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Consumer Stories

SURPRISE! A CSRA student-athlete just got a big check from a business

Brian Graham, chief executive officer of the Greater Augusta Sports Council, presents Edmund Burke Academy graduate Morgan Clark with a $1,000 check. (Photo by Josh Heath) Imagine being surprised with a $1,000 check. That’s exactly what happened to Morgan Clark – a 2021 graduate of Edmund Burke Academy in Waynesboro – who was presented with a scholarship at the school on Wednesday, May 26 from the Greater Augusta Sports Council, thanks to a generous donation from Augusta Coca-Cola. “I was completely surprised,” she says after receiving the check from Brian

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Josh Heath May 27, 2021 No Comments
B2B Stories

How we can help the CSRA hospitality industry in need

The Gary’s Hamburgers in West Augusta is being forced to close weekdays at 3pm for now. (Photo courtesy of Facebook) Editor’s Note: On Tuesday morning the Starbucks Coffee Shop on Washington Road at I-20 CLOSED because there was not enough staff to service guests. They re-opened Wednesday morning after locating workers. On the same day, one of the Gary’s Hamburgers had to close at 3 pm—the stories go on and on.  As part of our weekly strategic alliance with AU’s Hull College of Business, we asked associate professor Marsha Loda

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Marsha Loda, AU Hull College of Business May 27, 2021 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Augusta Regional Airport taking flight with event and overall growth

Augusta Regional Airport is hosting a free flight program in private planes on May 29th through a partnership with Owens Aircraft Services and The Brock Foundation. (Photo provided by ARA) This Saturday a local company and a foundation are providing area students a chance to take to the friendly skies at no cost. Augusta Regional Airport has partnered with Owens Aircraft Services, LLC. and The Brock Foundation, Inc. to provide local youth an opportunity to take a flight over the CSRA! “We are appreciative of the generosity of Owens Aircraft

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Neil Gordon and Josh Heath May 26, 2021 No Comments
B2B Stories

New local jobs site already a big hit with the business community

(Photo by Josh Heath) About 10 local business leaders, along with several virtual participants, watched the presentation. There are already about 2,000 local jobs posted on the site. The Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce has developed a new platform called Talent 2 Work to address the local labor shortage, and it has already received tremendous support from the CSRA business community. Chamber President Sue Parr says 2,000 area jobs have already been posted to the site, which officially launched on Wednesday, May 19. This includes Georgia Power, Savannah River Nuclear

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Josh Heath May 21, 2021 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Hawaiian family overcomes disability to share sweet success in the CSRA

The snack packs come in a variety of sweet and spicy flavors, and the prices vary depending on size. (Photo courtesy of Andrea Fanfan) For many young children, life revolves around playing games, going to school, and drinking Capri Sun. But five-year-old PJ Fanfan of Evans is already well on his way to becoming an entrepreneur, despite his autism diagnosis. Fanfan helps his mother, Andrea, run PJ’s Snacky Sack, which sells a variety of Hawaiian-inspired snack food bags at various locations throughout Columbia County. “It’s been great,” says Andrea. “We

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Josh Heath May 20, 2021 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Two popular fast-food restaurants going head to head in Martinez

Crews are busy working on the parking lot, landscaping, and electrical work at the 12th location of franchisee Mike Iezzi. (Photo by Neil Gordon) Starting as early as next month, fast food giants and next-door neighbors McDonald’s and Wendy’s will compete for both burger sales and employees in front of the West Town Shopping Center on Washington Road in Martinez. Franchise owner Mike Iezzi will soon open a 12th location on a 1.7-acre lot – the site of the former Auto Gallery- near the busy Davis Road intersection. “We’re hoping

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Josh Heath May 19, 2021 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Simon Says: Why the housing market is a seller’s market

In the Riverwood subdivision of Evans very few of the 1400 homes are for sale—and if they are—homes are not lasting long and selling prices are higher than normal. This home sold for the asking price of $479,000 within a few days. (Photo courtesy Sally Kolar Photography) I was talking to a former student who was describing how hard it was to buy his first home in Augusta because of the hot housing market. It prompted me to look up some local data from U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency. The

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Simon Medcalfe, AU Professor of Economics at Hull College of Business May 19, 2021 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Using J-Tank business concept to break Augusta’s poverty

Jessye Norman School of the Arts students and their families along with other CSRA families are eligible to apply. Provided by Jessie Norman School of the Arts If you’ve ever watched “Shark Tank”, you’re familiar with the show’s concept: Budding entrepreneurs pitch their product ideas to a panel of extremely wealthy judges in hopes of convincing them to invest in those ideas. Some competitors land lucrative deals, while others leave with nothing. The Jessye Norman School of the Arts in downtown Augusta has modeled this concept by creating its own

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Josh Heath May 17, 2021 No Comments
B2B Stories

BNI helps CSRA businesses network and grow

Local BNI members listen to a presentation in December 2019. There are currently six chapters in the CSRA with a total of 128 members. (Photo from Augusta BNI Facebook page) Over the past year, many business owners have struggled to survive both the pandemic and intense competition. But in that same time period, local Business Network International members have made 4,725 referrals and secured $4.3 million worth of business, according to Andy Passmore, who serves as the local BNI area director and works as a mortgage loan officer at Security

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Josh Heath May 14, 2021 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Gas supply and demand challenge hits CSRA gas stations and businesspeople

One of the Exxon stations on Washington Road, near the National Hills Shopping Center, had cars lined up to buy gas on Wednesday, May 12 because many other local stations had already run out. (Photo by Josh Heath) Business owners hear all kinds of excuses for why their employees can’t make it to work. This week, some of these employees may have an unusual reason for missing work: a lack of gasoline. Gas stations all over the Southeast have temporarily run out of gas, thanks to a May 7 cyberattack

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Josh Heath May 13, 2021 No Comments
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