4 Important Tips to Succeed in the Hospitality Industry- Mark Birnbaum

If you are in the hospitality industry, you need to learn that customer satisfaction is the recipe for a positive and successful outcome.

Every business owner must understand the value of its customers, instead of underestimating it. If you want to succeed in the hospitality industry, make sure that you keep an eye on 4 important factors:

1. If any of your customers had a bad experience with your services and notifies you about the issue, do not just apologize, instead get it fixed as soon as possible, and in order to show the customer/ customers how much you care, offer them something complimentary.
2. If you want your visitors to keep on coming, you need to make sure that you are delivering what you have promised. Moreover, customer referrals will only come, if they have received what they expected. 
3. To ensure that each and every customer remains happy with your services, it is critically important to be realistic. Do not make promises that you can’t keep, just for marketing purposes, otherwise your will surely end up going nowhere.
4. If you want loyal customers, it will be your responsibility to make them happy. You can expect them to be loyal only when they are happy with the services you offer them. Therefore, do not hesitate to go the extra mile in order to keep them happy with your products and services.

Mark Birnbaum is a famous name in the hospitality industry. His role has been very important in the making of many renowned restaurants and lounges, in New York and Miami. Follow us on Instagram

Mark Birnbaum- Which is the best way to market the nightlife industry?

The right marketing technique is crucial, when trying to get the word out about a nightlife venue, and make it sound promising. There are many factors that should be taken into account, in the promotion and marketing of the nightlife industry.

Those factors are essential, in order to grab the attention of the intended customers. Such campaigns are usually aimed at a certain population and hence are niche-oriented. Therefore, the campaign should be devised according to the niche.

The layout of the message being delivered, should be easy on the eyes, and should convey the key points easily.

There are many ways to send or convey these messages to the public such as; fliers, ads which will be published on social media channels, on posters, or in newspaper ads.

The basic structure should appeal instantaneously. Start the offer with the main image, which should tell the core of what is being promoted. The Image should be relevant and related to the theme of the nightlife event.




What follows next is the action area, which should guide the target audience in terms of what to do. For example, the action should prompt the reader to buy the tickets, and the ways to do it. Lastly, give all the details about the event, in the description box. 

Mark Birnbaum is an iconic figure, in New York’s hospitality industry, whose impeccable marketing and management style has brought him and the EMM group, great heights of success.
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Areas where nightclubs have the most financial expense

The nightclub industry is surely a lucrative business, but only if you are able to unlock the key to a thriving success. Once you are able to make your club a sought-after destination among tourists and locals, the big bucks will start pouring in.

However, there are some important requirements to comply with first, like; a substantial financial investment.

Running a nightlife venue demands a lot of expenses. This major financial investment is needed to purchase or rent a nightclub, and to run the business properly.

In terms of daily expenses, a nightclub owner has to take care of purchasing things like the adequate amount of alcohol, and everything else that is needed for the bar, like; the proper bar equipment. Bar equipment includes; different types of drinking glasses, cocktail shakers, bottle openers, etc. Apart from that, every year club owners have to renew their liquor license.

Another expense for club owners includes payroll, which can be a big expense as it includes; managers, bartenders, and cocktail servers. To keep the club at peace, doormen and bouncers are also required. All these people have to be paid on a monthly/weekly basis.

If a nightclub regularly features live bands, DJs and Emcees, early booking is required.

The Cost of booking DJs and bands can vary depending on how famous they are. A local DJ is going to cost less, than a popular one.

Mark Birnbaum is the proud owner of multiple nightclubs throughout New York City.

His nightlife venues have always been a big hit among partygoers. Follow us on Pinterest and Google plus

Mark Birnbaum with Forbes

Mark Birnbaum's feature with Forbes on how he became where he is today. Mark Birnbaum is part of the EMM group that has created the next generation of successful nightlife business personalities.

Patience Is More Than A Virtue In Business

Patience in Business

Patience is a virtue. This old saying can not be more true in the world of business etiquette. If you are not able to wait for opportunities, you can potentially drive your stress and endurance level to an unhealthy level. Can you miss a good opportunity? Of course you can, however your chances of grabbing the higher paying more innovative deals are rooted in patience of research and development.

If your business plan is concise and realistic, this will take some patience. However, you don’t want to over think your plan with too many details, then you will begin to second guess yourself. That's why a business plan is important. It helped Mark Birnbaum and Eugene Remm keep up with the dynamics of nightlife event planning.

Consistency in knowing exactly what your aim is crucial. Incorporate your niche’ and you will start to understand how patience is your best friend. It takes time to perfect your marketing pitch and sales delivery.

If you are a business owner, you have to consider everything that you partner or add your name to. Some business ventures are potentially looked upon negatively depending on how it was created and designed. Time may be of the essence, however your business longevity is the key to success. Business ventures are meant to be looked at closely, which takes time. 

Although, you should be careful, never underestimate stepping out of your comfort zone. This allows you to push yourself to greater depths. Comfort in business is good when you have put in the time and work to afford relaxing, however even then it’s a personal stake to look further.

