BAM Karaoke Box’s London launch will be its biggest ever venue at 10,000 sq ft, comprising a bar and sit-down restaurant alongside 22 karaoke rooms, CEO Arnaud Studer tells MCA.
The premium experiential concept will open Europe’s biggest karaoke venue in Victoria in spring 2024, and is aiming to open a further two venues by the end of 2025.
BAM launched in Paris in 2014 and now has eight venues, including five in Paris, two in Madrid, and one in Bordeaux.
The Victoria site will offer live music and a full restaurant offer, a first for the group, including light bites and larger meals.
“The idea is that you can spend your whole night there,” Studer says. “It makes sense for customers to stay. longer We’re working on a full menu with a very well known chef.
“When we looked at the market, London is at the forefront of competitive socialising in Europe, and most operators have a strong food offer.”
While Studer points to operators like F1 Arcade and Swingers, he emphasises: “I don’t really see it as competition. The market is growing and people want to try new things.”
BAM is targeting areas like Soho, Liverpool Street, and London Bridge. Studer acknowledges big sites are difficult to come across but says the concept is easily scalable, with most of its venues at c4,000 sq ft with fewer karaoke rooms.
“It may be a difficult time, but for each site you see there’s like 20 operators competing for it.”
The brand is not currently planning to open in other UK cities but will consider it further down the line.
“We’re high quality, not super expensive but not the cheapest, but we offer good value for money,” Studer adds. “As we opened more and more venues, we were successful, then we thought, what to do next?
“It’s difficult in the UK at the moment, but at the same time London is super vibrant and has so many concepts. It’s a rich, dynamic city compared to other European cities.
“There’s always demand for something unique, and we’re coming in with a really unique concept.”
BAM is confident about the economic backdrop over the long term and the longevity of the experiential sector, with trading strong in its current markets.
It also sees opportunity to capture more corporate trade in the UK than its other markets.
“Our main customer in France is aged 25-45 and mostly female, but this may change in the UK because we are going to capture more corporate trade in Victoria.”
The BAM catalogue has over 40,000 songs, and this, alongside the food and live music offering, will enhance the experience for customers, according to Studer.
“We want to show to Londoners what luxury karaoke is.”
