I know nothing about this stuff but isn't hiring a band expensive? How many beers does a bar have to sell to cover the cost of the band for the night?
Yes, it is expensive, and it's worth a review of the math involved. Before i start with the math, let's review the best example i can think of on Cabarete beach: Lazy Dog. It's a great bar with good people. They had nightly concerts for a long time. Now the math...
The average musician charges $100 - $150 for 2 - 3 hours of work.
A Presidente beer will cost you roughly (it varies from one bar to the next) $150 pesos (give or take).
The bar pays roughly $.60 pesos for a small Presidente beer at wholesale cost.
Therefore, the bar is only making roughly $.90 pesos (less then US $2 for a beer...even less if it's Happy Hour).
The bar would need to sell almost 5-cases of beer just to break even.
However, there's a lot more costs involved. Let's review some of these extra costs needed to cover expenses:
1. Employees: Typically, you can have 15-or more employees working during a concert--including the kitchen staff.
2. Rent: The rent can be crazy expensive on the beach--as opposed to across the road.
3. Electricity: Electricity is horrendously expensive here in the DR.
4. Staff insurance, salaries, etc.
5. Generators/diesel fuel (the electricity goes out daily & consistently) Diesel fuel is expensive.
6. Septic tank get filled the more people you have.
...and honestly, just a host of other expenses that i cannot be bothered to type right now on my phone.
Suffice to say, you would need to sell at least double the amount of beer in order to cover all costs. So, right off, before the concert even starts, you would need to sell 8 or more cases of beer just to break even on most of the concert costs...and that's for only a 2 or 3-hour show, typically done at Happy Hour at many places (drinks are even cheaper), and typically, musicians get to drink and eat for free---and that can run up costs as well. Think the Blues Brothers here.
I've seen musicians demand a lot of money, and free drinks & food as well, or they threaten to badmouth you! It's really a crazy situation that sometimes, but not always, can get out of hand to the point of absurdity.
By all accounts, Lazy Dog should have been the richest bar on the beach---especially given that they had concerts almost on a daily basis during their Happy Hour.
Unfortunately, you are catering to the lowest common denominator in many cases where the people most attracted to your place is the Happy Hour crowd...a crowd that refuses to pay more then $100 pesos for a beer (remember, wholesale cost is >.59 to .60 pesos). More than this, as soon as the free concert is over, guess what? They get up and leave!
Of course, i'm generalizing somewhat here, because, not all people are coming for the free concert or Happy Hour prices. Some people don't care what a beer costs. They don't care what a drink costs. They drink Grey Goose or Patron, and all they care about is do you have enough of supply of it!
Some people go to a place because they like it. A $.30 peso difference in cost of a beer or drink never crosses their mind. Not all people are on a tight budget or cheap. Some people have a lot more disposable income then others. The difference in wealth and spending power can be massive between one person to the next. And that's the great thing about a tourist spot...one person next to you can be debating about ordering a beer at $120 pesos, while the next person is debating whether or not to buy a second Porsche 911. You get people from all walks of life in a tourist spot. That's what's so great about the North Coast...you have people from all walks of life, education, income levels, and culture.
It's a good place. It's beautiful.
