Photo by Jessica Webb/SMT

A view of Bryson City from the hillSwain County has a history of successful home-grown businesses. This week, Smoky Mountain Times salutes all of the county’s hardworking business owners.

Ken and Juliet: A pledge to rivers, quality service

By Jessica Webbeditor@thesmokymountaintimes.com

Some people talk the talk. Ken Castorff and Juliet Jacob-sen Castorff walk the walk. Owners and founders of End-less River Adventures, both are hands-on with the busi-ness, with Ken still often guid-ing trips and Juliet spending much of her time teaching kayaking.

They started the small ad-venture company in 1992. For Ken, it followed more than 20 years working in the guide business at Nantahala Out-door Center.

The small company has whitewater rafting, fly fish-ing, lake trips, kayaking and international trips.

Ken’s love for water started at a young age. As Juliet tells it, he began canoeing as a Boy Scout growing up in Wiscon-sin. (He was even featured in a brochure).

For Juliet, the route was more circuitous. She started kayaking for fun when she was working in the corporate world in Washington D.C. She started working on a mas-ter’s degree for teaching Eng-lish and decided rather than working two jobs and going to school, why not work on her degree and spend time on the water. That’s what led her to Nantahala.

Soon after, Ken convinced

her to join him on a kayaking trip to South America, where he was guiding trips in Chile and Costa Rica.

It wasn’t long before they launched the idea of starting their own business. “For me it was more a sense of the size of a business,” Ken explains. “We can do more customer service as a small business.”

In 1993, they wrote the End-less River Adventures Pledge. Along with a commitment to service, they committed to riv-ers: understanding and appre-ciating them.

The business’ local con-tributions include adopting a two-mile section of high-way in the Nantahala Gorge for litter cleanup and donat-ing to nonprofits such as Land Trust for the Little Tennessee.

“When you work in the out-doors, you really see the ef-fects of ‘progress’ on the en-vironment,” Juliet said. “Num-ber one, the Nantahala is a re-source we use. We’ve watched, especially in other countries, dams are built and the num-ber of rivers we can use have been cut in half.”

They stress the value of remaining a small business: it provides flexibility and strengthens their ability to spend time with people.

Promoting community also plays a role in their business

Monty and Diana: a family businessBy Jessica Webbeditor@thesmokymountiantimes.com

For Diana and Monty Clampitt, running a family business has always been a part of their 40 years of marriage.

Together, the couple runs Clampitt’s Ace Hardware and also N.C. Clampitt Hardware Co., which they refer to as “the old store” and Diana has an an-tique business, Charleston Sta-tion. The stores are all located on Main Street.

On average, the couple works 10 hours a day, six days a week.

The commitment isn’t for everyone, but both seem to take it all in stride — even slipping in a few jokes and smiles along the way.

What advice could Diana give to someone who is con-sidering running their own business?

“For some people it works, and for others that’s just not for them,” Diana says.

Marriage in and of itself can pose its challenges. Add run-ning a business to it — spend-ing all your days together — and it can truly take a balanc-ing act.

Diana doesn’t shy away from the question of how to find that balance.

“Twenty-four seven we’re

together,” she said. “I’ve heard married couples say, we never argue. I credit Monty. For the most part, our marriage is har-monious. He has a lot of pa-tience. He’s more easygoing. He won’t argue — he tells me to calm down.”

Although Diana and Monty both grew up in Swain County, they didn’t date until they were both out of college.

Diana studied teach-ing at University of North Carolina- Greensboro.

“In 1974, I came back for a visit,” she said. “I ran into him, and that’s it.”

They were married a year later.

“For the most part, we enjoy it,” she said of running a business.

“We learned early in our marriage we do better if we have absolutely separate tasks,” she said. “As far as working jointly, we don’t do it often. I do most of the routine book-keeping. He does most of the ordering and deals more with the contractors and builders.”

The long workdays don’t always end when they get to go home, either. Being a sta-ple in the community can at

times mean being there when people really need you.

“We’ve had people call the house on Christmas Day in need of a plumbing part,” she said. “We usually try to be understanding.”

Clampitt’s was one of the few businesses open during the blizzard of 1993. That’s one reason Diana said she likes that they live in town. They are close enough to get to the stores when they need to but also not right next door.

The hardware store has long been a fixture of Main Street. T.I. Hughes opened the origi-nal store that sold dry good and sold it to M.C. Close and his wife, Lois, in the early 1930s.

In 1935, Norman C. Clampitt started working at the general store, where he continued to be an employee. When M.C. Close died, Clampitt bought a half-interest into the store and became partner with Lois. When she retired, she sold her half of the business to Clampitt.

For Monty, the store has al-ways been a part of his life. He bought the business from his father in 1973 after grad-uating from Western Carolina University.

