is the opportunity of developing relationships, meeting new people and making them happy. Friendships he built with colleagues are now some of the strongest bonds and he prides himself on the authenticity of his entourage.
Insights, branding and advice
We also got into the industry itself and talked about how things changed since Tongue first started, but how some pieces of advice stay relevant regardless of the generation or field of work.
- It’s important to associate yourself with businesses you believe in. It’s easy to lose the trust of your clients if you’re just in it for the perks and the money.
- Everything circles back to making the client feel special, and Tongue does try his best to go the extra mile to do so.
- Always cut ties in the most respectful way. Don’t burn bridges; be on good terms as much as possible.
- In the end, people are going to think what they want to think, no matter how honest or not you are. It all comes down to how they want to believe it. People you build real relationships with will know you for who you are, which is why you should always be true to yourself.
- Your reputation you make for yourself will always follow you.
- Offer consistency and capitalize on solid principles so clients can find the same quality of experience every time. Don’t lower your standards.
- Building a brand doesn’t mean to put respect and integrity on the back burner.
- It’s not because it’s a new thing that it’s going to be successful. It’s all about branding and marketing. Not every shiny new toy has a success story.
It’s a fantastic feeling to be able to reach people you don’t know.
There are a couple of things coming up on his end regarding projects and collaborations that we can’t unveil just yet but, rest assured, we will keep you in the loop. Judging by all the other different ventures he has going on, we know it’s going to be nothing short of remarkable. Stay tuned!
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