New spot in KC’s Westport will be co-working space by day, social club by night
As a 19-year-old from the inner city of Kansas City, Darrion Nimrod created The Outsiders Social Club as a safe space for young adults who were combating their mental health. He was focused on giving back to his community when he was younger, but later moved to Austin and Miami.
He’s 31 now, and that vision hasn’t changed. And he’s back home, with the opportunity to make the vision he started in 2013 even bigger.
427 Westport Road, sandwiched between Chick-In Waffle and Gaia Masala Burger & Bar, was once a three-level space that hosted an art gallery. Soon, it’ll be the new home base for The Outsiders Social Club, a 3,500-square-foot space for working and networking opportunities for young creatives.
Before holding its own space, OSC has held events mainly at Good Karma Coffee, a Black-owned coffee shop in Midtown. Nimrod said the events resonate with introverts, as it allows them to be integrated into the surrounding community. The events for the most part are casual, though Nimrod says some do come dressed to impress depending on the occasion.
OSC’s events usually have a DJ, as well as activation activities that vary by the events theme. Whether there’s art, music, food or culture involved in the programming, the goals for people to connect remains the same, whether you’re more reserved or open person.
The target audience for the social club is young entrepreneurs, influencers and creatives between the ages of 20 to 40. Nimrod said that this social club is meant for those who want to collaborate and see growth in Kansas City.
“If you’ve been to any of our events, people are yearning for an opportunity to not only get dressed and dolled up for but to also have genuine connections with people without it feeling cliché, like a networking party,” Nimrod said. “We integrate (introverts and extroverts) all together and let them feel comfortable. And after two or three parties, they know who their people are, and now they have become extroverts.”
The new space will have an abundance of amenities, with plans for a coffee shop and bar, as well as wall-mounted tables for work. The upstairs portion of the building will have private pods, as well as office spaces and conference rooms. There are also goals for a photo studio in one of the conference rooms.
The walkway to the second floor of the building will also be used as a space for DJs to hold their sets for when the social club hosts parties and events.
Arelia Thompson first learned about the social club after attending an event, where Nimrod was interested in her working for the team. She eventually became the team’s lead marketing strategist, but it took some trial and error before she earned that role.
She said her marketing presentations for Nimrod weren’t successful, but she recalled him telling her “We have time.”
“It let me know that he’s not just investing into a service, he’s investing into me. Because I need someone to invest into myself too,” she said. “Especially (as) someone who is younger and starting out, I need someone who can understand that I’m learning, and I’m doing as I go, and investing in my learning abilities as well. And he is very aware of that.”
Prior to OSC coming to Kansas City, Nimrod held events supporting the homeless in Austin, while also hosting a podcast about young creators managing their mental health. When he moved to Miami, he realized that there was an oversaturation of social clubs.
This led to him to start testing events in Kansas City, flying back to host them in a city where there wasn’t an excess amount of social clubs. This would make way for him moving back to KC and now fully establishing his project in a place he wanted to give back to.
The Outsiders Club launches memberships
On Jan. 1, memberships were officially launched for The Outsiders Club, which allows the first 75 people to pay for their membership up front and give them access to the space when it’s open.
Nimrod says members will also get access to OSC’s next event, “FLWRS: Lovers and Friends,” which is Feb. 7, though the location is to be determined. It’s a Valentine’s Day-themed event, with activities available for those who are in a relationship, single, or in between.
“When you come back home to KC, yes, we still need to live, but we're a lot more community focused in the fact that we like it's more like that consumers invest more into the story of the business, the quality of the business, and how it makes them feel,” Nimrod said.
Memberships for the first 75 people will be $55 monthly, as they will be considered the “founding members” of OSC. After that, the price goes up to $79. OSC members will not have to pay for the upcoming Lovers and Friends event, while future events they will get a membership discount on tickets.
OSC members can expect the Westport place to be open as early as March, no later than sometime in April, according to Nimrod. He also said that while specific events are strictly for those 21 and over, other events have had college students in there, but they had to wear wristbands so they couldn’t receive alcohol.
Thompson reflected on the first OSC event she went to called Ember. When the event concluded, there were still people hanging out outside the venue despite the night being over. This was a night that truly represents was OSC is, and how it attracts people to continue connecting after their first event.
“OSC is something that people want, so it’s in those moments where you’re second guessing, or something feels too difficult. I just think about that night of Amber,” She said. “Because so many people were just enthused to be a part of this, and they didn’t even know what was coming next. We didn’t even announce it yet, but whatever we were doing, they were ready to be a part of it.”
Those interested in becoming a member of The Outsiders Social Club can visit the club’s website, theosc.co. As of Jan. 2, OSC already has 28 founding members registered, according to the club’s Instagram.