In 1983, Diana and Monty

The Smoky Mountain Times Thursday, July 9, 2015 1B

Gianna Carson: Baking up a sweet lifeBy Angela McCallreporter1@thesmokymountaintimes.com

“My mom always had us in the kitchen,” said Gianna Car-son, owner of La Dolce Vita Bakery. “I’ve realized as an adult that I’ve taken that for granted. I thought everyone knew how to be in the kitchen.”

Born in Lakeland, Fla., Car-son grew up just down the road from Bryson City in Murphy. She earned a bachelor of sci-ence at The University of North Carolina—Wilmington, where she studied Marine Biology and Chemistry.

She graduated in 2000 and moved to Bryson City in 2001.

In 2003, Carson earned her teaching degree through West-ern Carolina University. She married Brad Carson of Car-son & Company, in 2004. They have two children, Rose, eight, and Tag, four. Their third child, Isabella, is expected to arrive in December.

From 2001 through 2004, Carson worked in the after school program at West Ele-mentary. She then taught 8th grade science through 2011 — which brings us to 2012 and the opening of La Dolce Vita Bakery.

“I just always wanted my own business,” Carson said. “I loved the creativity behind

it. I had been making cakes for friends, and that encouraged me to do it.”

Carson opened La Dolce Vita Bakery after operating out of her house for a year. The current location on Ev-erett Street was home to an-other bakery. They were clos-ing their doors and putting the building on the market. Carson took the plunge saying it was “now or never.”

“You have to be self-moti-vated,” she said. “There’s not anybody telling you what deci-sion to make or what to do dur-ing the day. Sometimes it’s not about money, it’s about how you appear to people.”

Carson said her specialty is cinnamon rolls, but you will also find a variety of flavors of gelato, cheesecake, cup-cakes, scones, cookies, brown-ies, muffins, cannolis during the busy season, smoothies and coffee beverages.

In all her baked goods, Car-son strives to use all-natural and local ingredients. She even uses chicken eggs from the coop on her farm when possi-ble and makes goat’s milk soap for the shop thanks to her goat, Annabell.

“I try to use as much fresh and local stuff that I can,” Car-

Photo by Angela McCallGianna Carson, owner of La Dolce Vita, stands next to her new coffee roaster.

Submitted photoJuliet Jacobsen Castorff, co-owner of Endless River Adventures leads a trip down the river.

Photo by Jessica Webb/SMTDiana and Monty Clampitt have long been familiar faces on Main Street.

See Bakery, page 4B

See Rivers, page 2B

See Clampitt’s, page 2B

Salute to Small BuSineSS

model — both here and in South America.

“Community is really impor-tant to us. As a smaller com-pany, we wouldn’t be here without the support of com-munity partners,” Juliet said.

“We live in Paradise and we have such great resources. As partners, we feel like we can do a better job,” she said.

Juliet said one of her favorite programs to be involved with is Nantahala Kids Club.

“It’s really important to us because kids everywhere need a way to get out and be out-side,” she said.

Some of the youth from the program have gone on to com-pete at the Olympic level.

From the beginning, leading kayaking trips in Costa Rica and Ecuador has been a part of their business model. In doing so, Endless River Adventures can be a year round business. They can also provide new river experiences for boaters.

Most recently, they have opened an eco-lodge and re-serve in Ecuador, Rio Quijos Eco Lodge.

For Juliet, part of the value in being year round is being able to provide year round job opportunity for their employ-ees, who it’s clear are more like family to her and Ken. They have also committed to paying more than minimum wage and employees have a lot of vari-ety in their work, from work-ing in the store to leading raft-

ing and kayaking trips. Dur-ing peak season, they have 20

employees including full and part time.

“To me to come to work ev-eryday and work with the peo-

ple I do makes me proud, and it’s a positive experience,” Ju-liet said.

The joys of working a job that’s seven days a week year-round are simple for Ken and Juliet both.

“I enjoy being outside, com-ing to work in flip flops and more particularly knowing to a certain point in a small way I change people’s lives,” Ju-liet said. For example, teach-ing someone who lacks confi-dence how to kayak.

“I rarely wear shoes. I can bring my dog to work,” Ken said. “I get to work with great people and get to meet peo-ple at their best moment. You don’t have too many busi-nesses and jobs that have that combination.”

opened the second location and expanded inventory.

The Clampitts aligned their local store with ACE Hardware about 25 years ago, and Diana says it’s helped in many ways, such as being a part of coordi-nated marketing and in buy-ing power. “I really don’t see how a hardware store could exist being totally on their own anymore,” she said.

Giving backOver the years, the couple

has been a part of the commu-nity in many ways.

Monty served as a volunteer fireman for a number of years, a bug that also bit their daugh-ter, Amy-Beth, who now vol-unteers with West Swain Fire Department. She also married a firefighter, Josh, who works in Asheville. They have two chil-dren who, Diana admits, some-times get chores to do around the stores.

