A thriving nightclub chain where the family matters

from his father, Harry, and uncle, Rio

Stakis. Valerie Darroch hears why a

close relationship with all of his staff,

no matter how seemingly lowly, is vital

AMING your first bar after a Scottish emigrant who became the world's richest man is a confident start. But Daso Nicholas, serial entrepreneur and founder of Carnegies Leisure, Scotland's largest private independent nightclub operator, always aimed high.

''I liked what Andrew Carnegie stood for so I thought it was a good name,'' said Nicholas, in tribute to the man who made his fortune from America's steel mills.

After nearly 20 years successfully running bars, restaurants and clubs, the dapper and charismatic figure now heads a business which is set to achieve turnover of (pounds) 12m this year and also employs 400 people.

Nicholas learned about business from an early age as his father Harry was a Greek Cypriot immigrant who prospered in the leisure trade while his uncle, the late Sir Reo Stakis became one of Britain's biggest hoteliers. ''Reo was my hero and I was his closest nephew,'' Nicholas said.

Initially, Nicholas set up a butcher business, supplying meat to the hotel trade. ''I started work at 5am in the meat market and I went round all the hotels personally. I knew every chef by name,'' he recalled.

He said the business grew so rapidly it became too big for him to manage which is why he agreed to sell it to food giant Hillsdown Holdings which was keen to absorb both him and his operation into its Plc structure.

For a man who thrives on making his own decisions, Nicholas found the experience of being part of a huge corporation educational but stifling. ''I learned a lot but when you sell out it just doesn't work when you are working for someone else,'' he said.

He attributes risk-taking and the ability to make quick decisions as vital to his success.

Nicholas had already embarked on his second business while still running the butcher operation, buying his first bar in Waterloo Street in Glasgow and soon adding several more bars and bar-diners.

From the start he had the crucial

ingredients of supportive bankers and an excellent relationship with Scottish & Newcastle which has lasted 20 years

during which S&N has acquired several of his operations. ''In business, everyone needs allies to succeed,'' he said.

Nicholas' former bars in Glasgow included Smiths, Chimichanga, and John St Jam and he also ran some with Walter Smith, the former Rangers manager, a business which the duo sold to Kevin Doyle's Caledonian Heritable group.

The entrepreneur's career has been punctuated by changes of tack and reshaping of his assets, essential to stay on top in a business like clubs and pubs where customers can be fickle, trends change rapidly and innovation is the key.

He sold 15 of his bars between 1993 and 1994 to Scottish Inns and decided to focus on nightclubs as a growing and more lucrative market niche.

Ten years ago Carnegies had a turnover of (pounds) 10m but this fell to (pounds) 5m after the bar sales. ''After we sold, we doubled our turnover in the next seven years,'' he said, adding that his business has been profitable right from the start.

He enforces strict financial controls, requiring all units to file accounts on the fourth day of every month and employs his own graphics team, joiners and painters to control overheads

Staying informed is also a vital part of the plan. Nicholas visits his clubs every Friday night to chat to the girls in charge of the toilets as well as managers. ''Its

important to know your people.

Although we have 400 people, were like a family,'' he said.

A high emphasis is placed on training to keep standards high and the business recently achieved an Investors in People Award. Nicholas now owns 12 bars, clubs and restaurants including the Babylon nightclub chain, Bonkers and Privilege clubs in Glasgow and dArcys restaurant in the city's Princes Square.

He is close to completing a further two Babylon clubs, including one in Edinburgh which boasts glass bridges and a two-storey Sphinx with flashing eyes.

It always costs more than the original estimate to kit out a club, admits Nicholas. He prefers to buy buildings freehold and spent (pounds) 5m alone on the Privilege nightclub which opened in January.

A hot Irish design team created an

opulent interior for the massive club including Gaudi-style columns, Salvador Dali skies and a towering version of Gustav Klimt's The Kiss. Rangers star Lorenzo Amoruso, Spice Girl Mel C and DJ and

performer Sonique have all boogied on the dance floor recently.

Nicholas says the current downturn has hit clubs in more rural areas such as Ayrshire but in the cities takings remain good.

In an industry where big players are keen to grow, he continues to receive offers for his clubs but so far he has not been tempted. An engaging character whose warm and extrovert manner suggests more of his Cypriot inheritance than his homeland, Nicholas was no doubt amused to discover the first bit of advice from his hero Andrew Carnegie on how to succeed in life was: ''First, never enter a bar room.''

SANDY Knox, tax partner at accountants BDO Stoy Hayward has worked with Daso Nicholas for years and watched his business grow. Knox rates his ability to innovate and stay in touch right down the chain of command as crucial to his success.

He is very much the conceptual mind and he has a management team in place which allows him to step back and to think about the future.

Knox said Carnegies has grown in phases and at certain points Nicholas re-orchestrated the business and headed off in a new direction.

At the start of the 90s it would have been easy to think that Glasgow and other big cities were saturated with bars and clubs. But Daso had the foresight to invest and the

developments in the last nine years have

probably dwarfed what has gone before.

He said Carnegies' strength as a

medium-sized player is that it can retain more individuality in its outlets than larger chains, helping to keep customers loyal.

Knox said the challenges of a growing

business like Carnegies are to recognise the right time to invest for long-term returns;

effectively juggle working capital requirements and borrowings; put strong management

structures in place; and to plan properly for

succession should the founding entrepreneur wish to step down.