Consumer Stories

Consumer Stories

Real Talk Real Estate: CSRA millennials scooping up houses

It’s no surprise by now that the real estate market is hot, moving fast, and pretty much a race to be the first buyer to see anything that lists for sale! We are finally beginning to accept this as our new normal and have thrown all past experiences and expectations out the window in favor of just “winning” a house. If you are familiar with the housing market here in the CSRA, and have read my previous article on how we actually are experiencing higher sales inventory than previous years.

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Consumer Stories

Local bartender mixes sugar and spice to create cocktail business

For Michelle Rutter, COVID-19 turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Before the pandemic, Rutter was working three bartending jobs. Within 24 hours she was laid off from all three, due to the pandemic. Stuck at home, the experienced bartender came up with her own business concept in April 2020, and Sugar and Spice Cocktail Mixers LLC was born. Rutter began by creating margarita mixers for her neighbors and then decided to advertise her products on Facebook. “My husband told me, ‘If you do this, our lives will never

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Consumer Stories

Case Study: Hull College of Business Social Media for Local Art Group

As the spring semester closed at Augusta University, business students and professors alike often ask themselves “What did I really accomplish this semester?” One class can answer that question both with analytics and a feeling for making a difference. In a Social Media Marketing class, students learned the ins and outs of social media. After learning theory, doing market research, practicing design, and constructing a content calendar, students conducted a real social media marketing campaign. The campaign focused on The Greater Augusta Arts Council. It involved both Instagram and Facebook,

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Consumer Stories

Local business\political leader and family work hard for special needs son

There’s an old saying about business savvy people—they can take lemons and make lemonade. Apparently, the same can be said for their children. Sean Frantom is an experienced fundraiser who worked for the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Augusta for seven years, but he’s currently raising funds for a much more personal cause. Sean – manager of sales and community engagement at Topgolf Augusta and Augusta commissioner for District 7 – is raising money for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation on behalf of his 2-year-old son, William, who battles the disease.

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Consumer Stories

Local business\political leader and family work hard for special needs son

There’s an old saying about business savvy people—they can take lemons and make lemonade. Apparently, the same can be said for their children. Sean Frantom is an experienced fundraiser who worked for the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Augusta for seven years, but he’s currently raising funds for a much more personal cause. Sean – manager of sales and community engagement at Topgolf Augusta and Augusta commissioner for District 7 – is raising money for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation on behalf of his 2-year-old son, William, who battles the disease.

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Consumer Stories

A taste of Spain in Aiken

Anna and Pedro Figueredo, owners of Paella South, serve up their Spanish symbol of great family food. Pedro, an M.D. in orthopedics, followed his wife to South Carolina, where with her degrees in English, Spanish and a Masters in Curriculum Design, she teaches English to Spanish-speaking children and Spanish to English-speaking kids at Newberry High School. She is teaching English to her husband so he can work in medicine, but their dream now is to open a family restaurant, with their three daughters, somewhere in the Aiken-Newberry-Columbia area. In the

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Consumer Stories

Dollar General strives to alleviate food deserts in underserved areas

Like many Augusta residents, Tammie Harvell lives in a food desert, so she must drive several miles to the nearest grocery store. Harvell lives in McBean – a tiny rural community in Hephzibah. “It’s nine miles to Food Lion and thirteen to Waynesboro,” she states. Harvell explains she wishes there were closer grocery store options, but she doesn’t prefer shopping at Walmart. While large grocery store chains, such as BI-LO have gone out of business, Dollar General fills in the gaps in food deserts. Hephzibah alone has a few Dollar

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B2B Stories

Job opportunities tomorrow at Fort Gordon and across U.S Army footprint

If you or someone you know has a security clearance, there may be a good fit for job opportunities. A virtual hiring fair is being organized by a staffing contractor for Fort Gordon and the U.S Army. Transition Careers, LLC founder and CEO Jason Semerakis tells ABD that active duty, reserve, national guard, military retirees and civilians with experience in defense, engineering, IT, cyber and intelligence are encouraged to register and participate. Active or current (used within 24 months) security clearance issued by the U.S. federal government is REQUIRED for

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Consumer Stories

Business Lunch Review: Diablo’s competes with big boys

Editor’s Note: Wes Hennings never met a meal he walked away from and is an opinionated eater! Each Monday 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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Consumer Stories

Local businesses support CSRA students with school boost

Students in Columbia and Richmond Counties head back to class on Thursday, Aug. 5. That means families across the CSRA are hitting local stores to buy school supplies, which may not be affordable for all parents and students. Several local businesses have stepped up to sponsor back-to-school events to collect and give away school supplies to needy families. Here’s a list of some of those events. The Hawk Law Group and Alison South Marketing will host the second annual Fit 4 School event on Saturday, July 31 from 10 a.m.

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