North Atlanta Business Post, November 2015

November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

Real Estate guru

Penn Hodge knows area better than anyone. Page 9

Gwinnett Place Mall makeover New owners look at redevelopment of Duluth retail center. Pages 16 - 17

Volume 2, Issue 11 • Cherokee • Cobb • Forsyth • Fulton • Gwinnett • Hall • An Appen Media Group Publication

More mixed-use

Alpharetta, Forsyth both have plans in works. PAGE 11

Inside scoop

Retail Q&A with Lorraine White. Page 20

Pickled Pink

Two Milton men dive into the world of pickles. PAGE 30 PRSRT STD US Postage PAID Atlanta, GA Permit #3592

Abby Breaux/Staff

Nelish Patel with his wife Dimple and award during the 40 under 40 awards ceremony at Ruth’s Chris Steak House Oct. 22

North Atlanta Business Post’s 40 under 40:

Meet the class of 2015

Appen Media Group 319 North Main Street Alpharetta, GA 30009

The North Atlanta Business Post enlisted the chambers of commerce in our coverage area to find individuals who go above and beyond the normal call of duty in their work and extracurricular lives.

We also asked that these people be under the age of 40.

After months of nominations, talking to the candidates and reviewing résumés, we found our class of 2015. The individuals were recognized during an awards ceremony at Ruth’s Chris Steak House in Alpharetta Oct. 22.

Meet the class of 2015, Pages 21 – 27

Reach the key decision makers in the region that need to know about opportunities in North Fulton County. North Atlanta Business Post reaches over 20,000 business decision makers and high income individuals in the North Atlanta Region in between I85 & I75 and north of 285.

To advertise call 770-442-3278 or email hans@appenmediagroup.com

2 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

NEWS

NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • November 2015 • 3

Letter from the publisher This has been a fun month to be a part of the North Atlanta Business Post team.

When we first launched the publication in July 2014, we had every intention of building the publication from the ground up – starting with our news content, our audience and our partnerships in the community. We wanted to take everything on in phases and, while the real world gets in the way sometimes, we have done a good job of staying organized and on track.

One of the components that our staff was excited about taking on in year two of our Business Post endeavors was a comprehensive 40 Under 40 program that was unique to both North Atlanta and to other similar efforts. One way we went about doing that was through partnering with the countywide chambers of commerce in our coverage area to help us identify the best and brightest in the under-40 crowd.

The Greater North Fulton, Cumming-Forsyth, Hall, Gwinnett and Cobb chambers all stepped up and were excited not only to support and help us with our program, but also to bring awareness to the wonderful young talent their counties have to offer.

We also had a great team in place at Appen Media who handled all of the logistics and organization of the program and subsequent events, and we could not have done it without them.

A.J. McNaughton, Jonathan Copsey, Paige Roman and Taylor Wright deserve a big round of applause for such a successful

campaign. I can’t wait to start working on the Class of 2016!

As for the winners of this year’s contest – our 2015 Class of 40 Under 40 – I can’t say enough about what a strong list we had once the finalists were chosen.

Not only were all counties well represented, but the industries these individuals represent and their backgrounds are also truly impressive. Government (including elected officials and a campaign manager), nonprofits, health care, economic development, automotive, food, education – you name it, and we had it.

So, what’s next for the Business Post?

We are currently working on engaging some new partnerships in the community that should result in some fun and informative new projects (stay tuned).

Next month we’ll be publishing our Forsyth County Market Report and we are excited to highlight many of the projects that the Cumming-Forsyth Chamber of Commerce in particular has completed.

Until next time,

EDITORIAL Jonathan Copsey Hatcher Hurd Hans Appen, Publisher hans@appenmediagroup.com Joe Parker Kathleen Sturgeon

David Brown Suzanne Pacey

Hans Appen hans@appenmediagroup.com

Voterworkz aims to help political candidates Local startup helps targeted messaging

ALPHARETTA, Ga. – Two years ago, one of the Alpharetta city council elections was decided by a mere seven votes. In local elections that already have small turnouts, the margin of victory or defeat can be miniscule.

That is where Voterworkz can help.

“You can win an election by the number of people in your car,” said Dale Sizemore, co-founder of Voterworkz.

Sizemore and fellow founder Jim Gilvin began Voterworkz to help local-level political campaigns be more efficient.

Using the state’s voter rolls, the pair has created a product that can break down these voters into likely voters, households and political party as well as provide demographic information such as gender and race.

All this information can be used to target messaging during a campaign.

“If you are lucky, 12 percent of voters turn out for an election,” said Gilvin. “If you hit every door, 80 percent of those people won’t come out on election day.

Sending mailers and knocking on the doors of people who don’t vote is a waste of everyone’s time. We help you be more effective.”

OWNERS Ray & Christina Appen

PRODUCTION

‘A campaign in a box’

By JONATHAN COPSEY jonathan@appenmediagroup.com

Meet the staff

“Sending mailers and knocking on the doors of people who don’t vote is a waste of everyone’s time.”

Jim Gilvin, Voterworkz

Targeting a message can be important when deciding on what expenses to make and where.

“If you have $1,000 for a mailing campaign, you want to target your message. Whose doors do I knock on?” asked Sizemore. “You can send two sets [of mailers] to the top 500 people rather than once to 1,000.”

The idea was sparked by Gilvin,

himself a politician and Alpharetta City Council member, as he attended some of the city’s entrepreneur meetings, where local startups can gather to swap ideas and experience.

“I started thinking it’s a pain to run local election campaigns and they cost a lot to run,” Gilvin said. “It’s not rocket science but it can be difficult to do. Can I work with someone with a technology background to put a campaign in a box?”

It turns out that Sizemore was that person.

With two employees, the company is small and nimble, with low overhead.

Sizemore handles much of the technical side while Gilvin handles product development.

Both share marketing duties.

In business for about a year and a half, the guys of Voterworkz are working on improving their methods and figuring new ways of interpreting the data.

They have helped several campaigns in the region already, always staying fairly busy, they said.

“Every six months there is something [political] going on,” Sizemore said.

For now at least, Voterworkz is remaining focused on local elections – school boards, county and municipal elections.

For more about Voterworkz and its products, visit www.voterworkz.com.

Pat Fox, Editor pat@appenmediagroup.com

ADVERTISING

A.J. McNaughton

Production/Newsroom Manager

aj@appenmediagroup.com

Abby Breaux Mike Dorman Wendy Goddard Susan Hernandez June Meltzer Paige Roman Regan Schoch Taylor Wright

subscribe today 770-442-3278 8:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. ET 319 North Main Street Alpharetta, Georgia 30009 Published by Appen Media Group Advertising: All advertising published in North Atlanta Business Post is subject to current rate card; copies available from the advertising department. To obtain a copy contact your sales representative at 770-442-3278 or email hans@appenmediagroup.com.

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EDUCATION

4 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

UNG holds first StartItUp conference Offers guidance to young entrepreneurs

By KATHLEEN STURGEON kathleen@appenmediagroup.com CUMMING, Ga. — The University of North Georgia is trying to create an entrepreneur ecosystem.

“It’s vital for us to be competitive and successful long term and have joy within our lives that way,” said Ruben Boling, director for the Center for the Future of North Georgia.

That’s why Boling, along with his department, decided to initiate a program at UNG called StartUp UNG. “We had a couple of students come to us with business ideas but they didn’t know what to do,” Boling said. “That was an ah-ha moment for us to say we really need to get going on this and make it happen. So we got started on StartUp UNG. It is a student group that meets on a regular basis and talks about startups and brings in successful entrepreneurs and patent folks to talk with to see what they need to do from that standpoint.”

From there, Boling said the next phase was to get that idea out into the

community and involve them. So he created the first StartItUp conference Oct. 20 at the Lanier Technical College Conference Center.

Attendees included students from the University of North Georgia and high school students from both Forsyth and Lumpkin counties listen to entrepreneurs.

“We want our students to start talking with the high school students to encourage and support them,” Boling said. “If you look at the economic growth in our area, which is the foundation of a good lifestyle because we all want a job and provide for our families, the more businesses we start, the more opportunities we have to provide those kind of things. A lot of economic development is about attracting companies that are already established into the area. We want a good mixture of large companies providing that type of job, but also those made on their own kind of jobs.”

The lineup for the event included speeches from Johnny “Cupcakes” Earle, an apparel designer, Tom Chernetsky, CTO for social app Yik Yak, Katie Dicke and Marcus Hollinger, with Reach Records, and Beau Shell, also known as the Lil’ Ice Cream Dude.

Shell, the youngest speaker at age 11,

KATHLEEN STURGEON/Staff

Students from the University of North Georgia and high school students from both Forsyth and Lumpkin counties listen to entrepreneurs.

discussed how he created his successful ice cream business. This is his fourth year as an entrepreneur and he said his love of the sweet treat fueled his passion.

“My vision is to inspire and help other small businesses as I build my own successful ice cream empire, brand and private line of ice cream,” Shell said. In

2014, Shell’s business’ income project was at $19,000. This year he hopes to earn $25,000. He donates portions of his earnings to the Children’s Miracle Network and his church.

“Always think big, remain humble, give back,” he said, “and prepare to change the world with your dreams.”

NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • November 2015 • 5

BANKING & FINANCE

6 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

Keyworth Bank adopts Chick-fil-A corporate recipe EDITORIAL CALENDAR 2015-2016 Issue Date

Space Reservation Date

Materials Deadline

December 2015 – Chamber of Commerce spotlight • Forsyth Market Report special focus

Dec. 7

Nov. 25

Nov. 30

Dec. 31

Jan. 4

Jan. 28

Feb. 1

Feb. 25

Feb. 29

March 31

April 4

January 2016 – Energy and Resources Jan. 11

February 2016 – Technology (healthcare) Feb. 8

• Hall Market Report special focus

March 2016 – Residential Real Estate March 7

April 2016 – Small Business/Entrepreneurs April 11

• Cobb Market Report special focus

May 2016 – Leisure (vacations, golf, festivals) May 9

April 28

May 2

June 6

May 26

May 31

June 30

July 5

July 28

Aug. 1

Sept. 1

Sept. 6

Oct. 10

Sept. 29

Oct. 3

Nov. 7

Oct. 27

Oct. 31

June 2016 – Technology • Cherokee Market Report special focus

July 2016 – Commercial Real Estate/CID July 11

August 2016 – Banking and Finance • Gwinnett Market Report special focus

Aug. 8

September 2016 – Health & Medical Sept. 12

October 2016 – Higher Education • North Fulton Market Report special focus

November 2016 – Retail

December 2016 – Chamber of Commerce spotlight • Forsyth Market Report special focus

Dec. 12

Dec. 1

Dec. 5

Call 770-442-3278 to reserve your ad space today! www.NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

Focus on creating ‘raving customers,’ profits will follow

has been adopted by Johns Creek-based Keyworth Bank.

Keyworth Bank President and COO Neil Stevens happens to know Salyers, and would hear in conversations about what Chick-fil-A was doing. And the more he heard, the more he wanted to

By HATCHER HURD know. hatcher@appenmediagroup.com “I pumped David for a week about how to put the process in our company, JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — When was the to make it a part of our DNA,” Stevens last time you walked out of a bank and said. “It’s about empowering people, it’s raved about their customer service? about leadership. It’s about thinking, When was last time you walked into a ‘What does it take to have a truly great Chick-fil-A and did not do a double take organization?’” at the quality of the service received Like everything at the family-owned there?

Chick-fil-A, it starts at the top, and that Keyworth Bank in Johns Creek has means President and COO Dan Cathy. decided there is a lot to be learned from Salyers said it would be wrong to say it Chick-fil-A’s approach to instilling a trickles down from the top. It has becustomer-focused corporate culture that come embedded from within.

Keyworth would like to emulate.

“The culture In other words, aligns around values Atlanta-based Chickwhich influences befil-A has become the havior,” Salyers said. leading innovator in In his industry the the quick-service restypical core values taurant industry (fast are work for less, food is not in their maximize profits. vocabulary), and it is What happens when purely by design. It values conflict, as in is quite simply the speed versus safety? corporate culture.

“It must be clear It is all the more which value overstartling because the rides. And if it is quick-service indusclear, then it is clear try does not dispose all down the chanitself to leaving a lastnel,” Salyers said. ing impression. But To simplify what that does not sway Chick-fil-A does, it Chick-fil-A. takes the eyes off the From the $9-anbottom line and puts hour teenager at the focus on service the counter to the to the customer. If corporate office the bottom line is washroom, everyone profit, that is what inis lasered in on turnfluences the thinking ing each Chick-fil-A and the behavior all visitor into a “raving down the channel. customer,” as Chick“We want to crefil-A Marketing Vice ate raving customPresident David Salyers,” Salyers said ers phrases it. again. “We make that “For me personthe bottom line, and ally, our corporate Neil Stevens, profits follow.” culture is the ultiCOO Keyworth Bank It begins with mate competitive how customers are advantage,” Salyers greeted, how orders said. “Our culture is are brought to tables and how, when long difficult to create and impossible to relines form at the drive-thru, an employee verse engineer. The culture produces the comes outside to electronically take product, and the result equals the goal.” orders to reduce wait time.

The goal is to create raving customThe new generation of Chick-fil-A ers, customers who are beyond loyal. restaurants will have double-stacking Salyers says most corporate cultures drive-thru lanes and new kitchen equipare like a police state. There are superviment to prepare more food faster but sors and managers to enforce the rules. with the same level of quality.

“We want to change the way people Soon patrons will be able to order think about work. We want a culture that using a phone app before they arrive so works when the police are not around,” they can go straight in or straight to the he said. window.

It is so revolutionary, so intriguing, Chick-fil-A’s goal is to complete a that Chick-fil-A’s corporate philosophy

“Most companies want what is best for the bottom line. Few companies want what’s best for their employees.

Money is certainly important, but there are more important things.”

BANKING & FINANCE

NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • November 2015 • 7

SAVE THE DATE! A L P H A R E T TA C H A M B E R

Gala 2016

January 23

6:00pm - 10:00pm Music by HATCHER HURD/Staff

From left, Keyworth Bank CEO Jim F. Pope, Keyworth Bank President and COO Neil Stevens get some refresher lessons on leadership and corporate culture from Chick-fil-A Marketing Vice President David Salyers. drive-thru order in 90 seconds and a counter order in 60. Whether they like to use the word or not, that’s fast.

When you come in you are greeted, you’re served, and someone is cleaning tables and offering refills. Customers know they have received service.

“If you create value for your customer, the bottom line will be healthy,” Salyers said. “That is because we are not extracting value, we are creating value.”

Customers will come more often and tell their friends. And they won’t mind the price.

In 2013, Chick-fil-A spent $1 million evaluating its service. In 2014 it spent another $1 million evaluating service, and it will do the same in 2016.

