By Andrew Starke
Ivy is one of the safest venues in Australia and patrons have a better chance of being struck by lightning than they do of being assaulted while visiting the Merivale flagship.
This is the view of owner Justin Hemmes who, in a wide-ranging interview with TheShout, praised his security staff while calling for a greater focus on self-responsibility.
“It is very hard for Ivy to compete with or even compare itself against a venue that may hold 100 people and who may have 10,000 people pass through its doors in a year,” he said.
“We work incredibly hard to keep ourselves in the lowest tier possible but for our size I would argue that we are one of the safest, if not the safest, venue in the country.
“You have more chance of being struck by lightning than being assaulted at Ivy.”
According to Merivale figures, over 1.5 million people will pass through Ivy in 2011.
The latest NSW Government figures have Ivy as a Level 2 venue with 14 assaults in the past year, much the same as far smaller or seasonal operations like the Colombian (13) and Exchange (12) Hotels in Darlinghurst, the Trademark Hotel (12) in Kings Cross and The Beach Hotel in Byron Bay (14).