Lounge Revenue?

[cotsi95]

Where are you opening a lounge?

The problem with coming up with figures like that is there are too many variables. I know of lounges that make $20-$40k/month and some that can't even pay their bills. It's a very fickle business with a very narrow market segment.

Why don't you post the details about your lounge and about the area you'll be setting it up in, including any competition. That might help in figuring out if you will be able to make your rent.

We are opening up in Casper Wy. I think our population is somewhere around 75,000. There is 1, soon to be 2 lounges in a city about 2.5 hours away. A lot of the younger crowd drives to these nearby places to go to hookah lounges, and since we will be the only one in Casper, we should get that business. We have 1 college, not a lot of military or mid east population, but we do have the highest percentage of smokers in the country. Also, Wyoming has pretty high median income (due to the oil field) which results in a lot of rich kids The location we are looking at is downtown, and the rent will be 1500-2000 p/month depending on the length of the lease. I found a really great $900 a month location right across the street, but the plumbing inspector said we would pretty much need to change ALL of the plumbing, so that is out of the question. We wont be doing alcohol because we dont fit in to any of the liquor license categories, but we will have some food, and obviously be selling some shisha/hookahs as well. Hope this helps! thanks!

Lol well were one of your competitors. (Hypnotic Hookah) We just opened in Cheyenne, but our main lounge is in Fort Collins (Narghile Nights). For th building thats 900 a month it is the responsibility of the owner to fix the plumbing if its not up to code not yours. So look into it more. The best thing i can tell you is the lower your rent the more money you make. Rent is your biggest expense next to employees.

lol, well i doubt we will hurt you...much (j/k) I have not been to the cheyenne one. we were @ narghile nights awhile ago, cool place I heard cheyenne was getting another one. Do you guys do ok in a city the size of cheyenne? we have to get in the game here, someone else has been looking into putting one in casper. i think it was the guy from riverton, but was it you? thanks for the building advice. the guy that owns the place is a real cheap skate, he didnt want to do any lease hold improvements or anything. still, it is a cool older building

Ya were doing very well in cheyenne. No it wasnt us, were from colorado and I plan on staying here lol, not going into wyo more then cheyenne. If you want more advise PM me and ill help you out. Also if your at the narg pm me before and i can meet up and we can talk and smoke a nice bowl.

[chinamon]

where in the usa is wyoming? lol
how far from toronto?

lol. where in canada is toronto? wyoming is under montana, which is on the canadian border. we are squished between montana and colorado, lol.

it is in Ontario. it is one of the biggest cities in Canada so im surprised you havent heard of it. that would be like me not knowing there New York City is... or Miami... or Los Angeles...

toronto is approximately 5 hours east of detroit.

... but wyoming is a state, its bigger than miami los angeles and new york (city) combined!
prolly has less people though.

lol, true. also, why would i need to or have to know where places in canada are? i never hear anything about them, whereas movies, etc.. always portray LA, miami, new york.

typical american self-centeredness right here.
whats wrong with learning about other countries other than your own?
also, many movies which portray american cities are filmed in canada.

edit: so many americans wonder why the world hates them so much.. well... look at the mentality. Edited October 1, 2009 by chinamon

[ivana]

where in the usa is wyoming? lol
how far from toronto?

lol. where in canada is toronto? wyoming is under montana, which is on the canadian border. we are squished between montana and colorado, lol.

it is in Ontario. it is one of the biggest cities in Canada so im surprised you havent heard of it. that would be like me not knowing there New York City is... or Miami... or Los Angeles...

toronto is approximately 5 hours east of detroit.

... but wyoming is a state, its bigger than miami los angeles and new york (city) combined!
prolly has less people though.

...but wyoming isnt exactly a popular state. she said she didnt know toronto which is like someone saying they dont know where some of america's biggest cities are located.
ask someone where california, nevada, florida, new york state are and im pretty sure most people would be able to tell you. ask where wyoming is? LOL.

umm, ya i think most people would know where wyoming was. i didnt say i didnt know toronto, i said i didnt know where it was in canada. you really want to bicker about this? LOL

[mitchard]

Canada: America's Hat

[chinamon]

where in the usa is wyoming? lol
how far from toronto?

lol. where in canada is toronto? wyoming is under montana, which is on the canadian border. we are squished between montana and colorado, lol.

it is in Ontario. it is one of the biggest cities in Canada so im surprised you havent heard of it. that would be like me not knowing there New York City is... or Miami... or Los Angeles...

toronto is approximately 5 hours east of detroit.

... but wyoming is a state, its bigger than miami los angeles and new york (city) combined!
prolly has less people though.