They are looking at: taste, speed, attentiveness and courteousness, and cleanliness, and they want improvement in every area.

Why do they do that? Because they want to know what matters to their customers, and it is not something they want to guess about.

Chick-fil-A also will take its time choosing a new franchise operator, sometimes as much as a year.

“The first question most franchisors ask a prospective franchisee is, ‘What is your net worth?’ We are looking at other qualities,” Salyers said. “I want to know if I would like my teenager to work for that operator.”

Salyers said the average McDonald’s location will have 40 managers over a 20-year period. Chick-fil-A averages 1 operator over 20 years.

Keyworth has taken that culture to heart and the results are showing, Stevens said.

“We have found that if you hire remarkable people, and you create a remarkable culture, then the results will be remarkable,” Stevens said.

Another part of the Chick-fil-A culture adopted by Keyworth is how company employees interact with each other.

Read more about Jim Pope, Keyworth Bank and retail lending, Page 12.

Stevens said it has three components.

1. Everyone believes the best of each other.

2. Everyone expects the best of one another.

3. Everyone wants the best for each other.

“Most companies want what is best for the bottom line. Few companies want what’s best for their employees,” Stevens said. “Money is certainly important, but there are more important things.”

But when you believe the best of your employees, it engenders the moral authority to expect the most out of them as well. And it is an authority that is conferred.

Employees respond to feeling valued, to being loved, to knowing they are a difference maker and that they are empowered.

“That is how Chick-fil-A has done it, and they have gotten it down pat.

No one knows that at Keyworth, but we are working hard to be a place where everyone wants to work,” Stevens said.

Other characteristics are engendered as well. When people are empowered and valued, they feel part of something bigger than themselves. They buy into the culture. Moreover, the buy-in is authentic and genuine.

“We’re a local bank,” said Stevens.

“We have to be tied into what we are doing for our customers. We have a great culture at our bank. But what I’ve learned now is, once you think that, you’ve stopped trying to get better.

“We can’t afford to let that happen.”

Tickets $125 each Tables $1,500 each (12 seats)

Event Location:

Contact Kristen at Kristen@alpharettachamber.com for sponsorship information Sponsorship Deadline is December 31st Alpharetta Chamber of Commerce alpharettachamber.com (404) 545-0212

MEDICAL

8 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

Northside Hospital introduces Gamma Knife Perfexion FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — The Northside Hospital Cancer Institute continues to add to its already robust radiation oncology program.

Beginning in November, the newly renovated and expanded Northside Hospital-Forsyth Cancer Center will begin to offer the latest treatment for malignant and benign brain tumors and functional and vascular disorders.

“The addition of Gamma Knife Perfexion unit to the Neuro Oncology program at the Northside Hospital Cancer Institute will be a significant benefit to hundreds of patients requiring treatment of both benign and malignant brain lesions in the North Georgia and metro Atlanta area,” said Dr. Peter Possert, medical director of Northside’s Gamma Knife Program.

Gamma Knife surgery is a non-invasive alternative to traditional brain surgery. Despite the name, there’s no blade or knife. It delivers precisely focused highdose beams of radiation to selected areas deep within the brain, without a scalpel and without the usual risks of surgery or an incision. It’s designed for treatment of malignant and benign brain tumors, vascular abnormalities and functional disorders such as trigeminal neuralgia.

“The Gamma Knife Perfexion is able to treat multiple lesions in a single session,” Possert said. “And it successfully treats previously unreachable lesions.”

This type of radiosurgery is typically performed in a single outpatient treatment session without general anesthesia, he added.

“For patients, this means they will undergo a noninvasive form of brain surgery without surgical risks, a long hospital stay or subsequent rehabilitation,” said

Possert.

In the last three decades, Gamma Knife surgery has changed the landscape within the field of neurosurgery.

Its development has enhanced neurosurgical treatments offered to patients with brain tumors and vascular malformations by providing a safe, accurate and reliable treatment option. More than 70,000 patients globally are treated safely and successfully with Gamma Knife each year. Most patients return home the same day after the treatment is completed. Many clinicians prefer this technology due to the patient comfort, accuracy and

treatment outcomes.

The Northside Hospital-Forsyth Gamma Knife team consists of highly skilled and experienced radiation oncologists, neurosurgeons, medical physicists and nursing staff dedicated to providing patients with the most technological advance means of treating brain tumors and functional and vascular disorders.

Treatments are covered by most insurance companies and Medicare.

For more information, visit Northside.com/CancerInstitute or call 770-292-7037.

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REAL ESTATE

NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • November 2015 • 9

Commercial real estate:

Penn Hodge knows lay of the land When it comes to commercial property Hodge has done it all, done it well

By HATCHER HURD hatcher@appenmediagroup.com ALPHARETTA, Ga. – Commercial real estate developer Penn Hodge has not been around longer than dirt, but he knows where the best dirt in Atlanta is and what it’s worth.

Since the 1980s, when he first went to work in the real estate industry Hodge began to learn the real estate business from the ground up. He has not only survived the ups and downs of the Atlanta real estate market, he has flourished.

His company Penn Hodge Properties deals in commercial property acquisitions, development, joint ventures and sales.

Hodge didn’t start off looking for a career in real estate. He got an accounting degree at the University of Georgia and then “double-Dawged down” and got a law degree also.

He didn’t hang out his shingle for very long though. He found greener pastures right under his nose.

“I had some college buddies in real estate, and I noticed they were making twice the money I was, while I was working twice as hard. So I figured I would make a change,” Hodge said.

So he went to work at a large firm as a land broker, it was a true learning experience.

“I learned the basic fundamentals of growth patterns, development cycles, entitlements and a lot more,” he said.

He left the firm and started his own in 1989, just as the real estate market “cratered” and the savings and loans all across the country went belly up. Suddenly everyone learned about REOs – real estate owned (by the lenders) – and the Resolution Trust Corporation. The RTC was the vehicle that the government set up to sell off all the federally insured properties acquired when the S&Ls all went bust.

There were distressed assets on a national scale. It was a time when savvy buyers could do really well.

“In the early ’90s, some assets were selling for 10 percent to 20 percent of their original purchase price as the FDIC and RTC dumped billions of dollars in assets into the market,” Hodge said.

The RTC had to divest itself of the $349 billion in assets the FDIC was stuck with after the S&L banking debacle left the government holding their worthless mortgages.

For a man well-informed about real estate and a little bit of cash, the candy

store was open.

“It was a very fun and exciting time to be on the buying side. I invested my commissions in cherry-picked deals which included 100 acres on Windward Parkway, a couple of golf courses and the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in [Los Angeles],” said Hodge.

“The market rebounded quickly and I started building and buying retail centers up the 400 corridor. I have around 40ish properties and around 230 tenants.”

It was not a case of having any insider knowledge or special contacts, he said.

“I have no secret sauce. I consider myself a little old school in many ways.

There are few shortcuts in this business, and there is real value in hard work and being consistent and persistent,” Hodge said.

“It’s showing up every day and staying the course, keeping your nose clean and giving back if you can.”

It was a little different during the 2008-09 crash for Hodge – but only by a little.

“I was both scared and very excited.

Fundamentally, coming from a hedger/ contrarian vantage point, I knew most of the money is made in the down cycles,” he said.

“I had two large projects that were not completed and the banks could have made things very difficult for me. We did lose many good tenants over that twoyear period.

“Fortunately, I was able to hang onto my legacy portfolio before going on a buying spree.”

Hodge’s only regret was much the same as in the early ’90s.

“I wish I could have bought a lot more. But raising money has never been one of my strengths. The fun is all over now,” he said.

Being an old-school businessman, Hodge also has a somewhat contrarian view in maintaining the profitability of his properties – especially during the crunch of the recent recession.

Many commercial buildings went empty as their tenants’ businesses folded. Hodge believes in taking a proactive approach to keeping tenants viable.

“Our view is that if our tenants are not profitable, if they have a problem – then we have a problem. The problem is mutual and hopefully solvable,” he said.

“After doing this as long as we have been doing it, we have a pretty good feel for whether a tenant is a good fit for the

See HODGE, Page 28

Hatcher Hurd/Staff

Hodge short takes on Atlanta real estate The Atlanta market on the whole: “Atlanta remains a great market because the core of Atlanta just keeps getting better and better. Look at the BeltLine, it has really worked. Look at Grant Park. Look at Buckhead and Morningside. Virginia Highlands and Brookhaven are white hot. They appeal to a lot of empty nesters. People want to live in those great east Atlanta neighborhoods. They like the social interaction of the city.

Where are the greatest real estate opportunities?

Housing is where all the demand is today. The housing stock along Ga. 400 is at historical lows both for rentals and for-sale product. When you peel away such world-class, mixed-use projects like Avalon, they are primary housing projects with service and fashion retail there as the hook to sell or lease units. The next few years will be good for homebuilders.

Housing has been the one bright spot for the last 50 years with 1.5 million starts a year on average. It only slowed when it overheated before the crash and they began building 2.5 million units a year. It fell to 500,000 annually, but we’re back to 1 million now. We’re still returning to a 50-year trend.

Why is the Ga. 400 Corridor so hot?

It is the center of that vee between I-75 and I-85. There is still so much pristine land along Ga. 400. The water is rising here more than anywhere else.

What is your forecast for the retail side of commercial real estate?

The North Atlanta retail market was overbuilt in the last cycle and as a general rule, rates do not justify new construction. Meanwhile, there is real inflation in both labor and material for construction, thereby creating the perfect storm for rate growth.

Rates are on the upswing but only modestly. Therefore, my guess is that very little new retail spec construction will transpire in this cycle along the 400 corridor.

What do you see as key to a local retailer being successful?

Most newbies go in undercapitalized and ill prepared for the sacrifice it takes to be successful. Retail and real estate have a lot in common in that there are very few overnight successes.

Location, location, location. How important is that for a retailer to be successful?

Retail has a lot of factors in play. There are demographics, traffic counts, visibility, ingress and egress, signage, rate, relationship to the road, co-tenancy and more.

The one thing I can attest to is that if you have a “best-in-class retail operator,” throw all that out of the window. The public will find them.

RIBBON CUTTINGS

10 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

New businesses in your area

Business: Delightful Donuts Opened: Sept. 4, 2015 Owner: Sydnie Lim What: All of our donuts are made fresh every morning from scratch with qual-

ity ingredients and priced right.

Address: 12872 Hwy. 9, Suite 110, Milton Phone: 404-784-4830 Website: delightfuldonuts4u.com Business: Moe’s Southwest Grill Opened: Sept. 26, 2015 Owner: Mark Monroe What: One of the largest franchise groups with a total of 25 Moe’s locations across Atlanta and Rome in Georgia and Birmingham, Montgomery and Tuscaloosa in Alabama.

Address: 11270 Medlock Bridge Road, Johns Creek Phone: 470-719-8840 Website: moes.com

Business: Internal Medicine Associates of Roswell Opened: Jan. 5, 2015 Owner: Dr. Jason Hayes, affiliated with Northside Hospital What: A physician’s office for health care professional services for ages 18 and up. Dr. Hayes manages chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, COPD and much more.

Address: 1265 Upper Hembree Road, Suite 205, Roswell Phone: 770-521-1587 Email: lona.tate@northside.com Website: internalmedicine associatesofroswell.com

Business: Caliber Home Loans, Inc Opened: October 2015 What: Full service mortgage lender who offers a wide range of mortgage products for all types of

home buying and refinancing needs.

Address: 2055 Sugarloaf Circle Suite 250, Duluth Website: caliberhomeloans.com

Did your business recently cut a ribbon?

Submit it to business@appenmediagroup.com

Business: The Fireplace Place Opened: Sept. 1, 2015 Owner: Klayton Tapley What: Offers fireplaces, gas logs, fireplace inserts, fireplace glass doors, wood stoves, pellet stoves, gas grills, charcoal grills, outdoor

kitchens and outdoor fireplaces to enhance the atmosphere of any home.

Address: 1110 Alpharetta Street, Roswell Phone: 770-507-1529 Website: FireplaceOfAtlanta.com

Business: Style Interiors Opened: September 2015 Owner: Mona Adham What: Furniture, accessories, jewelry, holiday gifts and more.

Address: 9945 Jones Bridge Road, Alpharetta Phone: 470-719-9505 Website: styleinteriorsatl.com

Business: Lifeline Primary Care Opened: October 2015 Owner: Dr. Aziz and Dr. Safia Pirani What: Lifeline Primary Care brings affordable and quality healthcare to the community. Open 6 days a week,

servicing both walk-in and scheduled appointments.

Address: 4855 River Green Parkway, Suite 700 Duluth Email: lifelineprimarycare@gmail.com Website: lifelineprimarycare.com

Business: Planet Fitness Snellville Opened: October 2015 What: Wide selection of brandname cardio and strength equipment, and provide unlimited

fitness instruction with all memberships.

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REAL ESTATE

NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • November 2015 • 11

Teasley Place to bring mixed-use to downtown Alpharetta Developers seek to leave mark on hometown

By JONATHAN COPSEY jonathan@appenmediagroup.com ALPHARETTA, Ga. – Nearly eight undeveloped acres of downtown Alpharetta are in the hands of a private joint venture headed up by developers who seek to leave their mark on their home city.

River Rock Development is a partnership of two developers and their combined parcels of land make them one of the largest landowners in historic downtown Alpharetta.

One of their projects is The Lofts, a luxury condo development in downtown Alpharetta.

Abutting The Lofts to the south is another 1.5-acre project at the corner of Milton Avenue and Canton Street, which will mix with The Lofts, called Teasley Place.

Teasley Place will have 24 for-sale units of residential above 17,000 square feet of retail and 5,000 square feet of office. It is four stories tall.

River Rock sees Teasley Place as the first of several developments in the downtown.

“There is a market demand for it and the building of a village atmosphere,” said George H. Jackson IV, with River Rock. “People want to shop, eat, live and work in downtown Alpharetta.”

Certainly, Alpharetta has become a hotbed of housing, with numerous residential developments queueing up to

A rendering shows what the new Teasley Place development may look like in downtown Alpharetta. It will feature office and retail on the ground floor and condos above. be in the downtown. Apartments, townhomes and some single-family homes are within a half-mile of the city center.

Part of the appeal of Alpharetta is how much of a blank slate it is.

“Here we have a unique opportunity,” Jackson said. “In Roswell or Atlanta, you have to build to what is already there.

Here we can be innovative and creative.”

A case in point is Roswell’s Canton Street. While that may be the perfect location for the mixed-use, live-workplay concept that is popular in building circles today, it is largely built out and maintains a certain aesthetic that can bind developers.

Mark Wyssbrod, another River Rock

team member, said mixed-use development has grown quickly in popularity.

