Nightingale Club sees attendances leap 25% in a year

OWNERS of Birmingham’s biggest gay nightclub the Nightingale say attendances at the venue are up 25% since the business was acquired out of administration last year.

Southside entrepreneur Lawrence Barton, who rescued the famous Kent Street club, said he was delighted with the venue’s performance in his first year of ownership.

The businessman, whose family business GB Holdings Ltd runs five other venues in Southside, has invested heavily in the club and he said the hard work was paying off.  

“Footfall through the door has grown by 25% since taking over at the end of last year.  The club now regularly attracts in excess of 1,000 clubbers most Saturdays,” he said.

The 2,000 capacity venue has instigated new theme nights as well as introducing The Midlands Big Gay Night Out, which has seen hundreds of revelers bussed in from more than 16 cities and towns into Southside to boost business.

Clubbers from London, Manchester, Liverpool and Bristol are returning to the club and visiting other attractions in Birmingham as a result of the initiative.

“The idea of this event is to get clubbers into the city and show them what the Nightingale has to offer as well as other bars and venues in Southside,” said Mr Barton.  

The club is also attracting acts including Little Mix, The Saturdays, Stooshe, Brit and MOBO award winner Lemar, Lawson, Marcus Collins and Stacey Solomon, as well as impromptu appearances from celebrities visiting the city.

Mr Barton, who runs the successful Loft Lounge, Penthouse and Village Inn venues in Southside as well as the Urban Kitchen, also launched a new venture in Hurst Street called Queer Street, formerly the Purple Bar & Lounge, in September.
 
Mr Barton, who is Birmingham Pride’s director and sits on the board of Southside BID, said; “It has been a very demanding first year and there is still a lot to do at the Nightingale in terms of boosting visitor numbers and enhancing the entertainment offer but it is very welcome to see we are heading in the right direction in our first year. We are planning a very special New Year’s Eve party here with around 2,000 expected to join us and celebrate the Nightingale’s first anniversary in style.”