What does $20,000 a year buy you at The Pillars, Sydney's newest exclusive members' club?

Details matter when you’re designing a clubhouse for the movers and shakers of the tech-slash-venture-capital world.

At Sydney’s The Pillars, which sprawls across a four-level heritage building in the CBD, that means high-tech meeting spaces and an august, timber-lined library where works by Andy Warhol flank the fireplace.

There’s a wine tasting area, multiple bars, a boardroom, a plush lounge and dining area and two rooftop terraces (one is a social space, the other approximates the “quiet carriage” on long-haul trains).

Other non-negotiables for interior designer and The Pillars co-founder Emma Blomfield included a wellness haven with daily yoga and Pilates classes, an ice bath, a sauna and a beauty bar where members can preen before meetings.

“The front half of the building is heritage from 1832, and then the back half was added on in various different decades, from the ’50s to the ’70s,” Blomfield says.

“So that dictated a lot of what we did design-wise: the library, for example, simply demanded to be a library.

“And then some of the other areas, we could have a bit more fun and be a bit more modern and less conservative.”

Exclusivity is guaranteed at the venue where memberships cost $20,000 a year. It might make it slightly less ouchy to learn that figure includes $3000 in credit to use towards food and drink.

Grudging respect rises again on learning it’s from two-hatted restaurant Eleven Barrack, the upmarket grill from the Bentley group, which sits on the ground floor but operates independently of The Pillars.

The club has so far signed up around 200 members – of an initial target of 300 – with most aged between 35 and 55.

Members can bring three non-members at a time into the sanctum to share the rarified air. As a bonus to the frequently flying bunch, they also get access to more than 50 affiliated clubs worldwide.

The Pillars describes itself as “a private members club to expand your opportunities” and greases the networking wheels with wine tastings and exclusive events.

“We have a huge focus on creating experiences money almost can’t buy,” Blomfield says. “We recently had [fashion store] Net-a-Porter do a pop-up styling session, for instance.”

Susan Wheeldon, country manager for Airbnb in Australia, New Zealand and Oceania, was an early adopter of the club that opened on May 1.

For her, The Pillars sits at the nexus of her social and working life.

“I think Sydney’s been missing a space like this – one that blends beautiful design with functionality and brings together interesting people from different industries in a way that feels organic,” she says.

“You can have a serious meeting, grab a great coffee, then bump into someone doing fascinating work in a completely different field, all in the same hour. That’s hard to find elsewhere in the city.”

After putting The Pillars through its paces, Wheeldon has cemented it as her “city HQ”.

“It started as a business space for me, somewhere to anchor my day and work more effectively across the city, but I’ve definitely felt the social and personal side kick in, too,” she says.

“There’s a warmth and authenticity in the community that you don’t always find in professional spaces.

“I’ve made some really valuable connections there already, and I also appreciate that I can use the space to wind down, not just power through emails.

“So really, it’s ticking both boxes.”

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