The new club is giving people an alternative, non-alcoholic night out option.
The Virtue Club’s launch night took place in Kerry on Thursday (28 October), offering patrons “0% alcohol, 100% craic”.
Dubbed the first non-alcoholic nightclub in the county, organiser Lisa Curran said the aim of its events, which will take place in different venues, is to offer a space for non-drinkers in Ireland to make friends.
“We discovered that 25% of the adult population in Ireland do not drink and they do not have a place to go, where they’re not surrounded by other drinkers or with peer pressure, and meet like-minded people,” Curran told Newstalk’s Lunchtime Live.
However, she adds that the club is “not anti-drink,” stating that it’s “wide open for people that just decide this week I’m not going to drink” as an alternative choice.
The Virtue Club’s first event took place on Thursday night at the Croí venue in Tralee, with non-alcoholic beers, ciders, wines and cocktails on offer to patrons, along with food.
Around 60 people were in attendance at the event, which also included live music, comedy and magic.
As for what’s next for the club, Curran said that the goal is to work towards getting it its own venue.
However, for the time being, the club’s efforts will be on seeing what its patrons like.
“We really want to… go across to different venues… and say ‘okay, this venue is a nightclub venue – The Virtue Club are there for that night so obviously that’s going to be a non-alcoholic dance DJ night.’
“Or then if it was a venue known for acoustic gigs, quirky entertainment, you know what you’re going to get with that venue – what we come in with then is a trusted brand, a trusted name where people know they can trust our experience.”
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