THE year-end is normally a time when bar and club owners rub their hands in glee as consumers spend big on festive fun.
Trouble is, the end of the year is also when Singapore's rains traditionally come down - and this year an early start to the season of sogginess has put a dampener on the mood of clubbers.
'Last year, we could tell the weather pattern, but this year, the weather is not so kind - it is erratic,' laments Mr Gary Tan, marketing manager of Loof, an alfresco-style bar on the rooftop of Odeon Towers opposite Raffles Hotel.
Blame it on global warming. But fending off the weather so clubbers can stay dry with a drink can prove a costly affair.
Loof forked out $12,000 earlier this week to have an 8.5m by 16.5m tent installed to shelter patrons for the next two months which is how long the rainy season usually lasts here.
To further draw in weather-wary patrons, it is also running a one-for-one drinks promotion if it rains before 9pm.
It has learnt from bitter experience that sales, which can go up to $50,000 a day, can drop by half when it rains, says Mr Tan.
And a visit to one of the island's biggest clubs, the Ministry of Sound (MoS) at Clarke Quay, at 11pm last Friday turned into a bit of a washout, too.
Instead of the normal loud, jostling queue, there were only a few hardy souls clustered outside as light rain fell on the echoing tarmac.
On most Friday nights by that time, there would normally have been a queue snaking for at least 20m.
Entertainment industry veteran Bernard Lim, executive vice-president of LifeBrandz, which runs MoS, along with clubs like Lunar, Kandi Bar and Cafe Del Mar, has this explanation: 'The weather plays a part and makes a difference. If it rains around dinner time, it affects people's plans to come out, so when it rains, the turnout will be poorer than normal.'
The number of visitors to MoS can drop by between 20 and 30 per cent when it rains, he reveals.
But things are worse over on Siloso Beach, where Cafe Del Mar is located.
Sales of drinks at the beach club can tumble by as much as 40 per cent if it rains around 3pm on a Sunday, Cafe Del Mar's peak hour. On a good Sunday, the bar rings up about $60,000 in sales, estimates Mr Lim.
Cafe Del Mar is more weather-prone because it is located on the beach, with its daybeds and cabanas proving popular with sunbathers, whereas MoS sits within an old warehouse.
In fact, outdoor nightclub outlets right across Singapore definitely aren't singing in the rain. At Hacienda in Tanglin Village, for example, where at least half of its seating is out in the garden, sales of drinks can halve when dark clouds gather.
Hacienda owner Michel Lu says resignedly: 'When you have this kind of venue, you have to factor in rain as something you have to look out for, and you just have to roll with it.'
However, there can be a silver lining in those clouds.
Zouk's marketing manager Tracy Phillips notes: 'It depends on what time it rains. If the crowd is already out, then they can't go home.
'It's the worst if it pours between 11pm and 1am, especially on Saturdays. Thankfully, it hasn't rained at crucial times lately.'
Operators tell Life! that the worst time for rain to fall is around 10pm, when clubbers are about to leave their homes. Most will then choose to stay home.
'It's very boring when it rains after you've put on your make-up and have dressed nicely. Even if you take a taxi, you'll still get wet and who will take along an umbrella to go clubbing?', says sales administrator Yvonne Ang, 23, of her pet peeve when it comes to a night out.
However, if the rain comes earlier, then the early birds who are already out will be unable to leave and have no choice but to remain in the bar.
Likewise, if it rains around 1am, when most of the crowds are inside, then they can't pub-hop or go home, and that puts a smile on the club owner's face.
'If it rains around 8pm, our peak hour, then it's good because the crowd is trapped. But if it is before that, then it's bad because no one will come,' shares Ms Lim Sin Yee, marketing manager for DXO at the Esplanade.
She says the club's takings can drop by up to 10 per cent when it rains.
However, clubs are doing their bit to ensure that the wet season doesn't rain on their parade.
Over at Zouk, its security staff will be armed with umbrellas to shelter patrons when it rains. The club will also allow taxis to drive into a sheltered driveway at its entrance to drop off passengers.
That's something they normally can't do, as the driveway is usually crowded with the spillover from queues of patrons, and it is closed to vehicles.
And over at St James Power Station, clubbers will be channelled through alternative entrances to Dragonfly and Power House, both of which are at the rear of the building where the usual entrance lacks a covered walkway.
They will be able to walk into the building through the entrance to another one of its nine clubs, The Boiler Room, which is accessible via a sheltered walkway that stretches to the VivoCity megamall.
But while these clubs have wet-weather programmes in mind, some choose not to combat nature.
Apart from its indoor section, Hacienda, which is nestled among lush greenery, doesn't provide any other relief when it rains.
'If you come to this kind of venue, you are well aware of the surroundings. People come here for the charm of the place, but the vibe is killed if you put up something to block the rain. It's just ugly,' reasons Mr Lu.
And he adds: 'Sometimes when it rains, it can become nicer, more intimate and more cosy as everyone congregates indoors, whereas on normal days everyone's spread all over.'
Cosy or simply wet, the weather clearly plays a part in making the often impromptu activity of clubbing even more fickle.
As Mr Lim points out: 'At the end of the day, clubbing and hanging out is a luxury time - it is about disposable time, not a necessity, so it is easily affected by things like the weather, work or whether there's a good game on TV.'
