From the Miami Herald:
Arsht Center, Bacardi unveil partnership for new cafe
By Daniel Chang
Two Miami institutions — Bacardi USA and the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts — announced a partnership Wednesday that will brand the county-owned Arsht Center’s new cafe and lounge with one of Bacardi’s premium spirits brands, Bombay Sapphire gin.
The Bombay Sapphire Lounge will be located in the ground level of the Carnival Arts Tower, formerly named the Sears Tower, and will seat about 60 people inside with additional seating in the plaza outdoors. The lounge is scheduled to open in January.
“We see this as a destination for lunch and a lounge for evenings and performances, driving folks to a new amenity at the center,” said John Richard, president of the Arsht Center and self-avowed fan of Bombay Sapphire gin.
Arsht Center and Bacardi executives unveiled the partnership with a ceremonial toast and outdoor cocktail party on the center’s Parker and Vann Thomson Plaza, west of Biscayne Boulevard.
The lounge will accentuate Bombay’s brand with blue neon lighting, modern furnishings, and a collage of historic photos from Miami’s past.
“We’re Miamizing the Carnival Arts Tower,” Richard said. “It’s going to be a hot spot.”
Miami events producer and restaurateur Barton G. Weiss, who owns the rights to catering and concessions at the Arsht Center, will provide staffing, food and beverages at the lounge.
Bacardi paid $300,000 for a five-year naming agreement on the lounge, Richard said. Build out of the facility was budgeted in the original construction costs of the center.
The Arsht Center partnership is the latest effort by Bacardi to position Bombay Sapphire, and other brands in Bacardi’s portfolio, with premium event experiences.
At the Sony Ericsson Open tennis tournament in the spring, for instance, Bacardi set up a Bombay Sapphire Lounge that offered mixology seminars and couches for tennis fans to relax.
At the AmericanAirlines Arena, Bacardi’s recent efforts include naming rights for the Bacardi Grand Entranceway and the Dewar’s Suite Level, plus improvements in the Grey Goose- and Dewar’s-branded lounges.
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