Currently, Monty serves on the First Citizens Bank Board of Directors, and Diana is the current board president with the Swain County Chamber of Commerce.

“I’d like to see membership grow. I’d like to see more busi-ness people involved with the chamber,” she said.

She has also served two terms on Bryson City town board.

“To me, we depend on our community. Both of us being from Bryson City, we feel like it’s always been a big part of our lives,” Diana said.

Over time, the business has grown considerably. When they started at the old store, it was just Monty and Diana and two part-time guys, she said. Now, the Clampitts employ 26 peo-ple, counting both part and full-time.

The biggest technological change over time has been the switch to a computer system. However, the products have re-mained much the same.

“Basically, hardware never

really changes,” she said. Honoring the past is some-

thing that’s clearly important to them. They have kept the old store much as Monty’s fa-ther had it.

They have added new mer-chandise, such as Carhartt ap-parel, but they also continue to have items on display that are not for sale. For example, there is an old coffee grinder on dis-play that is original to the store and they also have coffin hard-

ware, such as handles that the store used to sell to people to finish the coffins they would build by hand.

Her passion for preserving history shouldn’t send people the message that she’s against change, she says.

“I’m not at all opposed to growth,” she said. “I am against just totally uncontrolled growth to the point where we lose our identity and cease to be little ol’ Bryson City.”

Over the years, the Clampitts have also weathered the storm of tough economic times. Most recently, the Great Recession. Shortly before 2008, they ex-panded their building supplies. Diana credits her husband for being a cautious businessman and not ever stretching the busi-ness too thin.

“It’s coming back slowly,” she said of the housing business.

When they do have time off,

Diana said, the couple often spends it at ‘the farm,’ acre-age Monty inherited in Lower Alarka.

“He has a garden out there. He’s growing fruit trees and he loves that,” Diana said. “Me, I’d rather go to a good estate sale or an auction.”

Is retirement on the horizon for the couple?

“We’ve talked about it,” Diana said. “I don’t see it hap-pening anytime soon.”

THE SMOKY MOUNTAIN TIMES – Thursday, July 9, 2015 – Page 2B

Rivers: The job where shoes are not a requirementContinued from page 1B

Submitted photo

Ken Castorff, co-owner of Endless River Adventures, showing off one of the treasures of his job while guiding a fly fishing trip.

Clampitt’s: Preserving history never a questionContinued from page 1B

N.C. Clampitt Hardware Co. has been a fixture on Main Street in downtown Bryson City for decades. T.I. Hughes first opened a hardware store in the location, which was later bought by Norman C. Clampitt. Monty and Diana, who have run the store for the past 40 years, have continued the tradition of offering hardware and dry goods at the store. In addition, they run Clampitts Ace Hardware and Charleston Station, also on the same block. Above left is Clampitt Hardware Co. today and on the right is the store when it was owned by M.C. Close in the mid-1900s.

Co-op class Cards with Candy is July 16Join the Jackson County Cooperative Extension on Thursday, July 16 from 10 a.m.-

noon, for the next monthly craft class titled Cards With Candy.Participants will learn to use stamps, dies, punches and embellishments to make two

cute greeting cards with instructor Candy Meyers. One card is a floral hidden message card, and the other is a peek-o-boo card. Cost for this fun hands-on class is $5 and all supplies are provided. Seating is limited so call the Sylva Extension Office at 828-586-4009 today to register.

Give your input on an animal ordinanceThere are two more community input meetings to get the public’s opinion on an an-

imal ordinance. The meetings are: 7-9 p.m. on July 16, at Whittier Community Center and 7-9 p.m. on July 30, at the United Community Bank’s community room in Bryson City. The public is encouraged to attend these meetings that will help the Swain County Ad-hoc Animal Care Ordinance Committee as members begin work on writing an ani-mal ordinance for Swain County.

Submitted photo

VFW honor seniors on Fourth of JulyOn July 4, members from Cherokee Memorial Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 8013 and Ladies Auxiliary visited Mountain Trace Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Sylva to honor 16 veterans residing there. Each Veteran was presented a U.S. flag and Service-related ballcap. Additionally, a celebration cake was shared by all along with experiences from times past. Those in attendance from Post 8013 were: Steve Lusk, Bill Loucks, Tom & Cecilia Schermaul, and Steve and Jan Brown. The Ladies Auxiliary was represented by Cecilia Schermaul.

son said. “If I don’t have it and I can’t grow it, I try to buy it local.”

Recently, Carson brought a new addition into her bakery, a coffee roaster, which will allow the bakery to roast cof-fee in house. It’s the first cof-fee roaster in town.

“I think you’ve always got to be looking ahead for stuff to improve,” Carson said.

