Darin Myers

Coach Darin: 3 surprising trends that will change the way you run your business

There have been a lot of talks lately about Artificial Intelligence and how it is poised to change how nearly every business owner runs and grows their company. And it’s already happening. The introduction of ChatGPT and GPT-4 has expanded curiosity into artificial intelligence and ignited interest into how to best leverage the tool in everyday business operations. It is by all accounts pretty impressive stuff. Even big dogs like Google and Microsoft are adding the technology to their platforms and browsers. While AI is expected to quickly impact nearly

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Consumer Stories

Downtown businesses to participate in golf-themed retail crawl

Many people think downtown businesses are really busy during Masters Week, but that’s not the case, according to Jennifer Tinsley. Tinsley owns FIELD Botanicals located on 12th Street, one of 13 downtown businesses participating in a first-ever golf-themed shopping crawl next week called The 19th Hole. Businesses participating in the week-long event include Urban K9, Flowers on Broad, The Book Tavern, and Grantski Records. The crawl was created by Downtown Soul City, an organization that promotes businesses in that part of Augusta. “Our businesses are really slow during Masters week,”

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Consumer Stories

Local farm owners to host opening day event next weekend

Many organizations offer Easter egg hunts, but next weekend, owners of a local farm will host a major event with 2,000 eggs. Laura Russo and her husband, Jarett Acosta own the 70-acre Boondock Farms located at 755 Foreman St. in Jackson. The Easter egg hunt will be part of its Opening Day Vendor Festival on Saturday, April 8 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The event will also include live music, local vendors, and food provided by Que at the Shop Bar BQ located on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard

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B2B Stories

New amendment caps cost of James Brown Arena construction

Cost overruns on major construction projects are common, but an amendment has been approved to ensure that doesn’t happen in building the new James Brown Arena. The project has an estimated price tag of $240 million and the amendment caps it at $250 million. The project will create an Augusta Entertainment Complex anchored by the new arena and includes major renovations to the Bell Auditorium, currently underway. A concourse will connect the two buildings. The Bill authorizing the construction fund has passed the Georgia Legislature and now awaits Governor Brian

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Restaurants/Food

Business Lunch Review: Topgolf

Editor’s Note: Wes Hennings never met a meal he walked away from and is an opinionated eater! Each Thursday, he shares the results of a business lunch he’s had with a colleague as a way to advise our business community on the good, bad, and the tasty across the CSRA. He doesn’t let ABD or the restaurant know where he is going and his opinions are his own. He grades the restaurants he visits on a 1-5 scale with “5” being outstanding. We call this our “Real Business Lunch Review”.

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B2B Podcasting

What YPA has to do with you?

Amy Richardson discusses what the YPA has to offer with Jeannine Steinkuhl and James Allen, the president and vice president of Young Professionals of Augusta. It’s a growing networking group for professionals of all fields between the ages of 21-40 years old.

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B2B Stories

Local university targets high paying jobs in new online degree program

The University of South Carolina Aiken will offer online bachelor’s degree programs in business administration with concentrations in finance and marketing for the summer 2023 semester. Based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, some of the fastest-growing and highest-paying jobs are in the financial and marketing fields. The bachelor’s in business administration, with concentrations in finance and marketing, have been developed to reflect employer needs and prepares students for employment in a variety of career areas. “Our online bachelor’s in business administration program prepares students to meet the

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Lessons Learned

Lessons Learned: Not Quite Ready for Retirement? Try the 5 R’s

It has been almost two months since it was decided I would step down as Dean of Augusta University’s Hull College of Business and almost a month since my last day as Dean.  While I am approaching traditional retirement age, I was pretty sure I was not yet ready to retire.  I felt like I still had a good bit of “gas in the tank” but didn’t feel like the Dean position was the best way to use that fuel. While there were still rewarding aspects for me in that

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Consumer Stories

Eat a sub and make a difference!

Jersey Mike’s sandwich locations are wrapping up their 13th Annual Month of Giving fundraising campaign with the traditional Day of Giving today. All this month, patrons have been encouraged to make donations through the Jersey Mike’s mobile app or by stopping in a location to buy a sub. It culminates with this year’s Day of Giving today when 100% of sales in Jersey Mike’s nearly 2,500 locations in the United States go to help local charities. Beneficiaries include youth organizations and food banks. Eric Clark owns eight Jersey Mike’s locations

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Consumer Stories

Businesses support first-ever brunch festival

There’s nothing like sitting down to Saturday brunch, but next month, the Aiken Downtown Development Authority will give attendees a chance to enjoy it while visiting retail shops and restaurants located in that area. The ADDA will host the first-ever Aiken Brunch Festival on Saturday, April 29 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The non-profit organization’s Executive Director, Haley Knight said the free, family-friendly event will include food trucks, beer, and live music. Businesses participating in the festival include Cork and Cap and Neon Fig. Knight said most of the

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