Inside the $50,000 D.C. Members’ Club Trying to Make Cigars Sexy Again
- The Clayton is a high-end private members' club in Washington, D.C. with membership starting at $50,000 and monthly dues of $1,000, offering a bespoke experience for affluent, business-connected individuals.
The first time I visited The Clayton's Washington, D.C. outpost , I had to check three times to ensure I was in the correct location. The first bits of spring were finally starting to trickle into the district, but as I walked into what's otherwise a tranquil part of the typically boisterous neighborhood, I could practically hear a pin drop.
But don't let the nondescript exterior, which could double as any other high-end office building in Penn Quarter, fool you. The Clayton is an impressive space: membership for the 325-person club starts at $50,000, which gets you a key to one of the humidor-slash-lockers that line the walls inside. Monthly dues are $1,000, half of which you get back as credit to purchase cigars, beverages, or food. The 7,500 square foot, five-level space straddles the line between new-age design and old money taste. It's built to have a good time and look great doing it.
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The Clayton is all about a bespoke experience. Its owner, Clayton Wilson, founded his first outpost in Chicago. D.C., opened in January, is his second space, and a third location is planned for Miami. "I saw a void in the marketplace for high-end quality private client, entertainment-based club—a bit of an answer to the Soho House in terms of our clientele being the more affluent, business-connected entrepreneurial type," Wilson tells Robb Report . "I didn't see many offerings for those types of people to be able to gather, entertain, and have that exclusive environment that I think those people look for." In Chicago, cigars were an easy thing to socialize around, especially in the fall and winter. You can't have them outside without freezing, so Wilson wanted to build a secondary or even tertiary space to enjoy them.
D.C. felt like a natural next extension. While the District has plenty of cigar lounges, there was no true private cigar club. The city's inherent transitory nature means there's always a flow of people coming and going, both domestically and internationally, which makes D.C. ripe for this kind of quiet space for a meeting, political or otherwise. But should a Congress member need to jet for a vote, the Penn Quarter location is only about 10 minutes away from the Hill, depending on traffic. Given how tucked away and quiet the street is, coming and going from the space should cause as little ruckus as possible.
The low profile the club keeps even extends to the smell of the cigars. One of Wilson's focuses was a substantial investment in the ventilation system, which hoofs up smoke like a super-charged Dyson. You may not make it out totally unscathed, especially if you've had several stogies, but you won't smell like a bonfire either.
When members apply and are accepted, they walk through an onboarding process that allows for service and hospitality to come first. An Arturo Fuente collector? The best of the brand's releases will be ready and waiting for you upon arrival. Not sure what you're into? The staff can walk you through a veritable tasting menu of options, so to speak. Want privacy above all else? One of the basement rooms can be all yours, and the staff will even whisk you in and out with as little fuss and ceremony as possible if you want to go incognito. The service is as customizable as a member sees fit and even includes à la carte food options from the in-house chef, who counts stays at Pineapples and Pearls, mini bar, and Xiquet among his resume.
But above all else, The Clayton aims to make each individual feel as good as possible. "You're a member," Wilson says. "We understand that people want to take people to their club. We want that member to be an excellent host, but we want them to look like an excellent host. And so we want to go bend over backwards to make sure that your visit was exceptional, your needs were met, and things that we know you like were there and waiting for you." So while The Clayton might be tough to find at first, the rest of your tenure will be as effortless and carefree as lingering cigar smoke dissipating in the air.
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