The clubs weren't initially called Beat Clubs. They were referred to as jive hives. The Mardi Gras was presenting groups before the Iron Door because the Iron Door was actually originally a jazz club called the Storyville Jazz Club. The Searchers did a number of appearances there, so they began calling it the home of the Searchers. Most of the other venues around Merseyside had been booking local groups long before the Cavern or the Iron Door. Places ranging from Lathom Hall, Litherland Town Hall, Holyoake Hall, Blair Hall, the Jive Hive Crosby and many more. Even the Casbah was presenting groups before the Cavern and Iron Door. It was because of the success of groups in all these other places, where the audience had already built up, that Ray McFall decided to wind down jazz and feature groups.
His major innovation was to launch lunchtime sessions which, being in the city centre, draw big audiences. As lots of groups couldn't do the lunchtime sessions because they were either at work, students or apprentices - and the Beatles were able to take on a lunchtime residency because they didn't have jobs. Rory Storm even had to form a group called The Wild Ones because some of the other members of the Hurricanes had jobs.