Around last September, I wrote about my bizarre experience with a new venue opening, which the owner claimed was going to be a grand concert hall, offering both scheduled performances and open stage nights. While I can’t always make it to venues like this, I’m forever interested in those outside the usual night club/DJ/raffle scene, so I wanted to show support and see what it was all about.

When I arrived, things quickly took a turn for the strange. The owner had everyone standing outside, including a couple bands that wanted to perform. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be - some venues do hold events outside, or have outdoor stages and parties, but this was meant to be an indoor theater experience.

And for a venue that had just opened in every sense of the phrase, things were looking pretty good. For one, people had shown up, and were waiting. For another, it had only been open for a few short minutes. Who knows how the night would have continued if the owner had actually unlocked the door.

Instead, we all stood in the front yard for several minutes while the owner fussed about not enough people being there for the grand opening, while also claiming that dozens were trying to come but couldn’t make it. The venue was located in Empyreum, and while this does restrict travel in many ways, I felt this behavior was exceedingly rude to the people who could make it, and were standing right there.

Myself, a couple other guests, two full octets and more on the way, but that wasn’t enough. This wasn’t the grand opening the owner was looking for. Despite the early turnout, which in my view was modest but still something, the owner refused to even unlock the door, and called it quits not even 15 minutes after the official opening. We were left awkwardly standing outside while the owner lamented the state of venues and Eorzea as a whole. Eventually, I walked away.

That was the end of one of my most unusual venue experiences ever.

Recently, months after cursing the venue scene and resigning to never try again, that same venue owner resurfaced with a new idea, a new venue, and a new plan. However, this one also fell through before the doors ever opened.

Trial And Error

Believe it or not, I’ve helped run venues for over a year now. A lot of it has been pretty modest - I’m not talking about huge night clubs or gigantic communities. My friends and I started with a small tea house, then eventually moved on to a restaurant and theater of our own. In fact, Nophica’s Spring actually houses a number of small venues that we open from time to time.

Along the journey, there have been massive ups and downs. Some nights, no one showed up at all. But we’ve also had nights, more recently, where our theater has been filled beyond our expectations.

The venue game is a constant up and down, and there are so many things to keep track of. It can be soul-crushing when the hard work that goes into designing and running a venue doesn’t go the way you want. If people don’t show up, or if something goes wrong, that can leave you feeling pretty devastated.

However, the one thing you absolutely have to do if you want to run a successful venue is open the door.

If a would-be venue owner continually asks for help or guidance, but refuses to take any advice and actually follow through on a plan, then at a certain point you just have to assume that they’re not actually interested in owning a venue - they just want attention.

If you’re really, truly interested in running one, then all you have to do is start. Design is important, carrds are kind of important, stock is a little bit important. But the most important thing is to just get out there, do it, and have fun. Paying a designer to go nuts or crafting a billion Mors isn’t going to do much in the long run.

And do you think you need a house for this? Do you really?

It’s about you and the people you surround yourself with. That’s all.

Maybe it won’t work out, maybe it will. You have to be persistent, and early on just do things for the sake of it. Unless you already have tons of connections, or your venue goes viral like the Krusty Krab, or you just get lucky, things will take time. You have to have fun despite it all. And, eventually, if it really doesn’t work out, then you pull the plug. But only if you feel like it.

I have no doubt that the person I mentioned earlier in this article will return again, some day, claiming that their next try is the one. Will they actually start? Or will they get hung up on design or grand openings or all the other little things that don’t really matter?

Time will tell, but if you’re an aspiring venue owner yourself, just take the leap, prepare for a lot of failure, and hope for success! But mostly, just have fun with it! Good luck!