For the past two years, La Dolce Vita Bakery has provided the chocolate chip cookies for The Polar Express. From the first weekend of November through the first weekend of January, Carson and her team bake around 70,000 cookies. Carson also coordinates the marketing and purchasing for the movies on Everett program during the summer with Erin Smith, who owns Humanité Boutique.

Carson also serves as Pres-ident of the recently-formed Downtown Merchants Association.

“Since we’re a small town, it really works well if we work together instead of every man for himself,” Carson said.

She said she believes it is important to be a good neigh-bor to her fellow business own-ers, regardless of whether or not they are in competition with one another.

THE SMOKY MOUNTAIN TIMES – Thursday, July 9, 2015 – Page 4B

Joe Rowland: Brewing up communityBy Angela McCallreporter1@thesmokymountaintimes.com

From meeting Ringo Starr to sitting in the owner’s box at Super Bowl XXX, Joe Row-land, co-owner of Nantahala Brewing Company, has been around the block and back.

Rowland grew up in Thom-son, Ga., a small town outside of Augusta.

He attended the Savannah College of Art & Design on a full-ride scholarship from 1996-1999, but left early to work with start-up marketing promotions for alcohol manufacturers.

Between 1998 and 2004, Rowland worked on regional and national campaigns for li-quor companies. He said his in-terest was in the design aspect of the campaigns.

“True marketing isn’t ad-vertising, it is everything from the second the product is con-ceived to the second that it is consumed,” Rowland said.

Rowland visited Western North Carolina with his fam-ily for vacations as a child.

He later visited Bryson City to go backcountry camping to get away from the constant cell phone service and work that the marketing campaigns demanded of him.

“It was a way for me to es-cape,” Rowland said.

He moved to the mountains of North Carolina in 2007. In 2009, along with Chris Col-lier, Mike Marsden and Ken Smith, Rowland opened the brewery at its current location on Depot Street. Greg Geiger is the brewmaster.

Rowland said that North Car-olina was the right place to open a brewery because of the state’s accommodating alcohol laws.

“I knew I wanted to get back into alcohol, I just didn’t want to do it from a marketing stand-point. I wanted to do it from a manufacturing standpoint,” Rowland said.

Rowland took the experi-ences he gained from working in a high-paced and opinionated environment and applied them to his own business.

He developed the sales tools, marketing and branding used by the brewery.

As one of the first brewer-ies in the state west of Ashe-ville, Nantahala Brewing Com-pany has experienced growing demand for its produce and been recognized for some of its brews. Most recently, the brewery earned 16 medals at the 2014 Carolinas Champion-ship of Beer.

Rowland currently serves as President of the Asheville Brewers Alliance.

“I also believe that in a cul-ture that has gotten so depen-dent on debt, if you can run a business that doesn’t have any or has very little, you have the opportunity to take advan-tage of opportunities,” Row-land said. “If we can keep our demand high and gradually grow our supply, we’ll grow in incriminates.”

Rowland said he believes in giving his employees more than money; he wants to give them experiences and a sense of fam-ily and contribution.

“Around here, we call it brewfam,” Rowland said. “Ev-erybody that is part of this place is part of our family. It took us years to get to a point where we were sustainable, but the entire time we were constantly iden-tifying those that we wanted to be part of this place. That is something that is incredibly important.”

“Everyone here works in-credibly hard to make the brew-ery operate,” said A.J. Nance, who works at the brewery. “If a project requires every person building, everyone is there tack-ling the task. Joe and Greg are 100 percent dedicated to the

brewery and producing a qual-ity product and brand which re-ally helps set the tone for the workplace.”

Along with serving a variety of its own brews, the brewery also hosts live music and now has merchandise for sale. (For a list of upcoming shows, visit www.nantahalabrewing.com.)

“We’re pulling people here that never would have come to Bryson City,” Rowland said. “We’re pulling a positive im-pact on this town, and that was one of our goals.”

The brewery contributes to the community in other ways, too. For the past five years, the staff has helped children and families in the commu-nity by giving them a Christ-mas through the Swain County Family Resource Center.

The brewery also partners with nonprofits in the county to host fundraising events. For those events, the nonprofit or-ganization charges a fee at the door that allows them to taste beer from the brewery that the brewery donates.

“It doesn’t really matter if we break even or not,” Row-land said. “It gives us the op-portunity to help those groups. Quality of life is so much more important to me than money.”

Submitted photoJoe Rowland, co-owner of Nantahala Brewing Company, is pictured in the brew room.

Bakery: Forward-lookingContinued from page 1B Gianna Carson

can often be found manning the counter and making coffee drinks at her bakery, La Dolce Vita.Photo by Angela McCall/SMT

Celebrating 32 years

Estonia, Philippines, Bangladesh

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