It’s always made we
wonder why anyone would want to start a club in Second Life. It tends to be the occupation of choice for
anyone who wants to start a quick business here, but doesn’t tend to last very
long in a market flooded with clubs and venues that offer DJ’s and live music. So what’s so different about The Sacred
Gardens? I took a stroll around to see
what was different here. Among the
flowers and walkways there’s a boating lake, bridges and swans. All very
idyllic. Heading back to the club area,
I meet with Bluey and Cshelle, the owners for a chat.
M: So
why did you start Sacred Gardens? Aren’t there enough clubs in SL?
B: Well basically, we wanted to be different. Most clubs tend to either have little cliques
or are just “us and them” when it comes to management and staff. We wanted to be a family. We’re not interested in making money we just
want people to come here and feel welcomed
S: Like they’re in their home.
B: Exactly, we have an open door policy and
anyone is welcome. You don’t have to
come here and listen to the music, or splash your cash around. You’ll notice we don’t have any stores in the
area, purely because we want the place to not be about spending money. We have 1 tip jar for the sim, that’s
it. We don’t want your money, we want
your company and friendship.
M: So
what’s so different about SG compared to other clubs?
B: I think it’s a friendlier atmosphere. We like to think we have a better standard of
people here. By that we mean friendly
people who don’t just say hello and then leave you alone. Everyone here tries to welcome you in and
make you feel like you’re part of the family.
We don’t have a list of rules.
Just come here, do your own thing, relax and be yourself.
S: Well, we don’t call them rules per se,
more guidelines. Key is communication. Keep it simple, smart…that’s the way we do
things
M: What
the unique selling point in the eyes of VIPs? What can you offer that others can’t?
The difference is we want to make people feel
welcome and part of the family. We don’t
own it, they do in a way. Just an escape
where they can be who they want to be.
Don’t get us wrong we limit things but that’s more common sense
things. We’re freelance if you like.
M: How
would you describe Sacred Gardens in 5 words?
B: Great place to come and relax
M: That’s
6 words
B: Oh sorry
S: friendly, romantic
B: errr
S: games
B: relaxing, great bosses!
S: Easy going!
M:
ok that’s actually 8 words but I’ll work my magic when I come to edit this
later. (Note, gentle reader, I didn't) What else does the club have to offer?
B: Well we have nice gardens to walk
around. There’s also a beach area for
those quiet moments.
S: There’s also a lake area with a boat you
can use, it’s not just about the music and dj’s, there are places where you can
sit with loved ones, friends and play game or just sit and chat. As we said, you don’t have to come and listen
to any entertainment we have, you can just chill and hang out
B: I’m glad you’re writing this down Mack,
I’d be lost after three words
M: Where
do the club going? Where do you see SG in a years’ time?
B: Hopefully still going. Don’t know if we
want to make the club bigger as that might be impersonal
S: Obviously we would like a bigger footfall,
a lot can happen in a year and a lot of clubs get closed down for the wrong reasons. We wouldn't close SG down even if there were
only 2 people here, this is our home.
You can go bigger but it’s not always better. It’s far more manageable as it is, we’re not
greedy for money or people, we just want a happy fun loving place for us, our
staff and our vips of course.
M:
Let’s try this again in a different way, what would be the top three reasons
for someone reading this to come here?
Both: Great music, friendly environment,
beautiful surroundings
As I thanked them for their time and wandered
off to take some photos for this article, I realized that not every club owner
had attitudes or were hungry for power/money/VIPs. It was refreshing to find a breed of club
owner who actually gave a damn about
their patrons and didn’t just try and fill schedules with DJ’s and hosts so
that whoever decided to show up would have something to listen to. They make no apologies for trying to be
different and that’s refreshing to see on grids chock full of clubs full of
bots or as empty as the inside of a reality show contestants head.
The Sacred Gardens can be found at
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