DESTINATION: DIVERGENT

ALWAYS OPEN, NEVER NORMAL

Creating Experiences And Opportunities
To Empower, Uplift, And Inspire
LGBTQIA+
KINK
PEOPLE OF COLOR
NEURODIVERGENT INDIVIDUALS
LOCAL ECONOMY
OUR GOALS
• To be the first venue in a wide area open 7 days a week, afternoon to 2am, serving as well as actively implementing initiatives to uplift the LGBTQIA+, Kink, and
Neurodivergent communities along with people of color, both within these communities and without. It’s time for spaces that celebrate and reflect the vibrant
and varied cultures we’re looking to advance and serve.
• The COVID pandemic has only increased demand for venues to accommodate the schedules of their guests, not the other way around

• On The East Coast, most venues serving the community are secretive, insular, and operate like gay bars in the 1970s. We don’t think just having a space to be
yourself cuts it anymore, and our market data, their performance, and venues all across the West Coast corroborates us.
• Our proposition is simple: celebrate your identity and those around you, whatever way you choose.
• We want to reflect the creativity, passion, and drive of these communities in our design, the services we offer, the attractions, the food, the products in our
inventory, and the work culture for our employees
• Right now, there are very few options for people to work in fields that reflect and celebrate their identity, and people in our communities here consider
themselves lucky if their presence is tolerated and accepted at work. They often don’t feel listened to.
• Over the past 3 years, our plan has incorporated elements from groundbreaking social enterprises and businesses in this sphere and similar fields.
• We want to offer a night out that compares to, and is even better than, one that could be found at a “normal” nightclub complex. We believe that the baseline
should be free expression of identity, and that the services, goods, experiences, and ambiance on offer should reflect and empower our customers and staff
 ENABLING ACCESS

•We plan to emulate Apple’s “frictionless transaction” model by employing private security, design with safety in mind, and offer access with only ID and bag check. We’ve worked with clubs such as
Bar Sinister in Los Angeles and Club Lash, successful employers of this model, and developed a comprehensive safety framework. It’s our bet that people looking for a night out would prefer both
smooth, easy access, and a clean, upscale, attractive ambiance aesthetically and practically incorporating the underpinnings of the lifestyle.
• Rather than simply provide a space to safely be oneself and leave the rest to paying customers, we plan to offer such acceptance as a baseline, upon which to build live entertainment, retail, a
diverse array of ambiance catering to different niches, alcohol and food service, and more.
•The retail section will feature both quality but affordable goods from wholesale suppliers and locally made, “premium” gear.
• We have actively sought and vetted wholesalers for product quality and price, as in this area the 18-30 demo spends on gear most, but the more affluent, older crowd is primarily targeted in
person. We are working to eliminate lower income earner’s forced choice between online purchasing or low quality in person purchases.
• Employing a funneling, casino style strategy where retail section is strategically placed near the bar and congruent to play areas, encouraging impulse buys of the lower priced goods
• Themed play rooms based on both fetish/kink type and aesthetic
• Gothic Dungeon
• Sci Fi Space ship
• Medical/Doctor area
• Office

•A “SapioSexual” Space where music is low, lighting and seating comfortable, and the bar less pronounced, to facilitate demisexuals, easily overstimulated individuals such as those on the Autism
Spectrum, following Royal Caribbean’s model, and those interested in a more quiet but equally expressive environ.
THE PITCH: PROFIT. SOCIAL IMPACT.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. INCLUSIVITY.
• We plan to integrate local musicians in the community, seek out artists, designers & toymakers among our
employees to feature in our retail section.
• They will be given both living wages and an opportunity to showcase their talent and profit from it.
• We plan to actively seek feedback and pitches from employees on new and innovative ideas. We’re aware we’re hiring
from a vibrant and dynamic community, and it would be foolish not to listen to those with their ears most to the ground,
and even more so not to reward them when their ideas generate success.
• Providing a workplace where diversity of identity, gender, color, background, and mind is not only tolerated but
welcomed to be displayed and discussed
• Creating economic opportunities and jobs for community members to work within the community rather than the
existing options, which are almost all volunteer
• Security trained to be cognizant of differences in both gender, mental health, thought process, race, etc
• Offering local craft beer and food alongside low cost drafts subsidized by retail sales.
DESIGN

