Getting boozy for cheap usually amounts to staying at home and looking at the bottom of a 40 of Steel Reserve, but a new Phoenix-based online business, TipsyDevil, is out to change that.
The Groupon-like discounted gift certificate website is focusing its efforts mainly on Scottsdale, Phoenix and Tempe nightlife and entertainment. Michael Berk, CEO and co-founder of TipsyDevil, is tight lipped about which bars have signed up to be a part of the service, summing it up to "all the hot ones," but a website launch party at the new Old Town Scottsdale spot The Mint is set for August 25. A soft launch of the website is schedule for August 18, when the website will offer a $250 gift certificate to a yet-to-be-named bar in Old Town for $50.
Talk about tipsy...
From the sounds of it, the service seems to be a little Scottsdale-centric, and god knows Scottsdale types won't want to whip out a fresh full-page coupon they printed off their Lexmark.
"We tend to stray away from the paper vouchers, as people we have polled have stated they would prefer not to go use a paper voucher at bar or nightclub," Berk says in an e-mail.
Based on the success of the website already, Berk says there's talks about expanding to Las Vegas in the next 90 days.
That's cool and all, but if TipsyDevil wants to attract college students and, erm, more "professional" drinkers, maybe they should offer $250 gift certificates for $50 to cheaper bars in the Valley. You know, to get your money's worth. Palo Verde Lounge in Tempe has Steel Reserve is all we're saying...
Generally, discounts range from 40 to 80 percent off. Restrictions are left up to each establishment. Some limit coupon use to certain time frames, others let the cheap drinks flow all day.
"The owners know when they need business and that's what we are here for," Berk says.
