It's back, baby, it's back. The one and only Playboy (NYSE: PLA) Club has made its triumphant return, and it hasn't come a moment too soon.
According to a press release issued by the Bunny, the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas will open the club for business tonight. In addition, Playboy plans on holding an investor meeting today as well. It's all a part of a public relations firestorm aimed at getting people excited about the new venture (I was excited about it two years ago).
It's a great time to be doing this, because Las Vegas truly is an iconic destination these days. All kinds of television programming, from dramas to reality shows, have used Sin City as a backdrop. I kid you not, whenever I talk to young people about where they want to jet off to, the answer is inevitably Vegas -- not L.A. or Honolulu, but Vegas. Playboy is hoping to attract patrons by synergizing with the excitement generated by this well-marketed hotspot.
It's also a great time to be doing this because Playboy is looking to get its groove back. It's pretty much public knowledge by now that the flagship publishing business hasn't been doing well for a long time. By opening a new Playboy Club, CEO Christie Hefner is essentially hoping that it can help the company's brand equity. I can't see why it won't. With initiatives like the Playboy Club and the reality show The Girls Next Door on the E! cable channel, the Bunny can reintroduce itself to a whole new generation.
I suppose the risk here is that this new club will suffer the fate of the old Playboy clubs -- as you may recall, they eventually shut their doors. But it's an easy risk to take, as this is a licensing deal; in fact, it's been reported that Playboy thinks the place can yield $4 million per year via profit sharing and fixed payments. Going through the release, one can see why Playboy was smart in undertaking the project. In addition to the spectacle of the club, a boutique will hawk various categories of merchandise, and a special Hugh Hefner Sky Villa section will offer grand views of the Las Vegas Strip, as well as Playboy artwork and, among other atmospheric goodies, a replica of the rotating bed that Hef's been using for years at his mansion. Sounds like value-added elements for the company to me, as it will showcase the allure of the logo.
I just hope that Playboy is promoting magazine subscriptions at the door. I've always said that the periodical is the heart of the whole enterprise, like those who argue that comics are the key to Marvel Entertainment's (NYSE: MVL) success. The company is finding that competition from New Frontier Media (Nasdaq: NOOF), Girls Gone Wild videos, Maxim magazine, and the Internet in general is ruining its relevancy. Perhaps the new nightclub will bring back the cool factor for Playboy.
Future quarterly missives will give us a handle on how this venture fares. For now, I can say that I believe this to be a smart strategy. I mean, how can you go wrong with sexy girls donning the old Bunny costumes? That's what Playboy is all about -- well, that and the intelligent articles within its pages, right? Hey, it's actually true -- the articles are as good as the sexy centerfolds. And hopefully, the company's growth prospects will likewise be as sexy in the years to come.
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Fool contributor Steven Mallas owns shares of Marvel. The Fool has a disclosure policy.
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