B2B Stories

Fresh start for a familiar building in Augusta

A 20th-century building that was a hub of activity in Augusta is being re-purposed for 21st-century use. The former headquarters for the Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce will become an incubator for new businesses and an accelerator for exciting businesses. A partnership between Augusta Technical College (ATC) and Augusta’s Downtown Development Authority (DDA) will turn the building at 600 Broad Street into a microenterprise center. It will be called Accelerate Augusta. ATC President, Dr. Jermaine Whirl said the main room can be used for business owners to pitch their businesses,

Read More »
Consumer Stories

Preparations for new retailer opening this spring

New Poolwerx franchisee, Neil Gwynne will be dipping his toes a little deeper into the business waters around March 1st.  He’s now painting his Riverwood Town Center brick-and-mortar shop, “Mariner Blue” per the instructions of his franchisor. “I love having the backing of a company that’s been doing this for 30 years. I like being around pools and I like an honest day’s work,” said the former Amazon executive. Gwynne looked at other franchises but was impressed with the Poolwerx track record and their research. He says there are more

Read More »
B2B Stories

CSRA firm warns against online shopping out of U.S.

More than $37 billion in online shopping was spent during Cyber Week, the five days from Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday. Granted much of that lined the pockets of Amazon and eBay, but there are two other companies, Temu and Shein, both based in China, that spend heavily to promote online shopping. What is heavy spending? Try $10 million a day on Facebook and Google. Both companies offer products at extremely low prices. Who doesn’t like a bargain? Here’s the rub. Temu is owned by PDD Holdings which owns Pinduoduo, a

Read More »
B2B Podcasting

Multi-million $ business gets a workforce boost

The horse business is big business in the CSRA. An equine program at Aiken Tech will help develop future employees at stables and shows around the area. Mike Petchenik has the scoop in today’s Biz Bits.

Read More »
B2B Stories

Mondays with Rick: Yearly planning promotes proactivity instead of reactivity

Dr. Rick Franza, Professor of Management at the Hull College of Business, discusses a different, timely business topic each Monday in this column. This week, he gives tips on planning for a new year in your business. The interview has been edited for clarity and impact. ABD: In just a few weeks, we’ll be starting a new year, likely to be filled with a variety of challenges for businesses. How important is it to plan ahead in your business when the future is unknown? Rick: You need to plan a

Read More »
B2B Stories

Peering into the economic outlook crystal ball

Augusta University (AU) continued a longtime tradition of putting a spotlight on the area economy over the past year and predictions for the coming year. Dr. Simon Medcalfe led the university’s annual Economic Forecast breakfast on Thursday. Medcalfe, a professor of economics at AU and contributor for the Augusta Business Daily, began with an overview of changes in types of business, percentage of employment, and population growth. Between 2004 and 2023, Medcalfe said the mixture of industries, including hospitality, healthcare, education, and manufacturing, while looking different on the surface, remain

Read More »
B2B Stories

CSRA colleges offer options for hungry students

If you run a business, you offer a lunch break and probably take one yourself, even if it’s a working lunch with a client. Your future employees are in college and may not have the luxury of even eating lunch. Aiken Technical College is establishing a way to help with those needs through a new student-centered food pantry thanks to a grant from the Community Foundation of the CSRA. The ATC Foundation has received $13,500 to transform the College’s unused cafeteria space into the food pantry, add appropriate appliances and

Read More »
Shawna Woodward

Real Estate Rollercoaster: Navigating the impact of FED’s rate decision on Augusta’s market

Real estate news is big this week, as the FED’s have agreed that they are done raising the rate for the immediate future, and there may be some very small adjustments moving rates down in the first quarter of 2024. This should be good for our area. Hopes are high to see some major adjustments, but that is very unlikely. Stability is coming, and everyone is ready for it, it just will unlikely meet the hopes of consumers. I feel very strongly that if you can get a loan and

Read More »
B2B Podcasting

More coming from Meybohm

See how the local real estate firm is adding mortgages to their service offerings in today’s edition of BizBits with Mike Petchenik.

Read More »
Faith

Faith Friday: Give these gifts

I have a confession to make. I am not a shopper. If the retailers across the CSRA (or in cyberspace) depended on my dollars to prosper, their outlook would be bleak. Perhaps, it’s because there is nothing I really need and the fact that my wife is very comfortable using her credit card and navigating the aisles and miles in her various shopping endeavors. My contributions are driving her to the stores she chooses and carrying the bags of merchandise once we have returned home. It’s a balanced approach that

Read More »