“The attitude has gone from ‘not in my backyard’ to ‘can you build it today?’”

Wyssbrod said.

Jackson agreed.

“Millennial culture has caught on,” he said. “People want to be in the car less.

Millennial culture has inspired the baby boomer culture. They see the positive in some millennial preferences.”

Jackson, Wyssbrod and River Rock Development believe those preferences will be well implemented in projects like Teasley Place.

“We are proud of Alpharetta and we want to help build a greater city than

there is now,” Jackson said.

Because the developers live in Alpharetta, he said there is no chance of “build-and-run,” with shoddy or inappropriate development being constructed. Jackson and Wyssbrod said they want a quality product they can be proud of having in their hometown.

“We want the community to say ‘we love what they did downtown,’” Jackson said.

“Alpharetta has great opportunities not just to build but to be part of the community,” Wyssbrod said. “I’m not sure where there is a better opportunity.”

Work is expected to begin on Teasley Place “imminently,” Jackson said.

Mixed-use village development delivers active recreation focus for retailers, residents ATLANTA — RocaPoint Partners and New York-based The Georgetown Company recently closed on the land for its $370 million development in Forsyth County and plan to bring a wholly new and unexpected mixed-use village to the area. Named HALCYON – meaning idyllic, joyful, serene and prosperous – the new development is located directly off Georgia 400’s exit 12 on McFarland Parkway.

Groundbreaking is scheduled for Jan. 2016 and the grand opening set for fall 2017.

“HALCYON will be the front door to Forsyth’s Big Creek Greenway,” said Patrick Leonard, principal of RocaPoint Partners. “To that end, we have placed nature and active recreation squarely in the center of our design process. The magnetic quality of HALCYON’s setting and amenities will attract residents and visitors seeking to connect with this special place.”

Phase one plans include 125,000 square feet of retail space. Leased by JLL, HALCYON’s commercial village will include a movie or entertainment venue, gourmet market, outdoor outfitter, up to 10 local and regional full-service and fast-casual restaurants, a boutique fitness club and service retail. Up to 65,000 square feet of loft offices and built-to-suit spaces are included in phase one of the village, as well as a 110-room hotel developed

by Tharaldson Hospitality, one of the country’s leading ground-up hotel developers. When complete, the project will have two hotels and more than 360,000 square feet of office and retail.

RocaPoint has partnered with Monte Hewett Homes and Edward Andrews Homes to develop HALCYON’s for sale residences, which include 87 single-family units and 155 townhomes with prices starting in the high $400s. The 448 luxury apartments appeal to all ages, from boomers to millennials. Additionally, more than 3,600 residents will live within a half-mile walk of HALCYON’s commercial village.

HALCYON’s phase one features a new trailhead welcome center for Forsyth’s Big Creek Greenway, a 9.6-mile paved recreation trail and linear park. County governments are working together to connect the existing Forsyth and North Fulton segments, creating a continuous, 40+-mile, non-motorized multi-use trail system and greenway. Along with the Greenway access, HALCYON will offer two miles of nature trails that meander through the 50+ acres of community greenspace, a four-acre natural open space, Wi-Fi enabled pocket parks and gathering areas in the center of the commercial village.

“Located in the bull’s-eye of metro Atlanta’s affluent

northern suburbs, HALCYON is an exciting destination for retailers, residents and future HALCYON visitors,” said Steve Yenser, EVP at JLL. “Its connectivity and accessibility to active recreation and nature will provide residents and visitors alike with a very special live, work and play environment.”

Lew Oliver and Whole Town Solutions is the master architect and land planner for HALCYON. Wakefield Beasley has been selected as the commercial architect.

Civil engineers at Southeastern Engineering, Inc. and land brokers with New South Realty Associates round out the development team.

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12 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

Retail lending grows, but lags behind other sectors

By Patrick Fox pat@appenmediagroup.com While many factors go into calculating the health of retail, the amount and number of loans to retailers can provide part of the picture.

The U.S. Small Business Administration is setting lending records this year with close to $23 billion in guaranteed loans.

While business loans can cover a wide array of sectors, from manufacturing to equipment to office space, the retail sector appears healthy, according to the latest numbers from the Mortgage Bankers Association. While commercial lending overall was up 29 percent in the second quarter of this year compared to 2014, retail lending was up only 17 percent — healthy, but not as strong as industrial and multifamily lending.

Keyworth Bank president Jim Pope said he is seeing improved strength in retail.

“I would say it is definitely better, stronger, more active than it was several years ago,” he said. “I see the smallbusiness owners, especially in the retail service industry, are much more encouraged. They’re seeing more sales, more activity.”

Pope said that while all may do well in the growing economy, the ones who develop a strong customer focus with the right culture will shine. And he uses the same principal at his Johns Creek-based community bank.

“We place a high value in developing a strong culture,” he said. “We think that if you’ve got the right culture in your company, having high expectations of each other, but letting every employee know that you care about each other, makes sense. Once you know people are generally interested in you … they will work hard for you.”

Pope said Keyworth mirrors a lot of the same philosophies that Chickfil-A practices. One of the executives at Chick-fil-A, David Salyers, a good friend of Pope’s, and Randy Ross wrote a book called “Remarkable: Resolving Your Most Important Business Issue.”

“Where I think it carries over is that, if your employees feel valued, they’re going to give better service, better attention to the customers, and they’re going to feel valued,” Pope said. “It’s proven itself. We’ve grown very nicely. We’ve gotten great results. It’s not all about the bottom line.”

Small retailers also have access to government lending programs through

“We’re not a lender of last resort, we are looking for clients that meet typical bank loan standards, but there is maybe something like a term or a down payment that a bank could not do otherwise.”

Lorra Lee, Small Business Access Partners president

the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Small Business Access Partners, founded in 1982 as an SBA-certified development company, typically serves the area north of Atlanta, but it is licensed to lend throughout the state. About 7 to 8 percent of the loans have been in the retail sector over the past several years, said company president Lorra Lee. CDCs make loans in partnership with other lending institutions, such as banks.

“We’re not a lender of last resort, we are looking for clients that meet typical bank loan standards, but there is maybe something like a term or a down payment that a bank could not do otherwise,” she said.

Lee’s company, and most CDCs, typically structure loans where a bank lends 50 percent, the CDC contributes 40 percent, and the business puts down 10 percent, so it has a lower down payment coming into the project.

“We are actually a lender in our own right,” Lee said.

“The SBA’s 504 Program is the company’s bread and butter.”

This funding differs from the more common SBA 7(a) Loan Program, which includes financial help for businesses with special requirements.

The 504 Program provides financing for major fixed assets, such as equipment or real estate.

Organizations like Small Business Access Partners were created to originate these

loans, do credit underwriting, then close the loans and service them, which is where their primary income comes from.

“Typically, businesses can secure loans with a 10 percent down payment, but those businesses operating for less than two years may require more of an initial investment,” Lee said.

She said retail sales are being driven by consumer confidence and the availability of disposable income, such as that realized with the decline in fuel prices.

Niche franchises appear to be doing the best.

One example is Plato’s Closet in Gainesville and Cumming.

“They rented space, but their demand was growing, their inventory was growing, they were busting at the seams,” Lee said. “They were ready to move out of that rental space into their own building.”

With more room, the company could then divide up and better rotate their inventory.

Growth in construction has contributed to retail sales in another way, Lee said. Many convenience stores relied on day laborers for a steady flow of sales, particularly before and after the workday, she said. When construction plummeted during the recession, that customer traffic dried up, she said.

Along those lines, Lee mentioned another client who sells and supplies inventory to convenience stores. The growth in the retail business at the stores required them to stock more inventory, so they had to expand.

“On their side, it translates to better pricing, particularly for the convenience stores which could buy more in bulk and supply more stores,” she said. “They were able to use our program to get the space they needed to support expansion.”

Both clients, she said, were existing businesses on a growth trajectory, so they limited their down payments to 10 percent, and that helped preserve working capital.

“We had another company, a travel agency which provides travel and logistical support, and their main client base are travelers to Asia, another niche market,” she said.

NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • November 2015 • 13

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14 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

The Collection could add residential

By KATHLEEN STURGEON kathleen@appenmediagroup.com FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — The Collection at Forsyth, an outdoor shopping mall, could soon be adding housing to its complex. The Forsyth County Board of Commissioners heard from Ethan Underwood, an attorney with Miles, Hansford and Tallant, who gave a presentation on The Collection expansion initiative.

“We are asking to help expand The Collection,” Underwood said. “It is the commercial center of south Forsyth County and we want to make sure we’re continuing to attract excellent tenants.”

The Collection, 410 Peachtree Parkway, needs to evolve into a true mixeduse development, Underwood said.

“When you’re competing with Internet sales, retail is hard,” Underwood said. “You really have to make shopping an experience rather than just going into a store. We want to make The Collection the commercial jewel of Forsyth County and utilize it to its fullest extent.”

Part of the initiative would include a town center with a town green where concerts, plays and special events could be held. Underwood said they are looking to create a mixed-use area with a 24-

hour customer base for residents living on-site, additional offices, retail area and park space.

One thing The Collection has over other similar developments, he said, is the fact retail is already there and residential would come next, which is opposite of most developments.

“A lot of mixed-use developments have said they want to build but need a residential first,” Underwood said. “I’m not aware of any folks who go with the commercial component of that. This is a development where we already have commercial on the ground. Now we want to utilize the residential.”

Commissioner Cindy Jones Mills said she thinks the plan could help the retail already at The Collection. “[Residents] wanted commercial and now they want residential,” Mills said.

“The fact of the matter is your commercial will live if you have the residential around it. A lot of [The Collection’s] commercial component is dying because it doesn’t have residential.”

There would be about 300 housing units, Underwood said, all one- to two-bedroom apartments. Because of the pressure on schools to avoid overcrowding, Underwood said they are not looking into making three-bedroom units.

Ultimately, Underwood said they’re looking to create an atmosphere where workers at The Collection would like to live there, as well. They also want empty nesters and young professionals to live there, similar to Avalon, 2200 Avalon Blvd., in Alpharetta. Underwood said many people have noticed Avalon’s success, where the average age of apartment dwellers is 54.

Along with The Collection employees, Underwood said this would give those working at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta next door an easy place to live where they would be able to walk to work. Being next to CHOA will also protect tenants and bring better tenants in, Underwood said.

Tom Brown, director of Planning and Community Development for the county, said they want to create a signature event with The Collection, and that the health, fitness and green aspects of the development were considerations.

Underwood said they wanted to create an overlay district that identifies this as a special area with high standards.

“This portion of the project is not in the Peachtree Parkway overlay,” Underwood said. “It can really be developed with anything. By developing an overlay, you’ll be creating cultural standards. An

“We want to make The Collection the commercial jewel of Forsyth County and utilize it to its fullest extent.”

Ethan Underwood, attorney with Miles, Hansford and Tallant

overlay is important so it doesn’t open floodgates. If you create a specific zoning overlay, you don’t have folks two miles down the road saying they want to do the same thing. This will help bring The Collection up to where it’s completing the experience.”

Before approving a new overlay, the BOC and Underwood agreed Underwood’s staff would come up with sections to add to the county’s overlay policy and Brown’s office would take it from there.

NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • November 2015 • 15

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16 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

Macy's remains a key anchor, along with Sears and Mega Mart, at Gwinnett Place Mall. The new owners, Moonbeam Capital Investments, plan to reshape the property into a liv

Gwinnett Place Mall: New ow unveil plans to pursue new m

By Patrick Fox pat@appenmediagroup.com DULUTH, Ga. – Once the epicenter of elite north side shopping, Gwinnett Place Mall in Duluth has lost the sparkle it had when it opened in 1984 and enjoyed through the mid ’90s.

The 1.3 million-square-foot complex sits weekdays with parking spaces barely 20 percent filled. Inside, where crowds once elbowed their way up and down escalators to stroll along the two-story atrium, there is now plenty of space for shoppers to walk three-abreast without difficulty.

Shops now occupy almost 70 percent of the available space.

Yet, for all the obituaries written on the mall – the closures of Belk in 2013 and JCPenney earlier this year – the edifice is far from dead.

Steven Maksin, CEO of Moonbeam Capital Investments, which bought the distressed mall two years ago, said plans are underway to revitalize the market and make it into something new.

“Truth be told, all these assets are challenging assets to deal with,” he said.

“What’s an opportunity for some is a downfall for others.”

Moonbeam operates 10 malls in 10

states throughout the United States.

At one point, Gwinnett Place Mall was worth more than $165 million, but the debt alone was over $110 million at the time Moonbeam bought the property in 2013 for $13.5 million. Besides the buildings, the deal included nearly 40 acres of land and infrastructure. It also included obligations with management and legal issues, which Maksin says are being resolved successfully.

“But by buying it for the right price, we are able to stabilize it for now,” he said.

“And we have a game plan to bring its old glory back with a redevelopment plan.”

Unfortunately, a sizeable land acquisition like Gwinnett Place Mall requires a lot of planning and chasing a number of players to get the right plan in place.

Reconstituting the mall is also complicated by a restrictive easement agreement with some of the property’s major anchors.

Macy’s, Mega Mart and Sears still operate as anchors at the mall.

Another complication is that traditional retail is different these days. Mall tenants and the rents they’re willing to pay are also different.

“The real challenge and the real opportunity for redevelopment comes through governmental assistance and requires

a fundamental approach to mixed-use redevelopment where the multifamily, the work and live and play concept, comes into play,” Maksin said.

Moonbeam has not disclosed precise plans, but Maksin says the formula will involve some combination of restaurants, entertainment, retail and multifamily. Too much detail too early invites speculators and inflated land prices, he said.

Moonbeam has already launched nontraditional operations at other malls across the country. The company has poured millions into a state-of-the-art medical facility at one site and is discussing the possibility of building a convention center for an educational facility in Florida.

The company also has a number of colleges renting space at malls.

“Those are the key anchor plays that are available to us as tools to refocus, regroup and redevelop the mall,” Maksin said. “The traditional play is also available.”

Earlier this year, the company was able to bring in home décor superstore At Home to its Greely, Colorado, mall, which served as an anchor play occupying 95,000 square feet of space.

“A lot depends on us taking the mall area, recognizing that the true plan will be

something born out of trial and error because we live in a different era. Just simply building more retail is not going to do it for Gwinnett Place,” Maksin said.

Since it took over ownership, Moonbeam has spent significant time studying the local market.

“We know with the downsizing of retailers, the uncertainty of a number of anchor tenants and the competition in the market, there is too much competition within our 10-mile trade radius,” said Shawl Pryor, senior vice president of real estate for Moonbeam. “We’re looking at doing something that is new; it’s going to be exciting. We’re trying to create an experience with restaurants and entertainment, but also tie into that mixed-use concept.”

