Nightlife is Evolving 

    He had no idea he’d literally bump into her when he ventured inside, but as he turns the corner into the club’s futuristic Liquid room, they brush shoulders, and he’s greeted with a seductively sexy smile. Set to an uplifting mix of laid-back House beats, he introduces himself; she responds in kind. Sparks fueled by the social energy around them ignite, and a match is made in the desert night. With the beautiful stars in the club as visible as those in the Western sky, it’s a backdrop awash with edge, mystique, promise and opportunity.

    Actively seeking partnerships while refining the club’s business plan during the summer of 2001, the sky appeared to be the limit — that is, until two commercial airliners dropped out of it and into tragic infamy — dampening he and his partners’ efforts as the industry was rocked and the prospect of opening an on-the-edge concept seemed too risky to bank on in the Scottsdale market.

    Anxious at the prospect of having the top party palace around, everyone moved forward, and e4’s $3.5 million construction began in January 2004. Through this, another trial developed, but so did a solution. Because the original 4,000 square-foot building’s shell was not large enough to accommodate all desired, Mezo and company sank the floor five feet, modified their floor plans and pressed onward. “Then came the logo and branding to the nth layer,” Mezo says. “And we had 1,400 items on our inventory list, all after the shell ... and we needed to find all the right people to install it all.” He says the time to do this commanded constant days and nights, and Saturdays and Sundays “really were more opportunities to work without the phone ringing as much.”

Hard Work and Homework 
    Hard work — and especially homework — can be as fun as it is taxing. To gather ideas large and small, Mezo says he traveled the country, hitting about 400 venues in his explorations through L.A., Miami and New York City, among many other metropolitan markets. The result reverberates throughout the hi-tech yet sophisticatedly refined e4, but nuances aren’t exclusive to the United States. Suppliers from all over the world provided many of the club’s materials, as well, included in part in the venue’s 16 flooring finishes, 34 ceiling finishes and 82 wall finishes. It’s wow factor, to be sure.

    “It’s 40 pounds of stuff in a 10-pound box,” he says. “It’s like an interior designer’s warehouse.” All-out also was applied all over at e4, which celebrated its opening in mid-July of this year. As Mezo says, “We had to say ‘no’ a lot, as in, ‘No, this can be done.’”

    What has been accomplished is an amazing fantasyland by feel and feature, and what it’s doing is attracting scores of sales and attention from men and women coast to coast. Scottsdale’s “magical combination of character and upscale vibe,” as Mezo says, is projected by e4. With four individualistic, themed rooms symbolizing their respective elements, guests can come to one club for several experiences — all high-end, but none pretentious. However, Mezo says e4 is more of a multi-dimensional nightlife destination than it is a nightclub, and he compares it to fusion cuisine. “The place evolves with guests and the night.”

A Professional’s Playground
    Before delving into the characteristics of each room at e4, it’s important to familiarize oneself with today’s Scottsdale to know exactly why this concept , the Barrett-Jackson Auto Show of nightflife with something for everyone, amateur to aficionado –– works so well. 

    To begin by saying Scottsdale could today be described as the illegitimate child of Las Vegas and Los Angeles is almost fair, but not quite — there’s much more to it than that. With the cowboys-and-Indians stigma largely gone but not forgotten, Scottsdale now is a progressive marketplace of new opportunities amidst a heavy influx of personal and professional interests. Yet, it ‘s still Old West, too.

    Lamborghinis in driveways might belong to the successful young financial planner or to the retiree with the fat IRA. It’s less about rustic sights; it’s become more about resort spas. It’s a city with about a quarter of a million population, nearly 8 million visitors per year, roughly 200 golf courses and only 50 clubs, according to its tourism department. Art, fashion and a cosmopolitan mindset have been flourishing, and currently there is roughly $1 billion in planned development within a square-mile radius in Old Town Scottsdale where e4 is located. Mezo and General Manager Tom Cerino say the jewel in the crown is the new $250 million urban water canal, reminiscent of the River Walk in downtown San Antonio. Still, medical plazas, boutique hotels, including the W, neighborhood retail, a spring training complex for the San Francisco Giants — these are examples of the width and quality of growth — and they all are bringing with them vitality, economic and otherwise.

    “It’s really become a playground for people around the country,” Mezo says. “It’s Arizona’s answer to Beverly Hills.”

"It's 40 pounds of stuff in a 10-pound box. It's like an interior designer's warehouse. We had to say "no" a lot, as in, "No, this can be done." - Aron Mezo, creator and CEO, e4, Scottsdale, Ariz. 

    Arizona’s answer then becomes any entrepreneurially minded operator’s question: How can I make my mark?

Essential Elements, Perpetual Profits
    Mezo’s response, through e4’s creative design and clever branding, sheds state-of-the-art light on that question. In fact, e4 stands for edibles, elixirs, environments and euphoria. While edibles usually are served in the social dining-oriented Earth Lounge and Air Patio, the other elements are readily available throughout the venue.

    There is the Jazzy/Mediterranean, no-right-angles-present Earth Lounge, which Mezo colorfully refers to as “Dr. Suess meets the Bellagio.” It is a truly surreal setting filled with late-’60s colors and organic textures and fixtures that both comfort and excite guests.  There also is the Air Lounge/Patio, a “Jetson’s”-like environment where patrons can relax and enjoy a smoke while suspended tables and seating complement suspended plasma TV screens which play custom-made, familiar VH1-style videos against the panoramic Scottsdale skyline. At sunset, this is Happy Hour defined.

