Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Mark Meram. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Mark , thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – walk us through the story?

The biggest risk I have ever taken was moving to Miami, FL from Michigan to pursue my dream of opening a business in nightlife. Having no experience in hospitality but a background in real estate, starting small business’s & music/entertainment triggered the dream! My business partner also has a background in real estate & small business concepts. We would both go out in Miami (& live in the Brickell neighborhood) & wanted to create a vibrant classy neighborhood bar with a focus on quality music, design, service & classic yet sophisticated cocktails… which was not something that the neighborhood offered. In 2018 we finally found the perfect space to create the business. After months of negotiating the lease we started the build out of the project with an amazing design team – Big Time Design. We encountered many difficulties along the way. The biggest challenge being the covid lockdown & restrictions that we faced.. Not knowing if we would be able to survive the lockdowns & being a new concept. When it was all said & done we opened December 19th 2020 during covid curfew/lockdown. We were very lucky to have been able to open but closing early was hurting our business tremendously. 8Street Brickell ended up winning many awards, including Best Luxury Bar Design & Best Lighting in North and South America by Restaurant and Bar Design Awards, The International Design Award, The Outstanding Property Award of London (OPAL) & named Top 8 cocktail lounges in Miami by Ocean Drive Magazine.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a Detroit native who has lived in Miami’s Brickell neighborhood since 2014 – after graduating from Michigan State University.

My background is rooted in small business, music/nightlife & real estate investment.

The idea of 8Street Brickell was born from the concept of what’s missing from Brickell nightlife. My business partner & I came to the conclusion that an upscale neighborhood bar & lounge with an emphasis on excellent guest service, exceptional design detail & a great music program could really help transform Brickell to the next level. We both live in the Brickell neighborhood & wanted to create a venue that we ourselves would want to visit.

A few of my favorite features about 8Street include the state-of-the-art Void Acoustics Sound system & the floating “golden-sculpture” L.E.D. Ceiling that flows down seamlessly into the back-bar.

A great vibe makes any environment better & at the end of the day people tend to gravitate to the venue that provides the best music, service & design.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Opening the business directly at the time of covid restrictions & lockdowns has to be one of the most difficult journeys i have gone through. We thought we would open the business 8 months prior to when we actually opened. Going through these extremely tough times made me the person I am today – receiving awards & success made it that much better, & I wouldn’t change a thing. The harder something is to overcome – the better person you become afterwards, I am a true believer in this.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

We built a reputation of acceptance & really caring for who walks through the door. Our team is amazing & they care about the guests experience, from remembering our regulars favorite cocktails to making sure each guest is acknowledged and welcomed with open arms.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://8streetbrickell.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/markmeram

Image Credits
Instagram @thelouiscollection