Competition will never go away in business or in life’s pursuits. While others are fighting and racing to succeed, simply consider how you watched them tumble over one another as you excel. Mark Birnbaum's business certainly weren't a success from Day One. Learning in business sometimes can mean watching others fail. We have our ground breakers, innovators and challengers, that make the world of successful business easier for each generation. 

There are millions of entrepreneurs in the world because of our economy, however most of the business owners today have learned because of their predecessors. Patience gives you the upper edge because you listen, observe and develop your approach. Take your time and understand why you will succeed. Excellence begins with patience.

Mark Birnbaum History

Mark Birnbaum is out to reach the sky’s limits. Together with Eugene Remm, Birnbaum created a Manhattan nightclub that no one ever thought would last. Opening Tenjune in August 2006, the upscale 5,000 SF club in the Meatpacking district bolstered revenue of $12 million in 2007. 

Your average individual would have been satisfied with the pot and consider themselves a lucky person, but not Birnbaum and his partner. EMM Group is the name given to the pair’s new ventures, which includes restaurants, lounges and a luxury concierge service. There’s even a house used for private gatherings and parties! EMM Group has now rose to a $30 million per year company with 30 employees. Michael Hirtenstein, a partner of the two men, joined the group in 2008. Hirtenstein owned a Wall Street telecommunications company before selling it in 2005 for $270 million.

After Mark Birnbaum teamed up with Remm after rival birthday bashes. Together the men raised $800,000 to open the Manhattan upscale nightclub. The timing couldn’t have been better- Fashion Week and the MTV Video Music Awards were just around the corner. A P. Diddy hosted book launch party began the nightclub’s road to success, where names such as Beyonce and Jay-Z making the list of celebs in attendance.

The duo’s concierge service opened in late 2007 and the following summer an eight-bedroom Sag Harbor home with a price tag of $3.9 million attached was purchased. They even run the Chandelier Room in the W Hotel in Hoboken, NJ! When Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy the duo was ready, putting $2 million to secure the three-floor restaurant and club space now available. And, it was only one block from Tenjune! Abe & Arthur’s is another of the EMM Group ventures. This restaurant serves the finest $88 porterhouse steaks your money could buy. It also produces annual revenue of $10 million for the team!

Talk about a few good men that you can’t keep down! But, when you find something good you stick to it, and each and every one of the operations lives up to the highest of expectations and desires. The clubs, the restaurants and hotel serves the best of the best and leaves them impressed.

Happy New Year from Mark Birnbaum!

Happy 2013 Everyone!

Obviously, everyone celebrates the new year differently, but we all use it as an opportunity to start new. For some, it means making resolutions. For others, it's about letting go of their troubles that haunted their last year. After all, it's a new year, and we want to embrace all the new opportunities that are there for us.

Tenjune saw a lot of amazing people come out this New Year's Eve and celebrate. Everyone who came had a great time and was happy celebrating their own way, whether with champagne, countdowns, or kisses. Everyone was excited and thrilled to say goodbye to 2012 and a warm welcome to 2013. Whether that excitement about the new year continues remains to be seen.

The nightlife is always vibrant for New Year's. However, the better question is how vibrant will your daylife be. Will you truly make a change for this year? Too often, people make too many promises to change after not changing all year. So this year, try to focus on only one thing that you want to improve on and make it better.

By: Mark Birnbaum

Why Tenjune is called Tenjune

Mark Birnbaum is a figure that everyone from celebrities to regular partygoers associate with a fun night out in New York City.  He is the cofounder of EMM Group, one of the biggest hospitality fixtures in New York since its launch in2006.

EMM Group has become one of New York’s biggest management companies through the work of Mark Birnbaum , Eugene Remm and the entrepreneur Michael Hirtenstein. After years of exceeding standards, they have become leaders in the scene. Their initial nightlife endeavor was “Tenjune” which is a club in the middle of the Meatpacking District and one of the most desirable locations for many celebrities and fun loving party goers.

They also brought another expansion in 2009 into the hotel-lounge industry as The Chandelier Room at the W Hoboken Hotel. Mark Birnbaum and his business associates unveiled a newer addition from their mushrooming portfolio and it was Abe & Arthur’s, a restaurant near a boutique nightclub SL on W 14th Street. All their establishments are top-class and the excitement level found there is very unbelievable.

Incidentally Tenjune got its name because both Mark and Eugene have birthdays on June 10. When they celebrate it, you know everyone's having a blast.

Mark Birnbaum: The New Kings of New York Nightlife

The New Kings Of New York Nightlife
Steven Bertoni, 05.10.10
Eugene Remm, 31, and Mark Birnbaum, 32, don't believe in quitting while they're ahead. As economic disaster swelled in 2007, Tenjune--their swanky, 5,000-square-foot nightclub in Manhattan's Meatpacking District--kept on rocking. On one raucous evening a real estate developer bought $75,000 worth of Perrier-Jouët champagne for the house, then told partygoers to shake up the bottles and coat the room in suds. Tenjune opened in August 2006 and generated $12 million of revenue in 2007, making Remm and Birnbaum's combined 50% stake worth millions of dollars. Says Remm, "Everyone was saying we were one-hit wonders"--meaning they should take their money and run.


