Capital at Play July 2016

Larry Black

Sutton Bacon

The Man With the Horn p.24

CA

Growing On the River p.76

at ITAL

LAY

The Free Spirit Of Enterprise

video intervie w with larry black capital atpl ay. com

colu m ns

The Wine Pantry

Essential wines to keep around the house for any occasion. p.16

70 is the new 50

Area financial experts offer advice on pre-retirement planning and investing. p.68

A

River

Runs

Through It

p. 56

Activities to cool you off throughout Western North Carolina

Volume VI - Edition VII complimentary edition

capitalatplay.com

July 2016

MADE YOU LOOK.

THE FIRST-EVER BMW 4 SERIES CONVERTIBLE. UN4GETTABLE. It should be no surprise the BMW 4 Series Convertible grabs attention. Long, elegant lines accentuate the exterior, its 240-hp engine sounds an unmistakable roar, and its three-piece hardtop comes down with the ease of a button, even while moving. The only downside to this convertible is taking your eyes off it.

BMW 4 Series Convertible

bmwofasheville.com

For special lease and finance offers available through BMW Financial Services, visit bmwusa.com.

BMW of Asheville | 649 New Airport Road | Fletcher, NC 28732 | 828-681-9900 | bmwofasheville.com

Experience the Difference. ©2016 BMW of North America, LLC. The BMW name, model names and logo are registered trademarks.

2

| July 2016

Kelly Davis

Steve Jennings

Jean Wauford

T. Jeff Covington

John A. York

Ragan H. Ward

John D. Kimberly

B:11.375”

S:9.875”

T:10.875”

Where to?

Wherever your financial journey takes you, the community bankers at Carolina Alliance Bank can help you find the way.

From Asheville’s art galleries to the apple orchards of Hendersonville, they know Western North Carolina, and with everything from commercial loans to mortgages, they’ve got the products you need to meet your goals.

Along with the experience to help you find the one that’s right for you and your situation.

So let us know where you’d like to go.

And together, we’ll find a way to get you there.

1127 Hendersonville Rd., Asheville, NC 28803 • 828-255-5711 218 North Main St., Hendersonville. NC 28792 • 828-233-0900 122 Cherokee Rd., Charlotte, NC 28207 • 980-321-5946 (Loan Production Office) Also in Spartanburg, Greenville, Anderson, Easley, Powdersville and Seneca

carolinaalliancebank.com July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

3

JOIN US AUGUST 19

Publisher’s Thoughts

FOR A REALLY

SWEET

EVENT

I

n case you haven’t noticed (and especially if you have), this publication has been undergoing a few changes.

Some are small, and others are more noticeable, but all of them are to the improvement of the content and overall reader—and now viewer—experience.

Starting with the printed publication in your hands, the inside stock is now on higher quality paper. It also now has a softer feel on the outside. The softer feel is a result of a coating that is applied to protect the color and longevity of the magazine.

This new coating is much more environmentally friendly and contributes to a healthier work environment inside, where real Americans manufacture this beautiful product. Many readers seem to hold on to each edition for months and even years after they are published, and each page is often touched and turned by numerous hands. We want to make sure each copy looks this good for as long as possible.

On the content side of things, our editorial staff has conspired to give you more of what you already know and love about the business community of Western North Carolina. The Capital Adventurist section has been rolled into the Leisure & Libation section because, let’s face it, you can enjoy a libation pretty much anywhere in the region these days.

However, we promise to continue to help you get out of the office and into the great outdoors throughout the year. We’ve also introduced a new section called Insight in order to give you a brief window into local businesses and the people who drive them forward.

SWEET is an Evening of Desserts, Champagne, Wine, Spirits and Shopping from 8 to 10 p.m. at the Grove Arcade.

An Event of the 2016 Asheville Wine & Food Festival

If you follow us on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, or Facebook, receive our monthly editorial email, or have visited capitalatplay.com in the last month, the chances are good that you’ve seen our first editorial video. We will be doing at least one video a month to take you into the business and inside the minds of local entrepreneurs.

Ticket Information at ashevillewineandfood.com

Though we will continue to adapt and progress along with the rest of the world, our mission is always to profile those who take the risk in business, inspiring others to go and do likewise. As usual, if you like these changes, if you don’t like them, or if you have any thoughts whatsoever, please let us know so that we can make our magazine better, more interesting, and more inspiring to you.

THE HISTORIC

GROVE ARCADE on

BATTERY HILL

Open Daily

•

One Page Avenue

828.252.7799 4 GA_Capital_July16.indd 1

•

•

Downtown Asheville

Sincerely,

www.grovearcade.com

Oby Morgan

| July 2016 6/1/16 8:00 AM

ASHEVILLE: Historic Biltmore Village 9 Kitchin Place 828-274-2630 STORE HOURS: Mon.-Fri. 9:30am-7pm Sat. 9:30am-6pm Sun. 12pm-5pm

THE EXPERT IN MEN’S APPAREL

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

5

The Free Spirit Of Enterprise

publisher

Oby Morgan associate publisher

Jeffrey Green managing editor

Fred Mills briefs and events editor

Leslee Kulba copy editors

Dasha O. Morgan, Brenda Murphy contributing writers & photogr aphers

Maggie Cramer, Anthony Harden, John Kerr, Marla Hardee Milling, Jim Murphy, Angela M. Raimondo, Toni Sherwood gr aphic designer

Bonnie Roberson Caroline Rains Intern marketing & advertising David Morgan, Katrina Morgan, Pat Starnes

Information & Inquiries gener al advertising inquiries

e-mail advertising@capitalatplay.com or call 828.274.7305 for subscription information

subscribe online at www.capitalatplay.com or call 828.274.7305 for editorial inquiries

e-mail editor@capitalatplay.com

M

U

l

rs a

ive

Un

rs al ive

UM ia

Un

U n ive rs a

rs a

Un ive

UM

ed

ia

ed

M

M

M

M

l

This magazine is printed with soy based ink on recycled paper. Please recycle. l

U

M

Editorial content is selected and produced because of its interest to our readership. Editorial content is not for sale and cannot be bought. Capital M M ed ed is financially sustained At Play ia by advertisers who find value in exposure ia alongside our unique content and with the readers who follow it.

Copyright Š 2016, Universal Media Inc. All rights reserved.

UniversalMedia

UM Universal

Media

UM

Capital At Play is a trademark of Universal Media, Inc. Published by Universal Media Inc. PO Box 5615, Asheville, NC. 28813

Capital At Play is protec ted through Tr ademar k Regis tr ation in the United States.

The content found within this publication does not necessar ily ref lec t the views of Univer sal Media , Inc. and its companies. Univer sal Media , Inc. and its employees are not liable for any adver tising or editor ial content found in Capital At Play. The ar ticles, photogr aphy, and illus tr ations found in Capital at Play may not be reproduced or used in any fashion without express wr it ten consent by Univer sal Media , Inc.

U

6

| July 2016

U

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

7

8

| July 2016

this page :

Stamp for Leather Specialties logo, photo by Anthony Harden

F E AT U R E S vol. vi

24

THE MAN WITH THE HORN LARRY BLACK

ed. vii

76

GROWING ON THE RIVER SUTTON BACON

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

9

C ON T EN T S j u l y 2 016

AIN'T NOTHING MUCH Sonny Sylvester, Stephen Lester, and Billy Scribbles, photo by Anthony Harden

39

lo c a l i n d u s t r y

Brother, Can You Spare a Dollar?

56

The region’s busker scene is a bustling, under-the-radar economy.

l e i s u r e & l i b at i o n

A River Runs Through It

A look at the many river-themed activities that you can partake in.

colu m ns

insight

briefs

16 T he Wine Pantry

12 B lue Ridge Riders

20 Carolina in the West 52 The Old North State 72 National & World News

Essential wines to keep around the house for any occasion.

Written by John Kerr

68 70 is the new 50

Area financial experts offer advice on pre-retirement planning and investing.

Steve Brown

SleepSwag Terri Hetzel and Susan Kitson

Brian Fireman Design Brian Fireman

p e o p l e at p l ay

88 MANNA FoodBank

on the cover :

Tubers enjoying a day on the French Broad with Zen Tubing, photo by Mike Belleme

Pictures from the Blue Jean Ball 2016 and the BMW Sign and Drive

events

90 Indoors & Outdoors

Shakespeare and Mary Poppins vie for your affections alongside Folkmoot and LEAF Downtown.

as 10

| July 2016

Express Express Express Employment Employment Employment Professionals Professionals Professionals Expres has has ahas a solution solution a solution for foryour for your your hiring hiring needs. hiring needs. needs.

Whether Whether Whether you youwant you wantwant temporary temporary hiring temporary helphelp now, now, now, or or or you’re you’re you’re looking looking looking forfor the the for perfect perfect the perfect fitfitfor for fitayou’re afor long-term long-term a long-term position, position, position, Express Express Express hashas skilled has skilled skilled workers workers workers ready ready ready when when Expres when your youryour business business business needs needs them. needs them. them. needs

CallCall or Call go or go online oronline go online today today today totosee see to see Call or howhow Express how Express Express can can help. can help.help. how E

Solutions Solutions Solutions include: include: include: • Professional • Professional • Professional • Office • Office Services • Office Services Services • Commercial • Commercial • Commercial • Flexible • Flexible • Staffing Flexible Staffing Staffing

Solution • Prof • Offic • Com • Flex

(828) (828) 654-8101 (828) 654-8101 654-8101 (828) 6 1979 1979 Hendersonville 1979 Hendersonville Hendersonville RdRdSuite Suite Rd Suite BB B 1979 H Asheville, Asheville, Asheville, NCNC 28803 28803 NC 28803 Ashevi

source:source: American American source: Staffing American Staffing Association Association Staffing Association

source:

Amer

shevillenc.expresspros.com ashevillenc.expresspros.com ashevillenc.expresspros.com ashevillenc.e July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

11

nsight

STEVE BROWN photo courtesy Blue Ridge Riders

Get Your Motor Running Popular pre-owned motorcycle business, Blue Ridge Riders, makes a significant transition while retaining its core values.