...but wyoming isnt exactly a popular state. she said she didnt know toronto which is like someone saying they dont know where some of america's biggest cities are located.
ask someone where california, nevada, florida, new york state are and im pretty sure most people would be able to tell you. ask where wyoming is? LOL.

umm, ya i think most people would know where wyoming was. i didnt say i didnt know toronto, i said i didnt know where it was in canada. you really want to bicker about this? LOL

go read back about what i said. i did not say anything about you not knowing toronto. i said i was surprised that you didnt know WHERE toronto is because it is one of canada's main cities (vancouver, calgary, toronto, montreal) and i compared it to a non-american not knowing where some of america's main cities are but i think almost everyone could tell you where los angeles, miami, new york and chicago are.

[chinamon]

Canada: America's Hat

lol

America: Canada's Ass

[ivana]

Where are you opening a lounge?

The problem with coming up with figures like that is there are too many variables. I know of lounges that make $20-$40k/month and some that can't even pay their bills. It's a very fickle business with a very narrow market segment.

Why don't you post the details about your lounge and about the area you'll be setting it up in, including any competition. That might help in figuring out if you will be able to make your rent.

We are opening up in Casper Wy. I think our population is somewhere around 75,000. There is 1, soon to be 2 lounges in a city about 2.5 hours away. A lot of the younger crowd drives to these nearby places to go to hookah lounges, and since we will be the only one in Casper, we should get that business. We have 1 college, not a lot of military or mid east population, but we do have the highest percentage of smokers in the country. Also, Wyoming has pretty high median income (due to the oil field) which results in a lot of rich kids The location we are looking at is downtown, and the rent will be 1500-2000 p/month depending on the length of the lease. I found a really great $900 a month location right across the street, but the plumbing inspector said we would pretty much need to change ALL of the plumbing, so that is out of the question. We wont be doing alcohol because we dont fit in to any of the liquor license categories, but we will have some food, and obviously be selling some shisha/hookahs as well. Hope this helps! thanks!

Lol well were one of your competitors. (Hypnotic Hookah) We just opened in Cheyenne, but our main lounge is in Fort Collins (Narghile Nights). For th building thats 900 a month it is the responsibility of the owner to fix the plumbing if its not up to code not yours. So look into it more. The best thing i can tell you is the lower your rent the more money you make. Rent is your biggest expense next to employees.

lol, well i doubt we will hurt you...much (j/k) I have not been to the cheyenne one. we were @ narghile nights awhile ago, cool place I heard cheyenne was getting another one. Do you guys do ok in a city the size of cheyenne? we have to get in the game here, someone else has been looking into putting one in casper. i think it was the guy from riverton, but was it you? thanks for the building advice. the guy that owns the place is a real cheap skate, he didnt want to do any lease hold improvements or anything. still, it is a cool older building

Ya were doing very well in cheyenne. No it wasnt us, were from colorado and I plan on staying here lol, not going into wyo more then cheyenne. If you want more advise PM me and ill help you out. Also if your at the narg pm me before and i can meet up and we can talk and smoke a nice bowl.

well thats a relief, lol. wouldnt want to compete that directly with you, lol. and ya, my sis is in colorado springs, so we go through there once in awhile, and will def try to meet up and talk. thanks!

[ivana]

where in the usa is wyoming? lol
how far from toronto?

lol. where in canada is toronto? wyoming is under montana, which is on the canadian border. we are squished between montana and colorado, lol.

it is in Ontario. it is one of the biggest cities in Canada so im surprised you havent heard of it. that would be like me not knowing there New York City is... or Miami... or Los Angeles...

toronto is approximately 5 hours east of detroit.

... but wyoming is a state, its bigger than miami los angeles and new york (city) combined!
prolly has less people though.

lol, true. also, why would i need to or have to know where places in canada are? i never hear anything about them, whereas movies, etc.. always portray LA, miami, new york.

typical american self-centeredness right here.
whats wrong with learning about other countries other than your own?
also, many movies which portray american cities are filmed in canada.

edit: so many americans wonder why the world hates them so much.. well... look at the mentality.

oh wah. any americans gonna stick up for themselves here? this guy didnt know where the state of wyoming was! and he gets on me for not knowing his exact location in canada! ay?!? got nothin against canadians, actually think they are a pretty cool bunch

[mitchard]

Canada: America's Hat

lol

America: Canada's Ass

Yeah, the sexy ass that gets all the attention.

[chinamon]

Canada: America's Hat

lol

America: Canada's Ass

Yeah, the sexy ass that gets all the attention.

more like the sexy ass that gets slapped and violated all the time.

