Entering through a nondescript metal door on 14th St, I went up to the cramped, 4th-floor offices of 3Sixty Hospitality. “I’m looking for Jeffrey?” The woman politely motioned me around the corner, where I found Jah standing over a mound of paper trash about a foot wide and nearly as high. “I’m organizing my expenses,” he said. “If I let it go another six months, it’ll be up to here by year end,” he said, pointing to his neck. We proceeded to the conference room for what was to be an hour long discussion.
During our talk, Jah looked at me with laser-sharp focus, speaking in his low, raspy voice with a measured cadence. Yet throughout our hour-long discussion, his foot would tap at random moments, as if his subconscious were on to the next thing. I took it as a physical expression of the character traits it takes to make the longest-standing, most consistently successful NYC nightclub owner in recent memory.
B: Can you talk about your foray into the Brazilian market? What prompted you to go there, as opposed to another emerging market?
JJ: A friend of mine, a Brazilian, was coming to Lotus every night. He was like, “Jeffrey, you’ve got to open a Lotus in São Paulo. They just don’t have anything like this.” I went down there, had a great time in São Paulo, and in 2003 we opened our first Lotus. That grew to almost six different Lotuses. These are licenses. The big thing I learned from that is the Brazilians don’t respect one’s point of view if they’re a license holder; they pretty much took the brand and did whatever they wanted to do with it. Fast forward to 2009, I have two other venues that I’m an equity partner in. I will open 1 Oak and Double Seven in various cities in Brazil. The lesson to be told is, If you don’t own it, you really don’t have the respect of the people you are doing business with.
B: How about the cultural differences between NYC to São Paulo? How do you adapt to the cultural differences while respecting the brand?
JJ: Whenever I build a place in Brazil, I will use local architects, local designers, because I believe in every market you go to, you’ve got exceptional talent. I’ll find that talent and put them to work and we’ll collaborate on a vision, whether it’s design, music, lighting… everything. I believe that you should support the local economy. If you search high and dry, you will find those people. And this goes into your marketing plan. I don’t want to be one of those guys who’s going to bring a big-shot NYC designer down to wherever it may be… São Paulo, Paris, London… I would rather use local, homegrown talent. It says that you believe in that market, in the local economy. For me, it’s good karma.
B: Where would you open a club that you haven’t yet?
JJ: Definitely going to open a place in Montenegro. Beautiful sea, beautiful coastline. The architecture is incredible. Great vibe. I will probably do something in Canada. Being that I’m from Canada, I think it’s time for me to do something in Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. It’s always been my dream to do something in Paris. So I’m going to focus on those areas for the next 12-18 months.
B: What’s the single most important factor in opening a club? Is it celebrities, press, exclusivity, service?
JJ: I think it’s a combination of items. I think you need to have a very smart CFO. Someone who is watching your numbers, watching your inventory controls, someone who is watching your pars and variances…
B: Pars and variances?
JJ: For example, you pour a vodka-cranberry. We free-pour, so you want to make sure that you don’t have waste and you don’t have theft. Those are your pars and variances. So that’s your back of house. Out front, you want a consistent service night in and night out. For example, I was watching that old film Casino, and there was a part where Robert Deniro gets a muffin with blueberries and his friend gets a muffin with five times the amount of blueberries. And Deniro goes to the kitchen and says, “I want every muffin to have the same fucking amount of blueberries!” And the cook says, “That’s going to take all day!” And Deniro says, “I don’t give a fuck.” Consistency is key. That’s how we are with our businesses. Everybody should get the exact same product every time, and they should get it with a smile. I think if you treat people good, from the time you come through the front door… I mean, if you’re not going to let the person in, don’t insult them. “I’m sorry it’s a private party, we can’t let you in tonight. I’m sorry.” That’s it. Kill ‘em with kindness. What’s the point of being a prick, degrading somebody, embarrassing somebody in front of their friends. And if it’s not a private party, tell them why you’re not letting them in. Give them a chance to re-create their look or whatever it may be. I think the most important thing is an even balance of men versus women. Anyplace with too many of either is bad. The party for me is a mixture of straight, gay, black, white, Asian, fashionista, hipster, uptown, downtown… everything. As far as I’m concerned, we don’t allow photographers to take pictures of celebrities in our venues. We try to keep our celebrity presence out of the press as best as possible. But unfortunately, because of all you BLOGGERS out there [laughs] and all the blogging haters, they just can’t resist.
