Getting Loose

Well, it's official. After eight months of surfing, beaches, and parties, I am returning to the working class. The only difference is that I am still going to be very much focused on surfing, beaches, and parties (otherwise, what am I doing here?). I spent the first eight months of my time really trying to figure out what I wanted to do. I was all over the map during my research with ideas ranging from importing sandals to the U.S. to starting a Brazilian real estate fund. What I settled on was buying a Japanese restaurant.

Let me start by saying that Floripa is an interesting place. The people here (and this might relate to all of Brazil but that's tough for me to say) are very particular about what they want and how they want it. In my opinion, it's a mentality that I would say isn't exactly so open to new ideas. Entrepreneurialism isn't embraced like it is in the U.S. (unfortunately, this is one of the reasons why I think Brazil struggles so much to advance as a country). For instance, you can't just come down here, open a business, and expect it to work. You have to have patience, make sure you meet the right people, and do the right things. For anyone trying to do something in Brazil, I would strongly urge patience to get a feel for a community. The best business decision I have made since moving here has been to do nothing. It has allowed me to really understand Floripa, meet some great people, and really get a feel for what people here like.

Anywyay, how did buying a Japanese restaurant come about? I have asked myself that question many times. While buying a restaurant was never one of my intentions, sometimes life just works in strange ways.I met a really nice girl when I first moved here (strictly friends!). We stayed in touch and hung out every now and then. After not seeing her for a few months, I ran into her at a party. She told me that she was selling her restaurant. I had never been there so didn't know much about it. To make a long story short, she had lent money to a friend of a friend to start the restaurant. After building the restaurant, the guy basically walked away. Therefore, with no experience whatsoever, she was stuck with a restaurant. It hasn't been a fun experience for her as she has spent the last two months cleaning up this guy's mess and, therefore, she decided to sell it. I was a little curious so I went there with a friend to have dinner. We both really liked the place a lot (the food is very good and the location is killer). A few days later I told her that I ate at the restaurant, and she asked me if we went upstairs. I didn't even know there was an upstairs so obviously I didn't see it. I went back to check it out and immediately realized the potential of the place. While I never wanted to own a restaurant, I have always been interested in owning a nightlife spot. I knew that with a little work this could be a fantastic place. One thing led to another and I started getting serious about buying the place. She had started to tell people that she was selling the restaurant, and all of her friends told her she was crazy. They said that she was sitting on an unbelievable spot and she had done so much work that she would be crazy to sell now. Her biggest problem is that she never marketed the restaurant at all so it's been a struggle for her. Also, she has never wanted to be the "face" of the restaurant, and it's very important in Floripa for the customers to know the owner. This where I came in. Again, to make a long story short, we decided to move forward as 50/50 partners. I couldn't be more excited. I now have a great project to work on, and I look forward to it each day. I tell people that the restaurant is like a great canvas painting only the artist never put it in a frame and hung it on the wall. My goal is to create a very fun, Japanese restaurant with an amazing lounge. The Japanese restaurants in Floripa are very, very boring and nothing at all like the Japanese restaurants we are used to in the U.S. The sushi is also very basic in these restaurants so I'm going to fly down a friend of mine who is an unbelievable sushi chef to create a killer menu. As I said, you don't want to totally change the concept and scare everyone off, but I am confident that a place like I imagine could be very successful. Every day I am meeting with architects, interior designers, and everyone else under the sun. For better and for worse, I'm busy again but I'm also working on something that I am passionate about. My friends have told me a hundred times over the past few months that I would be crazy not to do something involved in the nightlife because I love being out, meeting new people, and just having a great time. So, here we are. The name of the restaurant is Hikari, which means "Loose" in Japanese (for those of you who know me well, was this not fate?), so the next time you are in Floripa make sure to stop by!

As I said, I love meeting new people. It's one of the great things I am looking forward to in my new business. The best part is that Floripa is a special place, and I have had the opportunity to meet some very amazing people. Last week, I had dinner with a few friends to talk a little business and a little pleasure. Of course, one of the guys is married to a super model (Fernanda Motta) and she joined us for dinner. Never in a million years do I imagine this happening in the U.S., however, it seems like this stuff happens here all the time. It was a very, very enjoyable night. They even put our picture in the newspaper. What can I say? Does it getter better than life in Floripa????