<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/2/1581628026107.png" alt="Pat Carver has operated Pat’s Beef Jerky for 30 years in Liebenthal. He poses in his business in front of a display of his famous jerky. He is retiring and selling his business." />
 <figcaption>Pat Carver has operated Pat’s Beef Jerky for 30 years in Liebenthal. He poses in his business in front of a display of his famous jerky. He is retiring and selling his business.</figcaption>
 </figure>By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays PostPat Carver has put&nbsp;<a href="https://patsbeefjerky.com/">Pat's Beef Jerky</a> in Liebenthal up for sale after 30 years in business.Carver, 62, said he is ready to retire and wants to pass the business on to another local entrepreneur.&nbsp;"I want to enjoy some life while I can," Carver said.Carver has shipped his beef jerky all over the United States and has had customers from as far away as Japan.He has had a slew of famous clients, including Tiger Woods, Eric Stonestreet of "Modern Family" fame, and NFL and NBA stars. He has even shipped to the White House.One of his favorite brushes with fame was with <a href="http://www.ladonnagatlin.com/">LaDonna Gatlin</a>, who visited with Pat and signed autographs.Carver started the business as a side hustle in his 30s. He was working for the city of Hays and noticed people were liking the jerky he made. He start experimenting and using friends and family as taste testers.He finally came up with a recipe, which is still a guarded secret, and eventually developed the four flavors the business sells today — regular, hot, teriyaki and peppered.He said the secrets to the jerky's popularity are flavor and preserving as much tenderness in the meat as possible.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/2/1581631655398.jpeg" alt="Pat’s Beef Jerky is in the old Liebenthal State Bank building, 401 Main, Liebenthal. The bank was robbed in 1927 and subsequently closed during the 1930s. After an extensive remodel, Pat’s Beef Jerky opened the family-operated business in 1990, according to the business's website." />
 <figcaption>Pat’s Beef Jerky is in the old Liebenthal State Bank building, 401 Main, Liebenthal. The bank was robbed in 1927 and subsequently closed during the 1930s. After an extensive remodel, Pat’s Beef Jerky opened the family-operated business in 1990, according to the business's website.</figcaption>
 </figure>Carver intended to keep his full-time job and work on the jerky business two or three nights a week, but the business grew to the point it became a full-time endeavor.Carver said his grandfather told him he would get out of a business what he put into it. Carver would end up putting countless hours into Pat's Beef Jerky. Some nights he slept on the floor of small business on U.S. 183 in Liebenthal rather than drive home to Hays for a meager hour or hour and half of sleep. The floor was cold, so he eventually brought in a cot.He said he missed a lot of time with his family, much of that during the busy holiday season and much of it when his children were little. His youngest was only 3 when he started the business.He said he has some regret about that now."I found out that money is not everything," he said.Today, Pat's employees three full-time and two part-time employees. They process 800 pounds of meat for jerky every week — 1,600 pounds during the holidays.The business also sells its own summer sausage, bologna and pepper sticks.Carver only posted the notice of the sale Tuesday and said he has already had multiple phone calls of people interested in purchasing the business.&nbsp;He hopes to sell the business to a local buyer who will keep the business in Liebenthal. He also hopes that his staff will stay with the new owner.Carver said he could have expanded his business to a big city with a larger processing facility and enlarged his market.However, he said he has no regrets about keeping the business small and in the town where he grew up.Although Pat's Beef Jerky can be purchased locally at Cerv's and area liquor stores, Carver said the bulk of his business is still walk-in at his brick-and-mortar store in Liebenthal.Carver said running Pat's Beef Jerky and being his own boss was always his dream.&nbsp;<h2>His advice for young entrepreneurs ...</h2>"If you have a gut feeling of doing a business, do it," Carver said. "Always go with your gut. Everybody makes mistakes, you'll just learn from them."While Carver is looking forward to trying deep-sea fishing and spending time with his four grandsons in his retirement, he said he hopes to pass on his dream to someone else. "I just hope whoever buys [the business] has the heart and soul in the business as I had and can make it go," Carver said. "I would like to see Pat's Beef Jerky continue for another 30 years."

Pat's Beef Jerky owner retiring after 30 years, posts business for sale