This hangover cure could boost your late-night business

Bob Krummert

The phrase “party all night” will take on new resonance if the people behind Hangover Heaven have their way. The company treats the alcohol-induced hangovers of late-night revelers and gets them back in the game in an hour or less, courtesy of an IV drip administered by a board-certified anesthesiologist. The upshot: Late-night bar business could become a lot more lucrative for restaurant owners in certain markets.

Hangover Heaven, which initially is only doing business in Las Vegas, began accepting customers on April 14^th. The town is the perfect test market for this service, in that many bar and restaurant customers go there with the intention of partying their brains out for the entire length of their visit. The only thing that stops many of them from doing so is the way they feel after their first night on the town. Over-indulgers are forced to take it easy until it’s time to go home.

Enter Hangover Heaven. Here’s the company’s pitch:

“Hangover Heaven is the after-party for the after-party. We exist to resolve your post-partying ills, no matter what you were doing last night. While we specialize in treating alcohol-induced hangovers, we have a number of different solutions for just about anything you were using last night. We are 100 percent confidential and you can either visit us on our mobile bus (available weekends 8 a.m. -3 p.m.) or we can come to you during the week (by appointment only).”

What’s it cost and what does the customer get?

The $150 “Salvation” package “includes intravenous hydration, anti-nausea and anti-inflammatory medications.  These medications have been proven to directly cure the effects of a hangover. This package also includes vitamin supplementation.  These vitamins help to clear your body of the toxins resulting from a heavy night of drinking and can improve your generalized state of health.  They also make you feel better quickly since they are very rapidly absorbed and can remain in your system for days after the therapy.”

The “Redemption” package goes for $90 and seems to promise less of a bang for the buck. “This service is very effective at reducing the symptoms of a hangover and can be performed on just about anybody. It includes intravenous hydration that can help flush the toxins from your system. Many people say they feel more energized and ‘crisp’ after this treatment. It is also useful to improve skin appearance in this dry desert climate.”

The company’s founder, Duke-trained anesthesiologist Dr. Jason Burke, pitches Hangover Heaven’s service this way:

“With my treatment protocol, I can take you from a semi-conscious, porcelain-hugging, hit-by-a-truck hangover to feeling like you’re ready to take on the world in less than 45 minutes. I think this is a major development in medicine and solves a significant problem for people who like to party and have a good time…. especially here in Las Vegas.”

Give the good doctor credit. He knows his target market. People with bad hangovers can barely get out of bed, let alone go out in search of a medical clinic. That’s why Burke made his service mobile. He’s also aware that not everyone enjoys the intravenous therapy experience, so Hangover Heaven administers its treatment using pediatric IVs and numbing medicine to make the procedure as painless as possible.

As for the price point, will people pay $150 to get rid of a bad hangover? Our guess is that anyone in possession of both $150 and a bad hangover will buy this service in an instant, no questions asked, no selling required.

If a hangover remediation service becomes available in other markets, we can see it having a measurable effect on late-night beverage sales for restaurant bars. Many customers will order another round of drinks or another bottle of wine if they know they don’t have to worry about dealing with a nasty hangover the next day. If Hangover Heaven expands to other markets, or if something like it is proposed for your city, you may want to give them as much encouragement as you can.