carl
We had the luxury of speaking with the founder of Carioca Coastal Club, and we wanted to share some of the highlights of what he talked about.
Vincent is the founder of Carioca Coastal Club, which is a discovery and loyalty program for beach barracas in Zona Sul. Its claim to fame is a Saturday “MundoLingo/El Misti hostel Vibe” beach meetup where people play beer pong, listen to music, do a language exchange, and just enjoy the beach in Rio, since it’s a very popular thing to do.
Vincent said the reason he started this is because his friends were always having a hard time deciding where to go, and different barracas charge different prices. He wanted to build relationships with the barraca owners so they appreciate the gringos and understand how loyalty works, encouraging non-Brazilian customers to keep coming back by offering great service and operating standards that most Westerners—and Europeans as well—are used to.
They have just launched a promotion with about ten pilot barracas, which is very impressive given that it has been in existence for less than a year. With this promotion, customers are able to claim discounts, sometimes free chairs, discounted prices, and mostly just receive the service they expect—the standard service that Carioca Coastal Club promotes. You can go to any of these barracas and rest assured that everything will be as good as it can be, with some accountability, rather than risking being overcharged.
Vincent says he was once charged R$100 for a coconut. It’s a very common thing, and buying drinks from roaming beach vendors can sometimes be a bit sketchy, so it’s often better to go directly to the barracas themselves. This program is meant to help everyone involved, and hopefully there are bigger, brighter things ahead in the future.
