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Consumer Stories
Consumer Stories

Restaurant Re-Brand

Sometimes, a long-time business needs a new coat of paint. In the case of a Mexican restaurant in Augusta, that has a literal meaning. El Paso Tacos & Tequila is now Señor Birds. The restaurant is at the former Mellow Mushroom restaurant on Broad Street in downtown Augusta. This rebrand also occurred at their other restaurants in Athens, Clemson, and Spartanburg. What’s different is that Señor Birds’ artists highlighted scenes from each community, including the Sacred Heart cultural center. The menu is very similar. A few years back, Josh Heath

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Neil Gordon June 17, 2026 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Construction underway for unique cafe concept launching in Columbia County

Do you like biscuits and gravy? How about breakfast on a biscuit? Odds are, though, you have not had many lunches with biscuits served as your bread. Biscuit Belly is open at four locations in Georgia and South Carolina and is now getting set to open in Evans on 4274 Washington Road in the Publix Shopping Center. A key employee from Duckworth Construction tells ABD that Biscuit Belly will take over the former Orange Theory Fitness Center, and once complete, it will be 2400 square feet. BB joins a growing

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Neil Gordon June 16, 2026 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Prepare office and home for hot summer

This weekend, we all got a taste of Augusta in the summertime—100 + degrees with humidity. Your air conditioning will be working overtime. Today, Joseph Galpin has some preventative tips for hidden water damage, indoor air quality, repairs, and especially MOLD!

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Joseph Galpin, EnviroPro 360 June 15, 2026 No Comments
Consumer Stories

What do fried chicken and summer dangers have in common?

With heat indexes reaching nearly 110 degrees over the weekend—WifeSaver is stepping up to help lead a summer relief program. Through the end of June, the Summer Relief Donation Drive will collect bottled water, reusable water bottles, sunscreen, and fans for individuals and families facing the challenges of extreme summer temperatures.  Donations can be dropped off throughout June at WifeSaver on North Leg Road, The Salvation Army Center of Hope, the Kroc Center, and any Salvation Army Family Store location. “Summer in Georgia can be brutal, and something as simple

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Neil Gordon June 15, 2026 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Restaurateur Changes Business Model

If you were going to satisfy your BBQ fix this weekend at Ironhead in North Augusta, you’ll need to pick a different restaurant. Owner Kurt Mueller posted news of his closing at 340 Edgefield Road on his Ironhead BBQ Facebook page, where there were about 100 comments in 24 hours. He candidly mentioned that the brick-and-mortar part of his business was no longer financially viable. Mueller tried to avoid this fate by recently operating on a more efficient level.  Ironhead reduced hours at the restaurant to Thursdays to Sundays for

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Neil Gordon June 12, 2026 No Comments
B2B Stories

After nearly 40 years, CSRA staffing company changes hands

A long-time sales and business development executive was interested in business ownership.  A 37-year Augusta business owner was interested in retiring.  Much like the staffing business, a perfect match happened. Since 1989, Angela Swarts has been the franchisee of Spherion Staffing and Recruiting, winning the 2024 Franchisee of the Year award—amongst 200 fellow franchisees.  She’s staying on for a period of time as new franchisee Joe Schiavone takes over. The office’s experienced internal staff will remain in place under Schiavone’s leadership. “What stood out most to me throughout this process

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Neil Gordon June 11, 2026 No Comments
Consumer Stories

The Growing Pressure of Pharmacy Costs: What Augusta Employers Need to Know

Across Augusta and throughout the country, employers are running into several common pharmacy-related challenges. Pharmacy costs have quietly become one of the fastest-growing expenses for employers, and for many organizations, one of the least understood areas of healthcare spending.  What was once viewed as a relatively manageable portion of the health plan has evolved into a major financial pressure point for businesses of all sizes. Today, prescription drugs can account for anywhere from 25% to 40% of total healthcare costs for employer-sponsored plans, and that number continues to climb. Unlike

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Nick Wimpey, PharmD, The Pennant Group | Pharmacist & Pharmacy Benefit Strategist June 9, 2026 No Comments
B2B Stories

Local banking legend part of big changes

Phil Wahl’s had just about every job in the financial space in his storied 40-year career at local and national banks in the CSRA. Next month, he’ll add a new title at Security Federal Bank. There are 19 full-service Security Federal locations on both sides of the Savannah River. Wahl’s been President for nearly seven years. Soon, he’ll also be Chief Executive Officer, joining the Board of Directors. Current CEO J. Chris Verenes will be retiring, but remains as Chairman and as a board member. Security Federal announced a few

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Neil Gordon June 8, 2026 No Comments
B2B Stories

Preparing CSRA students for a career in technology

Teachers from across Georgia and South Carolina committed a week of summer vacation to learn how to best prepare their students for future careers. The Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center (GCITC) campus hosted a weeklong series of classes and workshops providing a classroom-ready cybersecurity curriculum. “The goal of it is to help teachers who are teaching subjects related to cyber and IT, computer science, networking, all of these other subjects,” Danny Etheredge, Director of Training & Workforce Development at GCITC, told ABD. “Help them to start building a community

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Dana Lynn McIntyre June 8, 2026 No Comments
Consumer Stories

Tomorrow’s a huge day for CSRA business

Some might call a block party on Sat., June 6, a bit of a heavy lift.  For the organization expanding into a new location— it’s no sweat! Tomorrow marks the grand opening of the Family YMCA of Greater Augusta’s new, state-of-the-art facility in North Augusta. It will be at their new location at 406 E. Martintown Road.  “With this space, we can really accommodate this community, including almost double the childcare space, because our community loves growing their families, and that’s been a struggle for us to really support the

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Dana Lynn McIntyre June 5, 2026 No Comments
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