Thomas Kimmel Email & Phone Number

I am a dedicated worker with 20+ years of experience in various roles. For the last two years, I have been working as a “Department Specialist” at Hometown ACE Hardware, running and revitalizing their Homebrewing department. I have found that I really enjoy working with customers on their day-to-day homebrewing needs and desire to stay in the beer industry. Working with ACE has allowed me to make many connections in our local beer community, from brewers and farm owners, to hops suppliers and their teams. Before working at ACE, I spent 7.5 years at Cisco Systems, in San Jose, California and another 7.5 years in the US Air Force. Both careers gave me the ability to lead and follow effectively, as I have filled subordinate, supervisory, and team roles.

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  Homebrew Department Specialist

  Ace Hardware Corporation

  Apr 2022 - Present - Yakima, Washington, United States

  Homebrew Department Specialist• Brought in more homebrewing supplies that targeted more intermediate to advanced brewers. - Conical Fermenters - Malts by the bag - New yeasts strains - Other advanced hardware• Facilitated deals with Yakima Valley Hops and Yakima Chief Hops to supply us directly with our hops. - Previously, ACE was ordering from 3rd party sellers. Hops were being shipped from Yakima, to Ohio, and then back to us in Yakima. - Able to bring in more variety and lower costs for both ACE and the customer.• Facilitated deal with OXARC so we could start selling and swapping CO2 tanks for kegging from ACE. - Able to lower costs for CO2 for our customers. - Brought in more business from other local companies. - Tap trailer builds - Wedding/Party keg rental companies - Wedding Bar services• Facilitated deal with Yakima Valley Hops to buy out their homebrew store after they closed. - Thousands of dollars of inventory added to my inventory.• Ran homebrewing demonstrations. - Showed brewing process from Mash In, to Fermentation - Customers were able to see the process, ask questions, and meet/talk with others with a homebrewing hobby. - 2-4 time/year - Free to customers - Drove more people to the hobby and brought ACE more business. - Reached out to several companies to assist with door prizes, raffles, and advertising, including YVH, YCH, and some local breweries.