S

uccessful businessmen frequently take up high-impact hobbies to help offset the inherent occupational stress, and motorcycles are probably among the top diversions. It’s unlikely, though, that many of them adopt Steve Brown’s strategy: He left a lucrative career (Vice President of Strategy & Business Development at Standex International Corporation in New Hampshire) and bought an entire motorcycle dealership.

Asheville’s Blue Ridge Riders (B l u e R i d g e R i d e r s .c o m) wa s founded by Mike Jones in 2008.

Despite opening it during the re c e s sion, Jone s wou nd up exceeding his sales goals annually, ultimately growing it into the largest independent pre-owned motorcycle business in the area, and developing a loyal clientele that spans the East Coast and stretches into the Midwest. Meanwhile, Brown and his wife had purchased a second home in Asheville in 2010, eventually deciding to make the move permanent. “I gave my notice at Standex so that I could pursue owning and operating a local business in Asheville and relocate full-time,” says Brown. “My

motivation was to escape my very hectic travel schedule and to be able to spend more time in Western North Carolina.”

The Browns’ move fortuitously coincided with a decision

by Jones to sell his business and take a break from the long hours of retail sales. As Brown had been an avid motorcycle enthusiast since his dirt bike teen years, it seemed like a good fit. Brown finalized the purchase this

“I knew that I could be passionate about Blue Ridge Riders and feel like a kid in a candy store every time that I had the chance to handle my inventory.”

12

| July 2016

past January, forming a closely-held corporation, Journey Motorsports, Inc., in order to own and operate Blue Ridge Riders. As he puts it, “I knew that I could be passionate about Blue Ridge Riders and feel like a kid in a candy store every time that I had the chance to handle my inventory.”

Blue Ridge Riders sells pre-owned BMW, Ducati, Harley-Davidson, Kawasaki, Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha,

Triumph, and Custom motorcycles, all of which are serviced and inspected by an on-staff mechanic with 15+ years of shop experience. As a good portion of the dealership’s sales are attributable to repeat business, one key element of the ownership transition was the decision to have Jones stay on as a mentor to Brown so as to ensure that the new owner preserved the company’s core values, which Brown describes as “selling clean, reasonably priced, high-quality motorcycles in a friendly environment, without the added fees and costs charged by other dealers.”

He adds that while he’s hesitant, at least initially, to make too many changes, he has already installed new dealership management software. “It’s to help me track and manage my inventory in realtime, and to assist with quickly preparing transactional documents for customers. I felt the software was necessary to help put the right systems in place to support and grow the business. To benefit our customers, I [also] implemented a 30-day/1,000-mile limited warranty on most of the bikes that we sell, something that very few local motorcycle dealers offer.

“And in the future, I look forward to further expanding our inventory of bikes to choose from, and growing the repair and maintenance portion of the business.”

photo courtesy Blue Ridge Riders

SUSAN KITSON & TERRI HETZEL photo by Duncan Chaboudy

Sweet Dreams Are Made of This Some entrepreneurs want to build a better mousetrap. These two aim to help you sleep better.

T

erri Hetzel and Susan Kitson, founders of Asheville-based SleepSwag, are fascinated by sleep. Researchers report that during sleep, the creative process awakens; physicists, chemists, painters, writers, musicians, and athletes have all told of solving problems and making breakthroughs while sleeping and dreaming. And it’s during REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep that you experience the deepest, most coherent dreams of the night. REM sleep allows your brain to connect disparate thoughts and ideas, and then during the day those dreamtime connections become conscious ideas and creative visions.

Meanwhile, though, people who experience chronic sleeplessness can gain weight, experience more stress, have cognition effects, and even become depressed. It’s no wonder that the market for sleeping aids (chemical, physical, or otherwise) is such a broad one, and sleep masks have become a mainstay of that market. Studies have shown that using a sleep mask can lengthen your REM sleep—you sleep better, and more deeply.

Aware of all this, Hetzel and Kitson noticed that the sleep masks on the market were neither that comfortable—particularly the fabrics being used, July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

13

insight

photo courtesy SleepSwag because they didn’t breathe—nor attractive. Kitson herself was already a nightly sleep mask wearer of 10 years, while Hetzel was an occasional insomniac who used a mask when needed.

So they decided to create their own.

Explains Hetzel, “We set out to design a mask that was a fusion of superior function and beauty. We spent months designing, redesigning, and testing size, shape, and features. Many materials were sourced and experimented with. Who knew those sewing skills that my grandmother taught me in grade school would finally pay off? Susan did much of the sourcing of fabrics and can attest to the difficulty in attaining what we wanted.

“The development period took over a year. Then we sent sample masks out to dozens of sleep mask users willing to test our product. And the study participants responded very positively!”

Handmade in the USA, SleepSwag masks have eye pillows to block out all light, while a silk lining and two layers of cotton batting provide comfort. The masks stay in place with a unique,

BRIAN FIREMAN

Hand In Hand

“We sent sample masks out to

dozens of sleep mask users... and they responded very positively!” wide band—no noisy Velcro straps—that doesn’t get tangled in the hair or leave a mark. Dema Badr, owner of Scout Boutique in Biltmore Village, is clearly a fan of SleepSwag, which her store carries. “It’s utilitarian and fulfills a need,” says Badr, “but it’s also the best interpretation of an eye mask in the current market, which makes it lux, and more of a ‘want’.”

Hetzel has a medical and business education background, while Kitson holds a BA in elementary education and was previously a flight attendant. They launched their company last November at Sleepswag.com, and Hetzel notes that the past few months have kept them busy filling orders and pursuing retail locations in the Asheville area and beyond. “This past week we brought on a store in Juneau, Alaska,” she says. “As far as production goes, we will be introducing five more really fun fabrics over the next month. I can’t wait!”

14

| July 2016

For Brian Fireman, his custom furniture is rooted in a deep love and respect for the material.

I

f you visit the website of Brian Fireman Design (BrianFiremanDesign.com), you’re greeted by eye candy of the highest order: Elegant curves and sleek lines, glistening and borderline exotic; yet deeply functional, telegraphing comfort and utility. Such is the appeal of Fireman’s custom, hand-crafted furniture, and such is the designer’s acclaim in the decade-plus he has been displaying his wares of wood, amassing an ever-expanding portfolio of interior design media coverage and notching numerous awards at exhibitions. (July 2 through August 27 will bring his newest solo exhibition, at The Bascom: A Center for the Visual Arts, located in Highlands.)

Still, in a sense, Fireman’s position in the contemporary furniture world could almost be termed an accidental career, because his formal training was in an entirely different field. He earned his masters in architecture at Virginia Tech in 2001, subsequently

photos courtesy Brian Fireman Design

moving to Asheville and working for several years at Griffin Architects. While in school, however, he’d also spent summers building traditional timber frame homes. “This was my first introduction to woodworking,” recalls Fireman, “and I greatly enjoyed the process of working with my hands, doing the joinery layout on large timbers in the shop and erecting impressive structures on site. I was exploring the connectedness between design and building.”

As the saying goes, the experience “took.” Even while working at the architectural firm, Fireman was assembling a shop in the basement of his West Asheville home. “I had missed the process of making something with my hands,” he says. “While the space was incredibly small, with my head almost scraping the ceiling, it worked and afforded me the opportunity to keep overhead low and grow the business.” He eventually graduated to less-cramped digs, purchasing a 30-acre piece of property located between Tryon, North Carolina, and Landrum, South Carolina.

Since formally establishing Brian Fireman Design in 2004, the not-quite-former architect (“It’s just temporarily on the

backburner; I am currently taking the various N.C. licensing exams.”) has developed relationships with showrooms in Atlanta—his first show was an American Craft Council event in Atlanta, where he received his first commission, for a custom cherry-and-walnut cabinet—New York, Miami, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. He says building long-lasting relationships with owners is paramount, and as his business has been growing he has also been training other people who share his interests.

So what does he think sets his creations apart?

“One of the main reasons I work with wood is because of a deep rooted love and respect for the material.

From a design perspective, I enjoy the sculpting and shaping of wood, and thus my work tends to have an organic and sculptural quality. I like a piece of furniture to not have a ‘back,’ but look good from any angle or direction.

It’s the overall feeling and ‘presence’ of a piece."

Fireman adds that the market for custom furniture is competitive, and he has had to become “just as savvy in the art of selling and marketing as it is to simply work in the studio.

They go hand in hand in running a successful business.”

“I enjoy the sculpting and shaping of wood, and thus my work tends to have an organic and sculptural quality.”

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

15

column

The Wine Pantry

Essential wines to keep around the house for any occasion.

W

HERE

DOES

THE

TIME

GO?

We all lead such busy lives. And with the demands of the day, there’s hardly enough time to get it all done. The most common casualties seem to be life’s pleasurable but essential tasks. To squeeze in the responsibilities of the day, it’s often mealtime that gets shortchanged.

J

john kerr

is the co-owner of Metro Wines located on Charlotte Street in downtown Asheville.

16

To whip together a satisfying meal in record time, the savvy home cook keeps a small stockpile of staples that can be used in a variety of dishes.

And so should you. So even in the busiest of times and with the barest cupboards, you can quickly construct a simple but satisfying meal. In our home, that pantry includes pasta, onions, a can of tomatoes, and a bag of lettuce.

Similarly, you don’t want to be caught short when it comes to wine. Your pantry ought to include a collection of versatile wines that can be served with just about any meal or at any occasion. You don’t need a vast cellar to accomplish this task. A small arsenal of about four to six well-chosen wines should get the job done. Your collection might change a bit with the seasons (rosé, anyone?), but I think you’ll find that a core group of wines will get you through the year.

I’ll be recommending a few grapes and wines that you may not have considered. But when you’re in an adventurous mood, whether at the restaurant or wine shop, I encourage you to give them a try. I think you’ll find at least one new favorite that will get you through many a meal.

| July 2016

Having said that, I remind you to be true to your own taste buds. No one tells you how to cook your steak. And no one tells you what flavor ice cream you should eat. So don’t let someone tell you what wines you should serve. Drink what you like. End of story.

I am a big fan of Cabernet Sauvignon but it’s not high on my list of versatile wines. The king of grapes it may be, but it’s more tannic than most.

Cabernet’s classic pairing is steak or aged cheese.

