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The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

  • Javier Acosta, chef and owner of Parthenon restaurant, poses for a portrait in his restaurant in Havana, Cuba. Acosta sank more than $30,000 into Parthenon, a private restaurant catering to tourists and diplomats. These days, Acosta is expanding. "I haven't yet managed to recover my initial investment and the other money we've put into the place," the 40-year-old said. "But in two or three more years maybe I can." (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    1/12

    The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

    Javier Acosta, chef and owner of Parthenon restaurant, poses for a portrait in his restaurant in Havana, Cuba. Acosta sank more than $30,000 into Parthenon, a private restaurant catering to tourists and diplomats. These days, Acosta is expanding. "I haven't yet managed to recover my initial investment and the other money we've put into the place," the 40-year-old said. "But in two or three more years maybe I can." (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    AP Photo
  • A business sign for "Cafeteria Baldoquin" run by Julio Cesar Hidalgo sits in the sink of his home where he ran his pizza joint in Havana, Cuba. Two years on the front lines of Cubas experiment with limited free market capitalism has left Hidalgo broke, out of work and facing a possible crushing fine. Hidalgo says he has not given up on the idea of opening a new business one day. But he is also setting his sights beyond Cubas shores. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    2/12

    The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

    A business sign for "Cafeteria Baldoquin" run by Julio Cesar Hidalgo sits in the sink of his home where he ran his pizza joint in Havana, Cuba. Two years on the front lines of Cubas experiment with limited free market capitalism has left Hidalgo broke, out of work and facing a possible crushing fine. Hidalgo says he has not given up on the idea of opening a new business one day. But he is also setting his sights beyond Cubas shores. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    AP Photo
  • A barber shaves a customer's head at his small private business where a poster hangs of Fidel Castro in Havana, Cuba. On Saturday, Raul Castro came down firmly in favor of increased regulation, sternly warning entrepreneurs that those pressuring us to move faster are moving us toward failure. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    3/12

    The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

    A barber shaves a customer's head at his small private business where a poster hangs of Fidel Castro in Havana, Cuba. On Saturday, Raul Castro came down firmly in favor of increased regulation, sternly warning entrepreneurs that those pressuring us to move faster are moving us toward failure. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    AP Photo
  • Gisselle de la Noval does a client's nails as her boyfriend Julio Cesar Hidalgo stands behind in their apartment in Havana, Cuba. Noval, 25, took out a license to operate the nail salon in the space once occupied by Hidalgo's pizzeria that failed. The salon has been open a matter of weeks and it is too soon to know if it will do well. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    4/12

    The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

    Gisselle de la Noval does a client's nails as her boyfriend Julio Cesar Hidalgo stands behind in their apartment in Havana, Cuba. Noval, 25, took out a license to operate the nail salon in the space once occupied by Hidalgo's pizzeria that failed. The salon has been open a matter of weeks and it is too soon to know if it will do well. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    AP Photo
  • A chair sits empty in the home of Maleidy Blanco who runs a barbershop here in Havana, Cuba. After a surge of enthusiasm, the number of islanders working for themselves has stalled for the past two years at under 10 percent of the workforce. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    5/12

    The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

    A chair sits empty in the home of Maleidy Blanco who runs a barbershop here in Havana, Cuba. After a surge of enthusiasm, the number of islanders working for themselves has stalled for the past two years at under 10 percent of the workforce. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    AP Photo
  • A woman works out at a private gym located in a small commercial space in Havana, Cuba. On Saturday, Raul Castro came down firmly in favor of increased regulation, sternly warning entrepreneurs that those pressuring us to move faster are moving us toward failure. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    6/12

    The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

    A woman works out at a private gym located in a small commercial space in Havana, Cuba. On Saturday, Raul Castro came down firmly in favor of increased regulation, sternly warning entrepreneurs that those pressuring us to move faster are moving us toward failure. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    AP Photo
  • A man getting his hair cut is reflected in a mirror on the wall of a private hair salon run by Maleidy Blanco in Havana, Cuba. Even in developed countries where entrepreneurs have access to capital, loans and a wide pool of paying customers, startups are risky ventures. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    7/12

    The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

    A man getting his hair cut is reflected in a mirror on the wall of a private hair salon run by Maleidy Blanco in Havana, Cuba. Even in developed countries where entrepreneurs have access to capital, loans and a wide pool of paying customers, startups are risky ventures. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    AP Photo
  • Gisselle de la Noval speaks with a client through the window of her nail salon, which she runs out of her boyfriend's apartment where he previously ran a pizza joint in Havana, Cuba. Noval turned the space into a nail salon after her boyfriend's pizza joint failed. "I don't miss the pizzeria, but I am sad it wasn't a success," she says with a shrug. "But I am young, so whatever. Now I'm dedicated to this." (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    8/12

    The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

    Gisselle de la Noval speaks with a client through the window of her nail salon, which she runs out of her boyfriend's apartment where he previously ran a pizza joint in Havana, Cuba. Noval turned the space into a nail salon after her boyfriend's pizza joint failed. "I don't miss the pizzeria, but I am sad it wasn't a success," she says with a shrug. "But I am young, so whatever. Now I'm dedicated to this." (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    AP Photo
  • Roberto Riveron, who runs a small private business that sells handmade and imported clothing, prepares his store in Havana, Cuba. Economists who follow Cuba say there simply isnt enough money to support a thriving private sector on an island where salaries average $20 a month. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    9/12

