Today we’d like to introduce you to Carley Gaskin.
Carley, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I moved to Chicago a few years ago from Nashville where I had been bartending for about 6 years. I was young, hungry to learn and in search of something new and exciting. I was put in touch with Josh Fossitt who was in the process of opening a restaurant in the West Loop called Bad Hunter and was looking to put together a bar team. A little over a year later, I was having a conversation with Josh about what the next steps were. What I wanted to do with my career, where I saw myself in 10 years and how we could work together to build something that we were passionate about.
During our time at Bad Hunter, we were approached several times about bringing elevated cocktails and talented bartenders to private events such as weddings, cocktail classes, home parties, etc. One thing we began to notice was that there wasn’t a cocktail focused catering company. Someone that was passionate about making cocktails and had fun doing it. Why not us? We have the passion and we have some of the best bartenders in Chicago. Hospitality 201 was born.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
With starting anything, especially something that hasn’t necessarily been started before, there are, of course, a lot of hurdles. We’re both fortunate enough to have incredible support systems within the company and at home. As you can imagine, we hit a few snags during the build-out process of our prep space which has taken a bit longer than expected but we’re a few short weeks away from opening!
Hospitality 201 – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Hospitality 201 specializes in bringing the so-called “fancy cocktails” to home parties and private events. We also work closely with different brands in the cocktail world to create and execute events and we have a lot of fun doing it!
The thing we’re most proud of as a company is that we have a charitable arm. On the last Tuesday of every month, we host free classes for industry professionals that they may not necessarily have access to otherwise and we raise money in the process. We’re in the process of applying for our 501c3 which will allow us to raise even more money for a non-profit we’ve been working with called ReThink who takes leftover food from restaurants and bars and turns them into free and substantial meals for the homeless and impoverished. As a company, we’re constantly thinking of new ways to better the community and waste less so ReThink was a perfect fit.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Wow. That’s a tough one. I’d have to say the proudest moment in my career was hanging our business license in our shop. Everything that has happened our careers before that moment had gotten us here. It was real, tangible and dare I say it, successful.
Contact Info:
- Address: 744 N Damen Ave, Suite B
Chicago, IL 60622 - Phone: (615) 260-3523
- Email: carley@hospitality201.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hospitality201/?timeline_context_item_type=intro_card_work&timeline_context_item_source=525738994
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