How one downtown bar owner is leveraging data and AI to boost business

David Facey, the entrepreneur behind the downtown nightclub Violet and the speakeasy-style Second Story that sits above it, is bringing a Silicon Valley mindset to Baton Rouge’s bar scene.

The LSU grad, who operated Dead Poet before its closure in July 2023, late last month launched the Violet Nightclub app, a platform that’s as much an online hub for his bars’ patrons as it is a data collection engine.

Users of the app can stay up to date on upcoming events, reserve VIP sections and relive nights out by viewing photo galleries of past functions. On the back end, the app enables Facey and his team to track individual user metrics like attendance frequency, section booking and promo code use to create “robust consumer profiles” that help inform decisions around event scheduling, pricing and promotions. The app also leverages artificial intelligence to act as a “personalized concierge” for its users, sending them targeted event invites based on their unique habits and preferences.

“We’re pretty much running an algorithm more than we’re running a club at this point,” Facey tells Daily Report.

The app, which was developed by Facey himself, is only available on iOS for the time being, but an Android version is coming soon. Facey says it already has more than 1,000 users.

Alongside the app, a new membership program is rolling out for Violet, offering exclusive perks to the club’s most loyal patrons. Those perks include skipping the line to get in, discounts on drinks and sections, loyalty reward points and early access to tickets for major events.

For now, memberships can’t be purchased outright. Applications submitted through the Violet Nightclub app are being vetted by Facey and his team and approved or denied based on a set of criteria that they’re keeping under wraps.

The membership program is expected to open up to the public by late September, though. At that point, memberships will be priced at $169 per month, with a discounted rate of $99 for downtown residents.

It’s worth noting that 214 Third St., the building housing Violet and Second Story, is more than a nightlife destination. It also has Airbnb accommodations, and coworking spaces, podcast studios and Twitch streaming studios are currently being built out. Those other amenities will eventually be folded into the membership program in some capacity.