One Valley man has done something many have only dreamed of — turned the timeless allure of Scottsdale nightlife into a career. For Gem Ray, it’s an everyday reality. He owns Scottsdale Nights, a premier concierge service catering to high-net-worth individuals, professional athletes, celebrities, and just those looking for the ultimate local experience.
Although Ray has been promoting in the Scottsdale area for the last 15 years, he’s been in business much longer.
I’m kind of a lifer in this,” he said. “This is my 34th year in business when it comes to marketing and media.”
Scottsdale is also his fourth market. He started off in college while attending Ohio State and from there, worked in Los Angeles and London.
“My field and the industry that I’m in has evolved a lot over the last couple decades,” Ray said. “But … my passion was always putting things together (for clients).”
That has a lot to do with the proliferation of social media over the last 20 years.
“Social media definitely catapulted it,” Ray said.
He credits some of his childhood friends to that early introduction.
“One of the first things they introduced me to was MySpace and I was blown away,” Ray said with a laugh.
“I know that when I started utilizing social media 15 years ago, it was very new in my field, but it got caught on, and now it’s a staple,” he added.
But why Scottsdale? For Ray, who was born in Belgium and grew up in Ohio, the desert was a far cry from what he knew.
Ray explained that while he was a chef out in LA for several years in the mid-2000s, Scottsdale was one of the few markets where he could transfer his credits from Ohio State and Le Cordon Bleu in order to get another degree.
“Ironically, me being a Buckeye — Ohio State played out here every three years, so I thought it was a sign,” Ray said.
Scottsdale Nights came to be soon after. The types of events and venues Ray can book for his clients runs the gamut — from corporate outings to live music, he can do it all. Ray’s partnerships with a bevy of local bars, restaurants and hotels provides an endless source of venues for his clients.
“(Our clients) don’t realize how many happy hours we do, open houses, corporate outings, luncheons, networking events, B2Bs, all these other different avenues,” he said of those who think Scottsdale Nights is just about nightlife.
Whether his clients are looking for private tables, premium bottle services, tickets to sporting events, fine dining reservations — even hotel, transportation and Airbnb services, Scottsdale Nights can make it happen.
“We have an amazing client list when it comes to guests, customers and the venues and people we work with,” he said.
Ray works seven days a week and runs on a bit of a different schedule than the average marketing professional. He’s up at 11 a.m. because he’ll be out about until the wee hours of the morning — making sure he keeps his finger on the pulse of the latest trends in Scottsdale’s nightlife.
“I wake up to a lot of texts (and) emails,” he said.
“We do get pulled in many different directions,” Ray added about the workflow.
In short, there is no typical workday at Scottsdale Nights, and Ray wouldn’t have it any other way.
“We do 80 to 100 events a month,” he said.
Unsurprisingly, a lot can go down.
“When you’ve been doing it as long as I have, which is over 30 years, there’s been some crazy requests, for sure, and I’ve seen some crazy things,” Ray said.
While he couldn’t go into detail due to privacy reasons, it is fair to say he tries not to say no. It’s all part of the fun of the job.
“There has to be some excitement behind it,” Ray said. “Luckily for me, that comes naturally.”
Other words he used to describe the job were “energetic” and “involved.” It’s not the right career for everyone, but for someone looking to get involved, he offered the following advice: “I always tell people to work honestly,” he said. “I think I’m a very good example of somebody that’s really put their time in.”
That’s probably the reason Scottsdale Nights has also undergone quite the expansion in the past several years. Today, Ray has over 300 contractors working under him in 18 different cities around the world. For Ray, the secret sauce to this is what the entire business boils down to — fostering strong relationships.
“It is definitely relationship-based, but I tell people it’s kind of like a fraternity,” Ray said. “We all understand how to take care of each other’s clients.”
He estimates the number of cities in his roster will be closer to 25 by November.
“I take a lot of pride in my work,” Ray said.
For him, that makes all the difference.
“I work so hard to make sure it’s good,” Ray said. “I think that’s where the gratitude comes from.”
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