    The Liquid Room, which usually opens last in a night, offers up the edge and a touch of Vegas by submerging visitors in a realm of hi-tech, watery décor. Guest reactions might best be summed up by Stephen Lemons, who wrote this in Phoenix’s The New Times: “In a flash, we’re in this water-blue disco dedicated to total sensory overload. The walls are of clear plastic, filled with H2O that’s bubbling from bottom to top, creating a trippy sensation that’s enhanced by side tables made of lava lamps, a greenish-blue dance floor with liquid-filled tiles that squish this way and that as you move your feet ... above us, on a ledge with a waterfall behind them, are go-go dancers, one in a skinny micro-mini and another in an aqua bikini and a big ‘fro who could pass for ‘Goldmember’s’ Foxxy Cleopatra ... Kevin Brown’s in the DJ booth droppin’ plenty of sexy House, and on the video projectors, the flick ‘Tron’ is playing.” Nice, but did he mention they were playing on giant, falling-water screens?

    While it’s all invigorating, pulses probably still are racing from the previous pace in the Fire room, where Rock, Hip-Hop and Mash-Ups rule the night. With playful S&M undertones, the room’s medieval-style brick walls, deep red, plush fabrics and massive wrought-iron chandelier keep patrons’ comfortable and entertained. While it’s hard to imagine a guest wanting to leave this environment — and many don’t, says Randy Feldman, director of hospitality/entertainment — the other environments encourage them to circulate.

Elixirs and Edibles 
    Also keeping patrons entertained is the club’s beverage menu. In another clever twist, e4’s elixirs are displayed in a periodic table, with each spirit brand or mixer represented as an element. Specialty drinks include the $10 Cloud 9 (Ba + Pl + Bc), Bacardi and Planters XO Rum with a splash of blue curaço in a blue sugar-rimmed glass, Mojito-syle with a mint leaf; and the $13 Elevated Ectasy (Se + Dv), Stoli Elit Vodka with Martini & Rossi Dry Vermouth shaken and strained into a Martini glass with blue cheese-stuffed olives. The list is extensive, too, although Feldman and Cerino say bottle service is the true moneymaker, and two full-time hospitality managers are solely dedicated to ensuring its smooth operation, which typically peaks from 10-11 p.m. onward. 

    “Our price is set on the menu. It doesn’t fluctuate, and it ranges anywhere from $225 a bottle to $1,400 for a bottle of Cristal, magnum,” Cerino says. “The bigger part of the push for us has been bottle service ... we sell a ton of Veuve, Dom and Cristal — those are the three big movers here with Champagne ... but our biggest seller of all is Grey Goose, across the board.”

    Cerino says he estimates that 70 percent of spirits revenue is from vodka alone, in fact, although Patrón Silver, Jack Daniel’s and Crown Royal also have been hot, and Captain Morgan’s rum has been spicing up sales. Also key has been the Dessertini Flight, a four-serving taste of sweet specialties served in 3-ounce glasses. Beer, while not pushed as heavily, is available by the bottle, and imports such as Corona, Heineken and Amstel have been moving well. Fat Tire, Stella Artois and Michelob Ultra also are on the line-up and are successful for e4, Cerino says.

    Edibles, presented on the menu as Zodiak signs, likewise have been instrumental in attracting guests, primarily around Happy Hour and early in the night. Under Executive Chef Tim Hoobler, formerly of the W Hotel in Seattle, the tapas-styled menu is broken up into the elements and includes such favorites as the Pisces ($9), a skewered wild salmon dish; the Virgo ($8), true Buffalo mozzarella served with virgin olive oil; and the Taurus ($13), skewered beef tenderloin with sweet potato mashers, demi glaze and red wine reduction. “The menu is not muted, abstract and boring,” Mezo says. “We wanted to keep it playful but upscale.” 

Feldman also says the tapas social-serving style drastically impacts guests arriving in groups — and staying as groups longer into the night.

Representation, the Press and Success
        These house specialties all are marketed with each one’s characteristic in mind, much as e4’s promotions are treated. While Feldman, Cerino and Mezo say e4 is new enough that the local populous is not as hungry for its solid promotional line-up as they are still digesting everything that the club has to offer, there is something special for every night except Mondays, which are dark.

        “Fridays and Saturdays, although we do bring special events in with them, we don’t really have to market them too hard because of course they are the weekend,” Feldman says. “Sunday, we brought in a promoter to assist, and he takes a lot of the advertisement to other markets. We also hit the local beauty salons or clothing stores that have that edgier appearance that might appreciate it. We bring in guest DJs that have a following of their own for their format. We just started attacking the MySpace.com area. Also, we have e-vites that we personally set up through our Web site (e4-az.com) ... we have flyers, of course, and other invitations. We really try to utilize our staff.”

        In fact, if there’s one thing Mezo, Feldman and Cerino emphasize heaviest, it’s that the focus on having the most-skilled, best-appearing staff to represent the depth of e4’s operations has turned intrigue from worldly guests, numerous celebrities and local men and women into satisfaction. And there still is a lot of the success story to tell. It’s largely in the details, but e4 already has earned top praise and attention from numerous publications such as Forbes, the New York Times, 944, The Arizona Republic (which named it Best New Nightclub for 2005), Desert Living — and now, very deservedly — Nightclub & Bar.

     “Any great plan goes through three phases,” Mezo says. “It’s first criticized, then staunchly opposed, then accepted as truth.” NCB