Life & Work with Phil Newland of Capital Hill

Today we’d like to introduce you to Phil Newland.

Hi Phil, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Buddies was a dream concept for myself and some of my friends in the LGBTQ bar industry in Denver. We had all worked together at The Denver Wrangler, as well as other local LGBT bars after the Wrangler closed. I myself went back to teaching full time in 2018, and still teach full time.

We all have wanted to do something of our own, in some capacity. Opening your own business is challenging enough, but specifically a bar or pub can be even more intimidating. The amount of capital needed to fund the project, finding the right location with favorable lease terms, and providing the community with a concept that is both wanted and needed all present a decent level of risk. None of us had “disposable” income that wouldn’t be missed if the venture failed. Separate we were frail, but together we yielded more financial power, a wealth of experience, and a combined desire to succeed at all costs!

This journey started in my dining room as we talked about investors, budget, location, and concept. Five years of looking for properties, reading through leases, putting in offers, rejecting counters… it was looking like this dream was going to remain only a dream. At just about the five and a half years in, a property popped back up on our radar. We looked at it, and despite some concerns, we made an offer. It was now or never!

A little bit of back and forth, and we came to an agreement with the seller and the landlord! We finally had a location, and besides some very deep cleaning and paint, it was pretty much turn-key, We set an opening date of only three weeks from closing. The paint was literally still drying as we had our soft opening just before Labor Day Weekend in 2023.

Denver’s LGBT+ community welcomed us with open arms, and we soon hit our stride providing a gay “Cheers”, so to speak. We are simply a LGBT bar/pub where you can come as you are and meet old friends for happy hour, meet new friends playing pool or darts, grab a bite to eat, and have a conversation. We have a weekly pool tournament, the dart league meets weekly for their play, we have Big Gay Trivia, and Big Boy Music Bingo, as well as our weekly Sunday Charity Beer Bust.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We’ve been extremely fortunate in our endeavors. It’s also helpful with the ownership team has so much experience in this industry, and makes up the majority of the full time staff!

Licensing was relatively simply; we have the best liquor attorney in town so that made it REALLY simple.

Our Landlord is great, and our neighbors above us in the apartments are very welcoming!

Our only challenges have been with some special event permitting in the past. But it turns out that was more of an issue of who we hired and put our trust in than actual hurdles from the city.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m only 1 of 7 stakeholders within Buddies, so I don’t feel it’s fair to focus on me. I can share what I know about our ownership team!

Phil – 25 years in hospitality, 20 years as a teacher (music education).

Tyler – Degree and career in marketing and sales.

Andrew – Air Force Veteran, 15+ years in customer service and hospitality

Draven – Theatre, music, and marketing experience, 20+ years in hospitality and customer service

Jack – Electrician by trade, farmer, rancher, and 35+ years in the Denver LBGT hospitality community

John – CEO/CFO for multiple large companies in hospitality and service, extensive commercial kitchen experience

Keifer – Marketing and Real Estate expert, specialized experience in art galleries and performance/event spaces

We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
Again, speaking for the group – I don’t want to focus on me as an individual.

Pricing:

• Happy Hour – specials starting at $5
• Weekday specials!
• Booze Bust Saturday and Sunday – $15 cash
• Charity Beer Bust – $15 cash

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.buddiesdenver.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buddies_denver/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3D
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100095615858974