Bruised, battered nightlife outlets hope for a reprieve

Once a glamorous and boisterous industry that entertained tourists and locals alike as they relaxed, mingled and let their hair down, Singapore's club and bar scene has taken a battering since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic here early last year.

All clubs and bars have been closed since March 26 last year, unless they made the necessary safety adjustments and pivoted into food and beverage (F&B) outlets.

Since June 19 last year, no alcohol can be consumed in F&B venues after 10.30pm and from June 21 this year, recorded music has been banned.

Last week, in a joint letter to the multi-ministry task force (MTF) tackling the pandemic, the Singapore Nightlife Business Association (SNBA), Singapore Cocktail Bar Association and the #savefnbsg restaurant coalition made an appeal to extend the consumption of alcohol to midnight and allow for recorded background music at such venues.

While protecting patrons and employees is of paramount importance, SNBA president Joseph Ong, one of the co-signatories of the letter, said with vaccination numbers expected to reach 80 per cent at the start of next month, nightlife operators are hopeful more safety measures can be eased while critical ones such as social distancing, mask wearing and use of TraceTogether remain in place.

Speaking to The New Paper earlier this week, he said: "Since Covid-19, the situation has been dire for the industry, with 215 out of about 2,000 outlets using SNBA's help to exit the industry, and several others seemingly heading that way."

Venues that pivoted to F&B had to shut from July 16 after a cluster of cases emerged at KTV lounges and clubs.

After two weeks, the authorities announced that they would be allowed to reopen if they met new safety requirements.

The latest requirements include installing extensive closed-circuit television camera coverage and seven-day Covid-19 testing for employees, among other measures, and the outlets would be allowed to open only after passing an inspection.

Mr Jeffrey Goh, manager at F'awesome Hideout, a bar in Serangoon Gardens, estimates a loss of between $10,000 to $15,000 over the last 30 days.

The bar is in the process of making the adjustments and he said: "While we are closed, we still need to pay rent and for our licence. We have had to get rid of drinks that were expiring - we are losing money.

"With the current 10.30pm restriction, some customers who usually come in the evening after work prefer staying at home as they can visit for only a short while. Pushing the restriction to midnight will allow us to bring back this group when we reopen."

The Lions Den has made the required changes and is waiting to be inspected. Mr Schubert Templar, 34, director of the sports bar in Club Street, said: "When we reopened without music and restrictions to two customers per table in July before the case of the KTV cluster, sales dropped drastically.

"Music is an important part of what draws our customers in, as it provides them with a comfortable atmosphere to enjoy their evening."

PIVOT

The appeal letter to the MTF included results of a survey of nightlife establishments that had made the pivot and other F&B outlets. About 43 per cent had taken out loans of up to $1.5 million to keep operating, 8 per cent had taken loans between $1.5 million and $3 million, and 80 per cent said their revenue had dropped by 75 per cent or more between May and July.

Coyote Ugly opened at Clarke Quay before the pandemic took hold and it was duly stripped of its trademark bartop dancers. It is now a restaurant serving Western food.

Its director, Mr Ruslan Nazarov, 47, said monthly revenue is on average 40 per cent of what it used to be in the opening two months.

There are currently seven full-time staff at Coyote Ugly who agreed to take pay cuts of between 50 per cent and 80 per cent when dining in was not allowed.

Mr Ruslan said: "Because of the early cut-off time for alcohol and not being able to have our dancers which is our main attraction, we are operating at a loss. We understand the importance of safe management measures, but if the situation carries on like this, we may have to close...

"We hope the nightlife industry here can restart in a measured way when it is safe to do so."

While acknowledging that the safety of customers and staff is the top priority, Mr Goh is hopeful F'awesome Hideout can reopen soon.

Four out of five of the bar's part-timers have found other jobs. His wife is the cook at the bar, and with two young children, they have had to rely on savings and he is working as a food delivery rider to make ends meet.

"Covid restrictions have had a much larger impact on small businesses like us - neighbourhood bars. We are not sure how long the business can keep going if the situation continues like this," said Mr Goh.

At its pre-pandemic pomp, the nightlife industry employed about 50,000 people, according to Mr Ong. This included service and kitchen staff, deejays, band members, performers and security guards.

"While a few of them have had to switch industries, I know most of them are waiting for the nightlife industry to regain its vibrancy and get back to what they enjoy doing," he said.

"We are a safe and clean country and we already have well-established and world-renowned bars and nightclubs. We can leverage this and further enhance Singapore's nightlife standing in the new Covid-endemic world."