Dead Poet will close with a final event on July 4, proprietor David Facey says. The bar first opened near LSU in 2019 and rebranded as a luxury nightclub and event venue after changing ownership in 2020.
Facey says business is good but he plans to focus on other opportunities, including a startup that he says has international potential.
Event Tree, the startup Facey launched last fall, provides a tech platform meant to help event organizers and promoters leverage word-of-mouth marketing to sell more tickets. Attendees and supporters on the platform can get paid when their recommendations lead to a ticket sale.
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“We’re affiliate marketing at scale for event organizers,” he says.
Facey says Dead Poet saw attendance grow using the platform, which he says is now available nationwide. Event Tree has positive cash flow, he adds, and is raising a $200,000 seed round to begin scaling up to target organizers of international festivals, likely in the Caribbean.
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“Dead Poet was the case study for the success of Event Tree,” Facey says. “Now that people have seen that success, we have investors who are trying to help us take Event Tree global.”
He says he also is weighing offers to consult for other groups in the hospitality sector in Baton Rouge and in other markets.
This story originally appeared in a May 16 issue of Daily Report. To keep up with Baton Rouge business and politics, subscribe to the free Daily Report e-newsletter here.