The pairing is perfect because Cabernet’s tannins and acidity cut through the fat in steak and cheese.

And elements in steak and cheese soften the wine’s tannins. But this perfect match is somewhat limited because few other foods have casein or the other elements. Without them, Cabernet Sauvignon can seem too big or rough.

The next time you’re in your favorite wine shop, ask the staff to point you towards a versatile red. I bet they’ll lead you to the Pinot Noir aisle. And they’d be right – Pinot Noir pairs with just about anything, even many fish dishes. But if you like a heavier red, I think you might prefer a red blend from southern Rhône in your pantry. The less expensive ones are

J best for our mission since they don’t have the oak that can limit versatility.

And many Rhône reds are heavier than Pinot Noir, but not so heavy that they overpower the meal. If you want the heaviest of Rhônes, lean towards those with less Grenache and more Syrah or Mourvèdre. Consider Domaine Amido Cotes du Rhône Villages Signargues at about $15.

So what is the white counterpart to our red Rhônes? I know many of you will disagree when I say Chardonnay. It has become a divisive grape in the last few years, and some people won’t even try it when I offer them a glass.

What happened to Chardonnay is exactly what happened to American cars in the 1950s. One car maker added tail fins to a model and the people loved it. Next year, the competition

Install LED light bulbs Remember to bring reusable bags to grocery store Create a financial plan that reflects my values Invest in sustainable and responsible companies

You’ve got the small stuff covered. Let us help you make a greater lasting impact. We’ve been helping people put their money to good use, with socially responsible investments and customized financial plans, for more than 16 years.

So, if you’d like to work with a small, independent, local business deeply invested in our great community, call us.

440 Montford Avenue, Asheville NC, 28801 | 828-285-8777 | 877-285-7537 | www.starksfinancial.com Securities offered through Raymond James Financial Services, Member FINRA/SIPC.

THIS GR APE IS NOW BEING REDISCOVERED BY AMERICA’S WINE LOVERS AND THE MOVEMENT IS ON TO REPLANT CHENIN BLANC BACK IN ITS ORIGINAL VINEYARDS. made the fins even bigger. Fins grew to gargantuan proportions until the craze crashed in the early sixties. California Chardonnay went through the same one-upmanship with butter and oak.

Soon, the wine industry was referring to California Chardonnay as Chateau Two-by-Four.

Before you swear off Chardonnay, try an unoaked or low oak version from France’s Burgundy region. Unoaked Chardonnay is exceptionally versatile, riding down the middle with enough acidity to pair with most foods, but

The

Most Important thing in your

Attorney’s Briefcase...

is

Experience John C. Hunter Attorney at Law

Providing experienced legal representation for over 30 years One North Pack Square | Ste 421 Asheville, NC 28801 828.281.1940 | jchlawfirm.com July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

17

column

round and soft enough to enjoy on its own. My go-to Chardonnay

by America’s wine lovers and the movement is on to replant is Domaine Dupeuble Pere et Fils Beaujolais Blanc at about $18.

Chenin Blanc back in its original vineyards.

Beaujolais is technically southern Burgundy. But because it I suggest trying a Chenin Blanc from South Africa. The doesn’t have the Burgundy name the price is lower, meeting style of their Chenin Blanc floats somewhere between that of another requirement of our California and France. So you pantry. And if you want to go experience a style with a bit even lower, there are several more fruit but also minerality WITH THIS WINE IN YOUR French and California unoaked in the finish. For those who Chardonnays such as Thomas can’t imagine serving an off PANTRY YOU’RE READY Henry Chardonnay at about $12. dry wine, the fruit in Chenin FOR ANY CELEBR ATION. Okay, we have our two Blanc can give some perception AND SPARKLING WINE exceptionally versatile wines of sweetness. This perception IS ARGUABLY THE MOST for our foundation. Now we’ll pairs better than most with add a couple more to the pantry fare that is hot or spicy, such VERSATILE WINE AROUND. that are versatile but perhaps a as Asian and Indian cuisine. My THE ACIDITY HELPS IT PAIR bit more focused. favorite value is MAN Chenin WITH JUST ABOUT ANYTHING. For your other white, I would Blanc. At 91 points, it’s a steal add a Chenin Blanc. Chenin at about $13.

Blanc is a chameleon grape that Your second red needs to can be made in many styles, from lean to fruity, dry to sweet. pair with America’s favorite cuisine, Italian food. With It was once one of the most prevalent grapes in California but rare exception, it is Italy’s wine that pairs with Italian was uprooted to make way for the newly popular Chardonnay food. That’s because so much of Italian food is centered and Sauvignon Blanc. This grape is now being rediscovered on the tomato. Tomatoes are one of the most acidic foods

Things That Matter

Things You Can Control

What You Should Focus On Helping you focus... It’s what we do.

828.274.7844 | info@wofm.us www.WhiteOakFinancialManagement.com Every Investment Strategy Has The Potential For Profit Or Loss.

18

| July 2016

around, and pretty much only the acidity in Italian wines can match it.

I think your versatile Italian red should be Montepulciano.

This grape is the classic wine for pizza. But it also pairs beautifully with pasta or anything topped with a red sauce.

This includes barbeque, one of the essential food groups of North Carolina. And it’s the softest and fruitiest of the Italian wines, so it’s also great for parties or porch sipping.

The good news is that Montepulciano is one of the most economical wines you can buy. Nearly all can be acquired in the $10 to $15 range. The most I’ve ever paid for a Montepulciano is $20. The higher cost was due to the oak used in making the wine. It’s a great wine, but remember, you want no or low oak for versatility and to let the fruit shine through. One of our most popular is Garofoli Colle Ambro, a Montepulciano blend at about $15.

I’ll finish by adding a sparkling wine to the mix. With this wine in your pantry you’re ready for any celebration. And sparkling wine is arguably the most versatile wine around.

The acidity helps it pair with just about anything and the bubbles cleanse your palate before the next bite. The best pairing for sparkling wine are foods with texture. Serve sparkling with dishes made with pastry such as empanadas.

Or pour with potato chips or French fries for a pairing that defies description.

Pay attention, Champagne lovers. I am about to cut your annual Champagne bill in half. Hard to believe? It won’t be after you’ve tried Jansz sparkling rose from Tasmania.

Since all the vineyards in Champagne are owned by someone, a major Champagne producer searched the world looking for additional land that could produce a sparkling with the style and quality of Champagne. They found it literally on the other side of the planet in Tasmania.

Eventually, the distance made the vineyards too much trouble for them and the Champagne house sold the land. But the new owner has kept up the quality. You can now acquire Jansz’s Champagne experience for about $23. Yes, you can get a decent sparkler for $15 or less. But Jansz is the best bargain in this category we’ve found in years.

These are the wines you’ll find in my pantry. I hope my suggestions help you build your own stockpile. With your own well-stocked pantry, you’ll be ready for any occasion and put an end to those last minute trips to the wine shop.

A-B TECH AVIATION

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 19

CAROLINA in the

WEST [

news briefs

The New Tribal Bonfire swain county

Cherokee leadership is test-driving pyrotechnology from Los Angeles-based American Renewable Technologies, Incorporated at the Tribal Transfer Station. The process uses a huge machine, which is basically a sealed chamber that heats feedstock (a.k.a. garbage) using low-emission burners. The chamber heats the loaded materials to combustion temperatures, at which point the burning will be self-sustained. The gases emitted go through a scrubbing process to become fit for turning turbines for electricity generation. The left-behind solids are essentially carbon, which can be used in a variety of industries or the Tribal Compost program. The entire combustion process takes about an hour. Although the technology has been around since World

]

War II, Cherokee received three grants totaling $750,000 from the Department of Energy and Mineral Development in the Bureau of Indian Affairs to experiment.

The grants paid for waste stream and cost analyses, a two-week demonstration, and a longer test phase where county leaders can determine exactly what products they want to char. If the tribe decides to purchase the machine, it would be able to negotiate better prices, due to shorter hauling distances, with neighboring jurisdictions that would prefer to stop sending their trash to Georgia.

Who Knows Where the Road Goes? buncombe county

For about two decades, the portion of I-26 passing through Asheville has

been referred to in traffic reports as Malfunction Junction. Efforts by the North Carolina Department of Transportation (DOT) to convert the road to an eight-lane freeway have been stalled by interests striving to reduce climate change by encouraging alternative forms of transportation. As it is, the 7-mile stretch in question does not conform to current design standards and accident rates exceed state averages. The stalemate was finally broken in May as the DOT selected the least environmentally damaging practicable alternative. The choice was based on public input, relative impacts on the environment, homes, businesses, places of interest, and costs. The project will not require, as previously expected, the bulldozing of Westgate Shopping Plaza and the Crowne Plaza resort in their entireties. Instead, the roads and rights of way may only take down the tennis courts, spa, and four greens of the resort, plus the row of shops closest to Patton Avenue. The Country Inn & Suites, still under construction, may have to go; and Jackson’s Western Wear and the FedEx facility across the street most certainly will be impacted. The next step is for the DOT to work to minimize the impacts before preparing a Final Environmental Impact Statement to be approved by

THE CLOUD POOL Poplar Ridge • Arden, Nor th Carolina

Medallion Pool and their team made it very easy on us — they required no ongoing intervention and finished the project with literally no final punch list.

The Cloud Pool Homeowners

M A R K D O R S E Y D E S I G N S

Mark Dorsey Designs and Medallion Pool Company Asheville, North Carolina MedallionPool.com • 828-684-5381 20

| July 2016

local, state, and federal authorities, possibly in early 2017.

Another Alternative to Those Tangled Hospital Wires macon county

TekTone has developed another product through its ongoing partnership with Western Carolina University’s Kimmel School. For their capstone engineering course, students work with local businesses to demonstrate learning goals established by both the department and the university. The spring 2016 semester capstone project was the development of wireless pendants for use with TekTone’s® nurse and emergency call systems. Students gained hands-on experience as they worked at TekTone’s® FDA-registered, state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Franklin. Their work was reviewed by company engineers.

Founded in 1973, TekTone® Sound & Signal Manufacturing, Incorporated has been in the business of designing and manufacturing risk-reduction systems.