Instead, the pair doubled down. Their nightlife empire, EMM Group, now includes restaurants, lounges, a luxury concierge service and a house in Sag Harbor, L.I. used for hosting private parties for VH1 and the cast of Gossip Girl. Headquartered in a sunny loft near Tenjune, EMM, now with 30 head-office employees, had $30 million in sales in the last 12 months. Credit that performance to Birnbaum's aesthetic eye and Remm's attention to detail. A third partner--Michael Hirtenstein, 47, who sold his Westcom Communications, which supplied secure voice and data networks to Wall Street firms, for $270 million in 2005--joined in 2008 and negotiates contracts. "They have their eyes on everything but never look stressed," says MTV Programming President Tony DiSanto, a regular EMM customer. "I see them more as producers than club owners."
Remm, the son of Russian immigrants, had a taste for risk at Long Island's Hofstra University, where he ran a bar and speculated in real estate. During his senior year he bought five houses, putting down a combined $10,000 he had pocketed in tips. ("I was the definition of subprime," he quips.) After graduation Remm joined B.R. Guest Restaurants and ran its lounge, Level V. Birnbaum promoted Manhattan clubs as a high school senior on Long Island; at Ithaca College he ran a 22,000-square-foot nightclub. After hawking insurance and hating it, he started a consultancy aimed at new club owners.


Remm and Birnbaum hooked up after throwing competing birthday parties--both were born on June 10 (hence Tenjune)--and became fast friends. They raised $800,000 from college friends and club clients to open Tenjune just in time for Fashion Week and the MTV Video Music Awards. They threw a book launch party for celebrity stylist June Ambrose, hosted by rapper Sean Combs (a.k.a. P. Diddy). Penelope Cruz, Jay-Z and Beyoncé showed up. Emboldened, Remm and Birnbaum opened a concierge service in 2007 with annual dues of $7,500. That summer they took out a $3.9 million mortgage on an eight-bedroom Sag Harbor mansion, which hosts five blowout events a summer. In the spring of 2009 EMM signed on to run the Chandelier Room in the W Hotel in Hoboken, N.J.


Their biggest bet came on Sept. 15, 2008--the day Lehman Brothers filed Chapter 11--when Remm and Birnbaum plunked down $2 million, their entire savings, to secure a three-floor restaurant and club space a block from Tenjune. It needed renovation, which involved expanding the mezzanine and relocating the furnace room. Expected total cost, including renovations, furniture and permits: $7 million. They raised the other $5 million, mostly from happy Tenjune customers, in eight months. Abe & Arthur's, which serves $88 porterhouse steaks, and its basement club, SL, opened last September. The combo has since done $10 million in sales.
If Tenjune is EMM's blockbuster film, SL is the art house flick--small, intimate and ultracool. The stone walls feature a collage of human X-rays that change color with every fabric-rippling thump of the bass. The markups are adequate to cover the renovation costs. A 1.5-liter bottle of Grey Goose ($57 wholesale) goes for $1,000 at SL. A 6-liter bottle of Ace of Spades champagne is $30,000.


Diversification is crucial. "Robert Downey Jr. won't party at Tenjune, but he'll eat at Abe & Arthur's," says Remm. EMM's special events group opened American Eagle Outfitters' Times Square shop; it handled stage design, music and security, and also produced the video looped on an outdoor Jumbotron. Abe & Arthur's later hosted a dinner for American Eagle execs.


Behind the scenes, this business is a grind. The workday ends at 5 a.m., and Remm and Birnbaum are fielding e-mails by 9 a.m. The two are sticklers about consistency--from the way hosts greet customers and how quickly reservations are confirmed to the scent in each venue. (EMM pumps in a custom perfume through its air ducts.) Employees, who get BlackBerrys, must reply to e-mails within five minutes; they're also encouraged to maintain a healthy diet and slog through daily workouts, involving weights, treadmills and yoga sessions. "There are opportunities to have lots of bad habits," says Remm.


Revenues are broken down, daily, by customer. A 20,000-name spreadsheet--cobbled with help from waitresses, floor managers, publicists and Facebook--tracks minutiae on heavy hitters who drop at least $2,000 a night, including their professions, birthdays, favorite drinks and seating preferences. Each gets a follow-up call to see how the night went and what EMM can improve. "They know what people want and how to look after people," says Karolina Kurkova, the former Victoria's Secret underwear model.

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EMM also analyzes the performance of its promoters--freelance pied pipers who march in lookers to fill the clubs. Many joints pay promoters by the volume of patrons they corral. EMM demands a good-looking crowd with high energy and deep pockets. Promoters get $500 for a stylish table of ten. Duds often get docked half their pay.


Remm, Birnbaum and Hirtenstein aren't done yet. They are in the midst of signing leases for three new venues--two restaurants and club. "You've got to stay fresh and keep your name relevant," says Birnbaum. "If I'm not opening the next place that looks amazing, someone is."