ANAFULIZA HENNESSY: How hilarious nightclub message boards are spicing up Kenya's nightlife
In Kenya now, as has been in Dubai and other renowned party spots around the world, buying expensive alcohol has its own prestige; you not only get to sit at a vaunted location - away from the shoving and sweating - you also get to have your alcohol delivered to you in an ostentatious manner that directs all eyes to you.
Across most of Nairobi's nightclubs, and in some of the most popular ones in party towns like Nakuru, Eldoret, Meru and Kisumu, club hostesses have adopted a new technique used to flamboyantly deliver an expensive bottle to a VIP client.
While swinging flickering sparklers, these blithe models dance along to a specialised song as the rest of the coterie snakes its way through the crowded nightclub, lifting a fluorescent message board high.
While wearing wide smiles and tiny, sequined dresses, these models flaunt a message board with a specialised message inscribed on it - it could be a birthday message, the announcement of an important person's arrival or even, in most cases, a silly quote borrowed from online conversations.
As the popularity of the message boards has continued to grow, club directors have invested more in creative marketing teams who are solely responsible for the cheeky - and often naughty - inscriptions found on the electronic boards.
The trend, which has now swept Kenya's nightlife and become a topic on itself online, started off with some niche city nightclubs before becoming a runway phenomenon found in far-flung towns like Eldoret.
At Baniyas Square, one of Eldoret's most popular and fastest-growing nightclubs, the message boards have revolutionized how people party in the city, with the idea becoming a massive hit with the town's revelers, tickled by the cheekiness and the wittiness displayed on the boards.
"We started this whole message board thing towards the last quarter of the year. At first, we would only write the name of the guest DJ or maybe, write a special Happy Birthday message to a particular client upon his request.
"But soon after, we realized that people were interested in more creativity on the boards and that's how we got our marketing team to sit down and come up with viral quotes that can elicit excitement across the nightclub and even make it on the trending topics online, " Chris Njagi, the Managing Director at Baniyas Square says.
At Kikao Chill and Vibe, a popular nightspot located at Kamiti Corner, the message boards have greatly improved the revellers' experience with many eagerly looking forward to seeing the hostesses swinging them around the club as the music blares on and the vibe starts to creep in.
"I can confidently say that Kikao began this phenomenon. We've been doing this for four months now and it has worked like magic in the way of entertaining our revelers and spicing up our nights," Kikao's Steve Ratemo says.
He added: "We decided to localise the message by sitting down with our entertainment team and crafting funny one-liners which leave a lasting impact in the minds of our patrons. Sometimes, the message may appear a little cheeky or naughty but as we say, it's never that serious..."
Grace Mukami, the club manager at Whisky Paradise, says that the idea behind the message boards is something borrowed from international nightclubs mostly frequented by big spenders and showy clients, eager to make a statement.
"This has been quite the thing in places like Florida, Miami, Chicago and Los Angeles too. If you go online, you will see a lot of these in foreign nightclubs and also, in Dubai. In Kenya, the whole idea is new. Whilst we started off with using them to welcome the guest DJ or to make someone's birthday feel special, we started writing cheeky messages as if to create a conversation amongst the club attendees, " she says.
"And it has worked like magic. It has also greatly improved our marketing - with very little effort. Every morning, after a heavy weekend, we see our message boards trending online, on WhatsApp groups, and on Instagram pages as well."
These message boards, also called bottle presenters, are produced by a Miami-based company called Nightlife Supplies.
On their website, they describe it thus: "This bottle presenter is highly popular in the club scene or any scene where there is bottle service. Built in the USA by hand and with the finest material, we can stamp your logo on it as well as make it in different colors with LEDs..."
During the December festivities, for instance, one nightclub famously displayed a message board written: 'KUNYWA SCHOOL FEES TUTAKUPEA BURSARY..."
When used to dazzle and flatter a deep-pocketed client, the message boards are often accompanied by sparklers and bottle presenters in which an expensive bottle is prominently inserted.
In addition, svelte-figured models, called club hostesses, are hired specifically to deliver the bottles to the client's table as the entire revelry halts for a couple minutes in honor of the 'Big Man'.
"We normally reserve the drama and presentation for clients who have bought a bottle the club deems expensive. In Kenya, most nightclubs use them whenever a client has bought a bottle of Martel, Hennessy, Remy Martin, Double Black or such types of highly-priced liqours," Grace adds.
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