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When Beth DeMann was first offered a position as the General Manager at Carbone’s in Northfield, her hometown, she said no. However, that didn’t keep Scott LaMotte–the owner of Carbone’s–from recruiting her. Scott knew Beth had the skills to run a great Carbone’s location, and he wanted her to work for him. Soon enough, Beth saw the (neon) light, and joined the Carbone’s team. Now, she can’t imagine working anywhere else.
Carbone’s in Northfield is one of several Carbone’s locations in the state. Beth attributes the growth and success to “great pizza and a great happy hour”.
Beth partnered with College City Beverage as one of Carbone’s beer distributors because we were in her back yard. She says of CCB, “Out of our distributors, they’ve been our biggest help at this location, with helping get on good craft beer, local craft beers, and helping us succeed overall.”
Reflecting on her experience when she started her relationship with CCB nearly five years ago, Beth says, “Right off the bat, I took a lot of advice from them. I let them hold my hand, and they obviously didn’t steer me wrong. I wasn’t new to the bar business, but I was new to my role. They taught me a lot about beer.”
In particular, Beth works with CCB’s own John Peterson, and he has been an asset to their beer selection. She says, “He’s one of my favorite people. I can even call him on the weekend if I need to. He gets his job done and he does well for us.”
Carbone’s is known for their amazing 2-for-1 happy hour and a fantastic beer selection. Part of CCB’s role is getting great beer from the brewery to Carbone’s, but we also help Beth choose what beer to feature. Beth says, “There are certain beers that I know I’ll definitely want, but my beer reps know what is going to sell really well, and they’ll bring in new breweries that they’ve picked up.”
Beth adds, “We have five to six beers that never rotate, but we have eighteen lines. Right now IPAs are really hot, so we typically have three IPA lines on tap.”
Tom Morrow, the On-Premise Area Sales Manager at CCB, comments on Carbone’s beer selection, “John’s in here every week, and he knows the clientele and what sells in this market and for this account specifically. The beer you sell can be different at Carbone’s versus another place just across the street. For our reps, their goal is to build trust with accounts that they know what they’re doing.”
Since opening four and a half years ago, Carbone’s has also started offering more special events. Beth reflects, “At first I was nervous about taking on this role that I’d never had before. Now, I look forward to doing things like that and giving people more of a reason to come in and let their hair down.” Currently, Beth is looking forward to hosting a New Year’s Eve party with the Fire Department as well as an Odell Snowboard Giveaway in January.
We asked Beth: what’s one thing people should know if they come here to enjoy a pint? She told us, “90% of the time, they’re going to get two. I know it’s 11:30 in the morning, but it’s 2 for 1’s.”