•
mess
R
obert Wolfe and Ryan
Rosett knew a good
idea when they
sipped it.
Last year, after an
exhilarating day on the
slopes, the longtime
friends visited the
bars of a ski village
out West. They decided to sample
the bar's microbrewed beers, tasty
concoctions produced in small
amounts in regional breweries that
are sold in the area to faithful reg-
ulars and curious tourists. Mr.
Wolfe and Mr. Rosett were im-
pressed by the microbrews, and
lamented the fact that such high-
quality beer was not available lo-
cally.
Then they had a brainstorm.
What if they opened a business that
would act as a clearinghouse for the
many microbreweries springing up
almost daily?
When we got back home to Bit in-
ingham, we did some research," re-
calls Mr. Rosett, who owns the
Lonestar Coffee Company in Birm-
ingham with his brother, Jay.
"We found there was a real surge
in microbrews, especially out West
and on the East Coast. We also saw
that some of the major ,.,.
,z:-..,
breweries were trying to c'
'
mimic the microbrew-
eries, and that local
beer and wine shops
were making more
shelf space available
for microbrews."
So after nearly a
year of developing
their idea and work-
ing to establish re-
lationships with
microbreweries
around the country,
the two 25-year-
olds, along with Jay
Rosett, opened Cac-
tus Creek Micro-
brewed Beers of the
Month Club. They
began taking phone
orders in September, and their business has been
booming ever since, especially after their radio ads
staitd airing locally.
`The response has been unbelievable," Mr. Wolfe says.
"Not only are we getting flooded with inquiries and
orders, but our customers are participating much more
than we ever anticipated. They'll call and say they were
recently on vacation and had a really great microbrew
in a local bar, and they think we should offer it through
the club. In fact, the beers we featured in the last two
months were chosen as a direct result of customer rec-
ommendations."
Cactus Creek sends its members two six-packs of
carefully selected microbrews each month (hence the
.5:95.W.,~AZa.• .„
•
Ryan Rosett and Robert Wolfe of Cactus Creek.
161 . 68 A tant
Arew Ay The Post
. v.; W.)
o
gan in 1992, Mr. Wolfe opened
Moosejaw Mountaineering and
Backcountry Travel in Keego Har-
bor. The shop, which is co-owned by
Mr. Wolfe's sister Julie (who is also
a partner in the Cactus Creek ven-
ture) sells high-end backpacking
equipment and outerwear and or-
ganizes mountaineering trips for
outdoors enthusiasts. After two
successful years, the Wolfes opened
a second store in East Lansing.
Both stores continue to thrive, and
Mr. Wolfe says Moosejaw will send
out its first mail-order catalog next
spring.
Mr. Rosett, who also graduated
from U-M, recently graduated from
the University of Detroit Law
School; he will take the bar exam
in February. In 1993, he and his
brother opened the Lonestar, which
was recently named metropolitan
Detroit's "Best Coffeehouse" in the
Metro Times.
"My mom wanted me to go to law
school," Mr. Rosett says with a
laugh. "But things have been going
so well with Lonestar and Cactus
Creek that I don't know if I'll ever
practice law. It's a good background
to have, but I think of it as sort of a
last resort."
Mr. Wolfe and Mr.
Rosett say they've
learned from previous
business experiences
to take it slow. In
keeping with that
philosophy, they hire
as many employees
as the company's
growing sales will al-
low. They emphasize
that there are no
hard and fast job de-
scriptions at Cactus
Creek - everyone in
the company pitches
in wherever there's a
need, at any given
moment.
"We've got phone
operators, tasters,
warehouse staff, and
other employees," Mr. Wolfe says. "But if the phone lines
heat up, as they usually do when a radio ad is run, the
packagers will help take orders, and so will Ryan and ry,
I. It's a great atmosphere to work in, because we all
help each other out whenever we need to."
What are the enterprising duo's future plans for Cac-
tus Creek? Mr. Wolfe says their long-term goal is to
go national, but that will be a difficult process because "'
cc,
of the many complex laws and regulations governing
the interstate sale of alcohol.
c_
"We've got some big ideas," Mr. Rosett agrees. "One u-1
day, we might even open our own microbrewery. But °
right now we're having too much fun doing what we're
doing."
TIM COHAN SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
club's catchy phone number, 1-800-2-6-PACKS). Mem-
bers also receive the informative "What's on Tap"
newsletter, "Brewsletter," and on their birthdays, a free
22-ounce bottle of premium microbrew. The monthly
fee is $15.95 plus shipping and handling, and the min-
imum membership is two months.
Mr. Wolfe said the company has an estimated 3,000
to 4,000 members.
As young as they are, both partners had a consider-
able amount of business experience under their belts
before opening Cactus Creek. After graduating with a
political science degree from the University of Michi-
31