Street Wise: Visionary Doug Street Builds an Entertainment Empire
At the age of 29 Doug Street has positioned himself as the broker for the future of Northern Michigan nightlife. As the owner of Streeters in Traverse City, Street has built one of the most successful nightclubs in Northern Michigan, and for that matter in the Midwest. The club features four venues in one: Ground Zero Nightclub, Streeters Billiards, Liquid Lounge and Streeters Bar & Grille. The lifelong Traverse City resident has no plans to slow down -- in fact he has both eyes on the future.Since its inception five years ago, Streeters has attracted several top entertainers including internationally acclaimed deejays Darude and Louis Osbourne, rap stars Juvenille, Tone Loc and Sir Mix-A-Lot, alternative rockers Powerman 5000 and Trapt, hard rockers Quiet Riot and pop stars Uncle Kracker and Shaggy. Throw in country acts, blues bands, Red Wing star Darren McCarty, and the crew from the popular MTV show “Jackass,“ and the club has become a one-stop shop for seekers of cutting edge nightlife.
Even the weekly college night on Thursdays is packed with 18-to-35-year-olds, some who travel weekly from Cadillac, Petoskey and even Grand Rapids to take to the dance floor to the hottest tunes with accompanying videos on the large screens.
His facility is near capacity most nights, and often several activities are taking place at the same time. A recent Sunday night featured a few hundred singles from a local club who gather once a month at Streeters for dancing and mingling, another couple hundred in the Liquid Lounge dancing to techno and electronic tunes, while 700 were in the Ground Zero Nightclub for the Gin Blossoms concert.
ANYTHING POSSIBLE
What is Street’s secret?
He is a visionary. Doug Street believes anything is possible and he routinely travels to Miami’s South Beach, Las Vegas and other destinations to see what is hot, bringing variations of what he discovers back to Northern Michigan.
“You have to stay in tune with all different types of music and trends, and being up north and out of the way you have to travel to see what is going on around the country,” said Street. “It is one thing to have someone tell you what is hot or who an up and coming artist is, it is another to go out and see for yourself and visualize it for your venue. So I am constantly seeing what is out there.”
Street is a connoisseur of music. His personal tastes are eclectic, yet his business sense drives him towards bands and performers that will attract crowds. He also knows that money is an issue and has structured his operation so he doesn’t price himself out of the market.
“We do things like the Dueling Pianos that require no cover, and when Louis Osbourne (Ozzy’s son and an international techno deejay) was here we didn’t charge cover. I think it is important to be cognizant of the community you are in and the financial wherewithal of your customer,” said Street. “We have tried to develop an entertainment package that is affordable to our customers and that means bringing national acts in for $10 to $17 a ticket for most shows. That is well below what is being charged at other venues. In fact many of these acts perform downstate for twice the price and you have an eight hour round trip to see them.”
Street feels that the key to his success is assessing the needs of the marketplace, offering affordable entertainment, and cutting out the travel time. He developed the Streeters vision as a 23-year-old real estate developer while looking at vacant properties and evaluating the nightlife needs of the community.
“I was 23 at the time and there just wasn’t a lot to do in the area. It seemed everything that I wanted to do I had to drive several hours for it. I was involved in real estate development and while looking at the growth of the area, I came across this large vacant roller skating rink. I thought the building would make a great place for a much needed entertainment complex.”
UPHILL BATTLE
For the ambitious Street it was an uphill battle from the start as operational manuals or how to books don’t exist for 27,000-square-foot nightclubs.
“There is nothing easy about the business. There really wasn’t a model; no formula out there existed for this type of concept, especially in a market where the population is seasonal and ever changing. So it was a guessing game in the beginning. I didn’t have any expectations and that is what has helped Streeters get through the first five years of operation; knowing that we were going to have leave ourselves open to change. That Streeters was going to have to be flexible to meet the entertainment needs of the area.”
In terms of size, Streeters is one of the largest nightclubs in the country. In five years Street has built the reputation of the venue as a destination for visitors and performers alike. Streeters and its four venues in one have attracted the attention of top booking agents who consider the venue to be one of the premier clubs in the Midwest.
“It has been an uphill battle. At first we had to take whatever we could from a performer standpoint. Traverse City was not on the routing map for agents. With the exception of the Cherry Festival and a few other times a year we just were not getting the latest or the hottest acts out there,” said Street. “I am seeing this starting to change. We have a lot more to choose from, agents see our area and facility as a prime stop. Entertainers like coming to the area.”
The Streeters concept has been an ambitious undertaking, especially for a 23-year-old. Many of Street’s peers would prefer to spend time on the consumer side of the bar versus taking on the daily headaches of managing 80 employees and the many regulations and roadblocks that challenge nightclubs. Where did Street develop his work ethic?
“I developed my work ethic from my family, they have been in real estate development for years and my father is an independent businessman. I worked for my father growing up and he set the standard for me, so being pushed real hard when I was young helped to motivate me to become an entrepreneur.”
RELAXED STYLE
Another secret to Streeters success is Street’s composed and relaxed management approach. He puts both employees and customers at ease. He is visible and approachable at all times and despite the mix of large crowds and alcohol he has had minimal incidents, even during power-metal concerts or rap shows that are notorious for attracting trouble. Street has avoided difficulties by properly training management and staff and pre-planning for any potential incident.
Pre-planning has also led Street to give a lot of thought to the pending law change in Michigan to lower the blood alcohol content for .1 to .08 for driving under the influence. The proposed new law will make it even more challenging for establishments that serve alcohol.
“I don’t think the change is going to help. It isn’t the drivers with .08 or even .1 alcohol content that are getting in accidents, it is the people at .15 or higher,“ he says. “Regardless of the legal level, as a business owner you have to address the issue that drinking and driving is a problem. It would nice if communities would create public transportation such as in Europe where people don’t drive to clubs. I am not waiting for that to happen and have been planning our own shuttle system that I hope to launch soon.”
After five years Street isn’t looking back or resting on his success, rather his eyes are glued on the future. He plans larger acts and hopes to host several community banquets.
Street doesn’t plan on waiting to long to raise the entertainment bar for his facility. On his 30 birthday, September 3, he will welcome rock legend David Lee Roth to Ground Zero. The appearance by Roth, who normally plays large venues and was the original singer for the super group Van Halen, clearly states Streeters has gained acceptance as a nightclub of serious consideration by promoters. He follows up a few days later with modern rockers Saliva, another group currently playing large venues.
Prior to the David Lee Roth show Doug Street will play host to a major event, The Playboy Scramble August 15 & 16 (see sidebar article).
Streeters has something for everyone, it continues to be on the cutting edge of entertainment. Gone are the days of Northern Michigan being five years behind the entertainment times, instead Streeters has kept the area in tune with what’s hot. What might change is Streeters might soon be setting the trends for the rest of the country. For more information on Streeters, visit their website www.streetersonline.com
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