Venerable Sportsman Bar Re-Opens on State Street in Santa Barbara
Release Date: December 20,2018
The crew at The Sportsman bar is once again welcoming customers at its new location on State Street in Santa Barbara. (Contributed photo)
By Joshua Molina, Noozhawk Staff Writer | @JECMolina | December 20, 2018 | 9:46 p.m
BizHawk is published weekly, and includes items of interest to the business community. Share your business news, including employee announcements and personnel moves, by emailing news@noozhawk.com.
Nearly a year after the The Sportsman bar closed its doors at 20 W. Figueroa St., the popular local hangout is once again serving stiff drinks and friendly conversation.
The Sportsman has opened at 1226 State St., and just like its previous spot on Figueroa, it's next to an alley that leads to a city lot full of parking.
"We are very excited to be in a new location," Phillip Wright, who owns the establishment with his wife, Kourtney, told Noozhawk. "We have the same attitude as before — great cocktails and good times."
The Wrights moved the bar to the new location after their previous landlord announced a rent increase nearly a year ago. They opened on Dec. 7, and for now their hours are from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m.
A year after closing on West Figueroa Street, The Sportsman bar is reopened at a new location — 1226 State St. in Santa Barbara. (Joshua Molina / Noozhawk photo)
Sometime in January, Phil Wright said, the bar will expand its hours, opening from noon to 2 a.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekends.
For decades, The Sportsman served as primarily a locals-only liquor hangout, where customers could have a beer or hard drink in the middle of the day, munch on popcorn, watch TV and chat with like-minded clientele under dim lights.
It sported a back-illuminated marquee sign with its namesake, one of the last few signs with originality and character, approved long before the city created its rigid sign ordinance. Now, the Sportsman name is written in much smaller letters on the bar's tinted windows.
Phil Wright said the classic sign will eventually be moved inside the new spot for bargoers to enjoy.
Klipped App
Online hair-cutting app Klipped launched in November.
“We are thrilled with the quick adoption the Klipped platform has enjoyed over the past month,” said co-founder and CEO Skylar Urban.
The Klipped smartphone app allows consumers to search for an ideal stylist based on actual past haircuts and even celebrity haircuts. The platform manages booking the appointment as well as payment for the service, according to a news release.
“Much like what Uber did for transportation, we aim to automate and simplify the haircut-booking process,” Urban said.
The Klipped App has driven 417 total haircut appointments, the new release states.
Urban began working on the Klipped concept while studying entrepreneurship and marketing at Santa Barbara City College. He teamed with Juan Arteaga, a local project manager, to develop Klipped.
“My grandfather was a barber, and the positive effect he had on customers every single day stuck with me,” Urban said. “If Klipped handles the routine aspects of the haircut experience and helps the customer finds the right stylist, then the focus is on the haircut and relationship."
The Klipped app uses intelligence styling, which matches the consumer with the right stylist based on type of hair and haircut history, and manages the scheduling/booking including text reminders for the customer.
Restaurant closures
Urkeb at 413 State St. abruptly closed its doors last month.
Marcello Bisignani and Marco Coccia, two German-Italian men, brought the German street food Doner Kebap to Santa Barbara in 2017, but it barely lasted more than a year.
Also, Pacific Crepes, 705 Anacapa St., is also closing. The restaurant, along with Lost Horizon books, was forced out after the property was sold to a new owner.
Carpinteria sandwiches
You can have it Mike's Way at the new Jersey Mike's, 1054 Casitas Pass Road in Carpinteria.
The classic sub sandwich restaurant opened a week ago. It joins Jersey Mike's restaurants in Goleta's Camino Real Marketplace and downtown Santa Barbara.
— Noozhawk staff writer Joshua Molina can be reached at jmolina@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
