Exclusive interview with the man putting San An right back on the map
Interview : Dan Prince
A brilliant start to the summer for you Tony, splashed across tabloids, celebrities flying in, great DJs spinning, a packed pool. 2013 has started rather well for you….?
“Yes an amazing start to the summer! From the moment we opened on May 3rd we have been sold out almost 3-4 days a week constantly which we are all very happy with. We have had all winter to plan for this summer and in all areas of the business everything is so much sharper, as for the DJs we have had chance to programme our line up for this season well in advance so we were able to secure some great talent up and coming and legends from the past. As for the celebrity side of things we had them in abundance last year and this year even more seem to be wanting to come as well which is all good.”
You have just celebrated 30 Years of Tru’s Do’s at Ocean Beach, who came down to party?
“We’re all still recovering from that one…that was a special, special day and the pinnacle of my career without doubt. I had about 2500 people all partying like it was the end of the world, everyone really went for it that day in a big way. So many friends old and new all made the effort to come over for it, to get Brandon and Alex together behind the decks together in Ibiza for the first time in over 6 years – well you can imagine all the old debauchery, fun and games were in full flow. I think half the English Premier League were also in attendance that night as well which kept a few girls happy.”
Before we get into the musical happenings throughout the summer, let’s rewind a little. You have been putting on parties around the world for three decades but if truth be told, always had an eye on Ibiza. The venue used to be two restaurants owned by a Spanish family. How long did they keep you waiting and how hard did they haggle?
“Yes I have been very fortunate to put on parties at some amazing locations around the globe but Ibiza is truly where my heart is. I have always liked the site where Ocean Beach is now and for as long as I can remember I have wanted to do something with it, but the family were not selling. Then about 5 years ago I started to keep on at them on a more regular basis, my Spanish partner was a very good friend of the family who owned the land and they have a lifelong history dating back many decades. He told me to just to step back for a while and leave it to him to close the deal and be patient…be patient Dan is one thing I am not…but true to his word he called me up one day and said they are ready to do a deal! Music to my ears!! I was in their office within an hour and we struck a good deal for all concerned, I have always had the philosophy that a deal is good if all concerned are happy and this was the outcome of this particular one.”
Many people thought it a very brave move opening up a beach style club in San Antonio. The town has had it’s fair share of critics over the years but to their credit, the local counsel has really cleaned up San An. The town is buzzing now right?
“Yes there is always going to be critics and jealousy when you try and do something of this magnitude, and I think more than anything there were people who 0were disappointed that they did not have the balls or the vision to take the opportunity of this amazing location on. From very early on we wanted to work with the Town Hall on this project and I presented my full proposal what we wanted to do before we even signed a deal to make sure we had their support. They were very, very helpful indeed and they knew that this was what San An was seriously lacking and was a great way of keeping San An tourism alive. The Town Hall have been making serious investment into lots of areas of San An and it’s visibly noticeable what a great job they are doing. “
Had you an eye on any other location on the island, or was this 100% the right place?
“I have always got my eye open to things like this and I had 3 venues I wanted to exploit like this. So 1 down and 2 to go…watch this space.”
How does it work with the Linkers, who does what in the day to day running?
“Ocean Beach and Linekers are two very separate entities and we are blessed to have amazing teams and management in place in both. Myself and my business partner Duane still oversees all key decisions in both.”
You are no stranger to television and the media, you were a regular on Celebrity Get Me Out of Here last year when Charlie was taking on all comers and you are often splashed over The Sun and Daily Mirror surrounded by some of your showbiz friends. How important is it for Ocean Beach to have this celebrity clientele coming down?
“Haha! Funny when you put it like that. Yes Charlie done amazing in the jungle and it was a fantastic experience for all the family to be in Australia supporting her and sharing in her triumph. I treat all friends the same whether it’s a celebrity or a washing machine repair man – they are only human and the one thing in common is that they all like to party and have a laugh. At Ocean Beach yes of course it’s nice to have a few famous faces there, more so for the general public who don’t get chances to meet famous people regularly. So when they see them at Ocean they get their cheeky holiday snaps with them and makes them feel special which is the nicest thing about it.”
We all saw Denise Van Outen throwing some shapes last week, everyone is loving the vibe down there. Have there been any casualties you had to make sure there were no cameras watching?
“Yes Denise is a great girl and a regular visitor to Ocean, she always has a proper good time and lets her hair down and she loves the environment down here. As well as being drop dead gorgeous and fun she is a great mother and an honest hard working girl. We don’t allow paparazzi into the venue but they always seem to find that long lens shot from somewhere?”
For the readers out there who haven’t been down to the venue yet, talk us through this sprawling sunshine playground…
“Think of the 80s band Wham!…then think of the song and video ‘Club Tropicana’ as this was my inspiration for the place…a 600m2 pool with VIP beds in the pool…3 stunning restaurants, a late night club lounge – all in all a 3000m2 tropical oasis.”
As well as the new faces behind the ones and twos, there are still a lot of the old faithful such as Alex P and Brandon Block flying in. I take it they’ve calmed down a bit these days?
