Buggy Factory Abruptly Closes

The Buggy Factory by Southern Pines Brewing Co. closed suddenly on Monday night. The closing came as news to the town of Carthage and to its 30 employees, who were all laid off on the spot.

“We decided that the concept itself was not working, and it was out of financial runway to continue it and see if it would eventually work,” owner Micah Niebauer told The Pilot on Tuesday. “It’s a very hard decision to make, and there’s a lot of hurting people right now. I want to take full responsibility for that.”

WHAT ELSE WE KNOW: 

• According to Google reviews and Facebook comments, customer pain points included the overall price, service and the automatic 20% gratuity on all checks. 
• An announcement posted on IG says the closure is temporary while the team works toward “a total refresh of the establishment’s concept” but there is no timeline to reopen the business. 
• Yes, the company is still planning to finish and open a taproom in downtown Fayetteville. 

That’s all we know right now — you’ll know more when and if we do.