Applications include nurse call, wireless nurse and emergency call, wander management, and rescue assistance. Their ®

52

72

the old north state

national & world

products are distributed worldwide.

TekTone® provides the university with open-ended design projects for design and prototyping. Vice President of Engineering James Ivey serves as the sponsor representative and is tasked with balancing educational opportunities with customer expectations. Pat Gardner, director of the Center for Rapid Product Realization, coordinates opportunities on behalf of the school’s triple-accredited engineering program.

Building a Legacy, with Care haywood county

Finishing touches are being applied to the second stage of the Haywood Arts Regional Theatre (HART) in Waynesville.

The existing building is a 10,000-sq.-ft. rustic structure, and the new theatre will complement it with an additional 9,000-sq.-ft. and seating for 140. The expansion has been in the planning stages for a number of years, with ground finally breaking in 2014. The grand opening for the Daniel & Belle Fangmeyer Theatre was scheduled for June 25-26, with the production All My Sons booked to open August 5. The expansion cost $1.2 million,

carolina in the west

with patrons of the theatre raising almost $1 million. Executive Director Steven Lloyd explains he is not expanding to flip the investment; instead, he is building a legacy. When he came to work at the theatre 26 years ago as a visiting artist at Haywood Community College, he filled a void in financial planning. HART had been operating out of The Strand until the fire marshal kicked the organization out.

Lloyd was there to help fundraise for the first stage. He now will not book shows at a loss. Knowing sources of funding can dry up, he will take public grants only as icing on the cake. Lloyd attributes his business acumen to his family. He learned the business side of show business from the carnival his grandfather owned.

Giving Math Some Color watauga county

Appalachian State University and Southwestern Community College received a $1.4 million grant from NASA to fund the Smoky Mountain STEM Collaborative, STEM being short for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Appalachian State will offer graduate courses for faculty working at community colleges and summer experiences for students studying math

Got Music?

School Band & Orchestra Instrument Rentals at Tempo Music Center

limited memberships now available. visit biltmore.com/bscc or call 828-257-5959 for membership information.

Quality products, great rates, prices, and a friendly knowledgeable staff.

244 North Main Street • Hendersonville, NC 28792 (828) 693-8276 • tempomusicwnc.com

mention this ad and receive a free round of sporting clays when you join ($30 value).

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

21

SHOP. SAVOR. STAY.

carolina in the west

and physics at community colleges.

Students in Jackson, Macon, Swain, and Cherokee public schools will also benefit from programming availed by partners NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute, and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It is hoped the fascinating field of untapped potential in astronomy will lure more students into harder-core math and science curricula and better acquaint the public with NASA’s educational resources. Matt Cass, who chairs the science department at Southwestern, will lead the program. Cass received both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in physics from Appalachian State. Courses of study will include instrument development and cosmology, and give students access to existing astronomy facilities in the southwestern portion of the state. Appalachian’s Dr. Rene Salinas will mentor students in selecting research projects and faculty advisors and preparing their research for presentation.

For Those Who Go Around Chasing Things Fermented henderson county

VILLAGE SHOPS’ HOURS: Monday-Saturday, 10AM-6PM • Sundays 12PM-5PM NATIONAL RETAILERS’ HOURS: Monday-Saturday, 10AM-7PM • Sundays 12PM-5PM www.historicbiltmorevillage.com www.facebook.com/biltmorevillage

info@biltmorepropertygroup.com| •July 828-398-6854 2016 22

A s the novelty of craft brewer y announcements in Western North Carolina taps out, cideries are taking over the news cycle. Hendersonville has long been famous for its apples, being the number-one producer in the state and the seventh-largest in the nation.

Now, it is getting on the map for hard cider. The scene is much like that of craft breweries, with tasting rooms becoming destinations for cider tourists. In June native Alan Ward was scheduled to open Henderson County’s third cidery. It will be across the road from Ward’s Saint Paul Mountain Vineyards, where he already produces a line of ciders under the name Wallace. Appalachian Ridge Artisan Ciders will be in a barn in the

middle of an orchard, where Ward insists ciders taste better. Another cidery to arrive on the Henderson County scene came from Virginia. Bold Rock Hard Cider opened its second operation, with a state-of-the-art tasting room in Mills River. To a backdrop of live music and food trucks, Bold Rock offers nine ciders on-tap, two of which, Carolina Apple and Carolina Draft, are only made locally. The county’s first cidery, Flat Rock Ciderworks, opened in 2014. It is owned by natives Jim Sparks and Jim Revis, whose operation covers all phases of production for their specialties, Wicked Peel and Blackberry Gold.

Their tasting room is on Main Street in downtown Hendersonville.

Stormwater Mitigation buncombe county

Shiny Creek, an Asheville company that specializes in building web and mobile applications for large organizations, has created a better way to report muddy water. The app was created for MountainTrue in partnership with French Broad Riverkeeper, Hartwell Carson, and North Carolina Riverkeeper. The problem it addresses is too many people finding runoff and not knowing how or where to report it. The app, which can be downloaded for free from the Apple iTunes or Google Play store, allows the user to photograph the source of runoff and annotate it with text. Since the location is geotagged, and the app works for riverkeeping initiatives throughout the country, hitting a submit button will direct the complaint to the appropriate authority. MountainTrue and Carson will be holding three training sessions for using the app. They will be held at Asheville-Buncombe Technical C o m mu n it y C o l l e g e , H ay wo o d Community College, and the Marshall Public Library. Each session will include a visit to an active construction site. To date, without the app, over 150 persons volunteering for Muddy Water Watch

REVIVING have reported hundreds of sediment runoffs. Construction, as well as a number of natural causes, often clouds aquatic habitat, resulting in a number of adverse effects, including warming water and smothering wildlife.

Institutionalizing Horse Sense

&

REDEVELOPING

with excellence

transylvania county

Brevard College will be the first Western North Carolina institute of higher learning to offer a degree in agricultural education. It will be the fourth in the state. The program is made possible by a $75,000 grant from the Golden LEAF Foundation.

Golden LEAF was created by the North Carolina General Assembly in 1999 to offer relief to economically-distraught, tobacco - dependent communities.

Grants go toward projects that support agriculture by training, hiring, and retaining workers. This grant will go toward hiring an assistant professor and purchasing a greenhouse. The grant is expected to fully fund any additional expenses the college would incur from the program. Gina Raicovich was selected in a national search process to be the assistant professor in environmental studies and sustainable agriculture. She has a master’s degree in environmental studies with a focus on sustainable agriculture from the University of Montana-Missoula, and she now operates her own farm near Asheville. Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty Scott Sheffield said there was a shortage of agricultural educators, and many of those so employed are filling roles without the expertise a four-year licensing program can offer. The curriculum at Brevard College will focus on mountain agriculture. Andy VonCanon, the North Carolina Region Agricultural Education Coordinator for North Carolina State University, was instrumental in designing the program.

Timeless, Award Winning Architecture.

Top-Notch Retailers.

BILTMORE

PROPERTY GROUP

CORPORATE OFFICE: 10 Brook Street, Suite 205•Asheville, NC 28803 • 828-398-6854 info@biltmorepropertygroup.com FOR LEASING INFORMATION: Alan Kleinmaier • alank@biltmorepropertygroup.com • 828-398-6966

WWW.BILTMOREPROPERT YGROUP.COM July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 23

For Larry Black, what started out as an invention of necessity eventually became an interesting hobby, and from there it turned into a bonafide business with international clientele.

24

| July 2016

video intervie w

capital atpl ay. com

THE

Man

Horn WITH THE

written by jim murphy photos by anthony harden

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 25

LARRY shows off some of his many dies.

If Larry Black had played for the Atlanta Braves, when he retired he might have opened an upscale steak house or luxury car dealership. If he had played for the Atlanta Falcons, he might be doing color commentary on NFL television broadcasts. But he played for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra—every bit a major-league franchise—and in retirement, he has become an international entrepreneur.

His business, Leather Specialties Company, produces an accessory for brass instruments that only serious musicians would even recognize, let alone purchase.

In what might sound like a glaring paradox, his leather guards protect the instrument from the hands of the musician. Yes, even as an artist is making beautiful music, he is often creating an ugly scar on his instrument.

Larry explains that perspiration produces acids that can damage a brass or silver finish. “Hand acids that touch the silver or lacquer have a tendency to eat through 26

| July 2016

it,” he says. With a good trumpet or trombone costing in the mid four figures or more, it is an investment worth protecting. Larry’s guards cover the instrument where the musician holds it, forming a protective pocket that prevents perspiration acids from eating through the finish. Musicians who perspire more profusely “can go through an instrument in two weeks,” Larry says. “It depends on the player.”

The Leather Specialties Company factory/sales office/studio/world headquarters occupies a barn-size

A COLLECTION of mouthpieces

SPECIALIZED patterns

building behind Larry’s home in Pisgah Forest. Mountain views abound, and his next-door neighbors include a couple of goats and a donkey quietly grazing on a Tuesday morning. If the exterior mood is quiet and rural, inside presents a scene of industrious mayhem. Just inside the door sits a 1974 MGB awaiting restoration, alongside a pair of his-and-hers Harley Davidsons, and, hanging on the wall above them, a canoe. The toys tell a story of energy, and after a few minutes talking with Larry and his wife, Rita, the energy becomes obvious.

A quick look around the big room confirms the initial impression. Cartons of 4-by-6-foot leather sheets sit on the floor stacked next to a chest-high work table, which is covered with what appear to be random slips of paper and scraps of leather. Seven sewing machines are spread around the room in no discernible pattern, while a large, early 20th-century machine that Larry calls a “Clicker” sits opposite two standing metal cabinets. The Clicker is the device that actually cuts the leather sheets into patterns that will fit any particular instrument. Larry opens the cabinets to display more than 100 dies, explaining that these are the patterns for his standard hand guards. But he says about 25 percent of his orders are for custom-made instruments. “I have to make special patterns for those,” he says, turning to a work table and flipping through a stack of oddly shaped cards, each bearing a cryptic label: Shire’s “Tru Bore” tenor 2” cap; or, Beech trumpet Olds “Super” (1938-present). To Larry, those notations identify the instrument the pattern is made to fit.

