Casino Mar 09 P38-39 2/26/09 9:51 am Page 39
DUSK TILL DAWN
sort of figures that no other club in the UK would see the window at times and I refused to cut running
outside of a festival. We get around 150 new costs or stop the momentum, but we finally opened.
customers each week, so many in fact that it has been Now I have to make sure that we are here to stay. I
a challenge to create a community at DTD and our still take the whole legal battle that we had very
membership base is now in excess of 12,000. We get personally, even though we won the case in the end.
players from all over the country. They come because There have been so many ups and downs,
we offer an unrivalled poker experience with good emotions, pressure and heartache. Looking back it
tournament structures regardless of buy in. They was crazy thing to do but I guess I just needed a
want to play poker with dealer-dealt tables and challenge, something that would test me to the limits;
without the distraction of traditional table games like something that was against the odds. There was such
roulette or blackjack. The one disadvantage of this is a fine line between success and failure.
that without these table games we can't just give As an entrepreneur you put your credibility on the
complimentary soft drinks to all players like a casino, line. I always knew that this was a risky project but I
although we have just introduced this service to our refused to use other investors’ money and made what
cash game players. appeared to be some strange decisions, executed
many bluffs and sometimes refused to fold when I
CI: How do you market Dusk Till Dawn to new knew I was definitely behind. These moves were
customers? wholly necessary to open the largest poker venue in
RY: The club markets itself via the word of mouth of the UK with a full casino license.
our members. However moving forward, from Since we opened we’ve been very successful. From a
November 1st 2008 we introduced a new loyalty start of just 16 poker staff, we now have 45 fully
scheme called DTD Pounds where any player who visits trained professional dealers. We have hosted several
DTD at least four times and plays a tournament or cash third-party events for Sky Poker, Virgin, Ladbrokes and
game during a calendar month will receive £25 in DTD Red Tooth as well as the Norwegian Poker
Pounds. These DTD Pounds can then be spent during Championships where we broke the entry record for a
the following month on tournament entries, food, £500 event with 514 players. We also hosted the
drink or merchandise. In addition our sister company Greek Poker Championships and a televised event.
DTD online poker will also be awarding £25 in DTD This club was built to host big events and we already
Pounds to any player who earns 250 MPPs (My Poker have many events scheduled for 2009. We are hosting
Points) in a calendar month, so it will be possible for the Sky UK Poker Tour Grand Final and the
any DTD regular to get £50 each month. Norwegian Poker Championships will be returning.
Our goal for next year is to increase footfall to a
CI: How has your first year gone? minimum of 1000 players per week and to increase
RY: My belief that we would open the club at all the use of the club for third-party events. We are
costs could be described as financially irresponsible learning all the time and listening to our customers in
but the whole thing became very personal for me. the hope that by constantly evolving we can continue
Common sense business acumen went totally out of to offer the best poker experience in Europe.
MARCH 2009 39
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