Indeed, the area is bustling with major retail, with a Kohl’s, Costco, Sam’s Club, Petco and PetSmart situated within two miles of the mall.

Joe Allen, executive director of Gwinnett Place Community Improvement District, says he is encouraged by Moonbeam’s plans.

“The mall may still be going through challenging times,” he said. “Moonbeam has come in to pick up the pieces, try to stabilize that mall, but they are moving forward with some redevelopment plans.”

TAIL 10%

Retail vacancy rates third quarter, 2015

8%

Source: CoStar

6%

6.5%

5.9%

5.4%

Roswell/Alpharetta

Sandy Springs/Dunwoody

Kennesaw/NW Cobb

4.1%

6.9% Town Center/Marietta

Cumberland/Galleria

7.5% Atlanta

5.1%

7.6% Cherokee/Woodstock

Cumming/Forsyth County

7.9% Lawrencebille/Dacula

8.9% Suwanee/Burford

8.4%

9.2% Lilburn/Snelville

Gwinnett Mall/Duluth

9.2%

$300 $250 $200 $150 $100 $50 $0

“If your shopping center does not have the correct threshold of buying power, you’re going to struggle to maintain the tenants, and you will have higher vacancy rates.”

Meyers said another reason vacancy rates are declining locally is that commercial construction is not as robust as one might expect in Atlanta, which is traditionally an easy market in which to build. This leaves businesses with only an existing inventory to choose from, he said.

Meyers also predicts a positive outlook for the retail property market going forward. As inventory shrinks, landlords will see strong growth in the rates tenants will have to pay over the next five years, he said.

“The vacancy rates this year ought to be really healthy compared to what’s been happening over the past three months, 10 years,” he said.

Current sale price of retail property by square foot Source: CoStar

Southwest: $107

Businesses continue to soak up north Atlanta’s retail inventory as the value of commercial space creeps upward.

Joel Owens, principal broker with All World Realty in Canton, said the first part of the commercial recovery is already underway and lease space is climbing in value.

Markets for individual properties can vary widely, he said, because factors such as high traffic and affluence vary from location to location.

“A strip center that’s on a hard corner facing two streets will command a higher price than a strip center that’s down off the corner, still on a commercial corridor, but not getting two sides of traffic,” Owens said. “National tenants will pay a premium for those corner locations.”

On average, Owens said, at the height of the market in 2007, retail leases reached a high of $30 a square foot.

Then it went down to $15 a square foot during the recession. Now that it’s on a comeback, tenants are paying about $19 a square foot.

The affluence of areas such as Johns Creek and Forsyth County, he said, also weigh heavily on lease rates.

“I think it’s a great market,” Owens said. “Cherokee County was actually named one of the top 10 in the country in affordability index, which helps drive the economic growth of an area.”

There are clear indicators that the local market for retail property is improving, according to Efe Ovie-Ogodo, market analyst with CoStar Group, which tracks commercial property throughout the country.

Areas around Cumberland in Cobb County, Roswell and Avalon in Alpharet-

ta have significantly lower vacancy rates than some of metro Atlanta’s outlying areas, Ogodo said. They also command higher prices.

Nowhere is the market more improved than on the north side, said Jeff Meyers, CoStar’s senior real estate economist.

Markets on the north side generally have lower vacancy rates than areas south of I-20, he said. Those retail properties lying in areas of good buying power and good demographics are showing value growth greater than areas in less-affluent areas, he said.

“We define buying power as bodies times income,” Meyers said. “So you can get there through affluence, but you can also get there through population. If you have a certain amount of buying power within a radius of your shopping center, you tend to perform very well.

Northeast: $119

Allen said the area is much more than Gwinnett Place Mall.

“Look at the shopping centers up and down Pleasant Hill Road,” he said. “Mall Corners is probably 98 percent occupied, Market Fair, 98 percent occupied, Marketplace, 95-98 percent occupied. You see a new LA Fitness has just opened up, a multimillion-dollar investment in the Promenade at Pleasant Hill.”

In addition, all the hotels have gone through multimillion-dollar renovations in the area, and the auto dealerships are back, he said.

The CID has helped initiate millions of dollars in street and landscaping improvements including the new diverging diamond interchange at I-85 and Pleasant Hill Road and a new traffic-response system that went live this summer.

More recently, the CID just unveiled its Activate Gwinnett Place Plan, which outlines how the group will work with the county to invest in the area, add green space and make it more walkable, Allen said.

“That mall cannot stay 100 percent retail,” he said. “Retail is changing and has changed too much. This is still a strong, strong area, a strategic location in the heart of the most dynamic county in the Southeast.”

By Patrick Fox pat@appenmediagroup.com

Buckhead to North Fulton: $203

wners model

Retail property gains value as vacancy rates fall

Atlanta Central Business District: $262 (Downtown, Midtown and West Midtown)

ve-work-play commercial hub.

Norcross/Peachtree

0%

9.9%

2%

Powder Springs/Austell

4%

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18 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

Retail sales hard to track in Georgia

By Patrick Fox pat@appenmediagroup.com One of the best ways to chart the health of retail is through sales tax collections, but those numbers are tough to track back to their lair in Georgia.

While the Georgia Department of Revenue releases figures each month, state sales tax collections are not broken down by locality. And that has proven frustrating for one of the state’s preeminent economists.

“I can only see what the state sales tax collections are in total, but I cannot go to an individual area,” said Rajeev Dhawan, director of Georgia State University’s Economic Forecasting Center.

Dhawan, who issues quarterly national and state economic forecasts,

“People are buying cars, but they’re not spending money on the other stuff nationally...”

Rajeev Dhawan, director of Georgia State University’s Economic Forecasting Center

said sales tax figures are a key element in tracking consumer sentiment and the health of the economy.

Even with statewide figures, Dhawan said, it is tricky to chart retail because the tax law on the sale of new cars changed in 2013. Before, then, the state used to collect sales tax on the sale of new cars. Now, car purchases are assessed a one-time tax on the fair market value of the vehicle.

“So it doesn’t show up in the sales tax category,” Dhawan said. “It shows up in a different category.”

The state does release distribution numbers, money it collects and distributes locally.

“Looking at the health of the economy with the jobs numbers, you get some idea,” he said. “Even the job numbers have their own issue,” he said. “That’s the reason we do [our forecasts] every three months.”

Looking nationally, retail sales are doing decently, Dhawan said.

“But there is one problem,” he added “People are buying cars, but they’re not spending money on the other stuff nationally. They’re being a little bit stingy, which is where the sales tax collections count. In the state of Georgia, the same pattern is probably there, but I cannot see how many cars are sold.”

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Sales tax revenues over the years State coffers have edged up over the past several years, thanks in large part to collection increases in sales tax and individual income taxes. Together, the two categories account for about 75 percent of all revenues the state collects. (Figures are in billions.)

Fiscal Yr.

Sales & Use Taxes

Individual income tax

2014 2013 2012 2011

$5.171 $5.156 $4.332 $5.100

$8.966 $8.753 $8.142 $7.658

Total tax revenue $17.8 $17.0 $16.0 $15.3 Source: Georgia Department of Revenue

Dhawan said when a car is sold, there is no sales tax number to consider.

There’s an ad valorem fee which goes into a different category. He said he has to combine them to get an idea that the tax collections are keeping steady, just like last year. They are growing at a rate of around 4 or 5 percent, he said.

“We don’t know what kind of sales are happening in Georgia,” he said. “We can only know nationally what’s happening.

But, there’s no reason to presume that Georgia is bucking the national trend or doing worse than anywhere else.”

For the time being, Dhawan said he sees a continuing trend of guarded

spending among consumers.

“They have the money, they have the gas savings, they have the income, but when they buy the car, they have to service the car payment, and they economize on going out, eating out, spending on clothing,” he said. “So there is a tradeoff right now, which is a new phenomenon compared to 2003-2007 when people would spend on both categories at the same time.”

Back then, he said, consumers were using their home equity loans as piggy banks to finance a lot of their spending habits.

“But now you can’t do that,” he said, “because people are becoming more rational.”

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NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • November 2015 • 19

Entrepreneur magazine ranked Hampton by Hilton the number one franchise in America with a startup cost ranging between $4million – $14 million.

Franchise market posts modest gains

By Patrick Fox pat@appenmediagroup.com As the economy grows and lending eases, many Georgian’s have turned to launching their own businesses.

There are 950,532 small businesses in the state, according to 2013 figures from the U.S. Small Business Administration, the latest year for which data are available. About 20 percent of those businesses have employees other than the owners. Many of these small businesses are franchise operations – rights or licenses granted by a company to an individual or group to market its products or services in a specific territory.

Figures from the U.S. Department of Commerce estimate there were 757,000 franchise establishments operating in the country. The International Franchise Association predicts that number will grow by 1.6 percent this year.

Here is a quick look at how experts rate the top franchises: Entrepreneur magazine ranks its top franchises based chiefly on financial strength and stability, growth rate and size of the system. It also considers startup costs, percentage of terminations and years the company has been franchising.

Name Startup costs 1. Hampton by Hilton $4 million-$14 million 2. Anytime Fitness $63,000-$418,000 3. Subway $117,000-$263,000 4. Jack in the Box $1 million-$2 million 5. Supercuts $114,000-$234,000 6. Jimmy John’s $323,000-$544,000 7. Servpro $142,000-$191,000 8. Denny’s $1 million-$2 million 9. Pizza Hut $279,000-$2 million 10. 7-Eleven $38,000-$1 million Forbe’s lists its top picks based on growth and continuity rates tracked over five years.

Under $150,000 1. Brightway Insurance Studios 2. MaidPro Spa 3. Right At Home 4. Discovery Map 5. Just Between Friends Schools

$150,000-$500,000 Jimmy John’s Jet’s Pizza Marco’s Pizza Plato’s Closet Dutch Bros.

Over $500,000 Sola Salon Massage Envy Firehouse Subs The Learning Experience Primrose

Franchise Business Review, a trade publication, rates its top franchises based on owner satisfaction and success. Here’s a look at some of their top picks, in no particular order.

Under $50,000 • Our Town America • MaidPro • Heaven’s Best Carpet Cleaning • HomeVestors of America

$50,000-$150,000 • Precision Concrete Cutting • Wild Birds Unlimited • CertaPro Painters • FirstLight HomeCare

Over $150,000 • Christian Brothers Automotive FASTSIGNS • Two Men and a Truck • Sport Clips

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Q&A with Lorraine White, owner Antique Traditions 1. What year did you start in business?

Antique Traditions is celebrating 20 years in business this year. We are located in downtown historic Norcross, a beautiful and vibrant city that is a wonderful destination for shoppers and visitors alike.

2. How many people do you employ?

Our business has grown and evolved into a very collaborative effort. We currently have three retail businesses under one roof and operate as “partners” with three additional part-time staff members. We operate our three businesses (Antique Traditions, Rem-i-nice and Details Boutique) as one business known to our customers as The Shops of Antique Traditions.

3. What is the secret to competing with big retailers?

First of all, building relationships with customers and providing them with outstanding service is the most important thing.

We also sell a variety of antique and vintage merchandise that is more unique

Antique Traditions 109 South Peachtree St. Norcross, Ga. 30071 770 263-7761 shopsofantiquetraditions.com and offers a quality and value that is not available at big retailers. New merchandise is also part of our inventory, and to compete with «big box stores,» we look for high-quality, well-priced merchandise and handcrafted products made locally or in the USA whenever possible.

Our customers have a strong sense of loyalty and pride about supporting small businesses and shopping locally with someone they know.

4. How do you make money in retail?

At The Shops of Antique Traditions, our choice of inventory, price point and presentation are important, and we have store hours that are flexible with the seasons and events. Promotions, branding, social media, in-store events and working with the city of Norcross promoting and reacting to their events are all part

of how we generate sales for our retail business.

5. What advice do you have for someone looking to start a business?

I would recommend you make sure

BRIEFS & SHORTS: Gwinnett County WestRock acquisition announced

NORCROSS, Ga. – WestRock Company has completed the acquisition of SP Fiber Holdings Inc., a producer of recycled containerboard, kraft and bag paper, and newsprint.

Through this transaction, WestRock has acquired mills in Dublin, Georgia, and Newberg, Oregon, that produce lightweight recycled containerboard and kraft and bag paper for end use in consumer and corrugated packaging.

The transaction is expected to generate significant synergies and be accretive to WestRock’s earnings in the second half of fiscal year 2016.

Clayton homebuilding group acquires Atlanta homebuilder BUFORD, Ga.—The Clayton home building group announced the acquisition of substantially all of the operating assets of Chafin Communities. The purchase includes approximately 1,100 developed, undeveloped and contracted building lots.

The site-built developer, located in Buford, was founded in 1996 by brothers Eric and Daryl Chafin.

Both Chafins will retain their positions, heading up the Chafin team and all team members will become Clayton employees.

Clayton has been in business since 1956, winning multiple awards for design and construction. Through its affiliates and family of brands, Clayton builds, sells, finances, leases and insures manufactured homes, modular homes and site-built homes, as well commercial and educational buildings. Clayton is a vertically integrated Berkshire Hathaway company.

you love and believe in what you are doing. Prepare yourself for extremely long hours, and make sure you work with people you can trust and communicate with. Lastly, how you make others feel after an experience in your establishment is what they remember about you.

Submit news to business@appenmediagroup.com

Sterling acquires 95,500 s.f.

Peachtree Parkway Plaza Norcross shopping center went for $12.25 million PALM BEACH, Fla. – Sterling Organization has announced the acquisition of Peachtree Parkway Plaza, a shopping center in the affluent Atlanta suburb of Norcross. The asset was purchased from DLC Management Corp. via the firm’s institutional fund Sterling Value Add Partners II LP for $12.25 million.

Peachtree Parkway Plaza is a 95,509-square-foot neighborhood center anchored by Goodwill, Dollar General and Youfit Health Clubs. It is at the intersection of Peachtree Parkway (42,000 vehicles/day) and Spalding Drive (16,000 vehicles/day), 20 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta.

The center is currently 83 percent occupied. Almost 65,000 people live within a three-mile radius of the property, where the average household income is approximately $100,000.

“Peachtree Parkway Plaza represents a solid opportunity to add value first by executing a lease-up strategy and ultimately by upgrading the existing anchors with retailers that will cater appropriately to and ideally serve the residents of this affluent Atlanta suburb,” said Brian Kosoy, managing principal, president and CEO of Sterling Organization.

“We want to thank the DLC team for working with us in such a professional manner on what was a very

“Peachtree Parkway Plaza represents a solid opportunity to add value first by executing a leaseup strategy and ultimately by upgrading the existing anchors with retailers that will cater appropriately to and ideally serve the residents of this affluent Atlanta suburb.”

