Instead of Fearing Each Other As Competitors, These Philly Bars Combined Forces
When Doom opened up a few blocks away, Andrea Ulsh could have been upset. Her bar, Poison Heart on Spring Garden, is known for its moody atmosphere, killer music playlist with deep punk cuts, creative drinks, and a staff that always looks cool, even under its dark lighting.
“Dre and I have been brainstorming ways to work together since Doom opened. We both feel that our bars are really complementary to each other, and a night out at both makes a lot of sense.”
Together, Poison Heart and Doom launched a rewards program with a two-sided punch card themed for the two brooding spaces. After a night under the stained glass skull art at Doom, or perhaps under the hot pink neon cherry at Poison Heart, customers’ cards are punched once for each beverage consumed. After ten punches, your 11th drink is free, saving you about $14. For two bars with similar clientele, it makes a lot of sense to encourage customers to bar hop along the Spring Garden corridor.
Ulsh has a reputation of putting together collaborations, including inviting a rotating roster of restaurateurs to take over the Poison Heart menu. To her, this partnership is another strategy to experiment and build community, and hopefully the colorful card encourages the customer to engage. “We wanted something tangible, fun, and incentivizing to create some excitement,” she says. With one pink side, one purple side, and lots of skull and heart icons, the punch cards are no larger than a standard-issue business card and can fit in most wallets during a night out.
With Poison Heart across the street from Union Transfer, and Doom next door to Franklin Music Hall, both bars are popular late on weekends with musicians and people exiting shows, but Doom’s Justin Holden thinks the punch cards can encourage those visitors to come back in on other nights. “Our little slice of the city is unique in that not a lot of people have explored it, but it’s right in the middle of everything.” Though Doom just started serving in December, he’s hopeful that the brand-new collaboration opens new opportunities, adding, “Dre and I have been brainstorming ways to work together since Doom opened. We both feel that our bars are really complementary to each other, and a night out at both makes a lot of sense.”
While no one has redeemed a free drink just yet, Ulsh has had to refill her stock of punch cards since the reception online and in the bars has been so positive.
In a city where new bars and restaurants are opening constantly, this rewards program is an interesting model for building community while using your strengths to increase loyalty across the board. “Community is what holds this industry together; what’s good for Doom is good for us,” Ulsh says.
