Chris Eddie and Chuck Creacy are confident that their latest enterprise will be a successful one. That still doesn’t mean they aren’t crossing a few fingers as the weeks before its initial release tick away.
Smiley Pete Publishing — co-owned by Eddie and Creacy and the parent company of this magazine — is nearing the launch of tadoo.com, a digital initiative that will provide the Lexington area something of a one-stop shopping experience when it comes to central Kentucky’s arts-and-entertainment scene. The curated website will be constantly maintained and updated as needed, with everything from a schedule for live music in the area to a listing of what’s happening at local galleries.
According to Eddie, the website, which is on pace to be fully launched in November, will fill a gap he says residents have for years told him needs to be addressed.
“All of our projects start out with people coming to us, saying ‘You know what we really need in this town? We need blank,’” Eddie said.
That same process has led to the creation of tadoo.
“People came to us and said they need one good source, one place to look for what’s going on,” Eddie said. “Right now, they’re looking at five or six different websites, and they want something with a little more insight.”
That doesn’t mean there haven’t been questions, obstacles and even some apprehension about the tadoo project. Despite constant assurances from residents that it could be well-received, Eddie said the project has “been on a backburner” for more than two years while Smiley Pete focused on other areas. He also concedes that part of the reason for the hesitancy is because his company tried a similar initiative earlier this decade with less-than stellar results.
Smiley Pete produced W Weekly, a weekly print publication that attempted to consolidate area arts-and-entertainment information into a weekly periodical. But at the time, Lexington’s arts and entertainment scene had lapsed into a funk, and as a result, the publication failed to pay for itself. Production was eventually stopped after two years.
“It was a well-read product for its low circulation,” Eddie said. “But the business never materialized.”
The Smiley Pete partners moved on to other projects, but a funny thing happened along the way: Lexington’s nightlife and downtown interests blossomed, creating increasing demand for the type of service W Weekly would have provided, were it still being published today.
Now that the marketplace has finally caught up to a sufficient level, Eddie — noting that “it’s a different world now” — broke down the initial W Weekly business model to create a product that would not only deliver curated arts-and-entertainment content, but also be self-sufficient. And, it is strictly online, eliminating the increasing costs of print.
The result is a website that will consist of original and regularly updated content, ranging from area picks of top options for each day, to an all-inclusive menu of articles about what’s happening in the Lexington-area cultural scene, ranging from live music to theater and everything in between. A weekly e-mail blast will eventually be integrated into tadoo that will serve as a digital newsletter, outlining events for Thursday through the weekend and driving traffic back to website.
“We’ve heard from a lot of our constituents and supporters that one of the biggest reasons they don’t attend events is they don’t know what’s happening, or hear [about them] after the fact,” said Jim Clark, president of LexArts. “Anything we can do to have a consolidated listing or resource like this is going to be helpful, making sure people know what’s going on — especially for people who’ve moved here recently, who aren’t tied in with a social network or the arts community.
“This town is constantly percolating with music, theater, spoken word and all sorts of things. Getting that word to the people is one of the greatest challenges. Anything that offers consolidated information is a good thing,” Clark added.
Financial commitments have been secured from several nonprofit organizations, along with funding via for-profit sponsorships. There’s a clear “separation of church and state,” but various types of advertising opportunities are being created, including the possible opportunity for sponsored picks. Events are being held at Smiley Pete’s Old Vine Street offices, such as the upcoming monthly happening called “tadoo lounge,” which will spotlight a particular form of art or entertainment also featured on the website.
Internally, the addition of tadoo won’t necessarily mean additional full-time jobs at Smiley Pete.
The website will be overseen by Saraya Brewer, in addition to her duties as managing editor of Southsider and Chevy Chaser magazines. The content will be provided and collected, at least in the short term, by existing Smiley Pete staff as well as freelancers. Eddie said the possibility for new jobs and expansion could come to pass after the first year or so, depending upon tadoo’s financial success.
Again, there’s no guarantee. But Brewer says the name alone — a play on “what’s to do” — shows there’s now a market for tadoo.
“It’s playful, it’s fun and it also has a literal meaning that we think is spot on to what we’re doing,” Brewer said. “We want to put our scene on the map, because there’s a lot that goes unnoticed — not only in Lexington, but outside of Lexington. There’s so much culturally that goes on here that people don’t know about. This will connect different pieces of the cultural scene in Lexington.”
Smiley Pete worked with its longtime former graphic desiger, Chris Rosenthal of Chris Rosenthal Design, to develop the site. “I’m really excited to work on this project,” he said. “Saraya is a great fit and Smiley Pete’s commitment to the arts and music scene’s in Lexington is second to none. This should be a great asset for the whole community.”
tadoo lounge session
6 – 8 p.m. Oct. 18
Smiley Pete Publishing, 434 Old Vine St.
Lexington musician Matt Duncan will perform for the launch of the monthly tadoo lounge sessions, which will be held on the third Thursday of the month.