Copyright glasgowworld
It is a venue with significance. The Arches was a nightclub, theatre, creative hub and party place. In 1991, former punk-turned-theatre director Andy Arnold walked into the disused red brick Victorian railway arches underneath Glasgow's Central Station and saw the potential. It became simultaneously one of the most famous electronic music venues in the world and a major player on the European theatre scene for almost 25 years. Until its closure in 2015 after the city’s licensing board imposed a midnight closing time, The Arches carved its own path as a distinctive venue uniting clubbers, DJs, artists, actors and audiences. The space reopened as Platform in 2018 as a street food market before relaunching in 2020 as Scotland's largest bar, events and restaurant space. Many of the DJs associated with The Arches era, including Slam, returned for one-off events over the last five years. Now, new ownership takes the sprawling venue in a different direction. Enter Lane7. Since launching in Newcastle in 2013, the “competitive socialising” brand has opened 20 venues across the UK and Europe, wiht sites in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Berlin and Dublin. Six more sites will open in the months ahead. The company say they will accelerate growth, and Glasgow is part of that. Their concepts include Lane7 ten-pin bowling bars, Level X venues featuring graffiti art decorated gutterball bowling lanes, mini golf and virtual reality games, and ML7 concepts, an arcade bar with pool and duckpin bowling. Lane7 say its core demographic is “18 to 35-year-olds looking for something a bit different on a night out”, as well as post-work groups seeking a less typically corporate venue. Gavin Hughes, managing director of Lane7, told The Caterer about future plans: “It’s all about the character of the location. Some cities are primed for the full-throttle Lane7 experience. Others suit something more focused – like Gutterball, which leans more family-friendly. We look at the space, the audience and what that location wants but doesn’t have yet – then we build accordingly. We don’t just bolt a game onto a bar.” He says Lane7 is “always” on the hunt for new concepts to add to its existing roster, which includes Playground augmented games, developed in partnership with multimedia studio Moment Factory, as well as karaoke, bowling and shuffleboard. Lane7 describes its venues saying: “This isn’t some rinse-and-repeat bowling alley. Lane7 is the activity bar built for nights that go harder, louder, later. Strikes, bites and killer cocktails collide under one roof, making it your go-to games bar for celebrations, work socials and nights out that don’t fade into the norm. Looking for things to do with a kick? Lane7’s stacked with games, lanes and spaces to call your own. Step in and unlock more than you came for.” Gavin announced their acquisition of the space under Central Station saying: “You’d be hard-pushed to find anyone in Glasgow and the surrounding areas who hasn’t attended an event at Platform or at its predecessor as The Arches. It’s a stalwart of the Glasgow cultural scene and we’re honoured to have secured an agreement with the Platform team. “We’ve identified huge potential for Platform, its space, and its location in the pounding heart of central Glasgow. It’s a perfect addition to our portfolio of entertainment and hospitality spaces across Scotland, the UK and further afield.” For the moment, all booked events will go ahead as planned at the 35,000 sq ft venue. “We know Platform has a number of pre-existing bookings, so we want to assure everyone there are no changes being made that will affect those bookings. Those with thoughts on booking a space in the venue in the lead up to what we know will be a busy autumn and festive trading period should also know that Platform remains the best place in Glasgow to throw a party.” The company opened their first Level featuring virtual gaming, mini golf and bowling at a 30,000 sq ft site at the St Enoch’s Centre in 2022. Founder Tim Wilks, offers guests ‘load and play’ radio frequency identification wristband technology that allows unlimited access on entry to all the gaming features within the venue, as well as the ability to tap and pay for food and drinks. “We’ve scoured the world to unearth the most exciting tech-led experiences and updated nostalgic favourites to bring them together under one roof with Level X," he said. "We’re enormously excited to open in Glasgow. We see this as just the start for a brand that will become synonymous with a new approach to family entertainment centres in the UK. “There is enormously exciting things happening within the world of gaming, AI and VR and bringing these together in a venue that’s totally committed to everyone having a brilliant time together – children and adults alike – is what we’re all about." Wilks recently spoke to The Times about building a £65 million-a-year bowling business from a single alley in Newcastle to 25 venues with 1,000 staff: “We wanted to develop venues where people could do something fun in an environment that felt more like a bar. We opened our first in Newcastle in 2013, and were inundated with bookings from the start.” Lane7’s bowling alleys have sophisticated sound and lighting systems and have lane waiters who bring food and drink to you while you play: “We try to ensure every aspect of your evening stands out,” Wilks says, with evenings reserved for adults and family bowling during the day. A clue to the future of The Arches space, which will be officially launched as a Lane7 venue next year, may come from the company’s biggest project to date, opening in Milton Keynes with 14 bowling lanes, equipped with lighting and a smoke machine, golf simulators, bumper cars, karaoke, darts, shuffleboard, pool tables, arcades, beer pong and Playground, an immersive, interactive gaming concept. Food and drink includes sourdough pizzas, loaded hot dogs, cheesy nachos, frozen margaritas, pornstar marinis and Beavertown Neck Oil. Weekends underneath Glasgow Central Station will start to look very different in 2026.