Brian Kosoy, managing principal, president and CEO of Sterling Organization

quick and smooth transaction.”

Peachtree Parkway Plaza was originally developed in 1986. A new Taco Bell restaurant was recently built at the property, and other national businesses at the property include Blimpie Subs & Salads, Wendy’s and Arby’s.

Sterling Organization is a vertically integrated private equity real estate investment firm headquartered in Palm Beach.

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Ruth’s Chris Steak House in Alpharetta was the site for North Atlanta Business Post’s 40 under 40 awards ceremony.

ABBY BREAUX/Staff

North Atlanta’s best and brightest

By JONATHAN COPSEY jonathan@appenmediagroup.com

ALPHARETTA, Ga. – Forty of north Atlanta’s best and brightest stars gathered in one room Oct. 22 to be recognized for their status as up-and-comers in the business and cultural world. The North Atlanta Business Post’s inaugural 40 Under 40 awards event was held at Ruth’s Chris Steak House in Alpharetta.

Many of the candidates were selected by the chambers of commerce from the counties the Post covers – Cherokee, Cobb, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett and Hall – for making an impact in their communities and businesses.

NABP organized the 40 Under 40 event as a means to highlight the promising talent in the six counties of the north Atlanta area. Each chamber of commerce in the NABP’s coverage area selected a list of nominees, with the greater business community selecting their own. Staff from the NABP chose 40 winners from the nominations.

“We worked with all of our chambers of commerce to decide who were the most distinguished nominees,” said Hans Appen, publisher of the NABP. The keynote speech was given by Alpharetta Mayor David Belle Isle, who had just turned 40 years old himself.

There is more to life than starting a career, he said. A legacy can have lasting effects on those around you, but must be worked for constantly.

He said the first question someone starting a career asks is “can I do it?”

The second question is “can I be significant?”

“What breaks your heart?” he asked.

It should be your mission to stop whatever that is from happening, he said.

That is how you make a difference in the world.

Those who were assembled in the room, all named the best in north Atlanta, were well primed to leave a lasting legacy.

ABBY BREAUX/Staff

The winners from the Cumming-Forsyth Chamber of Commerce are from left, Jeremy Skinner, Vince Johnson, Edward Bailey, Rose Procter and Laura Stewart.

ABBY BREAUX/Staff

The winners from the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce are from left, Samantha Vince, Jason Chaliff and Bethany Usry. Not pictured Ann Hanlon and Andrea Shorr.

Jonathan Copsey/Staff

The at-large selection.

ABBY BREAUX/Staff

The winner present from the Cobb Chamber of Commerce is Michael A. Wall. Not pictured Mandy Burton.

ABBY BREAUX/Staff

The winners from the Gwinnett of Commerce are from left, Lisa Sherman,Elissa Dooman, Samantha Dawkins and Alicia Krogh. Not pictured Thomas Boyce.

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The Class of 2015 Cobb Chamber of Commerce Mandy Burton Michael A. Wall

Cumming-Forsyth Chamber of Commerce Edward Bailey Vince Johnson Rose Procter Jeremy Skinner Laura Stewart

Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce Thomas Boyce Samantha Dawkins Elissa Dooman Alicia Krogh Lisa Sherman

Hall Chamber of Commerce Katie Dubnik Brett Fowler Morgan House Tate O’Rouke Philip Wilheit Jr.

North Fulton Chamber of Commerce Jason Chaliff Ann Hanlon Andrea Shorr Bethany Usry Samantha Vince

At-Large Selections Steve Allen Mackenzie Bearup Jeremy Bennett Jason Binder James Carr Beckie Hawkins Fredrick Hicks Phil W. Hudson Peyton Jamison Dan Lucas Hunter Moyer Nelish Patel Casey Robinson Theodore A. Spaulding Peter Tokar Carla Toro Josh Thomas Mark Wyssbrod

Steve Allen Age: 27 Position/Company: Database administrator/senior applications consultant at Corporate Business Solutions Steve Allen’s primary role at Corporate Business Solutions is maintaining and workAllen ing with Oracle and SQL Server databases to ensure optimum efficiency is reached. He got into databases within his management information systems major at the University of Georgia, as well as with his first employer, McKesson Inc., where he found himself doing a lot of database administration. He said he has always enjoyed working with computers and merging the two got him into managing databases.

A self-proclaimed “homegrown” resident from Alpharetta/ Roswell, he graduated from Milton High School and received Microsoft’s SQL Server MCSA certification, of which he is proud.

He says his deep analytical skills sets him apart from his peers.

“Especially in the software/technology sector, thinking outside of the box and being able to understand ramifications/ consequences is not something many people think about when tackling issues and what I believe as a unique trait,” he said.

Whatever career you choose, Allen said, experience is crucial.

“Starting out of school, you have the energy to learn so many new tools and trades that you need to be a sponge to get ahead of the pack,” he said. “The more tools you can load in your pocket at the early stage will make your career for you.”

Edward Bailey Age: 35 Position/Company: Executive Director of No Longer Bound Edward Bailey grew up in Gainesville and ended up where he is today after a crisis turned into a calling.

Bailey “I found No Longer Bound in 2004 as a strung-out meth addict looking for hope,” he said. “By the grace of God, I graduated the program and eventually was honored to take the role of executive director, and lead the organization into the future.”

Bailey has a degree in communications, specializing in public relations and advertising.

He spends his free time binge-watching series on Netflix.

“I am a firm believer that time intentionally wasted isn’t time wasted at all,” he said.

He also exercises constantly and is a self-described “fitness junkie.”

Flexibility is a trait that he finds valuable; a trait he said sets him apart from others.

“It’s a combination of being teachable and brave. Being a student for life ensures growth and humility,” he said.

That growth can lead in new directions that can prove fruitful.

“Find something you love to do (that pays), and you will never work a day in your life. Look for your calling instead of your career. I have built my life around one simple principle: Ask God what he wants me to do, and then do that.”

Mackenzie Bearup Age: 22 Position/Company: Founder & Director of Sheltering Books Inc.

Mackenzie Bearup has lived in Alpharetta for most of her life. At 10 years old, she was diagnosed with complex re-

Bearup gional pain syndrome, which she described as one of “the most painful and least known neurological disorders known in the medical world.”

The only way to distract herself from the pain was by escaping into a great book. Taking that lesson, she had the thought

40 UNDER 40 at age 13 that other children needed to read and have similar escapes, which is how Sheltering Books Inc. was created.

“If I don’t have a book in my hand, I’m probably reading an iBook on my phone or Ipad!” said Bearup, who has two younger brothers.

Since then she has collected and donated over 350,000 books for children and young adults in homeless shelters, hospitals, schools and orphanages all over the world.

With the success of Sheltering Books, Bearup became the youngest recipient of the CNN Hero award at age 16.

“CNN chose me from over 25,000 applicants to be their hero,” she said. “They flew a film crew and producers out and filmed with me for three days. My story was featured on ‘Larry King Live’ and played on CNN every hour or so for about two weeks.”

When not reading, Bearup enjoys photography, and even has her own photography business, Mackenzie Bearup Photography. She also loves crafts.

“From painting to sewing to adding my own personal touches to nearly everything I own, I’m always figuring out ways to creatively improve things and make them prettier,” she said.

Jeremy Bennett Age: 35 Position/Company: Director of MBA programs at University of North Georgia Education can prove extensive and lengthy, but it pays off, Jeremy Bennett said.

With more than 20 years of schooling under Bennett his belt, he now heads the MBA programs at the University of North Georgia.

Bennett has been involved with higher education for seven years. He said he got into education “by always following my passions and taking risks.”

Prior to that he worked in the private club industry. Determination in whatever you do is important, he said.

“Hard work does pay off. It may not be immediate, but don’t stop,” he said, crediting his success to “a drive to keep moving and be successful at whatever I take part in.”

A Georgia native, Bennett now lives in Milton with his wife, Kristen, and three boys. He plays tennis in his spare time, and started the ALTA team for his neighborhood. He also sits on the board of the North Atlanta Football League.

Jason Binder Age: 35 Position/Company: Financial advisor, Acolyte Advisors Jason Binder realized early on that he wanted to prioritize his life and focus on family, clients and community.

Binder After completing his MBA, he transitioned from being a business analyst in a corporate environment to a financial advisor for individuals and small-business owners.

“As an independent advisor, I enjoy helping individuals work towards achieving their personal goals,” he said.

The position is a good fit for him, he said, because “I still have work to do but I am happy with where I am landing so far.”

Binder said he places a quote form Eisenhower on the cover pages of his client reports: “Plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.”

“Once a goal in place, I am not afraid to change direction as circumstances and variables change,” he said. “I am less concerned with sticking to the original plan than I am with achieving a goal.”

This goal is reached by working hard and keeping at it.

He spends much of his free time with his family and working with Rotary, a group that honored him as the 2014 Alpharetta Rotarian of the Year.

“I get to surround myself with a group of people that I admire, respect and thoroughly enjoy spending time with for fellowship and community service,” he said.

40 UNDER 40 Thomas Boyce Age: 30 Position/Company: President of the Boyce Group Thomas Boyce grew up in Dacula, the fourth of six children.

He started his landscaping business Boyce while in high school and managed it through college, where he played football for the University of Louisville before transferring to the University of Georgia to finish a degree in business management.

He and his brother, John, now run the Boyce Group, one of Atlanta’s top residential general contracting firms. They have been awarded numerous accolades, including Atlanta Contractor of the Year for five years in a row by the National Association of the Remodeling Industry, appearing on the Bulldog 100 List twice, being listed by the Atlanta Business Chronicle as a Top 15 Residential Contractor for Georgia, and being named Best of Gwinnett four years running by Gwinnett Magazine.

“There is no easy path to success,” he said. “It takes a lot of hard work and perseverance to be successful at anything. Many young professionals think that opportunities will be handed to them. It is important to make yourself valuable in whatever you are doing and to create your own opportunities.”

Mandy Burton Age: 37 Position/Company: Marketing strategist with WellStar Health System Mandy Burton is an Atlanta native and Georgia Bulldog. She BURTON received her Bachelor of Arts in journalism from the University of Georgia in 2000, and after moving away to work in the music industry in Nashville, as well as the wedding and tourism industry in Charleston, South Carolina, she returned to Georgia in 2009, specifically Cobb County.

She currently serves as the marketing strategist of WellStar Health System’s Medical Group division, which is comprised of more than 160 outpatient offices and over 800 physicians.

Her free time is spent traveling, an interest she got from her parents.

“My parents wanted us to see and do as much as we could and were great about taking us on interesting trips around the U.S. during my childhood,” she said.

She also enjoys dancing and cooking.

Volunteering is a large part of her life, with friends saying she is tireless in her efforts and causes. With the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society, the Strand Theatre and the Center for Family Resources and plenty more, her days are filled with charitable work.

“At this point in my life I believe, if you have the time to give, you should get involved with the organizations around you,” she said. “I understood early on the value of investing in my community as well as my company goes hand in hand.”

James Carr Age: 26 Position/Company: Communication coordinator for Georgia Organics

A sports buff, James Carr has always been interested in communications. Growing up in Australia and Carr London, England, before settling in Alpharetta, he was editor of the Milton High School

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Eagle Edition and sports editor at the University of Georgia’s radio station before working for Fox Sports South.

He got into the local food movement through his book, “The Jig is Up,” which moved him to work for Georgia Organics.

“Almost all of the major issues faced in this country and the world can be traced back to our food system, and I am thrilled to now peruse the fight for good food in my regular waking hours,” Carr said.

Curiosity and exploration are important traits, he said.

“Explore your curiosity and talk to people older than yourself. Inspiration is everywhere; but you have to be open to it,” he said.

Some of those older people have taught Carr important life lessons.

“I am fortunate to have several mentors in my life, from writers to filmmakers to managers. All of them push me to think in different ways, more inclusive ways, more effective ways, more creative ways.”

Jason Chaliff Age: 28 Position/Company: Commercial relationship manager with Wells Fargo Despite growing up in Sandy Springs, Jason Chaliff lived in North CHALIFF Carolina and Washington, D.C., before returning to the Atlanta area, where he now works with Wells Fargo Bank.

“While I enjoyed living in other areas, I am a true Atlanta native,” he said. “This is my home and I always knew I would return. This is the place where I want to make a difference.”

He has a degree in real estate from the Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia and is working on his MBA. While in college, he envisioned himself pursuing a career in real estate, but the 2008 recession changed that career path. Now he is helping small- and middlemarket commercial clients and prospects obtain capital and manage cash flow.

A globetrotter, Chaliff has visited 32 different countries and aims to go to a new one every year.

He enjoys golfing and skiing and serves on the board of the Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces.

Chaliff, a proponent of perseverance for whatever you want in life, said his “personal policy of ‘Never, never, never give up,’ along with a willingness to work for what I want has opened up amazing opportunities and experiences.”

Samantha Dawkins Age: 33 Position/Company: Vice President, brand & communication, for Pruitt Health A native of Rome, Georgia, Samantha Dawkins graduated from Dawkins Brenau University. She has since expanded the vision for several of America’s best-known brands including Aflac Inc., Caesars and Nobu Hotel.

“Truly great brands can’t be managed, they must be led,” Dawkins said.

While working on the national advertising team for Aflac, she was tasked with helping coordinate $80 million in marketing per year and eventually came to report to the chief marketing officer as his primary liaison. After helping Caesars Entertainment launch new hospitality products as brand director and winning numerous awards, Dawkins chose to return to her Southeastern roots, working with Pruitt Health, the 14th largest provider of skilled nursing in the U.S.

“No matter the task, do it well,” she advised. “Everything is an opportunity to develop a relationship.

No matter what business you’re in, you’re in the people business.”

In her spare time, Dawkins enjoys the solace of the outdoors and Buckhead Church. She also has an affinity for travel and said her most memorable moment was running with the bulls in Pamplona.

Elissa Dooman Age: 36 Position/Company: Tournament director for the PGA Tour’s Champions Golf Tournament with Mitsubishi Electric Classic Elissa Dooman is proof that one Dooman never knows where they will end up in life.

Growing up in Maryland, Dooman headed to college in Tampa for a business administration degree.

She stayed there for 13 years before coming to Atlanta.

“That was three years ago and I’ve been in my current position ever since,” she said.

That position is heading up the Mitsubishi Electric Classic Golf Tournament, an internationally televised professional golf tournament for the PGA’s Champions Tour.

While in Tampa, she had a chance exposure to golf via Outback Steakhouse.

“As they were becoming a title sponsor for a Champions Tour event in Tampa, I was fortunate to be included on the team put together to run the tournament. The tournament was wildly successful and accomplished its primary goal to make a positive impact on charities in our local there.”

From there, Dooman was hooked.

“Not having a background in golf, I would never have thought a career in professional golf would be where I am today, but I am living proof that there are different paths to find your passion.”