B: Before Base, I was at DKNY. And though I didn’t want to admit it while I was there, I found that for every fashion line (with some exceptions) there is a life cycle for the brand…
JJ: Same with a club.
B: So do you try to control the life cycle at all? Is there a target life cycle of a club? Is the key to always remain exclusive? Or to be exclusive long enough to guarantee longevity once the masses are allowed in?
JJ: This is a constant battle of one’s ego versus one’s business sense. If you want to have a business for 10 years you have to have certain door policies and create a certain balance, every night, of consistency. I believe that the first year you have to keep a very tight door. You have to keep it tight the second year. The third year you maybe start commercializing on one or two nights of the week. The fourth year, maybe a third night. The fifth year, maybe a fourth night. And then, years 6-10, every night dissipates into a commercial night. That’s the formula I used for Lotus. Lotus had a 10-year run. By New York standards that’s an incredibly long run. I will use the same format at 1 Oak. In regards to Double Seven, I will go against what I’m saying because Double Seven is a very small venue, and we do not sell bottles at Double Seven, and it’s all about fashionistas and hipsters. So the price-point is well-priced in a very luxurious atmosphere, but you’re not getting ripped off. And I will maintain the integrity of the crowd for the life of the lease.
B: I sometimes get emails from “Jeffrey Jah” promoting various nights around the city.
JJ: Yes, we have management agreements with two other venues.
B: OK. Email blasts are, by definition, a mass form of communication. As your name is linked to the most exclusive venues in the city, are you concerned about having to reconcile the two?
JJ: No. I’ll tell you why. We have two management agreements. We have a management agreement for Groove Deck, which is at Hudson Terrace at 46th Street and the West Side Highway. That caters particularly to a more commercial audience, and the email will come from groovedeck.com. Groove Deck will have a new home at the Dream Hotel, which will be opening next door to the Maritime Hotel next March. In a venue that’s 10,000 square feet, there’s no such thing as exclusivity. 10,000 square feet is a 1500-person venue. Some of these projects have to pay for the “fabulousness” that makes no money [smiles]. In regards to Cabanas, that was more of a strategic move whereas it’s one block from 1 Oak, it’s in the Meatpacking District. Eric Goode is an old friend. I like his work, I love the venue, and he agreed to provide me with a hybrid menu with the best items from Matsuri and La Bottega. I said, “You know? This could be interesting.” It’s got that outdoor vibe, that California vibe, with the Eric Goode/Sean Macpherson stamp on it. The idea was to do very cool, very kitsch for our young hipster audience. People that don’t mind paying $6 for a beer, $8 for a drink, $10 for a pizza. You know, you can have a dinner for two there for $40 with drinks. So I’m really catering to a 21-29 year old crowd. These are all people that in 10 years will be successful designers, art directors, tastemakers, and trend setters.
B: It’s audience segmentation, really…
JJ: Yes. That’s why I did Cabanas. There’s a need for that audience for somewhere to go from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m., and they’re certainly not going to go to the Gansevoort, which is incredibly commercial and cheesy. There are not enough outdoor venues in NYC. It’s incredibly hard to get the permits and licensing for it.
B: What do you do on your nights off?
JJ: I stay at home and I read.
B: You’re still young yet have accomplished a great deal. What do you have left to do?
JJ: I have a lot left to do. Number one: I want to get into the hotel business. And number two: I will probably go back to school and get a degree in the arts because I want to learn autocad. I’m tired of working with architects where I design and they file. I need to know how to do this on my own. I have my visions and, with every venue that I open, it’s always a collaboration where it’s me and the designer or architect. It seems to always end badly. I am very difficult to work with. I have a certain vision, they have a certain vision, and somehow it comes out good. But my dream is to get into the hotel business.
B: How would you like to be remembered?
JJ: Wow, that’s complicated. I hope I was well-liked. I guess I want to be remembered as someone who set his ground, someone who never broke his word. Somebody that had good ethics and integrity.
To read part I of this interview, please click here.
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