Bees, Bacardi Bars and Archives Dating Back 158 Years, That's What It Takes to Be One of the “coolest Offices” in South Florida

How many offices do you know that have three bars, an active beehive and an archive that preserves
158 years of a company and family legacy? These are just some of the features that earned the Bacardi
North America offices in the city of Coral Gables, FL, bragging rights are one of the coolest offices in
South Florida. The recognition, earned for two consecutive years, comes from the South Florida Business
Journal.

The office recently reopened its doors with limited capacity and new health and safety guidelines to
ensure employees can use the space when necessary. Today, a new app allows for reservation of desks,
offices and conference rooms before even arriving to the building.

While not all features are currently open, the team is prepping for a safe return of some of the
amenities which included a private gym with personal trainers, classes and Peloton bikes; a full service
lunch with free meals every day; along with three office bars used to host trainings and celebrations.

Among one of the most unique elements of the building is a working archive – a space that conserves
more than 18,000 items that narrate the origin story for the world’s largest privately held spirits
company. From humble beginnings in Cuba, to internal expansion, to even capturing today’s lessons
from running a business during COVID-19, the archive is a place for inspiration and for protecting a
legacy that will be passed on to future generations of the family-owned company. Among some of the
most treasured items found in the archive is the world’s largest private cocktail book collection, gold
medals that date back to 1876, Bacardi rum bottles that date to pre-Prohibition era, and family photos
from their days in Cuba.

Bacardi employees are not the only ones to call the office home. Resident bees were part of the team,
producing honey for use in the office bars and even gifted to employees. During closures closed by the
pandemic, the beehive was relocated offsite to ensure the regular, required care. The hope is that they
too have safe return to the office.

Some of the “coolest” benefits won’t be seen on a wall, rather they are part of the experience. This
includes flexible work schedules, no meetings Fridays, and early releases on Fridays. Each of these were
introduced to help offset the new work routines created during the pandemic, including work from
home hours. The company wanted to make sure to encourage people to connect when they can be
most productive and to, just as importantly, disconnect to recharge and take care of their wellbeing.

Winners of the 2020 Coolest Office was decided by readers of the South Florida Business Journal who
voted for their favorites from the top 10 selected by the publication’s team. This year, Bacardi came in
at number two, jumping up one spot compared to 2019.