Waist-high cabinets are scattered around the room, each holding completed guards ready to be shipped. On one of those cabinets is a catalog listing all the guards Larry can produce. The catalog is 33 pages long, with more than 50 items per page. A quick calculation produces the staggering figure that Larry can make a specialized hand guard for more than 1,600 instruments.

Off in a corner sits an old roll-top desk, the top of which is covered with at least 50 instrument mouthpieces. Larry opens the desk drawers to reveal more than 100 more.

Toward the back of the room, another three file cabinets are filled—packed, stuffed, crammed—with sheet music.

Larry opens one of the drawers explaining, “I have performed all of this at one time or another. I’ve kept them all. These have come in useful in teaching students.” The mention of students turns his attention to a digression. “I got nine kids (former students) out there performing professionally. One at the Chicago Philharmonic, who’s going to the New York Philharmonic, one in Boston, one in Cleveland, and one at the Metropolitan Opera.”

He can’t hide the pride in his voice as he enumerates their success.

The sheet music cabinets are tucked in an aisle which also reveals stacks of CDs, in no apparent order. Larry estimates he has more than 1,000 in his collection. Across the aisle, a sturdy floor-to-ceiling shelf unit holds more piles of big leather sheets.

They vary in thickness and color, of which Larry explains: July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 27

“The trumpet guards are thicker than other instruments, and I also make gig bags (travel cases) that have to be even thicker. As for the different colors, sometimes a customer will say something like, ‘I want a green mouthpiece pouch.’ I’ve got to be ready for that.”

The tour of his workspace is dizzying to an outsider, but amid what looks like absolute chaos, Larry can find whatever he’s looking for with no apparent effort.

Practice Makes Perfect “He’s a workaholic,” Rita says, as Larry admits that he started work that morning at 5:30. Rita nods and adds, “And he won’t come back in the house until nine tonight.” In addition to the 40-plus hours a week running his business, he says he works out for an hour-and-a-half and practices on his trumpet for at least two-and-a-half hours every day.

His practice studio is a small room tucked into the back of the building. A music stand is surrounded by five trumpets and a few scattered leather cases.

Larry says he owns around 17 trumpets.

Those hours playing trumpet are well spent because it is the trumpet that got him here. Now 75 years old, Larry has had a horn in his hands since he was in sixth grade at Lincoln Elementary in Dixon, Illinois. “Trumpet was pretty easy for me,” he says. “I had a friend who got into the band program.

He brought home this cornet and he couldn’t get a sound out of it. I tried it and I got a sound right away. I thought, ‘This is cool.’”

Larry played trumpet in his school band as well as a citywide youth band, and he soon started attracting attention. One day, the high school band director approached him, wanting to know if he was interested in playing in the high school band. He was, and he did—while still in the eighth grade.

During high school, it seemed Larry always had a horn in his hands. He played in the concert band, the marching band, the brass quintet, and the jazz band. “My heroes during high school were Maynard Ferguson, Doc Severinson, and Al Hirt,” he says. But he was drawn to philharmonic music. He still recalls the moment when he decided that the concert stage was the path he wanted to follow. One morning, when his mother was driving him to school, they were listening to the radio. “I heard the Chicago Symphony playing ‘Scheherazade.’

It’s a big, fancy piece. I told my mother, ‘I want to do that.’”

From a small-town high school band to the Atlanta Symphony is a long trip, and Larry started his journey by winning a music scholarship to Northern Illinois University in DeKalb. After graduation, he took his act on the road, performing with a contemporary Christian group called the Spurrlows. “I played trumpet and drove the bus. We covered the United States and Canada, from Winnipeg all the way down to Miami.” After that, he taught junior high and grade school for a year in a small town in northern Illinois. “That’s when I decided I really want to try my hand at playing professionally.”

The decision entailed more than just applying for a job. Larry enlisted the services of a highly regarded coach, who also played trumpet with the Chicago Symphony. After a year of advanced lessons, he was accepted into the masters music program at Northwestern University.

It was a busy time. In addition to his classes, rehearsals, and performances with the university orchestra, Larry played everything from weddings to symphonies to generate a little income. He also met a voice student named Rita Gingrich.

Half a century later, sitting at a table in the big barnlike building, she grins as she recalls, “We hadn’t even met when I first heard him play. And 28

| July 2016

Larry has had a horn in his hands since he was in sixth grade. “Trumpet was pretty easy for me,” he says. “I tried it and I got a sound right away.

I thought, ‘This is cool.’”

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 29

THE "CLICKER”

A CUSTOM carrying case

EVERY PIECE is sewn together by Larry himself.

30

| July 2016

his sound was so pure that I fell in love on the spot.” Rita went on to earn her master’s degree in voice. “I also had a degree in teaching, so I did that,” she says, shaking her head at the memory. “I just knew I did not want to sing opera, and that’s the only way you can make money. I hated opera. So I taught school, and I was also a church soloist.”

Along the way Rita added “Mother” to her resume. She and Larry have two sons, Corey, who lives in Asheville, and his younger brother, Tom, who is in Atlanta. Rita adds that she sang with the Atlanta Symphony chorus “between children.”

But Atlanta was still several stops down the career path.

The year was 1967, a time when the war in Vietnam was threatening to delay young careers—or worse. Larry’s talent earned him a spot in the West Point orchestra, where he served for three years. “They had only one opening in the band, and I had to audition against—I don’t remember the exact number—something like 30 others. It was a pressurized situation. I felt like I was playing for my life.

And I won the job.”

Rita nods, and in a quiet voice, adds, “When the pressure is on, he rises to the occasion.”

Vision In Leather Once his hitch at West Point was over, Larry had to rise to the occasion once again. He had to land a job with a civilian symphony orchestra.

But here is where his career began to point him in a different direction. It was just after he got out of the army that his Leather Specialties company began to germinate.

“We were driving home—in a brand new yellow Corvette that cost $4,000,” he says, grinning at the “good old days” price. “I stopped in Chicago at Schilke’s music store to get a leather pouch for my mouthpiece to keep it from banging into the trumpet in the carrying case. They told me their supplier had gone out of business; they didn’t have any.

“When we got home, I bought a $10 piece of leather, a couple of punches and some lace. I cut out 10 or 12 pouches, kept one for myself and gave the others to my students. This is how the whole thing got started.”

A couple of years later, one of Larry’s students brought his trumpet into Schilke’s. “Reynold Schilke called me and said, ‘Did you make that leather pouch one of your students came in here with?’ When I agreed that I had, he said, ‘Can you send me 150 of them?’ He didn’t even ask the price.”

Larry’s face takes on a helpless expression as he recalls the quandary presented by this unexpected request. “I said, ‘Well, I guess so,’ and he said ‘Done.’ And he hung up. And I said to myself, ‘What did I just say?’”

It turned out to be a crucial moment in Larry and Rita’s future, but the fruits of their labor did not become apparent for many years.

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

31

EVERYTHING leaves with Larry's seal of approval.

PUNCHING out lace holes Sharing a reminiscent and partly rueful grin with Rita, Larry continues with the story. “So I went down and bought some leather, and Rita and I were up until three o’clock in the morning for the next three nights, hand cutting and lacing these by hand. And she says to me, ‘Larry, tell me again why we are doing this.’

So that was probably the closest she ever came to divorcing me.”

Rita listens to Larry’s version of the story, then interjects, “The divorce is just our little joke, but it was hard.” More than 40 years later, Larry is still doing business with the Schilke store. It has changed hands, and the current owner, Andrew Naumann, acknowledged that “the two companies have a long-standing business relationship. Schilke’s has always enjoyed the connection to Leather Specialties and appreciates their continued quality product. Both companies have always shared the same philosophical approach of quality over quantity.”

Despite their initial three-day marathon, Rita never expected their labor to evolve into a full-fledged enterprise? “No. It was just going to be a little pastime. We made some money doing it, but not a lot.” Certainly not enough to alter Larry’s career, which was centered on the Atlanta concert stage.

Larry and Rita take turns describing the economics of the classical music business.

They say it’s pretty much like any other entertainment enterprise—from theater to sports. Bigger cities can supply bigger audiences, which translates to more income, in turn generating higher salaries and attracting better performers. Yes, bigger is better.

Hoping to get his foot in a door that was barely ajar, Larry set about auditioning for orchestras in smaller cities. “I auditioned for Pittsburgh, Dallas, Buffalo, Syracuse, and then a couple of West Coast orchestras,” he said. “I made the finals in seven out of nine auditions. I won the job in Syracuse.”

32

| July 2016

Rita is nodding along with the narrative as Larry recalls that the Syracuse job “didn’t pay much—it was $14,000.”

Rita stops nodding. “Can I correct that?” she says. “It was under $2,000.” They think back, putting together the details of their experiences long ago. He agrees that it was, indeed, only $2,000. “I wound up teaching at a parochial school and a junior high and a high school three days a week. Rita was teaching full-time grade school. I told her, ‘We’ll be out of here in two years.’”

Passing The Audition It only took one. When the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra announced an opening in 1970, Larry was ready to audition.

He joined the Symphony that fall as third trumpet, and at a time when it was making its move into major-league status. “Robert Shaw came in 1967 to build Atlanta into a major orchestra,” Larry says. “And he did that in a decade.” When Larry started with the Atlanta Orchestra, it was performing 28 weeks a year, and a decade later, the schedule ran for 48 weeks and nearly 150 concerts.

Larry recalled the schedule: “We were off on Sunday and Monday. Then we had a rehearsal on Tuesday, two rehearsals on Wednesday, another on Thursday, and then

“I was kind of dubbed the leather man at the Symphony,” Larry says.

“Pretty soon I was doing all the brass instruments.” concerts on Thursday evening, Friday, and Saturday.” At the time, he was also teaching as many as nine students a week.

Some of the concerts in that busy schedule were turned into recordings. Larry played trumpet on 16 albums, which won “14 or 15”—he can’t remember the exact number—Grammys.

Meanwhile, he and Rita continued making leather pouches, and their small business began to expand. “I was kind of dubbed the leather man at the Symphony,” Larry says. “So then I would have trombone players ask me to make a guard for their instrument. Then I started making them for French horn players. Pretty soon I was doing all the brass instruments. Rita kept telling me, July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

33

NEW & CONSIGNMENT FURNITURE!

