B2B Stories

B2B Stories

Simon Says: Fasten your seatbelts, it might be a bumpy ride

The Augusta Leading Economic Index (LEI) rose 0.4 percent in June, but remains 1.3 percent below its level of June 2022. I use a three-month rolling average to smooth out very volatile local data. For example, residential building permits in the Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) have varied between 407 (August 2022) and 213 (December 2022) over the last year, even after seasonal adjustment, an almost 100% swing. In June, residential housing permits fell 10 percent from May. Residential building permits have been lower than the same month, one year earlier

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B2B Stories

A different kind of BYOB

If someone is hosting a party and tells you to BYOB, it usually means Bring Your Own Bottle, Booze, or Beer. Not this time. When you visit JoJo’s Flower Bar, the acronym stands for Build Your Own Bouquet. Josey Nina is an entrepreneur who has a love for all things floral. She has parlayed that passion into a business called JoJo’s Flower Bar. “I did a trial run at the Barnyard Flea Market in Augusta. It was an awesome day of meeting people and introducing myself and my flower bar

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B2B Stories

Medical illustration students learn how to sell themselves

Medical illustration students at Augusta University got a taste of what it is like for competitors on the “Shark Tank” television program. Amanda Behr, chair of the department in the College of Allied Health Sciences, wanted to find a way to help students step out of their comfort zone. She turned to Lynsey Steinberg, a licensed medical illustrator at AU who created the Innovate Competition. It breaks students into smaller groups to create presentations and then pitch them to a panel of judges. Behr came up with the idea of

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B2B Podcasting

They’re all in this together…

A local non-profit is hoping to reach a significant goal in just a matter of a few weeks. Mike Petchenik explains in the latest edition of Biz Bits.

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B2B Stories

Local event ticketing company is on “pointe” for expanding

There are more than 20 dance schools or academies in the CSRA. Besides offering classes in ballet, jazz, tap, or Hip-Hop, they all have something in common, a recital. Chances are mom, dad, sister, brother and maybe other family members will be there to applaud those budding ballerinas and dancers when the curtain goes up. Ticket, please. That’s where Dance Recital Ticketing comes in. Actually, way before the recital, the company works with each studio to provide seating charts, customizable sales pages and tickets, credit card processing, tiered seat pricing,

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B2B Stories

Training to keep America’s supply chain rolling

One of the long-lasting impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic was the disruption in shipments of goods and materials. Aiken Technical College is partnering with Ancora Training to offer a new CDL Class A tractor-trailer course. In addition to CDL driver training, Ancora offers training in healthcare, Internet technology, and business. It operates six private, post-secondary school brands with 22 campus locations. “Trucks are the backbone of America’s economy,” said Athena Freeman, director of the Office of Continuing Education at Aiken Tech. “Every year, trucks move nearly $800 billion in total

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B2B Podcasting

Major grocery merger impacts CSRA

International-based grocer, ALDI, has merged with Southeastern Grocers to expand their holdings. Look for more of their stores in the CSRA. Mike Petchenik has more in today’s Biz Bits.

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B2B Stories

First-of-its-kind security center in Georgia opens at Augusta Tech

A security center unlike any other is up and running with students from Augusta Technical College. The student-operated Security Operations Center has opened at the Georgia Cyber Innovations and Training Center on the Augusta Tech campus. The students come from the college’s School of Cyber and Design Media. The center gives them hands-on experience in the SOC. Working with real-world applications, the students will learn to analyze network traffic, looking for anomalies that may indicate malicious activity on the Internet. They will also learn how to protect the network itself

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B2B Podcasting

Not so bubbly?

Root beer was just one of several sodas a local family-owned shop used to serve, until things went flat. Mike Petchenik explains in the latest edition of Biz Bits.

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B2B Stories

Vintage tap wagon rolls into the CSRA

Remember the excitement when the ice cream truck approached your neighborhood playing those familiar sounds? You ran in to get a change from your mom to get a frozen treat. Now, vintage vehicles are meeting the future by way of mobile bars or tap wagons, if you can drink it from beer to wine, soda, lemonade, coffee, or tea, it can be tapped. Starting with a classic truck or van, tap wagons are becoming popular across the country. The latest version in the CSRA features a restored 1951 Chevy truck.

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