Manhattan’s rich are paying up to $200,000 just to walk into a room. It sounds like a splurge. Look at the numbers and it starts to look like one of the smartest business models in hospitality. Here is who pays, who profits and what the money really buys.

The money behind the velvet rope at a glance

Club or company The number What it tells you
Aman Club $200,000 initiation, $15,000 a year The top of the market has no ceiling
Aman New York Budget grew from $300 million to almost $1.45 billion Expensive buildings need expensive members
Soho House $2.7 billion take-private deal in 2025 Investors pay for memberships, even without profits
Soho House More than 270,000 members, 46 clubs, 18 countries Scale is possible, but it tests exclusivity
Kith Ivy $36,000 initiation, $7,000 a year (reported) Brands now sell membership as a product
Zero Bond Dues from $2,750 to $4,400 a year, priced by age Younger members are part of the product

When Aman opened its New York hotel in the Crown Building on Fifth Avenue, the project had cost far more than planned. Aman’s chairman, Vlad Doronin, told Bloomberg the budget grew from $300 million to almost $1.45 billion because of the pandemic and supply-chain problems, as reported by Lifestyle Asia. Then Aman launched a members club inside it, with a $200,000 initiation fee.

Those two numbers are connected. A building that expensive cannot pay for itself one hotel night at a time. It needs customers who pay up front, every year, whether they show up or not.

That is the economic engine of Manhattan’s private club boom. It explains why new clubs keep opening, why fees keep rising, and why some of the richest investors in the world have bought in. It also explains what members are really paying for, which is not what most people think.

How do private members clubs make money?

Private members clubs make money from three streams: initiation fees paid once when a member joins, annual dues paid every year, and spending on food, drink, rooms and events once members are inside. The first two arrive before a single cocktail is poured, which makes a club far more predictable than a restaurant.

A restaurant has to win its customers back every night. A club wins them once a year. Imagine a restaurant where every regular paid for next year’s dinners in January. That is a members club.

The dues also shape behavior. Members who have already paid for the year tend to treat the club as their default for dinner, meetings and drinks, so the money they spend inside goes up. In other words, the fee is not just revenue. It is a reason to come back.

Why do the rich pay so much for private clubs?

The rich pay for private clubs because the clubs sell three things that are scarce in Manhattan: time, privacy and the right people. A guaranteed table saves an evening of calls. A no-photos rule protects reputations. And a curated room delivers introductions that would otherwise take months to arrange.

For a member who bills by the hour or manages large sums, those three things are worth far more than the fee. One good introduction can pay for a decade of dues. Our story on the club where VCs close $100 million deals over caviar shows how that works in practice.

There is also a simpler reason. In a city where almost anything can be bought, being chosen still feels special. The fee buys a seat. The approval is what members brag about.

Who owns New York’s private clubs?

New York’s private clubs are owned by a mix of hospitality groups, hotel companies, restaurant empires, fashion brands and private investors. Major Food Group owns ZZ’s Club. Tao Group Hospitality runs Crane Club, a restaurant that borrows the club mood. Aman runs the Aman Club. Kith, a fashion brand, runs Kith Ivy.

The biggest deal so far involved Soho House. In August 2025 it agreed to be taken private in a $2.7 billion deal led by MCR Hotels, a New York hotel owner and operator, backed by Apollo Global Management and Goldman Sachs Alternatives, according to Fortune. The offer was $9 a share, an 83% premium to the stock price before the deal became public. Fortune noted that Soho House had never turned a profit since its founding in 1995. Investors paid $2.7 billion anyway, because they were buying something steadier than profit: more than 270,000 people who pay every year. Our story on who really owns your club follows the money further.

Why are developers building so many private clubs?

Developers are building private clubs because a club can turn an expensive building into a steady stream of income and raise the value of everything around it. Aman, for example, invites owners of residences in its New York building to become founders of the Aman Club, according to Lifestyle Asia. The club helps sell the apartments, and the apartments help fill the club.

The buildings are getting bigger, too. The Twenty Two’s New York house covers about 80,000 square feet, nearly double its London original, according to Travelling for Business. Robin Birley’s Maxime’s takes up 12,000 square feet on Madison Avenue, according to Haute Living. Even the smaller projects add up: city filings showed $1.6 million in preliminary construction and plumbing work for Kith Ivy alone, according to 6sqft, citing the New York Post. Read our story on the developers behind the club boom.

Why do clubs charge older members more?

Clubs charge older members more because younger members are part of what the club is selling. Zero Bond, for example, charges members 30 and under $2,750 a year and members over 45 $4,400, according to the tiers on its application reported by Luxe Digital. Casa Cipriani also prices by age.

It works like a student discount at the movies, if the ticket cost $4,000 and the students were 29. Younger members make the room feel lively, and older members pay more to sit in it. It is a smart piece of pricing. Each group pays for what it values most, and the club gets the mix it needs.

What does $200,000 actually buy at the Aman Club?

At the Aman Club, the $200,000 initiation fee buys access to a private members lounge, a cigar terrace, a jazz club and a three-floor, 25,000-square-foot spa inside Aman New York, plus $15,000 a year in dues, according to a club representative quoted by Business Insider and reported by the South China Morning Post. Members can also add family members.

What it really buys is a number large enough that almost nobody else can test it. It is a little like first class on a plane: the seat is nicer, but what you are really paying for is who is not sitting next to you. Our story on the Aman Club goes inside.

Is a private club membership worth the money?

A private club membership is worth the money only if you use it. Divide the annual dues by the number of visits you will realistically make, and you get the true cost of each evening. For a member who goes twice a week, the math can look better than a string of restaurant bills. For a member who goes twice a year, it is the most expensive dinner in New York.

The other test is harder to measure: what the room gives back. The members who say their club was worth every penny rarely mention the food. They mention a friendship, a job, an investor or a spouse they met there. Our honest breakdown of what a membership buys runs the numbers.

The real asset is the list

Strip away the marble, the spas and the cigar terraces, and every private club in Manhattan owns one truly valuable asset: its membership list. That is what investors paid $2.7 billion for at Soho House, and it is what a $200,000 fee protects at Aman. A building can be copied. A room full of people who trust each other cannot.

Which is good news for anyone outside the rope. The most valuable part of a club is something you can build without one: a circle of people who would vouch for you. The clubs just charge rent on it. For the full story, read our guide to the velvet rope wars, our ranking of the best private clubs in NYC, and our hub on how to get into one.

Frequently asked questions

How much did Soho House sell for?
Soho House agreed in August 2025 to be taken private in a $2.7 billion deal led by MCR Hotels and backed by Apollo Global Management and Goldman Sachs Alternatives, according to Fortune. Shareholders were offered $9 a share in cash, an 83% premium to the stock price before the deal was announced.

Are private members clubs profitable?
Some are and some are not. Clubs collect initiation fees and annual dues up front, which makes revenue predictable, but large clubs also carry heavy building and staff costs. Fortune reported that Soho House had never turned a profit since its 1995 founding, even as investors valued it at $2.7 billion.

Why are private club fees so expensive in New York?
Private club fees in New York reflect the cost of Manhattan real estate and the value of what clubs sell: privacy, reliable tables and introductions. High fees also act as a filter. Aman New York’s budget reportedly grew to almost $1.45 billion, and its club charges $200,000 to join.

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