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Years ago, Charles Gauthier tried to find a brand for the Granville Entertainment District.

But a consultant told the president of the Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement association that it couldn’t be done. The district, known for its massive nightclubs defied definition.

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“He told us it’s an ‘unbrand,’” said Gauthier.

Today, the question of what the area should be is more relevant than ever as clubs are replaced by bars, restaurants and other recreation options, signalling the city’s entertainment district — and its nightlife — is undergoing a fundamental change.

Nearly half the street’s licensed nightclubs have closed in the past decade, and another major one, Republic, is set to close its doors next year to make way for a massive Cineplex Rec Room.

Blueprint, one of the two largest owners of nightclubs in the city, recently converted the Caprice nightclub to a Colony Bar featuring a huge arcade space — a move that director of business development, Nate Sabine, said was a way of diversifying the street’s offerings and moving away from it being a “nightclub district.”