Being in a business where the primary focus is positively impacting Atlanta-area charities allows her to have objectives that are different from many other businesses.

“My success is not based on how much money I get paid, or how much I can make for a stockholder,” she said. “Instead, our success as a tournament is based on how many lives we can help to make better each year.”

Katie Mathis Dubnik Age: 35 Position/Company: President and founder of Forum Communications

“My family taught me the importance of giving back at a very young age, a lesson I have carried with me Dubnik throughout my career,” said Katie Mathis Dubnik, born and raised in Gainesville.

She said she strives to be a servant leader in all that she does, including giving back to her community through involvement on boards, church and nonprofits.

She received a bachelor’s degree in marketing from the University of Georgia and was in the first class of the Leonard Leadership Scholars from Terry College of Business. She later attended Georgia State for master’s degrees in business administration and health administration.

Three years ago, she founded Forum Communications, a full-service strategic marketing agency “helping nonprofits and businesses find their voice in a crowded marketplace.”

Since starting in 2013, the company has grown to five employees with 75 clients.

She said she tries to be a big-picture person, keep-

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ing life in perspective.

“Life is too short to sweat the small stuff, so I try to place my focus on the things my life can impact,” she said. “Don’t get caught up in what everyone else around you is doing or thinks you should be doing.

Focus instead on finding your passion, what really motivates you to get up each morning, and something you love doing, and then success will surely follow.”

Brett Fowler Age: 29 Position/Company: Vice president of employee benefits at Turner, Wood & Smith Insurance Born in Tennessee, the youngest of two boys, Brett Fowler and his family Fowler moved to Gainesville when he was 8 years old. He attended the University of Georgia for a degree in risk management and insurance and now works in the same company as his father as an employee benefits broker.

“My father is in the same business, so I grew up watching him work and was fascinated by the field,” Fowler said. “When I was in college I had the opportunity to shadow him and that really solidified that this was the career path I wanted to pursue.”

When he was 27 he became a partner at the agency.

In 2012, he was named the Insurance Professionals of Gainesville Insurance Man of the Year and, in 2015, the Georgia Association of Health Underwriter’s Best and Brightest 40 under 40.

His suggestion to those starting on their career paths is to get involved with their communities.

“Not only is it important to give back and help others, but you will learn valuable life lesson and skills and form relationships with people that may help you along the way, both personally and in your career,” he said.

Fowler met his wife, Laura, at UGA and they have one child. He enjoys spending his time with his family as well as volunteering and attending sporting events of all kinds.

Ann M. Hanlon Age: 36 Position/Company: Executive director of the North Fulton Community Improvement District As the executive director of the North Fulton Community ImproveHanlon ment District, Ann Hanlon is able to bridge the public-private gap by being a public servant with private resources.

She began her work with the Atlanta Regional Commission when she moved to Atlanta in May 2002 while doing graduate work at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University, “so it was a perfect fit,” she said.

“I love having the ability to feel engaged in public service while also having private resources to get infrastructure projects built quickly and efficiently,” said Hanlon, who has a bachelor’s degree in government and computer science from Notre Dame and a master’s degree in public administration from GSU. Tying in with her professional role, she was appointed by Gov. Nathan Deal to the board of directors for the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority to help coordinate transportation in the state.

Communication for all this is key, she said.

“Especially in our modern world with so much technology, leaders still must be able to effectively communicate and develop relationships to get work done,” she said. “I hope my peers see me as someone they can sit down with face-to-face and have a productive conversation.”

Part of this, she said, is putting down the cell phone and actually talking with colleagues.

“Effective communication, or lack thereof, can really make the difference between organizations that succeed and ones that suffer. Always be the one who offers to go have lunch or coffee with a colleague and communicate face-to-face.”

Beckie Hawkins Age: 31 Position/Company: Communications & Vision Strategy with Roswell Inc Beckie Hawkins likes to play her part in Roswell Inc. Keeping things “fun and humorous” while being a team Hawkins player is important, if not always easy.

She grew up in Marietta with stints in Ohio and West Virginia. Theater played a large part in her education and growing up, as she was invariably part of one troupe or another and even earned a theater degree. Unusually, this helped with her current role at Roswell Inc, she said, where she handles communications.

“It was one of the best decisions I ever made. I learned valuable lessons that can be applied to everyday life and obstacles, such as team building, public speaking, improvisation, flexibility, process and design,” Hawkins said.

Coming up with communications strategies is like putting on a play.

“You start with the end vision of what the play needs to communicate and you begin to mold that into rehearsals and production elements until you have a solid piece of art,” she said.

When not working, Hawkins likes to be outdoors – hiking with her dog, biking and paddling. She also volunteers her time with local children’s theater and teaching girls how to mountain bike.

Fredrick Hicks Age: 38 Position/Company: Founder and president of the Hicks Evaluation Group Fredrick Hicks is the last of four sons of two military veterans and a seventh-generation Georgian. Despite Hicks his deep Peach roots, he graduated high school in Alaska and has traveled to 49 of the 50 states. He received a Bachelor of Arts from Clayton State University in 1999, a master’s in international affairs from Florida State University, a doctoral certificate in education planning, evaluation and analysis, also from Florida State, and completed doctoral coursework in program evaluation at Florida State.

Hicks is the founder and president of the Hicks Evaluation Group, an organizational and political consulting firm serving both Democrats and Republicans.

“I started my firm because I saw a gap in the profession – very few people used analytics/profiling in 2006. I wanted to take my skills and fill the niche in such a way that I could not only be successful but also change the game,” he said.

When he is not working, Hicks enjoys traveling and coaching youth sports, mostly basketball.

He offers advice to those starting on their careers: “Take the time to learn your craft and remember that customer service is as important as product knowledge.”

William Morgan House Jr. Age: 28 Position/Company: Venue manager at the Lake Lanier Olympic Venue The youngest of seven children (with only one brother), William

House

Morgan House Jr., was born and raised in Gainesville, where he still lives with his wife, Emily, and 2-year-old son, Liam.

House completed a bachelor’s degree in marketing and public relations from Ashford University in Illinois.

Having a passion for all things outdoors, he is an avid kayaker, spending eight years on the USA National Team for sprint kayaking, where he competed in many events around the world. During this time he spent five years living at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California.

House serves on the Gainesville Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Lake Lanier CVB and on the boards of the Peach State Bank Youth Development, the J.A. Walters YMCA and the John Jarrard Foundation. A member of the Gainesville Rotary Club, he is also director of the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce and in the Leadership Hall Class of 2015/2016.

Phil W. Hudson Age: 29 Position/Company: Reporter for the Atlanta Business Chronicle

Phil Hudson’s mother use to say to him, “God must have a special plan for you.” This was due to Hudson Hudson constantly getting into situations he should never have been involved in.

A second-generation Atlantan, Hudson was raised in the city and went to Alabama for his degree in journalism and business. He now writes for the Atlanta Business Chronicle, covering finance, residential real estate and sports, a job he said he learned a bit about while serving in Afghanistan and interacting with war correspondents.

“I make it a point to treat everyone with an equal amount of amount of respect – regardless of your social status,” he said. “It’s a good trait to have when I shift from conducting an interview in a boardroom to one in a trap house.”

An advocate for veterans’ rights, Hudson said he has helped his brothers and sisters in arms since 2011.

He said he considers his father and brother-in-law special mentors. As he said, “They continue to teach me how to be a man of character while instilling the importance of family life.”

Peyton Jamison Age: 33 Position/Company: Wealth management at Diversified Financial Planning Peyton Jamison grew up in Roswell and now lives in Milton. He attended AuJamison burn University for finance, where he met his wife, Megan. They now have three children together.

For him, his career began at home.

“My father and I own a wealth management company in the North Fulton area,” he said. “Watching my father as I grew up, I developed a great interest for finance. I now have the pleasure of working with him.”

Jamison said he believes in hard work and a commitment to his community. He embodies that, with positions on the Crabapple Community Association, City of Milton Planning Commission and Better Together.

In 2013, he was chosen for the Milton Volunteer of the Year Award. Success, he said, comes from dedication to what you do.

“In my career, I have had a chance to work with a number of successful individuals. Their key differentiator is that they work every day to be the best at their trade,” he said. “I would encourage those that are starting out to focus on what they enjoy, and to work every day to be the best.”

40 UNDER 40 Vince Johnson Age: 32 Position/Company: Publisher of the Forsyth County News Vince Johnson is a 2006 graduate from Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, with a degree in broadJohnson cast journalism. The son of a preacher, he has lived in a variety of states — Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Alabama. He got into journalism simply, when he applied online to shoot videos for a newspaper website in Statesboro.

Since then the sports fan has been a semifinalist for ESPN’s Dream Job, to be the next SportsCenter anchor. Johnson said he always had a passion for media and the way journalists communicate – both informatively and entertainingly – with the world. After graduating, he worked at a video production house before starting his career in newspapers.

“Don’t be afraid to challenge ‘the way we’ve always done it.’ Find trustworthy people to surround yourself with and then build something great,” he said.

Having as wide a view on the world as possible also helps.

“Understanding how different people in different cultures and demographics consume information differently allows us to communicate more effectively,” he said.

Alicia Krogh Age: 37 Position/Company: Vice president of programs & events at Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce Alicia Krogh was born and raised in Gwinnett County, a fact that has Krogh helped in her current role with the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce, providing historical information about the chamber and the community.

“I love the fact that I come to work every day to help the businesses in the community I grew up in continue to be successful and a model for others to emulate,” she said.

Krogh has worked with the chamber for 15 years.

Her college internship was there and she was offered a job with them in the Economic Development Department. She has held many positions over the years, but says “leading our programs and events is definitely where I belong.”

Krogh credits Lisa Zaken, executive director of Leadership Gwinnett, with helping her through her life and career.

“Over the years, Lisa has helped guide me through the many obstacles of life and for that I’m eternally grateful,” she said.

Since Krogh began her career with the chamber at such a young age, she was able to observe employees as they worked, taking cues from them. In turn, she advises people to “listen, watch and learn.”

She enjoys traveling and reading as well as spending time with her family.

Dan Lucas Age: 39 Position/Company: Founder and CEO of Credo Financial Services Inc. Dan Lucas grew up in Chicago and has one younger brother. He received a degree in accounting and became a Lucas certified public accountant.

As the founder and head of Credo Financial, he credits his success to “perseverance” and says his faith is what really sets him apart from his peers.

He suggests anyone looking at starting new careers

NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • November 2015 • 25

should know what they are doing and why.

He offers the advice to “focus on the work, not on the money. Know why you are doing what you are doing. Elsewise, don’t start,” he said.

In his spare time, Lucas plays tennis, a sport he has played since he was 8 years old.

Hunter R. Moyer, MD Age: 37 Position/Company: Plastic surgeon at Atlanta Plastic Surgery “Put patients first and everything else will fall into place.”

This is the motto Dr. Hunter Moyer Moyer lives by as a plastic surgeon at Atlanta Plastic Surgery and, sometimes, in his personal life.

That philosophy has never been more true than when his wife was diagnosed and treated for breast cancer at the age of 35.

“We went through diagnosis, treatment and recovery together, and it has given me a new and enlightened perspective of what patients feel on a daily basis,” he said. “I strongly believe I am a better physician having seen this firsthand.”

Moyer has lived in Atlanta for 19 years after originally moving from Jacksonville, Florida, to attend Georgia Tech. He then stayed for medical school, residency and a plastic surgery fellowship.

In addition to putting patients first, he also endorses taking risks and questioning the status quo, approaches to life that led to him founding two startup companies in the medical field: AcCellerate Skin Rejuvenation and Vivid LED Technologies.

Both of his companies were due in part to his training at the Georgia Tech stem cell lab.

Moyer’s many accomplishments include being named chief resident of the Emory Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, earning the 2011 Aesthetic Surgery Journal Award for best national research paper, and being honored in the PSF Shark Tank Innovation Challenge for the AcCellerate skin rejuvenation system.

Moyer lives in the North Atlanta suburbs with his wife, Melissa, and their two sons.

Tate Izlar O’Rouke Age: 34 Position/Company: Director of Economic Development at University of North Georgia Strong communication skills have helped Tate Izlar O’Rouke build relaO’Rouke tionships across a broad spectrum and in many fields around the state.

With degrees in political science and telecommunications from the University of Georgia, she is currently pursuing a master’s degree in agricultural leadership from UGA and will finish next year.

She was part of the inaugural program of Advancing Georgia’s Leaders in Agriculture and Forestry, where she was selected to be an advocate for Georgia’s largest industry.

She holds the role of Director of Economic Development at UNG, a new position that aims to promote economic development initiatives of the university at the local, state and federal levels.

She got into the role through politics.

“I was exposed to the field of economic development and higher education in my previous employment as the regional director in Northeast Georgia for United States Senator Johnny Isakson,” she said.

While she said she has several mentors in her life, they all have something in common.

“They never try to tell me what to do,” she said.

“Rather they offer advice so that I can make the best decision. They haven’t let me down to this point.”

Growing up in Snellville, she lives in Hall County with her husband, Patrick, and twin sons.

In her spare time she enjoys traveling nationally and internationally, and attending UGA sporting events.

Nelish S. Patel Age: 35 Position/Company: Hotel operator and investor with SAI Hospitality Management Company LLC Nelish Patel grew up in Hinesville, Georgia, where his parents operated an Patel inn. He grew up working for them, he said. After earning a degree in business administration, he worked as an investment banker for three years in New York until he joined a real estate equity firm.

“There I learned a ton from the leadership group, from softer skills to investing acumen,” he said. “It was trial by fire and long hours at times but I would not trade that experience for anything.”

He left the firm to start his own company, Sai Capital, which invests in hotels across the Southeast.

“Given my family’s background in hotel operations and my professional background in the finance and real estate private equity industries, the hotel industry was a natural fit,” Patel said.

Patel credits his mentor, Barry Sternlicht, a former coworker at the equity firm, for helping him in his success.

“Barry taught me several things that I still practice on a day-to-day basis,” he said. “Some of his teachings have allowed my company and I to maintain our investment discipline but also take risks when the time and opportunity is right.”

Patel enjoys spending time with his children, reading and recently joined a CrossFit gym, where he is learning just how sore he can get.

Rose Procter Age: 35 Position/Company: Director, BB&T Center for Ethical Business Leadership at the University of North Georgia Rose Procter grew up on a large farm in rural Missouri. After her mothProcter er died and her father disappeared, she was placed with her grandmother until she finished high school. At 18, she met Dustin Procter, “the love of my life and my greatest mentor.” They married shortly after and her husband went into the Air Force.

They both received bachelor’s degrees and moved to Marietta in 2007 where they both began working on master’s degrees. Procter and her husband now own two businesses and she heads the BB&T Center for Ethical Business Leadership at the University of North Georgia.