“Haha!! As mentioned above, two great pals of mine who are legends of Ibiza and without them both, Ibiza would be a different place today for sure. People tend to forget without them there would be no Space Terrace! Would Mambos be as popular today as it is now without them? I think not. These two really put Ibiza on the map in the early 90s and their escapades were reported all around the world. I am lucky enough to have been on a great journey with them for many a year. “
Let’s talk about some of the parties you’ve brought us. Saturdays with Soul Heaven are a must for anyone in Ibiza, amazing DJs including monthly resident Joey Negro, who have been some of the stars of this weekly so far?
“I love Soul Heaven. It’s always been my favourite type of music…funky soulful house. The music of my generation has produced some great artists and this year Soul Heaven have accompanied some of the greats from yesteryear with some of the super cool up and coming DJs to look out for in the future.“
The Pull The Plus Acoustic sessions are a great addition to the line up, talk us through this special little party…
“We wanted to do something completely different with this party, totally stripping it down. I have always loved things like the Radio One Live Lounge where they get great artist performing acoustic sets, so we wanted to try and emulate something like that with the amazingly talented lovely Laura & Tyrell – both very talented singers and musicians. We wanted to book some bigger cooler artists to accompany them with Pull The Plug dates this summer which we are currently looking into, so expect some cool surprise guests this season too.”
No matter who you have on, be it Hed Kandi, Sin Sundays or Ibiza Sensations…the door price is always around 10euros. How important is it to you to keep the prices low?
“Very very important all of our pricing structure at ocean from the door charge to the price of beds,food & drink is all vital as we wanted to create a middle ground venue where people from all walks of life could be able to experience a day at ocean without having to break the bank. ibiza has become so mega expensive in recent times and people now only tend to come for a few days more than a few weeks because its so expensive which is a great shame and to be honest there is no need for it to be so expensive especially when the cost of certain products on the island are cheap to buy. i think with everywhere becoming so “vip” exclusive really does alienate a lot of people from having the chance to go to certain places.“
Who are some of the DJs spinning for you who you think are on their way to stardom?
“Tom Crane for sure is one to watch out for the future he is very well known in his own right already and plays at some very cool gigs. He really does know his music and has been a fantastic addition to the Ocean Beach family this season since he has become musical director here. “
Are there any plans for Ocean Beach Clubs’ around the world?
“Yes for sure, we have been looking into various projects for the last two years now and have been offered some potential great venues. But at the moment all our focus is on Ibiza and making it very strong and secure here before we start spreading the love elsewhere.”
How messy was Charlie Chester at his 50th Birthday a couple of weeks ago?
“What else would you expect from the great man!!! I think “messy” is his middle name…another great day here with loads of old faces back in the day all coming out in full support for him – and rightly so. As I mentioned with Blocko and Alex earlier, Charlie is a true Ibiza icon, a pioneer for the party scene and Ibiza in particular. I don’t think he can handle it like he used to though. These days his wife Jo and daughter Lauren carry the Chester mantle for him.”
Looking back at your career laying down some of the finest parties we’ve witnessed, which ones are you especially proud of?
“Wow! Always a very tough question to answer that one as certain parties are special at certain points in your life. When I had just had my daughter Kiki 8 years ago, it was New Years Eve and I was doing a two day party in a massive stately home in Oxfordshire when she was only three weeks old! I took her and all mine and Charlie’s family to the party and we all stayed all weekend at the venue – with 1000 other people staying in some of the 350 bedrooms! We got Kiki dressed in a little Tru’s Do’s costume and took her into the party at midnight for the countdown with everyone and it was very wild and emotional as I felt so proud to become a father and that I could share my family with all my party friends. Also not forgetting the legendary “Legoverland” party at Legoland which was probably the best party I have ever done up until my last big one at Ocean . It was a major, major gamble putting on a party in the middle of a kids theme park in the open air in the middle of the British summer, but it turned out to be the hottest night of the year that summer and 2000 people came out to celebrate with us and what a do it was…it was like something from a fantasy film set as I had the rollercoaster and log flume rides both open so guests could party literally everywhere. People have since said to me it’s one of the only parties they have ever been to in there life that has felt like they were on the original Space Terrace in Ibiza – the vibe was electric and so much fun.”
A question many people wonder when they open up a tabloid and see some famous footballer or celeb partying at Ocean Beach surrounding by normal folk, is there any ever hostility at the venue, sunshine + booze + jealousy sometimes equals problems…
“Never ever and our staff would not let that happen. The celebs we get down here are not pretentious so they are really cool about having fun and photos with people.”
And finally, tell us about some of the big surprises you have in store for us later this summer?
“Well we are currently in the final stages of the planning and designing of the Ocean Beach Hotel for summer 2014…we plan to totally refurbish the current The Bahia Hotel adjacent to Ocean and the design is looking very cool and radical and hopefully will shake up the hotel scene in San An as it’s seriously needed. The hotel is going to be luxury but very affordable with loads of cool things happening there and will be another great addition to the San An town.”
| Website | |
|---|---|
| http://facebook.com/ |
