We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Luke Watson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Luke, thanks for joining us today. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea
As with any idea, some are better than others. But the ideas that you can’t stop thinking about, the recurring ones that inspire you–those are the ones to follow, explore, and develop. Some of these ideas start as passion projects and some as business ventures.
Third Coast Comedy Club didn’t start from scratch as a comedy club. Back in 2013 I had been in Nashville for a year (moving from Atlanta in 2012). I was performing improv comedy in Atlanta but had no immediate plans to continue in Music City. Before I knew it I was performing again in Nashville and quickly threw together my own comedy improv group, LOL Nashville. This comedy hobby began to take off and we began co-teaching improv classes with Music City Improv (Nashville’s longest-running improv group at the time). LOL Nashville had begun selling out performances monthly at venues all over town including City Winery and The Basement East, as well as since-closed venues 12th & Porter and The Rutledge. It was after one of these improv classes one night that I mentioned an idea to my co-teacher and Artistic Director of Music City Improv, Scott Field: open up a comedy club. We flushed out the initial vision and dream over beers at Batter’d & Fried (now Boston Commons) in five points. This business concept was a passion project. Like all new businesses, getting Third Coast Comedy Club off the ground took grit, patience, money, and support of those in the comedy community.
We had planned for the hard work, the time to get the location search and buildout completed, and the money required to execute our plans. What we didn’t fully expect was how contagious our passion for this comedy club was. Local comics became equally invested in ensuring a successful opening and getting us through our first few years. I learned through this process how passion and unified goals can bring together a community. When this happens it takes a lot more external factors to fail.
With The Silo market, the approach and idea was completely different. My brother, Drew Watson, approached me with his idea for a market in his Nations neighborhood. It was 2020 in the midst of the pandemic and Third Coast Comedy Club was nearing 9 months of being closed. I knew I needed to have a backup in case the theater never reopened. And despite a pandemic, people need food…and wine. We began flushing out the details over the next few weeks.
The path from idea to execution will never look the same. It will differ from industry to industry, market to market, and even business partner to business partner. However, some steps I’ve noticed as a recurring pattern:
Following Inspiration: Follow the ideas that excite you (whether creatively or professionally).
Turning the Idea into a Vision: Detail the way the idea will come to life.
Imagining Failure: Poke holes in your idea. Let others poke holes in your idea. List out obstacles to success.
Busting your Ass: Be prepared for hard work. Long hours, 7-day weeks, and wearing multiple hats will likely accompany the initial execution.
I think the biggest keys for executing an idea are strongly defining the idea, putting together a team of like-minded individuals who also want to see the full execution come to life, and being willing to adapt the idea/execution along the way.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
These two particular businesses were unique in that I had no experience in either. I had never worked at a theater or comedy club. And I had never worked at a grocery store or convenience store. But customer service is customer service. It doesn’t matter the industry. As long as the customers remained the focus, many questions along the way became easier to answer.
With the comedy club, going from comic to theater manager was an adjustment. The on-stage/back-stage combo presented many opportunities (challenges). For example, I had no idea how to go about getting a liquor license or beer permit. Or how to program a light board. At the end of the day, if it was something I already knew then I would reach out to someone smarter than I or research on Google. The execution process will mainly consist of problem-solving.
With the market, we had created a target customer and built out the store with them in mind: everything from the layout and design to the product offerings and focus (natural/organic-leaning). With the customer being at the forefront we’ve been able to constantly add/modify products based on our customer’s needs/wants–especially with our wine selection of over 100 different bottles of wine.
Both Silo Market and Third Coast Comedy Club set us apart from others in that we are filling a niche. Silo was born in an area of the Nations that didn’t have a local grocery option. Third Coast is the only brick-and-mortar theater in Tennessee focusing on local comic talent (mainly improv comedy). I’m proud to say that Third Coast made it through the Covid closure and is now in its 6th year. As a matter of fact, we just hosted our 6th-Annual Third Coast Improv Fest after a two year break from the pandemic. And Silo Market just turned one year old this month and can’t wait for the years to come.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
The biggest pivot moment in business (and life) was hands-down the 2020 COVID Pandemic. Just writing those words makes me tense. March of 2020 the city of Nashville forced Third Coast Comedy Club to close down. As a live performance venue/bar and in-person training center our revenue immediately went to zero (with many expenses remaining in place: insurance, utilities, payroll, etc.)
It was either pivot or close. We made it through this time via the help of grants, loans, fundraising, and a digital pivot. We began offering classes online and revamped our curriculum in order to be able to continue training comics on their craft, while still generating some revenue for both our instructors and the theater. We also tried out several online performances.
When we did reopen we found ourselves continually still pivoting (reduced audience sizes, masked patrons and performers, etc.). But we made it though. I believe the ability to constantly and successfully pivot is a direct attribute of all of improv. Our leadership team and many of our staff are improvisers. So needing to constantly make adjustments was nothing new. Just this time it was happening off the stage.
Can you open up about a time when you had a really close call with the business?
During the summer of 2020 I had come into the theater during Phase Three when the city briefly allowed us to resume in-person, masked classes. I was sitting in my office while the instructor (who was prepping for their class) stepped out of the theater. It was during this time that a homeless gentleman made his way into the theater and proceeded directly to my office (a small 8×8 space with one door in and out).
He busted through the office door, wide-eyed and sweating. I looked up startled and he immediately closed the door behind him and locked the deadbolt. I ran through many options of how to respond as he stood there breathing heavily, staring at me, panicked. I tried to remain call and asked him if I could help him. Something was definitely “off” with him, but I didn’t particularly feel in danger in that moment. He seemed genuinely scared. He explained that “people were after him” and I assured him he was safe and was able to get him to take a seat.
However, any time I attempted to stand up or make a movement he freaked out. If I stood up, he stood up. If I moved quickly he would get aggressive. Nothing he was saying was making sense.
Throughout our exchange I was texting the instructor from underneath the desk to call the police. I informed him to not let students enter the theater.
Long story short, I was trapped in my office for over 20 minutes until the cops arrived and were able to get me out. They ended up taking him to get evaluated. And everything worked out. But that was definitely one of the most intense moments I experience at Third Coast. Needless to say, 2020 was a shit year.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.thirdcoastcomedy.club, https://www.thesilomarket.com, https://www.lucasbwatson.com
- Instagram: @thirdcoastcomedyclub, @the.silo.market, @lucasbwatson
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thirdcoastcomedyclub
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucasbwatson/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/3rdcoastcomedy
Image Credits
My Headshot: John Yates The Stage Photo: Levi Kaylor