“I am terrified, just like my peers, of failing, but I take the risks anyway,” she said, saying she has a “just do it” attitude.

She says many people know “what” they are doing, but not necessarily “why” they are doing it. Her advice is to know “why” you are doing what you are doing and define what success looks like for you.

“Following someone else’s perception of what success is always leads to unhappy people,” she said.

Procter has four children and lives in Dahlonega.

Casey Robinson Age: 34 Position/Company: Owner, Roswell Home and Office Furniture Casey Robinson’s father started Roswell Home and Office Furniture in 1988. Since then, his dad has been his mentor.

Robinson

40 UNDER 40

26 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

“Through the years I have closely watched my dad build this business to the best of his ability with not much help. Seeing the resilience he had over the years when things were going great, or not great at all, made me want to make my own living as an entrepreneur and work for myself. I wouldn’t be where I am today in this business if not for my dad,” Robinson said.

In 2013, he took over the family business.

“I wanted to put my spin on the business and potentially grow the company as the owner for an additional 25 years to support my new family,” he said.

Building lasting relationships with clients and individuals paves a path to business and personal life successes, he said.

Lisa Sherman Age: 38 Position/Company: Director, Community & Economic Development for the City of Lawrenceville Lisa Sherman grew up in West Virginia before moving to Gwinnett Sherman County in 1994. She received her Bachelor of Arts in communications from Bob Jones University in South Carolina. Now with two children, she took a job with the Gwinnett Chamber after the birth of her first, and eventually landed with the city of Lawrenceville.

“I desired the work/life balance that local community work can bring as it offers a unique opportunity to the working mom to directly impact – for the positive – the community in which her children are growing up,” she said.

With the chamber, Sherman sells her community to businesses large and small while working internally to foster an environment attractive enough for businesses to want to join.

In her spare time, she plays the piano and bikes with her oldest son. She is also a community advocate for the Dup15q Alliance.

Andrea Shorr Age: 33 Position/Company: Business development officer with LGE Community Credit Union With a degree in communications from the State University of New York Shorr at Buffalo and a master’s degree in human relations from the University of Oklahoma, Andrea Shorr came to Georgia after her husband finished active duty.

She now works for LGE Community Credit Union, where she is responsible for identifying new opportunities to promote the credit union.

A people person, Shorr loves to travel, a trait instilled in her by her family as she was growing up.

“I truly enjoy meeting new people (in person, not just on LinkedIn) and finding a common connection,” she said, which plays well into her professional role.

“My background in is public relations and marketing, so I enjoy opportunities to meet and interact with a variety of people and organizations.”

She said it’s best for those starting out in their careers to keep relationships open.

“Never burn bridges. You never know who your next boss will be, or who you may need to rely on in the future.”

Jeremy Skinner Age: 39 Position/Company: Entrepreneur/self-employed at multiple companies

Jeremy Skinner is not only a selfstarter, he is a company starter, creating and managing four businesses.

He holds the positions of president and CEO in Automotion Luxury Cars Inc., North Georgia Security and Sound Inc., Dreaming Tree Media Inc. and Southern Accent entertainment company.

Skinner There are many people Skinner credits for the success of his companies – his family and co-workers among them. But there is one he credits above all – Forsyth Central High School drama teacher Yatsey Harvey.

“To her, I owe more than I could ever repay,” Skinner said. “She gave me confidence and made me believe in myself like no one else ever had at that point in my life. It wasn’t just about acting or singing – it was about not being afraid to shine.”

He grew up wanting in a rural, poor area. He said he truly knows what “hungry” means. He saw his parents do whatever they could to make ends meet, taking odd jobs and working long hours.

“Their example of ‘never quit’ and dedication to their family is the example that drives me to this day,” he said. “There is no job I will not do, no work that is beneath me. I’ve done it all.”

He spends what spare time he has with cars and music.

Theodore A. Spaulding Age: 36 Position/Company: Lawyer at Boling Rice LLC Theodore Spaulding strives to be something other than the stereotypical lawyer.

Spaulding “I never give up on a client, a case or a specific issue,” Spaulding said. “I’m extremely focused on not being the typical lawyer by building quality relationships with clients through great customer service and by recognizing that clients are coming to you because they have a problem that needs to be solved. So don’t become part of the problem, be the solution.”

He also believes having a reputation as a trustworthy person is important and can be achieved by always focusing on the customer or client as the most important aspect in building a lasting career.

This way of thinking has been successful for Spaulding as he was awarded the National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyers Award; the National Trial Lawyers Top 40 Under 40 Trial Lawyers Award and the 2015 Best of Forsyth Award for Best Personal Injury Lawyer in Forsyth County.

The father of three children under the age of 7, Spaulding grew up outside of Washington, D.C., and then Peachtree City. He has dual degrees in criminal justice and sociology from the University of Georgia, and a juris doctor from Georgia State College of Law. He’s currently a trial lawyer and litigator of complex business dispute cases for small- to medium-sized businesses and entrepreneurs and catastrophic personal injury matters for individuals and their families throughout the state of Georgia.

His advice for others starting their careers is to not take shortcuts to try to get ahead.

Laura Stewart Age: 29 Position/Company: Director of communications and events with the Cumming-Forsyth County Chamber of Commerce On the weekends, Laura Stewart lives for football.

Stewart

“At an early age my father instilled in me a love of football,” she said. “Tailgating at and attending high school and college football games still fills my fall weekends.”

She is also a site coordinator for special events in the Fox Theatre’s ballrooms and plays the piano.

Before coming to the chamber, she worked in the special-event industry in various venues around Atlanta.

She said she was interested in her role at the chamber “because of all of the different types of events the chamber hosts. The communications aspect of my position gave me a chance to rekindle the journalism skills I acquired while studying at UGA,” she said, adding that beginning her career in the service industry was beneficial.

“It helped instill in me a natural tendency to advocate for my clients’ benefits,” she said. “This has translated well to the chamber world where each day I am interacting with our members, sponsors and stakeholders.”

She grew up in Gwinnett County, attending Greater Atlanta Christian School, and has a degree in public relations from the University of Georgia’s Grady School of Journalism.

Josh Thomas Age: 26 Position/Company: Client management/HR with ADP Inc. Josh Thomas has professional roots in Alpharetta – his younger brother is in human relations in an Alpharetta Thomas company and his father also works at ADP. “I made it a goal to follow him at ADP,” Thomas said. “However, I will surpass his legacy in a different field at ADP.” Thomas has a degree in political science from Kennesaw State University.

He described himself as a “very strong, people-oriented, articulate, professional conversationalist.”

“I had always wanted to be face-to-face with clients on a daily basis,” he said.

His role allows him to do just that as he manages the relationship between ADP’s clients and ADP. For this relationship-building, he received accolades from ADP for outstanding client service and professional relationship building after he kept a client from leaving the company, after which their business grew by an additional $100,000 a year.

He said he looks to his father as a mentor whose influence is a “huge part” of who he is today.

“I owe everything to him, and he has taught me priceless knowledge keepsakes with the intent for me to pass them along to my future children,” he said.

Thomas spends his time snowboarding and working on cars and similar do-it-yourself projects and is a proud National Rifle Association supporter.

Peter Tokar III Age: 35 Position/Company: Economic Development Director with the City of Alpharetta Peter Tokar is proof that a career does not always have a linear progresTokar sion. He grew up moving around the country, ultimately getting a degree in graphic design.

“I had aspirations of being a successful ‘Mad Men’ ad executive in New York,” as a 21-year-old in 2001, he said.

The events of 9/11 stopped those dreams and Tokar ended up in South Florida with his family. He took odd jobs before enrolling in an MBA program and intern-

40 UNDER 40 ing with the city of Miramar’s economic development team.

“I was immediately fascinated by the profession and I have been working in economic development for the past 10 years.”

It’s a profession he has stuck with, a graphic designer who ended up in economic development.

“Don’t pigeonhole yourself to one career or opportunity. I went through several different industries to end up in the one that I love,” he said. He also encourages others just starting out to have a “willingness to step out of comfort zones to be willing to try new things and change.”

That change is important in today’s world, he said.

“I am very progressive. I am not satisfied with the status quo,” Tokar said. “In our age of technology and advancement, there are always newer and better ways to do things and I want to be the one breaking the mold.”

Carla Toro Age: 27 Position/Company: Director of marketing at Avalon Growing up, Carla Toro was never entirely sure where her career path would lead her.

Toro “I always knew that I had a passion for being creative and working with people,” she said. “It was not until college that I realized my calling was in marketing. For me, though, my passion extends further than just marketing. It is about the incredible people that surround me on a daily basis and the magic we create together.”

This passion led her to become the director of marketing at Avalon. After graduating from Auburn University, she started working at Atlantic Station with North American Properties, which led her on to NAP’s next big project, Avalon.

“My industry is very competitive and full of exceptionally talented people,” she said. “But I believe that my ability to be hyperorganized while staying creative and thinking on my feet allows me to stand out amongst my peers in this fast-paced, dynamic industry.”

She also sticks by the thinking of being passionate about what you do and the rest will come.

Bethany Usry Age: 37 Position/Company: Economic development, Progress Partners of North Fulton, an economic development initiative of the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce

Usry After moving to Alpharetta a little over five years ago, Bethany Usry started networking at the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce through a couple of businesses she worked for. When a staff position as the vice president of Progress Partners of North Fulton, an economic development initiative of the chamber, became available, she jumped at the opportunity to join the team.

When she started as the project manager of Progress Partners, she had no traditional economic development experience. Her mentor, Al Nash, executive director of the Development Authority of Fulton County, quickly introduced her to all of the contacts in the field in the Atlanta area and also made sure that she took all of the appropriate courses for a solid foundation.

“I have an extreme attention to detail that is probably annoying to my co-workers at times,” she said.

“I also possess a very strong work ethic and superior organizational skills. I may have piles of paper on my desk, but each pile has a very specific purpose.”

NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • November 2015 • 27

She tells others just starting their careers to “invest some time in exploring your strengths and look for a career that combines those with something that you enjoy doing every day.”

Samantha Browning Vince Age: 27 Position/Company: Marketing manager at Edge Solutions Samantha Browning Vince was Vince born and raised in Alpharetta, a place she still calls home.

“After graduating college I knew I would come back to North Fulton,” she said.

She has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Georgia Southern University and uses that education in her role as marketing manager at Alpharetta-based Edge Solutions, an IT solutions and services provider.

“I grew up watching my mother be a successful woman in the IT industry,” she said. “I went to college knowing I wanted to be just like my mom.”

Although she fell in love with the IT industry after college, marketing turned out to be her “strong suit.”

She credits the strong women in her life, such as her mother, for reminding her in her career to “take risks and be true to myself.”

She works with North Fulton Community Charities, a group she got to know well while working in Leadership North Fulton.

“I fell in love with their mission and joined the board as the youngest board member in 2014. I help drive fundraising and bringing awareness in the community.”

She spends her free time in downtown Roswell and exploring the local parks with her husband and boxer, Barnaby.

Michael A. Wall Age: 36 Position/Company: Vice president, government and regulatory affairs at Comcast Corporation Michael Wall came to Atlanta from Tennessee after meeting his wife, Wall an Atlanta native, in college. He is now the vice president of government and regulatory affairs at Comcast with a doctorate in jurisprudence from the University of Tennessee College of Law and a bachelor’s in political science from Austin Peay State University, where he received numerous awards for his accomplishments.

He is a registered lobbyist representing Comcast’s and their consumers’ best interests at the state capitol.

“Most individuals get into lobbying through serving in some type of government staff position first. It is important to know both the process as well as the people involved in it in order to be successful,” he said.

“One’s credibility and ability to create and maintain good working relationships is critical to success.

“Never forget that your credibility and work ethic are always on display. Don’t be intimidated. Everyone, no matter their position, is human,” he said. “Be a problem solver and own your decisions.”

The father of three, Wall said he doesn’t have much time for hobbies, but when he does, he enjoys golf. He also enjoys playing with his children.

Philip Wilheit Jr. attended Mercer University in Macon, earning a degree in marketing and management from the Stetson School of Business and Economics. While there, he interned with Siemens, eventually going to work for them and traveling all over the world.

He now works for the company his grandfather started.

Wilheit An avid outdoorsman and hunter, Wilheit also loves to cook. He thanks his parents for giving him a good start in life.

“I was blessed to be raised in a house with happily married parents who had a great work ethic and encouraged my sister and myself to not only work for yourself and your career but to work hard for your community,” Wilheit said. “My parents taught me early in life that, if you are blessed with the ability to lead and impact others around you, then you should use that for the betterment of your community. They did this not only with words but also with their actions as they have worked hard for many organizations across Georgia, focused on building a better state for the future.”

To that end, he offered the advice to “make footsteps, don’t follow them.”

Mark L. Wyssbrod Age: 39 Position/Company: CPA, former tax and advisory professional transformed into local capital (private equity): currently the chief financial officer and investor in local a development company, a water collection company and a sign company.

Wyssbrod

Mark L. Wyssbrod loves to travel and explore. In fact, his curiosity and a Chicago snowstorm in 1998 prompted his move to Atlanta, where winter is temperate.

In Atlanta, Wyssbrod began his CPA career by working for several family firms and a larger local firm.

In 2007, he saw an opportunity to combine his CPA skills with economic forecasting for small businesses to establish Pro@ctive CPA. Wyssbrod and his company’s successes were highlighted with several awards, including six Five Star Wealth Profession Awards, two Small Business Person of Excellent Awards and the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce Small-Business Person of the Year for 2013.

Transitioning from tax preparation to local capitalist, Wyssbrod is currently invested in and serves as the CFO for a local development company, a water collection company providing rainwater collection for reuse products, and a sign and branding company through his new company, Small Business CFO Inc. A volunteer at heart, Wyssbrod been a foster parent, and as recognition, he was bestowed the Georgia Society of CPAs’ Public Service Award for 2015.

“To help others” is his life vision statement. He believes that understanding one’s life’s vision statement helps form better decision-making skills. His advice to the next generation of leaders is to form short and clear vision statements for their lives.

Philip Wilheit Jr.

Congratulations to the Class of 2015!

Age: 38 Position/Company: Partner/sales with Wilheit Packaging

Nominations for 2016 NABP’s 40 under 40 open March 1. Visit NorthAtlantaBusinessPost. com/40under40 for more details.

WOMEN IN BUSINESS

28 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

Women in business: Theresa Hubbard Theresa Hubbard is a commercial interiors expert.

She began is the office furniture industry in 2000. Theresa is the CEO and founder of GCS Group, which she established in 2005.

She has always been dedicated to excellent customer service, going above and beyond for her clients. Theresa resides in Atlanta.