The Largest Consignment Store in WNC… 20,000 sq ft of shopping fun!

3699 Hendersonville Rd. Fletcher, NC 28732 (Clothing, decor, furniture & more!)

MON – SAT: 10 – 6 828-687-7565

|

www.ilovelulus.net

August 19 SWEET August 20 GRAND TASTING AshevilleWineandFood.com 34

| July 2016

‘This is like a hobby’. I think, for the time we invested, we were selling them too cheap.”

Rita says making the guards was a form of therapy. “There are two studies that were done to determine the stress levels of different occupations, and they found that playing in a symphony orchestra was number one or number two in stress.” The statement seems dubious, but Rita is quick to explain the reasons. “You can’t make a mistake in a concert.”

She says when an orchestra is playing a complicated piece of music if any one instrument misses a note or a beat, it could throw everyone else off. “So even though we weren’t making much money, it was therapeutic.”

The musical requirements that raise stress levels are part of what attracted Larry to the concert stage. “I liked symphonic music because it was almost a perfect art. You have to be such a clean player, accurate player.” Warming to his subject, Larry runs with the thought. “You must have a lot of technique, a good sound, really good range. You have to sight-read. This kind of sound just appealed to me over all the other genres of music.”

Once he was established with the Atlanta orchestra, Larry joined the summer faculty at the Brevard Music Center in North Carolina. “We loved the area and we decided to retire here,” he says. He retired in 2003, and set about turning the “hobby” into a real business.

After building and outfitting the headquarters building behind his house, Larry and Rita turned to building the business. “We didn’t have a website until I retired,” he says.

“Our son, Tom, set us up with one [LeatherSpecialtiesCo. com] and all of a sudden we started getting 35 to 40 orders a week.” Those 40 orders can amount to as many as 800 pieces a week that Larry must cut and assemble. “We just keep adding on,” he says. “I’m amazed that we got this many customers.”

Many of those customers are in major symphony orchestras. “Every now and then I’ll see symphony

REFLECTING on his handicraft

All That

BRASS

Larry works with all types of instruments, and to help you remember the different horns, we’ve created this little guide!

trumpet

tro m bon e

bugle

french horn

tuba

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

35

orchestras on television, and when the camera shoots in on the trumpet section or the trombone section, I’ll see my guards.”

The internet connection exposed the company to foreign markets as well, and European and Asian orders now account for about a quarter of his business. He says his top international markets are Germany, Japan, and Switzerland.

that has three layers. We call it Tripotec. The leather is backed by a layer of cellophane, and behind that is a velour backing. So the only thing that touches the instrument is fabric.” Larry has also designed guards that attach by either lacing or Velcro.

One of Larry’s longtime customers is Hickey’s Music Center in Ithaca, New York. David Zimet, the president of Hickey’s, says he’s been buying guards from Larry “since the last century.” He estimates their relationship goes back about 20 years, and says he had a hard time finding a good leather vendor.

“I had a customer who was a professional musician in the Atlanta area,” he says.

“And she tracked him down for me.” David’s experience underscores the “hobby” nature of Larry’s business before he retired from the orchestra. He wasn’t hunting for customers; they had to go hunting for him. Zimet adds that Larry’s products are “well made and well designed. He does the bulk of my leather business. I really like his products.”

“They look attractive, and musicians want something that looks good on their instrument. The guards also do the job of protecting the instrument.”

And with success came unwelcome imitation. “I’ve had four or five different products copied by other companies. My own design, and they just copied it.” Larry has also worked to make improvements on his designs. “We discovered that leather can tarnish an instrument. We wanted to figure out how to prevent that, and my son Tom came up with a design

FEMININE & FUN!

One All Souls Crescent • Historic Biltmore Village Asheville, NC • 828.505.8140 • www.shoppalmvillage.com www.facebook.com/Palm.Village.Asheville

36

| July 2016

Another longtime client is Dillon Music of Woodbridge, New Jersey, whose Steve Dillon can’t remember how many years he’s been dealing with Larry. “A long time,” he says. “Years and years.” He describes Larry’s products as “topnotch. He’s the only vendor we use for brass guards.” Dillon also points out a quality that makes Larry’s guards popular. “First off, they look attractive, and musicians want something that looks good on their instrument. The guards also do the job of protecting the instrument.” To the beginning musician, a leather guard might seem like an unnecessary add-on, but Dillon says all it takes to make the sale is a little education. “Once you explain how it protects the instrument, there’s no problem.” He adds, “Larry makes good products that are very desired and useful in the industry.”

Larry’s business is mostly a one-man operation, with the significant exception of Sue Kalmbach, who handles the office functions. Sue was brought in five years ago to wash the windows, and she ended up managing the office. This has included everything from taking customer calls and spearheading the marketing—for example, she established a social media presence for the company via its Facebook page, which she says has helped attract customers—to organizing the invoices and shipping the orders. When we walked into the

office area of the building she was working on an invoice for an order in Switzerland. She says the worldwide scope of the business can create difficulties in shipping. “I get real funny looks at the Post Office when I ship to Russia,” she says. Packing the shipments can also pose problems. “We get some orders for one piece and some for as many as 2,300 at a time.” But the toughest part of the job is learning which models will fit the different instruments. She laughs as she explains, “When somebody calls and says, ‘I need a guard for this instrument,’ I say ‘Hold on.’ And I yell for Larry.”

In addition to building his business, his daily exercise routine, and his practice hours, Larry continues to perform.

He plays principal trumpet in the Hendersonville and Brevard symphonies, and plays in a brass quintet in Asheville. He also teaches at Western Carolina University. “And I still play in churches. I play weddings and services.” He pauses, thinking about the busy hours that fill the days of a 75-year-old who’s supposed to be retired. The thought brings a smile. “I just keep practicing because I enjoy it. I enjoy playing. I’m going to play as long as I can.”

As for the future of his business, Larry is asked if he has a long-range goal. He grins. “Yeah—to keep up with the orders.”

JULY 14 - 17

JULY 28 – AUGUST 20

One Weekend Only!

Hello s! eou Gorg

Returns to Flat Rock Playhouse by popular demand

Presented By:

Tryon Estates

VisitHendersonvilleNC.org July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 37

Performances as

captivating as the view.

Summer Music Festival June-August 2016 SUNDAY JULY 3, 3:00PM

FRIDAY JULY 22, 7:30PM

A GOSPEL CELEBRATION

featuring The Rance Allen Group

SAINT-SAËNS PIANO CONCERTO NO. 2 featuring pianist Conrad Tao

Keith Lockhart Artistic Director

THURSDAY JULY 28, 7:30PM & SATURDAY JULY 30, 2:00PM

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM

SATURDAY JULY 30, 7:30PM

NEW WORLD SYMPHONY

SUNDAY AUGUST 7, 3:00PM

brevardmusic.org | (828) 862-2105 | Tickets start at $15 38

| July 2016

featuring countertenor David Daniels

Dvořák in America Festival

BEETHOVEN 9 conducted by Keith Lockhart

local industry

Brother, Can You Spare a Dollar?

Those banjo pickers, spoon players, human statues, and brightly-clad mimes dotting the local sidewalks aren’t just performing for your entertainment—they’re part of a bustling, under-the-radar economy. written by marl a hardee milling photos by anthony harden July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 39

I

local industry

F YOU’R E NOT FA MILIAR W ITH THE

term “busking,” it generally refers to performing on public sidewalks for tips. You might think the business of busking is pretty easy.

Open a guitar case, sing and strum, or paint your face and pose as a statue, and watch people drop a buck or two as they pass by.

There are some who travel through the Western North Carolina region, stopping in a town to play a few tunes in order to raise enough cash to carry them to the next town— fellow buskers call them “Traveling Kids.” There are others with a goal of supplementing their incomes, and others who are hoping to be discovered, along with random motivations mixed in between. In April searchers and rescue squad personnel were looking for two hikers who had gone missing in Pisgah National Forest, and after two days found them busking on the streets of Asheville. The pair was unaware that anyone was looking for them, even though they had been separated from friends in the wilderness.

It’s unknown just how many buskers are in the area, although Asheville clearly has the heaviest concentration of street performers. It can be very fluid, with buskers moving in and out of town on a regular basis, but it’s safe to say there are hundreds that pass through.

Few turn to busking as a full-time living, but those who do say they make a decent income and enjoy the freedom of doing what they love. Abby Roach, known as “The Spoon Lady,” arguably ranks as Asheville’s most popular and prolific busker, and even has a personal website, SpoonLadyMusic.com, where she bills herself as “professional spoonologist.” She’s self-taught on the spoons, teaches spoon lessons, hosts the “Spoonful of Tunes” program on WPVM-FM, and serves as head of the Asheville Buskers Collective, a group that formed to advocate for buskers’ rights amid city proposals to regulate where they can perform. And since we know you’re wondering, the answer is yes, she files a tax return on her busking earnings.

Potential Changes Afoot?

40

ABBY ROACH spoons up a tune | July 2016

Towns in the region have had varied experiences with, and reactions to, buskers. In Waynesville, for example, busking is allowed, but via an annual licensing system that specifies times and other restrictions. Hendersonville used to require buskers to obtain permits, but no longer does so, and while Blowing Rock has no specific ordinance on the books, street performers are advised by officials that they cannot ask or advertise for tips.

Meanwhile, in Asheville right now, the most profitable spots in the downtown area include Pack Square across

IN THE PINES: Kelly Harvey and Asheton Smith

from Vance Monument, in front of Woolworth Walk on Haywood Street, the Flat Iron sculpture at the corner of Battery Park Avenue and Wall Street, and in front of the Spiritex clothing store on Haywood. But those busker pinch points are in jeopardy as city leaders look for ways to reduce congestion in these high pedestrian areas.

The Public Safety Committee, chaired by City Councilman Cecil Bothwell, was planning to meet with Asheville Parks and Recreation in late June just prior to publication of this issue of Capital at Play. (The agenda for the June meeting can be found on p.49.) While nothing has been decided yet, Bothwell says, “What we’re probably going to do is reduce the crowding at certain locations. Because the buskers are so popular, they cause real jams on the sidewalk. We’ll probably limit the space in front of Woolworth Walk to solo performers only.” He says other changes likely will include marking off a box in front of the Flat Iron sculpture to limit the number of musicians who can play together there, and moving buskers who play at Pack Square to across the street at Vance Monument. “The idea is to not busk in front of the restaurants. There’s so many pedestrians there.”

