This is Stickman's lead article this week. Whether it's true, partly true or a load of old bollix, I'll leave for those who know the area to decide:
The Beginning Of The End Of An Era
"Close me!", he screamed out over the dark night of Nana Plaza. The neon signs had been turned off and the house lights inside the bars cast shadows out on to Nana's narrow walkways.
"I want my 30 day closure order. Close me!", he bellowed, his voice ringing out over the plaza. The unmistakeable American accent with a hint of alcohol had zero effect on the girls scurrying out of Nana to soi 4. Someone yelling out at the top of his lungs rates almost zero interest, unless the number "5,000" and the words "time" and "short" are said together in the right order. The few Westerners still in attendance found it rather amusing, although most didn't have a clue what was going on.
It was yesterday: 2:25 AM, Saturday 27 October. As the Bangkok night enveloped the plaza with more and more lights slowly being turned off, this lone bar owner vented his frustration, saying goodbye to Nana in his own special way.
He retreated inside and walked to the back of the bar and cranked up the volume of the sound system. Music blared out across the plaza half an hour after the official closing time. The bar owner was tempting fate, but even if he was to receive the closure order, it really wouldn't matter...
It was the last night for the Big Mango Bar in Nana. After a shock announcement on Wednesday, the Big Mango closed its doors at its current location for the last time this past Friday night.
In what really is a sad state of affairs, the negotiations for rent of the spot where the Big Mango is located broke down, with the leaser asking for an outrageous price increase. How much? Assign a numerical value to the word outrageous and you've got it.
A year ago there were five reasons to visit Nana Plaza - the Big Mango, Hog's Breath, Angelwitch, Rainbow 1 and Rainbow 4. With Hog's Breath and now The Big Mango gone, there are only three. 30 good bars is good for Nana. 3 isn't.
The three bars in Nana that are worth going out of your way for are much the same, gogo bars with lots of pretty women. Sure, each is a little different but the fact remains that they are still all gogo bars.
Much conjecture and concern surrounds the future of Nana Plaza - and this isn't something new. Many of the bars, the girls and the bar managers have created an unpleasant and unfriendly atmosphere that in no way resembles the fun had there in the late '90s. But actually, that is not what I am talking about. The major issue on many people's minds is just how long the plaza has left, in its current form.
There have been all sorts of crazy rumours over the years and I am surprised that those of its conversion into a 5 star hotel, or a car park, have not been heard recently.
Here's the deal. The land on which Nana Plaza is located is owned by a Thai / Indian family. They have leased the land to a bunch of Indians trading as Nana Castle - their office can be found on the floor above ground on the left hand side. Nana Castle then lease the space to the various bar owners who then build and operate the bars. This is relevant because Nana Castle has, over the past few weeks, been re-negotiating the leases with the bar owners. Leases expire on November 1st. Yes, just a few days away. Many bars have signed already and the rest are set to follow. The bottom line is that Nana as we know it should remain in business until 2012. That is barring any major catastrophe like the boys in brown suddenly outlawing the industry or implementing those confusing entertainment zoning laws.
But not all of the bars in Nana Plaza lease from Nana Castle. The bars at the front of the plaza like Cathouse, the Big Mango and Mandarin Table Top actually lease from the shophouse owners below, i.e. the business downstairs, be it the jeweller's or the tailor's. These bars are on their own to negotiate and this is how, sadly, the Big Mango got screwed. Nana Castle lease space to gogo bars but these other establishments which essentially lease space above their existing businesses don't understand the plaza, don't understand the industry and are really in the dark.
A number of the bars have renegotiated already. It looks like many were looking at an effective increase in rent of 20 - 30%. Given that for many bars trade is down, this is a huge kick in the teeth. And given that no repairs or maintenance work seems to be taking place in Nana, one has to wonder just what they get for that? That said, I believe that rents have not increased for about 6 years so an increase has been long overdue.