[TobiasKM]

Right, I don't know where Toronto is placed in Canada, nor do I know where Wyoming is in America.

There you go. Pick on the ignorant European instead

[chinamon]

Right, I don't know where Toronto is placed in Canada, nor do I know where Wyoming is in America.

There you go. Pick on the ignorant European instead

please leave.
lol jk!

ps. where the hell is europe?

[JDHarding]

I am finishing up some things from my business plan and am wondering if we are going to make in on the rent for the building we will be leasing for our hookah lounge- since there is no agency that reports the revenue of hookah lounges, I was wondering if any lounge owners out there might me willing to let me know what their monthly revenue is. Thanks!

*gasp!* It's a giiiiiiiiiiiiiii*breathe*iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiirl..

[ivana]

I am finishing up some things from my business plan and am wondering if we are going to make in on the rent for the building we will be leasing for our hookah lounge- since there is no agency that reports the revenue of hookah lounges, I was wondering if any lounge owners out there might me willing to let me know what their monthly revenue is. Thanks!

*gasp!* It's a giiiiiiiiiiiiiii*breathe*iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiirl..

lol. than unusual huh?

[redjako]

take a random survey of 100 people and see who would come and smoke and how often and how much then find out what % 100 is of the population X minutes away and multiple. that would be my guess give or take 10%

Hence why businesses fail 70% of the time. 90% for restaurants / clubs, which could be equated to a hookah "club."

Get with Mushie on the Lounge thread...

Labors probably your highest cost anyway. Serve alchy and food depending on your business license area, and...search for the "so you wanna run (or open) a hookah lounge"

[Tyler]

Seriously, Wyoming > Canada. More people around the world know more about Wyoming than Canada I'm sure. It's not american ignorance if we don't know where a CITY is when you asked where a STATE was. Don't be hyprocritical.

[PalGuY]

where in the usa is wyoming? lol
how far from toronto?

lol. where in canada is toronto? wyoming is under montana, which is on the canadian border. we are squished between montana and colorado, lol.

it is in Ontario. it is one of the biggest cities in Canada so im surprised you havent heard of it. that would be like me not knowing there New York City is... or Miami... or Los Angeles...

toronto is approximately 5 hours east of detroit.

... but wyoming is a state, its bigger than miami los angeles and new york (city) combined!
prolly has less people though.

lol, true. also, why would i need to or have to know where places in canada are? i never hear anything about them, whereas movies, etc.. always portray LA, miami, new york.

typical american self-centeredness right here.
whats wrong with learning about other countries other than your own?
also, many movies which portray american cities are filmed in canada.

edit: so many americans wonder why the world hates them so much.. well... look at the mentality.

it would make more sense if you were mad because they didnt't know where shanghai is..

[jellywerker]

@ Chinamon: I know where Toronto is.

Much love to my Canadian peeps!

[Toxik916]

I have nothing to add except I would rather go to Canada than Wyoming.

[chinamon]

where in the usa is wyoming? lol
how far from toronto?

lol. where in canada is toronto? wyoming is under montana, which is on the canadian border. we are squished between montana and colorado, lol.

it is in Ontario. it is one of the biggest cities in Canada so im surprised you havent heard of it. that would be like me not knowing there New York City is... or Miami... or Los Angeles...

toronto is approximately 5 hours east of detroit.

... but wyoming is a state, its bigger than miami los angeles and new york (city) combined!
prolly has less people though.

lol, true. also, why would i need to or have to know where places in canada are? i never hear anything about them, whereas movies, etc.. always portray LA, miami, new york.

typical american self-centeredness right here.
whats wrong with learning about other countries other than your own?
also, many movies which portray american cities are filmed in canada.

edit: so many americans wonder why the world hates them so much.. well... look at the mentality.

it would make more sense if you were mad because they didnt't know where shanghai is..

lol
where the hell is shanghai?

[*HOT&SMOKING*]

Right, I don't know where Toronto is placed in Canada, nor do I know where Wyoming is in America.

There you go. Pick on the ignorant European instead

ROFL! I am with you I don't know where either of these places are(although I think I know where wyoming is, but that is only because I was browsing at a US map yesterday..so I suppose they can pick on the ignorant South African to....actually I think I am the only South African on here..I feel special now lol

-H&S

[ih303]

we used to go to rapid city often, havent been there for about 2 years now. will def check it out next time we go that way! thanks for your input. do you have employees? what do you think sets you apart so that you are doing well now? any suggestions?

We have employees, but with myself and two other partners, at least one of us is always there.

