With COVID-19 restrictions continuing to loom over nightlife businesses, the owners of Sub Club called on the community for assistance to weather the storm. The Glasgow basement venue launched a fundraiser called #SaveOurSub to cover losses incurred due to a filing error – and met their initial target of £90,000 in less than six hours.
As explained in the campaign description, Sub Club continued to pay employees 80% of their wages after discontinuing operations in March to qualify for the U.K.’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. Because they submitted payroll information a day late, however, the government denied them a rebate on the £31,864 paid out. Scottish National Party MP Alison Thewliss criticized HM Revenue and Customs‘ handling of claims, acknowledging that “The Sub Club’s case is a particularly egregious one.”
Where the system failed, the community exceeded expectations. Following a social media push that included endorsements by the likes of Erol Alkan and Eats Everything, the Crowdfunder campaign surpassed its goal in just over five hours. It sits at over £168,000 at the time of writing.
Sub Club Saga
The coronavirus pandemic is only the most recent crisis to befall Sub Club. The venue opened in 1987 and faced challenges in the ’90s when lawmakers imposed licensing curfews. A structure fire forced the club’s owners to host events elsewhere from 1999-2002, and a legal battle over noise complaints drags on to the present day.
In addition to billing headline acts like LCD Soundsystem and Derrick May, Sub Club has hosted long-running weeklies like Subculture and Optimo. The brand has also expanded to include a record label called Nautilus Rising, a festival called Sub Club Soundsystem and the Sub Hub event brand.
More information on the #SaveOurSub campaign is available via Crowdfunder.
