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Consumer Stories
Consumer Stories

Smoke signals: Cigar lounge opens in downtown Augusta

James Lee enjoys smoking cigars and meeting people, so he launched a business in downtown Augusta that allows him to do both at the same time. Lee owns Augusta Cigar Club, 722 Broad St., the former home of Ice Lounge & Restaurant. Large crowds visited the business during its soft opening on Friday, Sept. 16, thanks to the 2022 Arts in the Heart of Augusta Festival. “We didn’t sell much, but we did some good community work,” he said. “That was a cool weekend.” Lee, a U.S. Air Force veteran,

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Story and photos by Josh Heath October 12, 2022 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Cruise ship travel making a comeback

Business is finally starting to pick up for the hardest hit industry during covid. For more than a year, many cruise lines suspended operations and the entire travel industry came to a standstill. Ships were docked in ports, while others sat idle at sea. The losses were staggering for the major cruise lines. Even now, with an uptick in bookings, the biggest cruise lines are swimming in debt, including Carnival with losses of $35 billion, Royal Caribbean with a debt of $25 billion, and Norwegian owing $14 billion. But Brian

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Mitzi Oxford October 10, 2022 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Many job opportunities coming to the CSRA

Job opportunities are in abundance in the Augusta area, now and in the future. The jobs include part-time, full-time, and seasonal. Amazon Amazon recently announced a large nationwide hiring push ahead of the Christmas holiday that will include about 800 jobs in the Augusta area. Most positions start at $19 per hour and some include sign-on bonuses of $1,000-3,000. Overall, Amazon is hiring 150,000 employees, about 6,000 in Georgia. “We’re proud to offer a wide variety of roles for people of all backgrounds, with more than 150,000 roles available across

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Gary Kauffman October 10, 2022 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Army program prepares service members for life, careers after the military

When 1st Lt. Marcus Masello transitions out of the U.S. Army next summer, he hopes to work in the aerospace industry and plans to apply for jobs at NASA. On Thursday, Masello, who currently works in IT and cybersecurity, attended a job fair hosted by the Army Transition Assistance Program (TAP) at Fort Gordon. “I want to continue serving my country in a different capacity,” he said. Masello said TAP’s services, such as resume writing assistance, have been helpful in preparing him for his next career. “It’s a year-long process,

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Story and photos by Josh Heath October 9, 2022 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Sub shop replaces sandwich shop in Evans shopping center

The closing of one Columbia County sandwich shop made room for a similar shop to take its place. Which Wich Superior Sandwiches, which was located at 4239 Washington Road, Suite 7 next to FedEx Office in Mullins Crossing, has been replaced by Jersey Mike’s Subs. ABD spoke to an employee at the other CSRA Which Wich located on Wheeler Road in Augusta to find out why the Evans shop closed. “There wasn’t enough business, and the rent was high,” the employee said. Founded in Dallas in 2003, Which Wich has

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Josh Heath October 9, 2022 No Comments
Consumer Stories

ATT’s Hubspots

Some children in the Augusta area will soon be connected to the world, thanks to two Connected Learning Centers inside the HUB for Community Innovation. The centers will provide internet access and education tools for those who face connectivity barriers. The Connectivity Centers are part of a $2 billion national campaign by AT&T from 2021-23 to address internet accessibility and affordability. It is a collaboration with the Augusta Boys & Girls Club, Augusta University Literacy Center, and Rise Augusta. “Connectivity is the foundation of a thriving community, and AT&T’s investment

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Gary Kauffman October 6, 2022 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Keeping restaurant food safe is the topic of the training program

In Dec. 1992, Lauren Beth Rudolph, a six-year-old girl from California, died of E. coli poisoning after eating a hamburger from a Jack in the Box fast-food restaurant. That incident was part of a larger outbreak on the West Coast. That’s just one of many examples Cathy Watson shares with restaurant employees and owners as a certified ServSafe training instructor and proctor. Watson, the owner of a business called Helping Restaurants, teaches a one-day ServSafe certification course that covers a variety of topics, including proper food handling practices, food storage,

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Josh Heath October 6, 2022 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Business Lunch Review: Pizza Joint

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 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”. Food

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Wes Hennings October 5, 2022 No Comments
Consumer Stories

With help from Augusta residents, a local cleaning company provides hurricane relief

After Hurricane Ian caused monumental damage to homes and businesses in Southwest Florida last week, a commercial cleaning company with franchises in Augusta and Fort Myers, acted quickly to ensure supplies were delivered to those who lost everything. Jani-King Vice President, Dalton Self who helps budding entrepreneurs, establish franchises throughout the Southeast, said many Augusta residents donated supplies, such as bottled water, nonperishable food, and batteries (pictured above in the Jani-King office). On Monday, the company delivered two truckloads of supplies to Fort Myers. Self said they sent a pickup

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Josh Heath October 4, 2022 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Local senior living community celebrates its third anniversary

The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll helped a local assisted living and memory care community celebrate its third anniversary Friday. Thrive at Augusta, a more than 62,000-square-foot facility located at 313 Furys Ferry Road in Martinez, opened its doors in Sept. 2019, which was just six months before the pandemic began. Like most businesses, covid forced Thrive to make major changes. With its older, more vulnerable population, the community needed to be especially careful to protect its residents. “The National Guard helped us with sanitation, cleanliness, and testing,” said community

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Story and photos by Josh Heath October 3, 2022 No Comments
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