CONTEXT

Maison Balkii's plan for its second room was a space for private rentals. But before being remodeled, the basement had previously been used for a mishmash of purposes including storage, free alternative-music concerts, and after-parties. When the basement re-opened under the new name "Studio B," it did not have a strong identity, hence demand to privatize lagged.

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CHALLENGE 

How to create demand for privatizing a space in which people were used to partying for free? Maison Balkii lacked clear positioning for the new space. It was imperative to determine their rental market then tailor an identity to that target.

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STRATEGY

Maison Balkii determined that their ideal rental clientele were high-income private clients aged 30-50 as well as brands in the fashion, alcohol, and cigarette industries looking to throw small, branded events. There was a clear "cool" component to the target audiences; therefore, the goal became making "Studio B" the coolest sought-after address in town. 

The "Big Idea" was to throw a never-before-seen and an incredibly difficult-to-enter party which would make "Studio B" the unequivocal talk of the town. We'd make invitations extremely hard to come by. We'd create over-demand by publicly broadcasting limited space and strict time slots for entry. We'd even create time-slotted waitlists. In order to disassociate the space from any prior "free entry" reputation and to add to the hype, we'd reveal the party location only at the very last moment. We'd generate in-street buzz on the night by having guests queue outside the venue in mandatory costumes. We would not allow photographs or cellphones inside the venue. Not only would that help to create FOMO, it would ensure a safe dance space respectful of guest privacy. ​