While Bothwell says he doesn’t know of any pedestrians who have been hurt trying to move around a busking area, he does note, “The worst thing I’ve heard is that people in wheelchairs can’t get down the curb cut, so they bypass the crowd by going out into the street.”

AIN'T NOTHING MUCH

John Fleer, award-winning chef/owner of Rhubarb Restaurant on Pack Square, says he has been actively involved with discussions about proposals affecting the buskers, and the last proposals he read vary greatly from the anticipated changes Bothwell outlined.

“I saw the most recent proposal that was presented in April,” says Fleer. “I know there have been some amendments, but that [removing buskers from in front of his restaurant and putting musicians in a box] is not at all what I understand the proposal to be. There was a lot of discussion early on about boxes and limitations on the numbers of performers. The Asheville Buskers Collective was eloquent in their defense of stating their case that the size of the group—within reason—was not the public safety issue. It really has a lot to do with the rest of what’s going on in that particular area. For instance, in front of Rhubarb, there are benches and there’s a directional station in front of the Noodle Shop. We did discuss moving that across the street because it sits right in the flow of pedestrian traffic.

We love having buskers in front of the restaurant.”

Adds Bothwell, “The main idea is to be fair, to make sure people can still do busking, but to reduce pedestrian interference. The staff has talked with the buskers alliance and I think they’re going to be okay with it. We’re not trying to throw them out.”

“City staff keeps coming to us with pilot plans and proposals,” counters Abby. “They restrict where we can be or try to push us July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 41

local industry

out of the main traffic areas. They have a new plan wanting to incentivize spots away from our busiest corners.

The incentive is they’ll let us sell CDs in those spots.” The incentivized areas include a spot by the rock climbing wall and near the National nightclub, both on Wall Street; by the Rankin Parking Deck near The Vault lounge; and behind the Vance Monument between the monument and the fountain—areas that are more isolated and will, in Abby’s opinion, reduce the ability of buskers to make a livable salary, and that would force her to move out of the area.

“There’s a misunderstanding that people flock to buskers. It’s the other way around—buskers flock to people,” she says. “We really need to sell CDs, but we won’t make money playing in these spots. Leave it to the city to find a way for us to make less money.”

Billy Scribbles, a busker who plays banjo, spoons, and guitar with a group known as “Ain’t Nothing Much,” also fears the city’s proposals. “They want to change things about Asheville to better suit the mass of tourism, but they want to shave things down on the wrong end,” he says. “A lot of the time when I’m playing, a tourist will say, ‘This is exactly what I came to Asheville to see.’ If they take away the spontaneous street life, they will be shooting themselves in the foot. It will be the end of an era. We would have to leave town and go somewhere else.”

Interestingly enough, the Asheville Convention and Visitor’s Bureau (CVB) often showcases buskers in high dollar slick advertising campaigns designed to lure more tourists to the area. The most recent one, a response to the controversial HB2 bill that was passed by the state legislature in Raleigh in February, features a variety of business owners and community leaders who offer a welcoming message to all. This ad begins and ends with Abby the Spoon Lady. Other Asheville tourism ads have featured living statue Dade Murphy, who defies gravity by leaning in an impossible backwards motion, and Celestially Rooted, a husband and wife (Laura and Derek Graziano) hammered dulcimer-cello duo.

“No one from the CVB or tourist authority is invited to the city’s public safety meetings,” says Abby. “The right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing.

Communication is real important.”

She says other towns are noticing Asheville’s popularity and want to attract their own stream of tourists. “We

recently went to Chattanooga,” she says. “They paid for us to come down there and play at Jazzanooga Arts SPACE. We spoke to a group from Sound Corp who are trying to pay buskers to go out. I have a love/hate relationship with what they’re doing, but they have a genuine desire to support the buskers.”

Down On the Corner

While the City and the Buskers Collective work on negotiating a workable plan for everyone, Franzi Charen, director of the Asheville Grown Business Alliance, says that for the most part, downtown businesses are overwhelmingly supportive of buskers.

“I think it’s definitely part of what makes Asheville unique,” she says. “It keeps the streets alive with music and culture. It’s also inspirational for people to be that close to musicians and artists and to be able to interact with them without being separated by a stage. I hope the city listens to the buskers.

I definitely think people working on the inside of a building shouldn’t dictate what the outside should be—it should grow organically. That said, I do understand the need for regulation. We’ve had people sitting in front of our doorstep [Charen also owns Hip Replacements on Lexington Avenue], smoking cigarettes and saying, ‘We’re busking.’ But they’re not entertaining anyone and they are blocking our business. There also have to be some rules to keep two musicians competing across the street from each other. Then you can’t hear the music, so I understand the need for regulation. I hope we can create something good out of this. I’m glad we have Abby as a leader who is looking out for musicians and people involved in the arts.”

The corner outside of the Spiritex store, located across from Pritchard Park, is a hot spot for buskers. Whether that’s a negative or a positive for Spiritex simply depends on who is playing, according to store owner Marylou Marsh.

“There are some that work with you, and others who think they own the sidewalk,” she says. “There are others who haven’t washed in three weeks. You can smell them 10 feet away, and that’s not good for business. I don’t want to hurt it for people who are good and cooperative and helpful, but I think they should pay a nominal fee for a permit. That would help regulate the musicians. It could be cheap—something like three dollars—but it could solve everything.”

“I think it’s definitely part of what makes Asheville unique,” she says. “It keeps the streets alive with music and culture.”

42

| July 2016

WAYNE LAJOIE gone fishin'

SPARROW of The Resonant Rogues

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 43

local industry

She contends that the riff raff, panhandlers, and people faking being a busker to hustle for money would disappear if registration was required, and that reputable musicians would be free to continue entertaining the crowds. “We’ll get better music on the street,” she says. “Sometimes we just have to shut the door to mask repetitious bad sound.”

“There is talk of a registration process,” says the Rhubarb’s Fleer. “It’s different than a permit. It would just be registering as a performer. In these high traffic zones, it’s important to have some knowledge of who is performing.” He thinks that would clear up the population that masquerades as buskers and hang out in front of his restaurant.

Marsh specifically mentions Abby as a busker who is cooperative, professional, and respectful. “She has an awareness. She’s very intelligent, and she’s good.”

In addition to owning Spiritex, Marsh owns MIA Gallery on Lexington, but they never see buskers there. It’s a non-issue for that storefront.

There are procedures and regulations for buskers who want to play in the alcove in front of Mast General Store on Biltmore Avenue. Potential performers must come inside the store for approval. They are asked for ID, phone number, and have an audition.

Mast only okays performers who are playing Bluegrass or similar music, in keeping with the Mast brand.

“We have a two-hour limit,” says Tina Carter, assistant manager. “They have to stand and they have to be performing. We had one guy out there the other day who was smoking and laying on a sleeping bag. That is not who we are, and our customers don’t want to see that. You have to work for it.”

The buskers we spoke to say they’ve never been hassled by officers. In fact, Billy Scribbles says one officer with the Asheville Police Department wants to join them some day. “He’s a fiddle player. He said one day when he’s not on 44

| July 2016

DRAWING A CROWD Abby Roach and the Fly By Night Rounders

the clock he’ll come down and jump in with us on a set. Other officers request songs when they see us. They’ll say, ‘Play Rocky Top,’ or, ‘Play Foggy Mountain.’”

Around Western North Carolina

In smaller towns around the region, where busking isn’t as common as in Asheville, the sight of a street performer can get police attention.

Case in point: Ron Fitzwater, a retired Marine and former editor of the Ashe Mountain Times, was told to move along when he attempted to busk in downtown Blowing Rock. He went to the town manager to find out what the problem was. Without an ordinance on the books, the two agreed to let Fitzwater play music with his guitar case open. The town manager just told him he could not ask for money or have a sign asking for money.

With the open case, he does get tips.

He also keeps business cards with him. That’s led to booking some fairly lucrative private gigs.

Busking is fairly limited in the North Carolina High Country. According to

Jeff Eason, editor of Boone’s Blowing Rocket, “There’s really only one street per town that you ever see buskers on: King Street in downtown Boone and Main Street in downtown Blowing Rock. Old Crow Medicine Show established the sidewalk in front of Boone Drug as the premiere spot for busking in downtown Boone. It is centrally located, has a lot of foot traffic, and is covered in case it starts to rain.”

Hendersonville sees some buskers coming through town, but one of the only regular buskers there is guitarist/singer A.J. Pyatt. He’s a native of Hendersonville and started busking there in 2013. He says in the beginning, Hendersonville required a permit to perform on the street, but after he had been out regularly for about six months, they changed it. A permit is no longer required, but buskers must stay within certain designated areas on Main Street.

“There are little white X’s on certain corners, and it’s in that box where you should be playing,” says Pyatt. “There are eight or nine total, but there’s really only four that are actually useable. The good ones are in the center of town, July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 45

local industry

RON FITZWATER photo courtesy Blowing Rocket

near 3rd Avenue and 4th Avenue. These are near restaurants, ice cream stores, and a lot of foot traffic.”

Pyatt made his living busking full time for two years, and that led to other opportunities. He plays at a wide range of venues now and also has an album out. “I had to do the busking to get good at performing,” he says. “I was learning what songs work and learning how to perform.”

Even though his career has grown, he’s still drawn to busking on a sunny day. He busks many weekends in Hendersonville and loves the feedback from tourists as well as business owners. While he admits not every business on Hendersonville’s Main Street is keen on busking, he says Tempo Music and Dancing Bear Toys are two businesses that really encourage it, and they’ve told him it helps draw customers into their stores.

Street performing is also allowed in Waynesville, but there is a set procedure in place for those who want to take part.

Phyllis Rogers, who works with the Town of Waynesville Administrative Services, says, “Performers have to fill out an application, and they have to come here to do that.”