The Big Mango's departure follows that of Hog's Breath, a popular hangout for a lot of the expats that live here as well as those in the construction / oilfield industry. For many, it was first stop when they got into town, just to see who else was in town. The dynamic of the crowd at Hog's Breath was similar to that at the Big Mango. Punters would meet up with friends before doing the rounds - and spending money, often lots of it. Many people like to start the night out in a quiet bar with friends, enjoying conversation before things get crazy. With Hog's Breath and Big Mango gone, Cathouse is the only venue left for where a quiet beer can be had. But Cathouse has not been that popular since their prices increased markedly.
Nana's problems run deep with no shortage of afflictions which punters grumble about on a daily basis. Increased prices for suds and the girls were just the start. Nana girls are rapidly becoming known for their urgent 3 AM meeting with their mother, ill brother or crippled buffalo. The Rainbow bars in particular have a dreadful reputation for girls promising long-time, delivering short-time and threatening blue murder if the original negotiated (long time) price is not paid. But these problems are just the tip of the iceberg.
The escalator on the right hand side is in total disrepair and it will cost at least 1.5 million baht to repair it. Who is going to pay for that?! Nana Castle? Don't make me laugh!
The Farang Connection, which closed a few weeks ago, has all but given up on finding a buyer and are simply hoping that someone will step in to take over the lease.
One bar owner is well behind on his rent, the same owner who had trouble paying his girls a month or two back.
Another bar has had circuitry installed so that no more than half the air-con units can be used at any one time. Yep, for just a few thousand baht saving a month, this bar owner will sacrifice his customers' comfort - and they have been leaving in droves, just like his girls.
The ground floor of Nana Plaza is in a sorry state. Private BBQs are sometimes held with the smoke wafting into bars on the upper floors, disturbing staff and patrons alike. Motorbikes and other vehicles block access into the plaza and sometimes restrict access into ground floor bars. Make a complaint and the most likely outcome is a bunch of the biggest Thai guys you've ever seen paying you a visit to work out the issue. And let's not even begin on the flawed design of the plaza, with a narrow passage providing the only way in and out.
One bar owner said to me that he felt the main issue dragging down Nana is the lack of any co-operation between the bar owners. In fact there is real hostility between some of the owners with certain owners and managers barred from certain establishments. Compare this to Pattaya or Cowboy where owners frequently drop by to other bars and chat with the staff and other bar owners.
Some people have tried to tell me that these things go in cycles and that Nana will be back. That's nonsense. Nana Plaza has been in steady decline since the late '90s, every year getting a little bit worse. Things can only get worse for so long and then they get downright bad.
Nana's great chance to turn it around was the elaborately designed Cascade Bar, a venture the owners sank serious money in. There was a fancy laser light system custom-built in Taiwan but it was damaged when being offloaded from the plane and as far as I know, it never made it to the plaza. What had promised to be a great bar never really took off and later became another katoey cave. For me, that was the turning point for Nana. If that bar had worked, it might have brought the crowds back, and forced increased investment by other owners as they attempted to compete. Nana Plaza would have become a draw again. Alas, that was not the case and as Nana dragged its feet, money was being pumped into Cowboy.
The Big Mango's departure is not just a case of goodbye to one bar. It's goodbye great burgers and food. Goodbye reasonable prices. Goodbye fantastic meeting spot. Goodbye free wi-fi internet access and goodbye great service. More than anything it's a case of goodbye Nana Plaza.
With rental hikes across the board and some bars clearly hurting, the local wisdom of less customers necessitating price increases will likely prevail. Prices will likely go up, service will continue to get worse, the place will fall into further disrepair and punters will bypass Nana and drop into Cowboy for a few on their way to Pattaya.
Like Boss Hogg who also got out early, the Big Mango boys will have the last laugh. The two bright, young entrepreneurs built up a loyal following and more importantly, a brand name. They built up a reputation, a good one. Reasonably priced drinks and food, good service, a great atmosphere and all with a view overlooking Nana will always be a winning formula. Wherever they move to, their customers will follow. The gogo bars of Nana can hardly up and move, can they?!
It was nice knowing you Nana, but the writing is on the wall. This is the beginning of the end of an era.