For some reason I thought the House of Blues had its start in New Orleans, but it did not. The first House of Blues was started in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

About the House of Blues (taken from the House of Blues website)

The House of Blues grew out of founder Isaac Tigrett’s love for the unique American art form known as the “the Blues”. Weaned on this music during his early childhood in Tennessee, one of Isaac’s goals was to introduce the world to the music of the rural south, including the Blues, Rhythm and Blues, Gospel, Jazz and Roots-abed Rock & Roll. The very first House of Blues opened its doors in a converted historical house in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1992 and is home to live music, original folk art, and delta-inspired cuisine. The House of Blues is dedicated to educating and celebrating the history of Southern Culture and African American artistic contributions to music and art.

The House of Blues is without a doubt an interesting business case – established by to introduce “the music of the rural south, including the Blues, Rhythm and Blues, Gospel, Jazz and Roots-abed Rock & Roll” it had its start in the Northeast. What made Cambridge the perfect starting ground? Would the House of Blues be what it is today if it had started somewhere else?

I have not been to any other House of Blues locations, but I’m going to assume from what I’ve seen on the website that they all operate basically the same way, which makes the business simpler and easier to run. However, I do wonder if all the House of Blues venues are all ages venues. The one in New Orleans certainly is.

Financially I wonder if that’s more profitable or if the House of Blues takes a hit profit wise because of it? There’s no doubt that the crowd yesterday was mostly made up of teenagers. The acts were Jack’s Mannequin (headliner), Matt Nathanson and Erin McCarley. I hadn’t heard of any of them but those teenagers in the audience definitely had.

Teenagers are a huge consumer group – and from the lines at the products tables; they have no problems spending their allowances, parent’s money and hard earned money on products. Good for the artists but what about the House of Blues?

Because it’s an all age venue, no alcohol is sold in the music hall. Most venues make their money on the sale of alcohol…even those of years 21 and older could not bring in alcohol to the music hall purchased at the restaurant.

Tickets were $30 a person sold through Live Nation or the Box Office (note they don’t use Ticket Master…although with Ticket Master buying Live Nation if a moot point). There were 3 acts – I have no clue how much each act were paid to perform. I’m going to guest there were probably a couple hundred people in the crowd. In my head, no matter how you slice this pie; the profits can’t be much.

Since the audience was made up of mostly teenagers – it’s not like they were going to stop in the bar or restaurant to drink and eat afterwards and increase the potential of the profit margins.

I have to admit that the stage was well setup. The majority of the equipment for all three acts were all pre-staged. The transition from one act to another was rather expeditious and well executed…minimizing the need for a lot of stage hands.

I didn’t enjoy any of the acts. Wendy has seen Matt Nathanson ten times. She’s obviously a fan – he did not convert me into a fan. A few months ago I saw Lowry at a local bar in DC; I walked away with their CD in my hand. Some acts will create immediate fans while others will not.

I did get a kick out of watching the crowd/consumer group. Every time I looked down at the crowd someone was texting, taking pictures, or capturing a video. The crowd, like I said, was mostly compromised of teenagers and mostly of the female variation! I also spent the time analyzing the House of Blues operations, opportunities, functions etc. I do that everywhere I go. Observe everything, take notes…find the opportunities.

The upstairs area has a sitting area that’s corded off. Apparently that area is reserved for foundation members and donors, however; once the show started the guy running the area ran a side operation along with the bartender. Not entirely sure if this is a legit operation endorsed by the venue but the lowdown is that for the right “tip” you can find yourself sitting in the corded off area. Wendy paid a $20 tip for us to have seats. I love it – people will always find a way to make extra $$.

(Flickr 31 Dresses Experiment)

What did I come up with?? I came up with what I’m calling The 31 Dresses Experiment.

Here is the mindset going into this experiment.

I have never cared much for fashion and it’s been years since I have updated/upgraded my summer wardrobe – It wouldn’t hurt to put some effort into it.

I hate, hate, hate shopping – wonder if I can change that.

I don’t like having my picture taken and I’m bad at taking pictures – wonder if I can change that too.

When I got out of the Marine Corps in 2005 I weight about 135 – three years later I was tipping the scale at above 155. I’m 142 now and by the end of this experiment; I want to be back to 135. The pictures taken of me in the dresses will be a good way to track my progress.

I want to get back to being open online and to sharing – I need something fun and interesting to talk about. I want a reason to take pictures, blog, tweet, do videos etc. It’s easy to not care about the technology when you have no reason to leverage it.

I want to write. The ability to write is a perishable skill if not practiced.

I want to preoccupy my mind and see what comes of it. I’m looking for a lot of answers and direct thinking on problems doesn’t yield solutions for me.

Besides wanting to preoccupy my mind – I want to capture the way my mind thinks. The Bus of Opportunity concept is about sharing the entrepreneurial mindset and developing the entrepreneurial mindset. I want to show how an experiment like this will likely generate 4-6 business ideas for me.

I have a lot more energy and desire to be out and about since moving to New Orleans and I’d like to have…I don’t know…somewhat of a purpose, mission, twist, or “something” to it.

The Components of The 31 Dresses Experiment

In the next couple of months the goal is to buy, borrow, and/or acquire in some way 31 dresses which will be worn to 31 different locations. I will take pictures and blog about each dress and location.

I’ll talk about things like the buying experience; the cost, reason for buying, the way the dress makes me feel and so on. Next, I’ll get into the location where I wear the dress to…the people I meet, background on the location and interaction. Each dress will have a story with pictures. If I can get Qik to work on my BB – I’ll add videos too.

I don’t know if I’ll make it to 31 dresses…hopefully this is something that I will see from start to finish. I”ll probably  add a dress fund donation application on the sidebar at some point. As you can imagine, if I end up buying 31 dresses it will get a little expensive. If you start following this experiment and find it interesting than perhaps you’ll be inclined to help me get the next dress.

I’ll be wearing my first dress out tonight when I go to the House of Blues for the first time with my neighbor Wendy. It’s a dress that’s been in my closet for a couple of years.

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