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Consumer Stories
Consumer Stories

Local business owners hit hole-in-one with tournament-themed gifts

In March, Randall and Julie Williams had their most profitable month ever, thanks to their collection of tournament-themed products. The couple owns Augusta Gift Baskets, which sells custom gift baskets and boxes for various occasions, including births, birthdays, and real estate closings. “We feature locally produced items in every one of our baskets and boxes,” Randall said. “That’s something people really like.” These items are supplied by many CSRA businesses, including Watanut, Ubora Coffee Roasters, and La Bonbonniere. The Augusta Gift Baskets tournament collection offers customizable baskets and boxes that

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Josh Heath April 5, 2023 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Local foundation to host golf tournament for worthy cause

In 2017, Drew Passmore was a senior at Augusta Christian Schools when he died from injuries sustained in a car accident. Since 2018, with help from local businesses, a foundation Drew’s family established in his name provides financial assistance to CSRA high school seniors. His father, Andy Passmore said the Drew Passmore Battlewon Foundation has provided about 25 awards that have been used for various purposes, including college scholarships, youth trips, and sports camps. “A lot of people just don’t know about us,” said Passmore, vice president of mortgage lending

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Josh Heath April 5, 2023 No Comments
Restaurants/Food

Business Lunch Review: Rae’s Coastal Café

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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Wes Hennings April 5, 2023 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Augusta takes center stage as thousands of fans arrive for the 87th Masters

The official start of the Masters is still a day away, but you wouldn’t know it by the bumper-to-bumper traffic, the packed parking lots, and the long lines for golf shop souvenirs. Tuesday marked the second day of practice rounds at the Augusta National Golf Club on Washington Road. Melissa Heiberger, an Augusta native who now lives in Atlanta, was ready to enjoy her sixth visit to the tournament like no other, but this time with fresh eyes. “I used to go and not be a golfer, but now I’m

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Dana Lynn McIntyre April 4, 2023 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Local Irish pub offers special Masters-themed menu

Marshall and Tiffanie Dubber went to the Masters in 2016 and fell in love with the food, which is why they decided to celebrate their Irish pub’s first-ever tournament by creating a special menu for this week only. The Dubbers, owners of Jameson McDubby’s located at 126 Laurens St. Northwest in downtown Aiken, have developed a menu called Flavors of the Augusta National, which includes egg salad and chicken salad sandwiches, as well as a grilled pimento cheese and corned beef sandwich. “My husband loves golf, and he’s Irish in

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Josh Heath April 4, 2023 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Local pizzeria renovations completed in time for Masters Week

A newly remodeled Columbia County pizzeria has re-opened in time for its busiest week of the year. Mellow Mushroom, located at 4348 Washington Road in Evans, closed for renovations on Monday, Feb. 27, and re-opened on Wednesday, March 15, according to Ally Bauer, the restaurant’s area manager. Those renovations included adding new murals and creating a separate section in the kitchen for making gluten-free and vegan pizzas. “We have a designated to-go area,” said Bauer, who also oversees the downtown Augusta and Aiken locations. “We train our servers really well;

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Josh Heath April 3, 2023 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Local business owner offers patients alternative treatment for chronic pain

Lara Bridges knows what it’s like to live with chronic pain, which is why she devotes her time to helping people find relief from their pain. Bridges, a licensed neuromuscular therapist and owner of the Aiken Center for Neuromuscular Therapy, located at 104 Florence St. Southwest, was diagnosed with a spinal disorder from an injury she received while snow tubing in 2020. Her doctor gave her steroid injections, which didn’t work, and wanted to perform surgery to fix the problem. The only effective treatment she found was neuromuscular therapy. Neuromuscular

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Josh Heath April 3, 2023 No Comments
ABD Extra

Simon Says: Losses, Gains, and the Game of Golf

Many people are susceptible to loss aversion and golfers are no exception. Loss aversion means that individuals feel the pain of loss more than twice, as much as the benefit of the equivalent gain. In golf, this means the golfer psychologically suffers more from a bogey on a hole than the joy of a birdie. In other walks of life, people hold on to loss-making stocks longer than they should because they fear the emotional consequences of selling at a loss. Soccer teams play for the draw rather than the

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Simon Medcalfe April 3, 2023 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Local artist creates unique Masters designs for shoes

Anne Luckey has painted murals at various locations throughout the CSRA, but this week, her canvas is mobile. For the first time this year, Luckey, a local artist and owner of ArtsAnneCrafts, is painting unique Masters designs on sneakers just in time for the 2023 tournament. She was inspired to take on the project by one of her Facebook followers. Luckey has already completed seven or eight pairs of shoes and has several more waiting to be painted. Because the tournament is next week, she has stopped accepting orders for

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Josh Heath April 3, 2023 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Local artist paints Masters designs on strawberries

Last year, Tori Taylor created treats for Tony Finau, who has never missed a cut at the Masters and will be making his sixth appearance at Augusta National. If more custom strawberry treats are on Finau’s wish list for this year, Taylor will have him and them covered. For the second year, Taylor, a self-taught artist and owner of The Red Berry Co., an edible art business, is painting Masters designs on chocolate-covered strawberries. She operates her business out of Wild Sugar, a dessert shop located on Washington Road in

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Josh Heath April 2, 2023 1 Comment
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