Good strategy oftens requires undoing old habits and embracing new. Firms who think outside the industry norm can often find themselves at a better place competitively. External factors that look like threats might actually be opportunities.
Take the current dramas in the Melbourne live music scene. In the past week two long-running pub venues have hit the newspages with the tales of woe. First, the Tote and now the Arthouse, have announced they will close their doors to bands and music fans, in the face on recently imposed laws regarding security requirements and opening hours.
Here’s a summary:
“The Arthouse’s manager, Melanie Bodiam, said Liquor Licensing Victoria had given the venue two options: close at 1am instead of 3am, or stay open until 3am at a reduced capacity of 90, instead of 300. She said both options were financially unworkable.
”Once our bands finish playing, musicians and patrons want to sit around, have a beer and a chat,” she said. ”We don’t want to have to usher them straight out the door.””
Now I have been a big gig-attendee over the years and love the sweaty confines of said venues (and numerous others), but it strikes me that there is a real opportunity to respond in a way that will be ‘punter-friendly’: start the bands earlier. Have the headline act on by 9.30. That way you can still get the post-gig drinking bucks, while potentially also tapping into the come straight afterwork and have a meal beforehand market. It works in UK extremely well.
It is too easy to get stuck in the well-worn groove of the firms/products around you. But when faced with a challenge, think beyond the norm. You might find there is a much bigger market over there…
International BS Blog 
