The Golden Ticket: Supporting Local Restaurants

How has this idea enhanced your club's operation, etc.?

The Golden Ticket program was a fun way to engage our members while supporting local restaurants in Charlotte during the shutdown Covid-19 caused. We strive to support our community as much as possible, and this provided an opportunity to continue that reach by purchasing gift cards to local restaurants and gifting them to our membership randomly. This excitement increased the business we received for our Sunday brunch curbside offerings and rewarded members that purchased food from the Club.

We knew, heading into the pandemic, that our club would survive as it has with recessions, World Wars, and the Spanish Flu one hundred years ago. What was of utmost importance was how our institution would weather this storm, and what our story would be when it was told. Our goal, with this initiative and others, was to be faithful stewards of our institution and culture, a resource to our community, and a source of pride, joy and comfort to our membership during an uncertain time.

How was this idea implemented, and what have been the club members' reactions?

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, it upturned the Food and Beverage industry in a way that has not been seen in modern history. We in the private club industry, while greatly impacted, were spared the devastation that many of our friends in private restaurants faced.

Seeking to find a way to provide some relief to our friends and peers in the community while providing a service to our membership, we began our “Golden Ticket” initiative on Sundays beginning in March 2020. The idea was that we would purchase $100 gift cards from restaurants in the community and place them in random brunch packages which our members would pick up via curbside delivery. We included our friends’ curbside menus along with the gift cards, and a note asking that the lucky members tag our friends’ businesses on social media when they find their “golden ticket”. Additionally, we included products which we purchased from our friends, to include doughnuts from the Stanley Restaurant down the street, for inclusion in our Curbside brunch package.

Our members were excited about the idea, driving brunch sales for our club at a time when revenue was needed. Our friends in the community welcomed the business and the exposure, at a time when they needed a hand. Our members were rewarded for supporting their club and local businesses, and hopefully, found new restaurants to enjoy. Chefs, business owners and restauranteurs in the Charlotte community know that our club is always here to give them a hand in any way that we can, in part because we believe that a rising tide raises all ships.