B2B Stories

B2B Stories

Thoughts from the General: Important decisions – the bad and the good

Perry M. Smith, Jr. is a teacher, speaker, TV, and radio commentator and best-selling author, and executive producer of four videos. Hundreds of millions of television viewers worldwide came to know him during the 1991 Persian Gulf War for his more than 100 appearances as a military analyst on network television.  Smith served for 30 years in the U. S. Air Force. He commanded the F-15 fighter wing at Bitburg, Germany where he provided leadership to 4000 personnel. Later, he served as the top Air Force planner and as the commandant

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B2B Stories

Local IT company makes $2 million investment in new west Augusta location

Next week, an Augusta-based business information technology company will celebrate the grand opening of its new location in west Augusta. IntelliSystems, which provides a variety of services for its clients, including telecommunications, cybersecurity, and security camera systems, is relocating from 1115 Greene St. in downtown Augusta to a newly renovated and updated building located at 3687 Wheeler Road near Doctors Hospital. The building was previously occupied by two other companies: John Deere and Medac. IntelliSystems will hold an invitation-only, drop-in celebration on Wednesday, June 15 from 4 p.m. to 6

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B2B Stories

Increased demand prompts popular pet care business to expand

On January 1 at midnight, Eric and Anne Dysinger began accepting pet boarding reservations for Masters Week. Thirty minutes later, they were completely booked. As a result of that demand, the Dysingers, owners of Paws in Paradise Luxury Resort & Spa, a 24/7 full-service facility, located at 4319 Evans to Locks Road in Evans, are expanding their business. Anne said they currently have more demand for their boarding and daycare services than they can handle. The couple has been forced to turn customers away due to a lack of space.

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B2B Stories

Simon Says: Wage increases alone may not be enough to entice employees

The labor force in Augusta is below 267,000 (March 2022) compared to almost 271,000 pre-pandemic. Traditional thinking and economics suggest that employers should raise wages and that will increase the workers’ opportunity cost of staying at home and at least some workers will be enticed back into the labor force. Unfortunately, as I mentioned last week, average weekly earnings in Augusta have not kept up with increases at the state and national levels, and even declined in 2021. Nationally, earnings have increased by 5 percent in the same period. But

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B2B Stories

Local shopping center sold for more than $20 million

For nearly 17 years, Eddie and Carol Kennedy have owned and operated Great Deals on Furniture in the Village Plaza shopping center on Bobby Jones Expressway. The busy center, previously owned by an Ohio-based company, has been sold for a little over $20 million. Carol said she and her husband haven’t met the new owners yet, but they have received emails and phone calls from them. The couple isn’t worried about possible changes that could affect their business. “We had a great working relationship with the previous owners, and we

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B2B Stories

Banking leaders warn of an economic ‘hurricane’ on the horizon

Several leaders of major banks recently warned about a looming financial crisis that could plunge the United States into a major recession. This reflects the same sentiment of a gloomy economic forecast as Hull College of Business economist, Simon Medcalfe made in his ABD column on Wednesday (see his local report here). “It’s a hurricane,” JP Morgan Chase CEO, Jamie Dimon said at a recent banking conference in describing his view of the economy. Like with a natural hurricane, where it is sunny and peaceful in the days ahead of

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B2B Stories

Mondays with Rick: Tips on recruiting and retaining good employees

  Dr. Rick Franza, Dean of the Hull College of Business, discusses a different, timely business topic each Monday in this column. This week, he talks about recruiting good employees and the importance of retaining them. The interview has been edited for clarity and impact. ABD: It seems everyone these days is looking for employees. What’s going on? Rick: We’ve always had a good relationship with the local community but we’ve never had so many businesses, both small and large, be as proactive with us because they’re so in need

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B2B Stories

Fifth Street Bridge project expected to draw large crowds to downtown Augusta

Once the Fifth Street Bridge reopens later this month, it’s expected to attract more people to downtown Augusta, and Greg LaBelle looks forward to turning some of those people into customers. LaBelle co-owns Two Dudes and a Boat Kayak Rentals located near the bridge in the Fifth Street Marina. He and his business partner, Steven Cox, not only rent out kayaks but also offer guided kayak tours of the Savannah River for groups and corporations. “We are so fortunate that the pedestrian bridge will have a bird’s eye view of

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