Where Coastal Trends Converge
Blonde is Setting Trends and Turning Heads in Kansas City, Mo. 

The Midwest suffers from an often unfair image as being a little less than hip. Certainly, a number of trends have started in major markets from New York to L.A., and from Miami to Scottsdale. It is in these cities that the extreme metropolitan trends are every-night occurrences.
    But, hailed as the first place to bring bottle service to Kansas City, Mo., Blonde has been turning heads since August of 2005 –– adding evidence to the adage that they really do have more fun.

All Appearance, No Attitude
    “We may look like your stereotypical Hollywood lounge,” says Managing Partner Casey Matile, “but we have the Midwest sense of personal service. We always say, ‘We are a Vegas or Hollywood lounge without the attitude.’”
Blonde’s visual appeal stems from a stunning, contemporary design by Jeff Low of Phoenix, Ariz., that utilizes eearth tones of russet wood, padded walls and plenty of LED lighting. The 5,500 square-foot space has a 233-person capacity with two levels and two bars to accommodate customers. When determining what Blonde one day would become, Matile looked to his other properties located in mid- to upper-level markets, specifically his Pussycat Lounge in Scottsdale, Ariz.
    “We looked at trends we had seen in our other locations to the west and tried to speed up the process,” he says.
    “The beverage menu is designed very similar to the (menu at the) Pussycat Lounge. We designed it as a group, and the Martini menu has
a lot of thought put into it.”
    For music, Matile went for a Scottsdale approach as well, and turned to DJ Mike Scott and a program called Searto Scratch Live.
    “He uses a Mac Pro. He is DJing and still has turntables, but it is all digital. He is playing files off his Mac, so there is no more lugging around big crates of vinyl. Our format is a mix. In one hour, you may hear ‘70s Rock, old-school Hip Hop and Top 40 –– playing anywhere from 150 to 200 songs in a four-hour set. We have always had this format since we opened. It was a format that was used at the Pussycat Lounge and was one format that no one had done in Kansas City before we opened.
    “When we first opened, I personally was a little nervous. You know, we are doing a different music format, bottle service, a guest list, an ultra lounge. There really wasn’t anywhere in Kansas City that was similar.”

Empowered Employees
    The service at Blonde is more like that of a luxury hotel than a nightclub in many ways, with the staff fluidly connected to make the entire evening what Matile calls “an effortless experience and a really good time.”
    This is done by empowering each staff member to make decisions and by treating them as valued, experienced partners in Blonde’s success.
    “What sets us apart in Kansas City, and a lot of other markets is our customer service and our marketing,” Matile says. “Everyone is outfitted with business cards –– from the door to the VIP host. Blonde isn’t the type of place where they punch their cards and are done with the job when they leave.”
    An evening starts with each customer personally escorted to his or her designated table. Along the way, the VIP host radios through his headset to alert that table’s server. Beverage runners are alerted to bring the extensive bottle accompaniments, which includes appropriate garnishes, Voss water, four cans of Red Bull, a fruit and cheese plate and chocolate-covered strawberries with each bottle of premium spirit.
    “When the server greets the table, she points out the drawers. All of the banquettes have private drawers where people can lock up their personal belongings. Our servers function as sales people,” Matile says. “They look at their section as their bar for the night.
    They have 100-percent freedom to book their section. All of my girls have been there for a while. They will know who is going to be at their tables, and I buy them all business cards.”

Calling It A Good Night
    At the end of the evening, customers are asked to fill out service cards to help the staff evaluate performance. The VIP hosts make phone calls to further check with patrons about their level of satisfaction, and the servers send out follow-up e-mails.
    “We have 16 tables for bottle service and a couple of high-top tables at the bar. Last Saturday, we had 20 tables set up,” says Matile. “On a busy night, people will do bottle service at the bar. That is a great night for us. 
    “It is all about relationship marketing and building a personal relationship with our customers. It’s one thing if you know someone’s name and someone’s favorite drink, but that is not personal as far as I am concerned.
    “We have runners bringing the drinks just so the servers can spend a lot of time at the tables getting to know the customers,” Matile says. “We truly get to know them.”     NCB