• Raised entrance with steps and ramps to a welled venue, similar to casino strategy
• Other rooms sectioned off to the sides with two main play areas contiguously leading to a stage at the far end
• Play area A is fully equipped and sectioned for generalized activity and socialization, while the first bar and seating area
looks out onto A and leads directly to the retail and demo section.
• A large window behind the bar separates the alcoholic consumption area from the play area while giving patrons visual
access to both ongoing play and the opportunity, behind them, to purchase their own equipment
• Play area B, where the stage is located, is mostly standing room with an adjoining bar. This is to enable dancing and a
more open, expressive atmosphere as well as to allow for more crowd safety during concerts.
• The low stim area has a smaller, more service focused bar and is easily locatable and accessible from the main entrance
• Both the low stim and main play areas have separate smoking areas outdoors
• The Blood/Edge play area is sectioned off for effective security screening & emergency access
RETAIL INVENTORY STRATEGY: KEY
EXAMPLES
• Devices of this caliber are not often
sold in person, and if they are, at much
higher rates than we will be offering.
Many of these are prominent in
fantasies and videos, so we believe the
combination of alcohol service in
proximity and pricing for
impulse/immediacy will net us high
volume sales even at lower margins
• Not just toys: when we consider the DJ
and live music experience on offer, we
can offer an array of expressive and
exciting accessories equally
representative of culture and music
STATE OF THE EAST COAST MARKET: UNMET
WANTS
• No playspace or nightclub venue exists in this segment open daily and operating independent of “party promoters”. This is an anomaly nationwide, not a norm. According to
our research, the desire for one has been present a long time, and the COVID pandemic has only increased demand for venues to accommodate the schedules of their guests,
not the other way around
• Today’s customers take acceptance as a given and desire an experience built on top of their ideals, not a space in which their ideals are “allowed”.
• Over a 3 year period, our research efforts have focused on ascertaining demand, viability, and preferences within an inherently volatile culture. Our first step was distilling the constants
and variables within the kink/LGBTQIA+ community relating to cultural and economic factors. We have identified several key shifts within the demographic that we feel represent an
opportunity for disruption. First, there was much more preference for a kink and LGBTQIA+ venue that resembled a standard multiplex style bar/club. The majority of respondents
expressed a huge preference for an identity and expression-positive lifestyle center with various activities on offer rather than a traditional gathering space/bar with a singular focus. This
led us to envision a shopping-mall style of venue, where the events, activities, and culture went hand in hand with other aspects and interests of daily life. The current activist culture also
places high value on blending their lifestyle with day to day activities. As noted in the previous section, the current options available to this demographic lack agility and capital to respond
to a widely changing culture. As these cultural elements become more normalized, the spaces in which they take place will also begin to resemble their “vanilla” counterparts.
• There are currently many interested individuals who stay away from available offerings due to the tight-knitness and cultlike elements of the “scenes” where the simple anonymity of a bar patron may be more
desirable, especially for newcomers.
• This is at once an inherently appealing, enthralling and intimidating subculture. We feel it’s possible to remain authentic to its tenets while removing all possible barriers to entry.

• Borrowing from the Casino customer service strategy would additionally increase attendance. The convergence of LGBTQIA+ and neurodivergent individuals would respond best to paid,
trained staff members taking time to make them feel welcome and settling them in as customers.
• A feeling of apprehension is common when attending something often characterized and marketed as “freeing” or “liberating”. This business approach will alleviate the worry of “missing
out” or “not fitting in” that was common among survey respondents.