Since GCS Group was created in 2005, they have been named one of the top 20 dealers in metro Atlanta for seven out of 10 years.

GCS Group prides itself on being extremely competitive in the field, as they are one of few companies in the Atlanta area that specialize in handling large corporate projects, assisting in every step of the process to ensure that every need is met flawlessly. As GCS Group continues to flourish and their clientele continues to expand, Theresa hopes to bring her company to new heights in fiscal year 2016.

What decision did you make that put you on the path to this career?

I worked for a large corporate office furniture company and saw a need for a more one-on-one take to this business. Everyone should get the same service whether they are a large nationwide corporation or a small local business owner.

What obstacles, if any, did you face on your way up the corporate ladder?

I was fortunate that I have a great reputation in this industry, so I had great support.

However I had to still prove myself alongside the big dogs in the business.

As any other business owner knows, building your book of business as well as the company infrastructure is always a task to take on.

What gives you the most satisfaction at work?

Seeing a job complete and a happy client. The development of the project is always fun. I give clients perspectives on the best uses of their space as well as most effective choices of products within their allotted budgets.

Hodge: Continued from Page 9 rate and the space. It is a disservice to all parties to put them in a lease that they cannot afford.”

Losing a tenant is the worst outcome for both parties.

“Every time a space turns, the transactional costs are substantive. And most third-party, fee-driven brokers and managers love churning tenants like stockbrokers love churning portfolio accounts.”

For that reason Hodge does no thirdparty leasing or management. He would rather find a solution that keeps the tenant aboard.

“Therefore, we attempt to be polite, customer friendly, rationally flexible, responsive and we answer the phone.

“That is a biggie. You can’t believe how many property owners do not answer the phone or an email.”

Of course it takes a keen eye to pick likely tenants who will be successful.

Hodge says he prefers the “mom and

Theresa Hubbard, CEO and founder of GCS Group What keeps you up at night?

Just going through my daily check-off list and planning for the next day. I have a great team on hand so things internally run very smoothly.

I was fortunate that I have a great reputation in this industry, so I had great support.

However I had to still prove myself alongside the big dogs in the business. As any other business owner knows, building your book of business as well as the company infrastructure is always a task to take on.

What advice would you give to young women interested in pursuing a career in business?

Learn the art of listening. So many customer-based companies tell the clients what they need to be doing before really understanding their needs.

You can have all the degrees out there but if you cannot communicate and sell, that paper means nothing. You cannot go to school for people skills. In my field, however, a design degree is essential.

What degree do you think might prove most useful to students?

I think a degree is essential in today’s business world but is not the true measurement for a great employee.

Where do you see the greatest opportunities for young people today?

Opportunities are everywhere, you just have to want to see them and be ready to apply yourself.

pop” businesses with a track record.

“The typical yield and margins on credit tenants work better for merchant builders that build to a 100 or 200 basis points to sell. Real estate collectors like me tend to gravitate towards playing the long game and accepting more risk for more yield,” he said.

“We love those little businesses that have been around for over a decade that have smart, honest, hardworking operators. Retail is tough with long hours and hard sacrifice. It is not for everyone.”

Most of Hodge’s activities continue to be settled along the Ga. 400 corridor. He says it is partly about the great opportunities that still abound there, but it is also about settling down more as he gets older.

“There are a lot of great [opportunities] on Ga. 400. And this is where I have put most of my marbles. The water is rising here more than anywhere else,” he said.

“I used to go all over when I was younger. And I enjoyed it. But you start having kids and you want to be there for them on a consistent basis.”

It also gives him more time for the

“I have no secret sauce. I consider myself a little old school in many ways. There are few shortcuts in this business, and there is real value in hard work and being consistent and persistent.”

Penn Hodge, Commercial Real Estate Investor

leisure side of things.

Hodge is old-school about a lot of things – traditional architecture, a love of classic rock ‘n’ roll, vintage motorcycles and old mahogany boats, among other things.

He can’t remember not having a boat, so he is seldom far from water. He has always enjoyed the outdoors and he and his wife, Cynthia, find lots to do together.

“Cynthia and I have a couple of farms we love to mess around with and I love hunting, hiking, boating and skiing. Any-

thing outdoors.”

Hodge, who confesses to be an adrenaline junkie, would love a second life as a first responder-EMT type – but not for just any fire or accident.

“I would like to be a first responder to catastrophic events. I don’t feel totally alive unless I’m taking risk somehow.”

Hodge also likes to give back to the community when he can, working with nonprofits and churches to help fulfill their missions. He has been a supporter of the arts in the community as well.

MOVERS & SHAKERS

NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • November 2015 • 29

OrthoAtlanta welcomes new doctors Top orthopaedists well-versed in sports medicine

By HATCHER HURD hatcher@appenmediagroup.com JOHNS CREEK, Ga. – OrthoAtlanta , with 13 offices in the metro Atlanta area to providing orthopaedic expertise for the north metro community, has announced four new orthopaedists at its Johns Creek location.

With the stated goal to help improve and maintain the quality of life of its patients, OrthoAtlanta’s newest office is on Hospital Parkway, conveniently across the street from Emory Johns Creek Hospital.

Dr. David Stokes, who is one of the new doctors at OrthoAtlanta’s Johns Creek office, said this location is a vital link in covering the North Fulton-Gwinnett-Forsyth arc.

“It’s a growing area and it’s a young area with athletic people. So it produces its fair share of injuries,’ Stokes said.

“And we think it is important to take time with our patients and listen to what they say. The patient has a big role in making his or her recovery. It is important to have good communication, and that goes both ways.”

Stokes said OrthoAtlanta is an attractive office for him because all of the pa-

OrthoAtlanta Johns Creek, 6300 Hospital Parkway, Suite 400 Johns Creek, GA tient care takes place in the same place.

“Each location has physical therapy at the clinic. There are four MRI scanners so patients never have to wait for a procedure. We give patients the finest care available all right here,” Stokes said.

In all there are 35 physicians in the OrthoAtlanta system, 11 physical therapy centers and two surgical centers.

Sports medicine is a big part of what OrthoAtlanta does. They are the official sports medicine provider to the Chick-filA Peach Bowl, Atlanta (hockey) Gladiators, Georgia Soccer and numerous college, high school and community sports programs across the region.

“It is not unusual for a high school athlete who goes on to play at the college level to want to come back to see us if they get another injury,” Stokes said.

“We want to prevent concussions,

Lennar Atlanta adds sales, marketing experts ROSWELL, Ga. – Homebuilder Lennar Atlanta, the expanding division of Lennar that is celebrating its fifth anniversary in Atlanta this year, has added Darla Codling as new home consultant as well as Heidi Schneider as marketing assistant to its staff.

Codling, who began Darla Codlin and Heidi her real estate career Schneider. in multifamily housing more than 20 years ago, has worked for a number of residential builders throughout the U.S. Schneider, originally from Kansas City, has extensive retail marketing experience, most recently with Macy’s South.

Emory Johns Creek Hospital director of critical care named JOHNS CREEK, Ga. – Emory Healthcare welcomes Dr. Marc Popovich as the new Director of Critical Care for Popovich Emory Saint Joseph’s Hospital and Emory Johns Creek Hospital. Popovich will oversee the coordination of physicians and work with nursing lead-

but we also see that the right protocols are followed if an athlete does have one. You can’t really prevent a concussion, but we make sure one is monitored properly and we have the proper equipBui ment to do it.”

The doctors also keep the kids eating right and exercising.

“We want them to be active, healthy and safe,” he said.

Dr. Timothy C. Gajewski, another addition in Johns Creek, Gajewski is a sports medicine specialist who brings expertise in reconstructive surgery of the hip and knee to the area. Gajewski has a special interest in partial knee replacements.

“Less invasive treatment options such as partial knee replacement offer quicker recovery and enhanced patient satisfaction. Advances in joint replacement and reconstruction are occurring every day. I have dedicated my career to bringing the latest technologies and expertise to treating hip and knee problems,” Gajewski said.

Also joining the Johns Creek practice

ership in the intensive care, critical care and cardiovascular intensive care units at both facilities.

At Emory Saint Joseph’s, Popovich is developing and implementing cost-saving, state-of-the-art critical care programs including the early mobility program and sepsis care program.

Kerley joins Keller Williams in Cumming CUMMING, Ga. – Gene S. Kerley has joined Keller Williams Community Partners in Cumming. Kerley is an entrepreneur who has owned and operated two restaurants, a marketing company, a pharmaceutical distribution company and currently is partners in a martial arts school and has a cattle farm operation in North Kerley Georgia. He looks forward to his new endeavor with Keller Williams, helping clients find that special home or mountain cabin in North Georgia.

Ewing, Gosy join Harry Norman Forsyth/Lake Lanier CUMMING, Ga. – Harry Norman Realtors welcomed Karen Ewing and Michael Gosy as real estate agents in the Forsyth County/Lake Lanier office.

Ewing has lived in the Atlanta area her entire life and has a bachelor’s in psychology with a minor in sociology from Georgia State University. She earned her real estate license from Georgia Institute of Real Estate while working in property management, advancing to community manager. She brings 10 years of real estate experi-

are spine surgeon and sports medicine specialist Tuan L. Bui and orthopaedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist Thomas R. Cadier.

Pat Prosser, OrthoAtlanta public Cadier relations manager, said its doctors bring experience and knowledge gained from years of sports medicine research, education and training.

“Our orthopaedic specialists offer a full Stokes range of Atlanta orthopaedic services that include cartilage restoration, pediatrics, shoulder care, joint, hand, feet and spine care, sports medicine, trauma and shoulder care,” she said.

The OrthoAtlanta system is one of the largest orthopaedic and sports medicine practices in the greater Atlanta area, she said.

In addition to its 13 offices and 35 physicians, it employs more than 50 additional health care providers including physician assistants, physical therapists and athletic trainers dedicated to patient care.

ence to the job.

Gosy, a former deputy sheriff in Cook County, Illinois, and security supervisor with the Department of Homeland Security, has lived in Ewing Gosy the Atlanta area for six years. He earned his real estate license from Barney Fletcher and is a member of the 400 North Board of Realtors.

Jekyll’s Johnson promoted to head brewer ALPHARETTA, Ga. – Jekyll Brewing has announced that Bryan Johnson has been named head brewer. Johnson, an Alpharetta native, brought a range of hands-on experience to Jekyll Brewing, having been with the company since its beginnings and contributing to a variety of other areas at Jekyll including bottling beer and Johnson working in the taproom.

Johnson moves into his leadership role under the creative direction of brewmaster and co-owner Josh Rachel. Crowdfunded with a KickStarter campaign in 2013, Jekyll Brewing brews and bottles its beer in Alpharetta at 2855 Marconi Drive, Suite 350.

The taproom is open for brewery tours and beer tastings Tuesday through Thursdays, 5-9 p.m., Fridays, 4-9 p.m., and Saturdays 1-9 p.m. Learn more at www. jekyllbrewing.com.

RESTAURANTS

30 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com

Pickled Pink:

Local duo finds success in simple, Southern recipes

By CANDY WAYLOCK candy@appenmediagroup.com ROSWELL, Ga. – In the specialty food business dominated by women, two men in pink aprons hawking gourmet pickles is certain to grab attention. And a lot of orders, as it turns out.

Milton residents Charlie Stephenson and Jim Lawlor have taken a 100-yearold family recipe for pickles and turned it into Pickled Pink Foods, a wildly successful company based in Roswell whose products are found in more than 1,500 retail locations across the country and internationally.

“Our jars scream different and upscale from the standard grocery brands,” said Lawlor. “Then there’s the taste … thick cut, crunchy and full of flavor. We constantly get comments from folks about how it ‘reminds them of what their grandmother used to make.’”

The pickles were a holiday mainstay in the Stephenson household for years, but it wasn’t until late 2012 that the two friends saw a business opportunity at the bottom of the pickle jar. With backgrounds in the restaurant business, Stephenson and Lawler reached out to connections to see if they had a viable commercial product.

Sure enough, a run through the test kitchen at Southern Living and positive reviews from the owner of a branding school in Atlanta confirmed their hunch.

“With those two ‘thumbs up’ we were off and running with Pickled Pink Foods, which was named by Charlie’s wife,” said Lawlor.

Making the product was the easy part with tried-and-true recipes in hand, so the early part of 2013 was spent in design, photos and other business aspects of taking the items to the public.

Lawlor and Stephenson decided to roll out Pickled Pink Foods soon after, and optimistically signed up for the July 2013 Home and International Gift Market in Atlanta.

They barely made the show, Lawlor said with a laugh, noting the first batch of product labels were delivered on the first day of the show, so the duo was labeling jars as the show got underway.

“The show has a ‘gourmet food’ floor with about 200 vendors, and we weren’t sure if we’d sell one client, one jar or nothing,” recalls Lawlor. “But by the show’s end, we had picked up 93 clients in 19 states, and we were like ‘Wow! We’re off and running!’”

Within a year, Pickled Pink Foods went from the drawing board to store shelves across the country with a product line that includes the signature sweet gourmet pickles, along with spiced watermelon pickles, sweet heat jalapenos,

Jim Lawlor, left, and business partner Charlie Stephenson at a show.

and gourmet jalapeno pickles. The small selection is intentional, noted Lawler, because it is focused on family recipes that dictate what was “simple” in the South.

“And that’s the genre we are sticking with,” he adds.

Lawlor and Stephenson remain the only employees at their Roswell headquarters, but they do use a co-packer who can mass produce the recipes to their exacting standards and fill the hundreds of cases that ship out weekly.

“But we will still do all our shipping, packaging and marketing out of our office here in Roswell,” said Lawlor, who credits the growth and success of the company to word-of-mouth.

Down the road, Lawlor said more vegetables will be added, along with two or three flavored cucumber pickles (he’s experimenting with a wasabi-ginger infused pickle as we speak, he confides).

Pickled Pink Foods is found in a variety of retail locations, from the very

small retail outlets like Cheeses and Mary in downtown Crabapple, to Jungle Jim’s in Cincinnati that covers more than six acres. It can also be found locally at Roswell Provisions, Wilbur and Rudy’s, Parsons and the Fresh Market.

But Pickled Pink Foods is not just a business.

It has a corporate mission to give back to the community through Hunter’s Hotline (www.huntershotline.org), a nonprofit foundation that provides a direct line for teens to use when they find themselves in trouble with drugs, alcohol, bullying or other troubles.

The foundation was set up by the Stephenson family in honor of their son, Hunter, who passed away in 2004.

“All of our jars say ‘Pickled for a Purpose’ on the front and there is a blurb about Hunter’s Hotline on the back,” said Lawlor. “We support Hunter’s Hotline by donating a portion of our profits to this nonprofit.”

NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • November 2015 • 31

32 • November 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com