Oceana on Clarence Street has been relaunched as Pryzm.
By Neil Kingston, Siobhan McCall, Grant Miles and Emma Webb
The ‘most crime-ridden club’ in London had a successful reopening last week in Kingston following a £1m refurbishment and rebrand.
Oceana, on Clarence Street, hit the headlines last year after 20-year-old Jamie Sanderson was stabbed to death on the premises.
Now rebranded as Pryzm, general manager Dan Corry said he was delighted with how the launch had gone.
“The Friday launch night was a total sell-out and huge success,” he said.
“Customer feedback was really positive, especially on our luxury booths with table service, plus the new Curve bar and over 21s dance room and the ladies only pamper room were all big hits.”
An 85% reduction in crime at the club has been commended by Mayor Boris Johnson, but neighbouring business and locals admitted safety is still an issue.
“It’s a classier club now at Pryzm, but we still see way too many incidents,” said Ali Malik at Dallas Chicken, popular with departing club-goers.
“I think people are still sceptical about the relaunch, but as the weeks go on, I hope it will get better.”
Owners Luminar are hoping to target a more mature age group with specific areas inside for over-21s, to reduce the negative image the club previously had.
Scan Net systems have been installed to immediately identify false identification, as well as underage or banned customers. The new club launched on November 22 and the management were thrilled with the results.
The bereaved mother of Jamie Sanderson told the Kingston Guardian that the circumstances in which her son’s murder came about were ‘disgusting’ and that the rebrand is little more than a new coat of paint in the aftermath of Jamie’s death.
“They’re just following procedure. They have to do that by law.”
Luminar are planning to rebrand all existing Oceana nightclubs as Pryzm in the near future.
Twitter reaction:
Loving it in @Pryzm_kingston ! Haha feels like the old days with the boys! The refurbishment was worth it! #oceana<pryzm
Omg Oceana kingston is called Pryzm now!! I don’t know how to feel about it #endofanera
Oceana Kingston renamed pryzm?! I feel like my youth has just been stolen…
“Looking forward to hitting @pryzm_kingston with the Bois tonight!!! #BIG why are we not 18?!
Photo courtesy of wwphotos, with thanks.
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