• According to key demographics, the main errors being made here are a community focus vs a destination focus. In successful locations, these venues are built from the ground up as a night out.
COMPETITION
• 3 years of market research has indicated that this alternative lifestyle market is largely untapped due to both the prevailing insularity of the community and the reluctance of many
would-be members to subject themselves to this level of effort in exchange for access.
• The East Coast is largely devoid of nightclubs serving the alternative lifestyle communities
• Where such places exist, they almost inevitably require a yearlong financial commitment, references from former or current intimate partners, or otherwise throw up barriers that are
nonexistent or rare to find in places like LA or SF. There are only two viable competitors within a broad radius, both with dubious tax-exempt status and safety records. They are both
dingy, dilapidated warehouses offering little more than space to engage in play in return for such concessions.
• The two largest entities, The Baltimore Playhouse and The Crucible, are governed and run by leaders with almost no corporate experience or familiarity with nonprofit organizations.
Based on disclosures, it’s unlikely either would survive an IRS audit or that profit indeed returns to the organization.
• Charged-access public performance of audiovisual copyrighted works occurs regularly in these locations in an unlicensed manner, opening them to severe penalties if sought by
MPA/RIAA/ASCAP, etc. Copyright infringement judgements generally range in the high millions/hundreds of millions if the infringement is profited from rather than for personal use.
• When governance was interviewed as to the legality and risk of unlicensed public performance for profit, they likened the practice to torrenting a movie for personal use. Noncompliance
with copyright law presents a huge risk for sustainability. The general manager of one venue claimed she responded to C&Ds from music rights organization ASCAP with threats and
encouragement to their attorney to travel from Los Angeles to Baltimore to “settle this B.S. the way we do around here”
• While The Crucible recently obtained a liquor license, the fees of access range in the hundreds per night and the alcohol selection is limited to around 25 choices, spirits and beer
included.
• Both are run as 501s but have yet to spend any significant expenditures on venue improvement, community assistance, personnel, or otherwise
• It is the opinion of several contracted analysts that due to the structure, operations and nature of these venues, they run a severe risk of being found liable for taxpaying status. An
attorney and board member went so far as to deny their nonprofit status and claim to one of our SBAs that they did pay taxes, never claimed 501 status, etc. They publicly state the
opposite on their website and FetLife page.
COMBINING ELEMENTS OF PREVIOUS
SUCCESSES
• Los Angeles
• Club Lash- Simple. Stripped Down. Any play goes, bring your own toys, live music or DJs every night. Come as you are,
whoever you are. Dancing, play, drinking
• Bar Sinister- Retail, live music, bondage, demos, dancing, drinking, multiple rooms with multiple themes
• Noize Factory
• Studio 69
• San Francisco
• Armory- Any theme you could imagine. Porn production, but also open for parties, classes on kink, retail shop for toys,
tours, and weekly concerts and kink events
• Kinky Coffee
• A bondage themed coffee shop both providing food service and welcoming daytime play activity usually reserved for nightlife
 DIGITAL AIMS: LIFESTYLE, LEARNING,
LOVING We plan to invest in a digital content strategy, using a media room at the venue to
create lifestyle discussion and informational content, ranging from dynamics, safe
use of equipment, “how to have the talk” with a spouse, etc.

• The cost would be minimal: a sectional couch, table, demo area, cameras, greenscreen and lights. Following this, we could source guests from eventgoers as well as booking local
prominent individuals in the scene.

• This form of content is easily produced and spread, and could be cut and diversified for YouTube (long-form), FetLife (mid to long), TikTok & Instagram (distill key points)

• When developing lifestyle content for a wider audience, it’s important to balance authenticity with accessibility.

• Include beginnings and backgrounds of guests , “how did they first start? What did they feel, think, and learn? How does that experience compare to what they feel today?

• What do viewers gain? What actionable elements can we include? We need to create content that can inspire people to explore further

• Therefore, we need to develop across the spectrum of basic, intermediate and advanced, becoming an emotionally identifiable part of viewer’s journeys

• If we achieve this, we will be generating the type of content people swear by. Creators who generate that value are known to be used to communicate and are frequently labeled
as trusted sources

• Current nonpornographic content is either geared towards enthusiasts, offers a glimpse into dynamics between two individuals in short documentary form, or is otherwise not
“relatable”.

• Creating a sense for the viewer that they can do this at home is critical

• We can draw from attendees, prominent local individuals, and others, for discussion and informational content that raises brand awareness and establishes us as a trusted source
of information

• This is similar to the strategy Kink.com used in their middle years

• Developing “referential credibility”: when someone wants to explain a complex subject, they often search for a YouTube video that explains the matter in layman’s terms. We
should aim to become that source, both for a partner looking to educate their spouse, a budding partnership, friends, etc

• This will also draw people towards our venue

SAFETY FIRST: PLANNING FOR PROTECTION

• Partnerships with established, successful venues in California, Oregon, and NYC have led to a multi-
pronged safety approach, not only informing the design and layout of the venue but also the various
roles and training personnel would receive
• Avoid the possibility of cliques and cults of personality within the various subcultures
• Set up a firewall between venue leadership and performers/prominent individuals. Breaches of fiduciary duty
are commonplace currently, and there should be no decision making power by those with conflicts of interests
or personal ambitions running contrary to financial interests.
• Develop a contract based framework for performers and influential individuals with clear financial and
operational boundaries.