What sets us apart is the very thing that hurts us with some people - our devotion to lounge culture. That is, we offer a chill, laid back atmosphere as opposed to the loud, obnoxious meat-markets that seem to dominate the night-life scene here in RC. You'll never hear us play rap, metal or anything off the radio regardless of how popular it might be. Part of our goal is to contrast what's currently here. Our tagline is "music + culture + nightlife" and that's also what we are selling. I think it's a combination of this fresh perspective and, of course, quality products that attracts most of our customers.

As far as suggestions go, everything really depends on the specific variables associated with your location and demographic. Someone once told me that being successful in business comes down to two things: 1) Finding out what your customers want, 2) Helping them get it.

This may sound simple, but it's more difficult than you might think. One personal issue I have is in dealing with customer ignorance. A lot of the people that come into the lounge only care about superficial things like product name and appearance. Therefore, we sell a lot of Tangiers and Starbuzz. We also have people who would rather smoke out of the 42" social smoke, china-crap special than the MYA QT, which I contest is one of the best hookahs for a modern lounge. I seriously feel like a snob every time I turn up my nose to something like hearing "the schnozberry tastes like schnozberry" for the thousandth time that night. But whatever. It comes with the territory, I suppose.

[ivana]

I have nothing to add except I would rather go to Canada than Wyoming.

um ya, canada is a country, wyoming a state. so.. dont equivocate.

[ivana]

we used to go to rapid city often, havent been there for about 2 years now. will def check it out next time we go that way! thanks for your input. do you have employees? what do you think sets you apart so that you are doing well now? any suggestions?

We have employees, but with myself and two other partners, at least one of us is always there.

What sets us apart is the very thing that hurts us with some people - our devotion to lounge culture. That is, we offer a chill, laid back atmosphere as opposed to the loud, obnoxious meat-markets that seem to dominate the night-life scene here in RC. You'll never hear us play rap, metal or anything off the radio regardless of how popular it might be. Part of our goal is to contrast what's currently here. Our tagline is "music + culture + nightlife" and that's also what we are selling. I think it's a combination of this fresh perspective and, of course, quality products that attracts most of our customers.

As far as suggestions go, everything really depends on the specific variables associated with your location and demographic. Someone once told me that being successful in business comes down to two things: 1) Finding out what your customers want, 2) Helping them get it.

This may sound simple, but it's more difficult than you might think. One personal issue I have is in dealing with customer ignorance. A lot of the people that come into the lounge only care about superficial things like product name and appearance. Therefore, we sell a lot of Tangiers and Starbuzz. We also have people who would rather smoke out of the 42" social smoke, china-crap special than the MYA QT, which I contest is one of the best hookahs for a modern lounge. I seriously feel like a snob every time I turn up my nose to something like hearing "the schnozberry tastes like schnozberry" for the thousandth time that night. But whatever. It comes with the territory, I suppose.

lol, ya i suppose that would get old. i was wondering about the hookahs too. i was planning on doing only mya qt, but so many of the people i know want to come in with their friends and smoke something massive with a bunch of hoses. kind of a predicament. we also will not be playing any "popular" music, and our lounge will be more modern because wyo is such a conservative state. There will be 3 owners, and we are going to start out with maybe 1 employee, see how it goes before we hire any more. thanks again!

[McLovin600]

we used to go to rapid city often, havent been there for about 2 years now. will def check it out next time we go that way! thanks for your input. do you have employees? what do you think sets you apart so that you are doing well now? any suggestions?

We have employees, but with myself and two other partners, at least one of us is always there.

What sets us apart is the very thing that hurts us with some people - our devotion to lounge culture. That is, we offer a chill, laid back atmosphere as opposed to the loud, obnoxious meat-markets that seem to dominate the night-life scene here in RC. You'll never hear us play rap, metal or anything off the radio regardless of how popular it might be. Part of our goal is to contrast what's currently here. Our tagline is "music + culture + nightlife" and that's also what we are selling. I think it's a combination of this fresh perspective and, of course, quality products that attracts most of our customers.

As far as suggestions go, everything really depends on the specific variables associated with your location and demographic. Someone once told me that being successful in business comes down to two things: 1) Finding out what your customers want, 2) Helping them get it.

This may sound simple, but it's more difficult than you might think. One personal issue I have is in dealing with customer ignorance. A lot of the people that come into the lounge only care about superficial things like product name and appearance. Therefore, we sell a lot of Tangiers and Starbuzz. We also have people who would rather smoke out of the 42" social smoke, china-crap special than the MYA QT, which I contest is one of the best hookahs for a modern lounge. I seriously feel like a snob every time I turn up my nose to something like hearing "the schnozberry tastes like schnozberry" for the thousandth time that night. But whatever. It comes with the territory, I suppose.

I say this...