Sheffield venue enjoys roaring success after launching rebrand and a revised business model

Crookes Club on Mulehouse Road is booked up for the rest of the year, with 2022’s beginning to fill up fast.

General manager, Maurice Champeau, said the Club has gone from ‘strength to strength’ after reopening in May this year.

He has also teamed up with several music promoters to attract international acts like Richard Dawson and The Subways with forthcoming acts including Snapped Ankles, Martin Stephenson, Gruff Rhys, and many others booked to perform at the Club.

“Our club provides a venue in Sheffield that is perfect for performers wanting to attract audiences of between 100 and 500.

“In addition to live music the club is also building an enviable reputation for spectator sports and other performances with events booked ranging from wrestling and boxing to theatre performances and pantomimes.

"In early 2022 Crookes will, for the first time in over one hundred years trading, be hosting a panto specifically for adults with two performances of Saucy Jack the panto,” said Maurice.

Maurice described how when Crookes Working Mens’ Club was formed in 1919 it was ‘conceived as a safe and friendly place for the working men of the area to enjoy a social drink and feast on the regular entertainment’ and enjoyed decades of success.

However the working mens’ club saw a steep decline in membership numbers and punters during the 1980s; 1990s and 2000s, and attempts to rename the club as Crookes Social Club in the mid-80s did little to ‘turn the tide’.

Prior to lockdown, the club’s committee led by secretary and General Manager, Maurice, took the decision to attempt a further rebranding and the club became known as simply ‘Crookes Club’.

The intention was to move the main focus of the business from a members only venue to a function and party venue.

Maurice added: “Our ability to host events and functions for up to 500 people has allowed us to carve our own niche in the Sheffield area, not only are we seeing an increase in weddings and party bookings but our new drive towards live music has increased turnover by over 20 per cent compared to the same period in 2019.”