    The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

    Roberto Riveron, who runs a small private business that sells handmade and imported clothing, prepares his store in Havana, Cuba. Economists who follow Cuba say there simply isnt enough money to support a thriving private sector on an island where salaries average $20 a month. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    AP Photo
  • People talk as they stand in a street blocked by a broken down classic car in Havana, Cuba. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    10/12

    The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

    People talk as they stand in a street blocked by a broken down classic car in Havana, Cuba. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    AP Photo
  • Juan Hernandez paints the seats for his new private cafe that he plans to open at the end of year in Havana, Cuba. After a surge of enthusiasm, the number of islanders working for themselves has stalled for the past two years at under 10 percent of the workforce. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    11/12

    The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

    Juan Hernandez paints the seats for his new private cafe that he plans to open at the end of year in Havana, Cuba. After a surge of enthusiasm, the number of islanders working for themselves has stalled for the past two years at under 10 percent of the workforce. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    AP Photo
  • Julio Cesar Hidalgo poses for a portrait in his apartment where he ran a pizza business that eventually collapsed in Havana, Cuba. For Hidalgo, the experience with private enterprise has been a bitter one. But the 33-year-old known for his wide smile and sunny disposition says the biggest loss is harder to define. "I feel frustrated and let down," Hidalgo said. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    12/12

    The Struggling Cuban Entrepreneurs

    Julio Cesar Hidalgo poses for a portrait in his apartment where he ran a pizza business that eventually collapsed in Havana, Cuba. For Hidalgo, the experience with private enterprise has been a bitter one. But the 33-year-old known for his wide smile and sunny disposition says the biggest loss is harder to define. "I feel frustrated and let down," Hidalgo said. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
    AP Photo
Javier Acosta, chef and owner of Parthenon restaurant, poses for a portrait in his restaurant in Havana, Cuba. Acosta sank more than $30,000 into Parthenon, a private restaurant catering to tourists and diplomats. These days, Acosta is expanding. "I haven't yet managed to recover my initial investment and the other money we've put into the place," the 40-year-old said. "But in two or three more years maybe I can." (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
A business sign for "Cafeteria Baldoquin" run by Julio Cesar Hidalgo sits in the sink of his home where he ran his pizza joint in Havana, Cuba. Two years on the front lines of Cubas experiment with limited free market capitalism has left Hidalgo broke, out of work and facing a possible crushing fine. Hidalgo says he has not given up on the idea of opening a new business one day. But he is also setting his sights beyond Cubas shores. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
A barber shaves a customer's head at his small private business where a poster hangs of Fidel Castro in Havana, Cuba. On Saturday, Raul Castro came down firmly in favor of increased regulation, sternly warning entrepreneurs that those pressuring us to move faster are moving us toward failure. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
Gisselle de la Noval does a client's nails as her boyfriend Julio Cesar Hidalgo stands behind in their apartment in Havana, Cuba. Noval, 25, took out a license to operate the nail salon in the space once occupied by Hidalgo's pizzeria that failed. The salon has been open a matter of weeks and it is too soon to know if it will do well. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
A chair sits empty in the home of Maleidy Blanco who runs a barbershop here in Havana, Cuba. After a surge of enthusiasm, the number of islanders working for themselves has stalled for the past two years at under 10 percent of the workforce. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
A woman works out at a private gym located in a small commercial space in Havana, Cuba. On Saturday, Raul Castro came down firmly in favor of increased regulation, sternly warning entrepreneurs that those pressuring us to move faster are moving us toward failure. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
A man getting his hair cut is reflected in a mirror on the wall of a private hair salon run by Maleidy Blanco in Havana, Cuba. Even in developed countries where entrepreneurs have access to capital, loans and a wide pool of paying customers, startups are risky ventures. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
Gisselle de la Noval speaks with a client through the window of her nail salon, which she runs out of her boyfriend's apartment where he previously ran a pizza joint in Havana, Cuba. Noval turned the space into a nail salon after her boyfriend's pizza joint failed. "I don't miss the pizzeria, but I am sad it wasn't a success," she says with a shrug. "But I am young, so whatever. Now I'm dedicated to this." (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
Roberto Riveron, who runs a small private business that sells handmade and imported clothing, prepares his store in Havana, Cuba. Economists who follow Cuba say there simply isnt enough money to support a thriving private sector on an island where salaries average $20 a month. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
People talk as they stand in a street blocked by a broken down classic car in Havana, Cuba. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
Juan Hernandez paints the seats for his new private cafe that he plans to open at the end of year in Havana, Cuba. After a surge of enthusiasm, the number of islanders working for themselves has stalled for the past two years at under 10 percent of the workforce. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
Julio Cesar Hidalgo poses for a portrait in his apartment where he ran a pizza business that eventually collapsed in Havana, Cuba. For Hidalgo, the experience with private enterprise has been a bitter one. But the 33-year-old known for his wide smile and sunny disposition says the biggest loss is harder to define. "I feel frustrated and let down," Hidalgo said. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
Updated

Even in developed countries where entrepreneurs have access to capital, loans and a wide pool of paying customers, startups are risky ventures. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, about half of all new establishments in America close within five years, and two-thirds are gone within a decade. The failure rate of Cuban entrepreneurs followed by the Associated Press was 44 per cent in less than two years, and worse if one considers only those that relied primarily on Cuban customers.

The AP recently checked in with nine small business owners whose fortunes it first reported on in 2011 as they set up shop amid the excitement of President Raul Castroís surprising embrace of some free enterprise. Their fates tell a story of divided fortunes.