For a little more than a month now, Havana’s nightlife has had a new establishment: Bar 2.45. Its modern ambience and performances by some of the city’s most popular artists have helped this new bar to gradually gain a loyal clientele, also supported by the image of one of its owners, Javier Sotomayor.
The best high jumper of all times makes use of his media image to attract and retain consumers in a competitive market. However, Javier acknowledges the entrepreneurial role of his partner, Alexis Castro.
Located at the intersection of 5th Avenue A and 46th Street, the bar offers cutting-edge gastronomy and high-quality cocktails, fused with the wonderful customer service of its workers, as Sotomayor noted.
The business also includes a restaurant named Salamanca, in allusion to the Spanish city where the “Prince of the Heights” secured two world records in 1988 and 1993. The two facilities are connected by a corridor of just over 10 meters with padded doors that merge the almost vintage style of the restaurant with the modern bar.
Salamanca’s doors open to the “public” at the stroke of noon until 8 p.m., seven days a week. After that time, it is open only for customers of the Bar. María Julia Pla, head of Administration, explains that 2.45 is currently operating at 50% of its capacity as a COVID-19 prevention measure.
In addition to performances by artists and the usual entertainment, the facility is the headquarters of the Peña Madridista de La Habana (Club of Real Madrid fans), and as Javier Sotomayor told Negolution, the team values the possibility of introducing other recreational practices, such as spinning in the morning hours.
After the entry into force of the legal regulations on the improvement of economic actors and the approval of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), Bar 2.45 embraced this modality in order to meet its expectations of immediate growth.
According to Javier, the partners are currently immersed in the formalities, and are yet to sign the final paperwork. In this respect, he described the possibility of expanding to cover other modalities as a company and fulfill the corporate purpose as an advantage.
