Ice cold in August

The vodka maker opened its fifth Icebar in Tokyo this month, and now the company is looking for a partner to take on the Icebar in Warsaw on a franchise basis.

The ideal icy partner is expected to provide suitable premises in the city center with restaurant facilities and Absolut wants its partner to invest EUR 300,000 (zł.1.15 million) in the project. Negotiations are expected to take about two months, and work on the venue will last four months, meaning the Icebar is expected to appear on Warsaw's entertainment map during the summer.

At the moment there are five Absolut Icebars round the world, in Stockholm, London, Milan, Jukkasjarvi, and Tokyo. All of them have been developed on the basis of one technique. They are made of ice that comes from the Torne Alv river in the north of Sweden. As the river's water is exceptionally clean and transparent, the ice makes an ideal sculpting material.

Icebars are normally located either in luxurious restaurants, such as Below Zero in London, or in famous hotels, such as the Icehotel in Jukkasjarvi. On average Absolut Icebars are visited by about 100,000 guests a year, and the number is growing by 25 percent annually. The Warsaw Icebar, just like the others, will be open all year round. It is expected that, on an area of at least 100 sqm (plus an additional 50 sqm for reception and back offices), it will house about 50 people.

At the entrance to the Warsaw Icebar, guests will be charged zł.20-30. This will include a drink plus special clothing, including capes and gloves, as the temperature will be a maximum of minus five degrees Celsius. For comparison, the entry ticket to London's Icebar costs Ł12 (zł.67), whereas drinkers at the Stockholm Icebar have to pay SEK140 (zł.58).

Absolut is one of the best known alcoholic brands in the world, and is active on 126 markets worldwide. In Poland, Absolut's exclusive distributor is V&S Luksusowa Zielona Góra SA, which is owned by the V&S Group.

Agnieszka Barteczko