Rogers pointed the way to a lengthy online ordinance detailing the process for buskers. Licenses are valid from July 1 to June 30, and performers must provide name, permanent address, 46

| July 2016

phone number, and proof of identity. In addition, they have to give a detailed description of their act and any instruments or props used, plus two color photos of the applicant. Each applicant must also submit to a criminal background check.

The ordinance also specifies designated areas to perform between the hours of 11 AM and 9 PM. on a first-come/first-serve basis, and sets a 50-foot minimum space between buskers, unless they are playing as a group. They also cannot perform within 50 feet of a school, library, hospital, church, funeral home, or courthouse. The full ordinance is available online.

Busking is sporadic in town, according to Rogers, and happens generally when there is a big event like Art After Dark.

The regular crowd of buskers in Asheville rarely travels around to other Western North Carolina towns, but many of them do play in Charlotte, New Orleans, Nashville, Colorado, and California in order to keep their income going in colder months.

Finding Your Tribe

Groups often meet and form on the streets of a city; others form and then dissipate, only to form others. Abby has gone through transitions with her own playing crew. She’s played

with different musicians in the past, including The Shifty Drifters last year. This year, she’s part of The Fly By Night Rounders with Vaden Landers, formerly of The Shifty Drifters, and Asheville native Chris Rodrigues. (Both have their own profiles and music samples posted at Abby’s website.) Like Abby, they make a full-time living from busking, but Vaden also admits, “It’s still hard for us to survive.”

Vaden says buskers will shake their fist at the word “rules,” but he also says he believes buskers need to pay attention to etiquette and have respect for each other. “Don’t scream,” he says. “Don’t use profanity. Don’t play bagpipes.”

The unspoken “rule” among buskers is to rotate from a spot every two hours. It’s pretty much by word of mouth.

When regulars spot a new busker, they’ll tell them about the two-hour rule. “Some will say, ‘I don’t care about your two-hour rule,’” says Abby. “Eventually they have to give in. It’s inevitable. The two-hour rule also keeps it fresh for business owners. They don’t want to hear the same thing for six hours straight.”

Buskers need to pay attention to etiquette and have respect for each other. “Don’t scream,” he says. “Don’t use profanity.

Don’t play bagpipes.”

Another big issue for buskers to keep in mind is keeping their volume knocked down. “It’s just having respect that we only have four major spots in Asheville, if your sound is taking up two, that’s not right,” says Abby.

Abby, Vaden, and Chris are just a few who busk full-time, but that requires strategic budget planning since the winter months are often leaner than the summer tourist months. “The majority of my income comes from street performing, but I have to be methodical about what I do and when I do it,” says Abby.

“Chris is the same way, and so is Vaden. You go from making hundreds apiece, to making a big fat goose egg all winter long.

You only have a good solid season for half the year. In the winter, I eat soup and watch the calendar.”

Sometimes they are asked to play indoors at area venues, but that poses income difficulties as well. Explains Abby, “The indoor venues in Asheville don’t pay much. There’s a continuous misunderstanding about buskers. [The idea that] you’ve been playing for free, so why not pay for tips in here?” On the flip side of that, they generally get tipped much less indoors because the crowd often has a perception that they’ve been paid well by the venue.

CHRIS RODRIGUES from Fly By Night Rounders July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 47

local industry

WAYNE LAJOIE

While this article was being prepared, the North Carolina Stage Company tweeted out what at the onset seemed like an inviting idea. They put out a call for buskers to perform before their June stagings of Sideshow and said they could perform to a “captive audience” before the show and possibly during intermission. The incentive would be that buskers could keep 100 percent of their tips.

However, some buskers we talked to gave a thumbs down to this idea, saying North Carolina Stage was simply looking for free music—wanting to entertain their own audience without adequately paying buskers for their time. The thought was that if they wanted music, they should officially book musicians to play.

Other buskers, like Billy Scribbles, move around the country in the winter months to keep the money flowing. This past winter, he and his bandmates traveled out west and spent time performing in California. “A lot of people think you just go out and try to busk,” says Billy, “but busking is a whole different game than regular music. You can’t assume you have a built-in audience. The audience is always changing. You have to catch them in a spontaneous moment.

There is an element of psychology involved when it comes to busking. When you travel around, you see some buskers that are all gimmick and no talent, and you see others that are all talent and no gimmick. But it seems that the busking acts that always do best have a good gimmick-to-talent ratio. The gimmick is some aspect of your performance that people don’t expect to see or hear as they walk by, and that’s what catches their attention. And the talent is what keeps them there. Put the two together, and that’s how you put on a good show.”

Not to take away from his own band, who he says steals the show with their unique blend of rowdy mountain music, Billy gives a nod to Chris Rodrigues as an example of what he’s talking about. “He can put on a one-man show with a suitcase kick drum and license plate tambourine on his other foot. On top of that he has an amazing voice and he’s an amazing guitar player. He gets people to stop in their tracks.”

“When I just played guitar, no one cared,” says Chris, of why he added stomping on a suitcase and other tricks to enhance his act.

“That’s because everyone assumes that a kid with a guitar is just the same old, same old,” adds Vaden.

Human Statues

Playing an instrument or singing isn’t the only way to get people to part with money on the streets. Asheville has become home to some very clever human statues. They remain frozen in pose until someone puts a coin or bill in their bucket, and then they come to life in a variety of ways: The Silver Drummer Girl taps out a few beats on her drum; The Man in White strums a tune; Dade Murphy leans backwards

BILLY SCRIBBLES of Ain't Nothing Much 48

| July 2016

Closer LOOK

栀愀渀搀挀爀愀昀琀攀搀 漀渀攀ⴀ漀昀ⴀ愀ⴀ欀椀渀搀 猀漀甀琀栀攀爀渀 氀甀砀甀爀礀

at Proposed Busking Regulations Right before this issue went to press, we received a copy of the agenda for the upcoming June 22 meeting of the Public Safety Committee Special Meeting [Agenda notes: http://bit.ly/1XZkdpY] to discuss downtown public space management, including rules for where buskers can perform in Asheville. Proposed was a Public Space Management Pilot Program [Ordinance changes: http://bit.ly/261n9Xe]. There would be three high impact areas—to be designated by an artistic symbol—and other street performances would not be allowed within 100 feet of each marked location. Those locations: h ay w o o d s t r e e t i n f r o n t o f w o o lw o rt h wa l k

A smaller sized performance area is recommended. f l at i r o n at b at t e ry pa r k av e n u e & wa l l s t r e e t

The flat side of the Flat Iron sculpture, with that performance space designated to ensure six feet of sidewalk passage in all directions. pack square ne ar rhubarb restaur ant

A designated performance space adjacent to the Biltmore Avenue curb; the 100-ft. requirement would still allow performances on the east side of Biltmore Avenue.

There would also be three incentive areas where buskers could sell CDs; a registration and reservation web-based application and mobile platform could potentially be implemented to manage this. The incentive areas:

戀氀甀攀 昀氀愀琀 椀爀漀渀 戀甀椀氀搀椀渀最

戀氀甀攀最漀氀搀猀洀椀琀栀猀⸀挀漀洀 㠀㈀㠀⸀㈀㜀㜀⸀㈀㔀㠀㌀

戀椀氀琀洀漀爀攀 瘀椀氀氀愀最攀

You are invited to

OPENING DOORS TO HEALTH

v i c i n i t y o f wa l l s t r e e t c l i m b i n g

A Farm-to-Table Celebration

Public space adjacent to Wall Street parking garage, stairs to Battery Park Avenue, and climbing wall.

Place: Kenmure Country Club In Flat Rock, North Carolina Dress: Semi-Casual or “Farm Chic”

s o u t h pac k s q u a r e

Tickets: $100 per person or

Paved public space north of the Asheville Art Museum, south of the Biltmore office building, east of the Vance Monument, and west of the water feature. r a n k i n av e n u e / c o l l e g e s t r e e t p o c k e t pa r k

Adjacent to the bus stop, in the vicinity of Rankin Avenue and College Street.

Date: August 13, 2016

|

Time: 6:00 - 9:00PM

VIP Tables Available

Opening Doors Grand Prize Raffle

A Week’s Vacation on Hilton Head Island “Hearts On Fire” Pendant From Shelley’s Jewelry Valentine’s Weekend Rendezvous From Boyd Cadillac

Seating is limited. Reservations are required.

Blue Ridge Community Health Services is a charitable non-profit

FOR RESERVATIONS, CALL 828-233-2209 July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 49

local industry

and gyrates in gravity-defying poses; and the Bronze Fisherman casts his fishing line into an imaginary lake.

Wayne Lajoie, who transforms into the Bronze Fisherman by using a mineral based face and body paint and a special effects bronzer on top, says he has been busking since he was 15. He was introduced to the craft by a friend in California who was a white-faced mime, and he learned that it was a fun way to make some money while making others happy.

He hit upon the Bronze Fisherman a bit by accident. He had planned to have the same costume, but carry a banjo and strum when receiving money. When it was time to get his act started he didn’t have time to paint his banjo, so he grabbed a fishing rod, painted it, and became the Bronze Fisherman. “Everyone loved it and it kind of stuck,” he says.

Wayne, who is also a seasonal wildlife firefighter and Uber driver, says busking is a great way to make ends meet for his family. He’s married with three young daughters, ages two, six, and ten. “They love coming up to me on a Friday night at the drum circle and putting a dollar in my basket.”

He says he has a good rapport with the musical buskers and will stay in the same general area in order to have an audience.

“It’s hard for me to draw a crowd by myself,” he says. “It’s

Service

Repair

Installation

Maintenance

my main source of income for a lot of the year, but it’s also a hobby—something I really enjoy doing.”

In addition to the living statues, other performance artists, including jugglers and balloon twisters, vie for attention.

Busking as a Springboard

Then there are those who perform on the streets who prove they are worthy of bigger stages. Leeda Jones, who uses the performing name of Lyric, was first noticed busking on Asheville streets in 2009. She moved on to clubs and regional festivals like the now-defunct Bele Chere. Her career is skyrocketing and there’s a chance to see her soul/funk band play for free in Asheville this month. She’s slated to take the stage at 7PM July 18 at UNC Asheville as part of the Concerts on the Quad series.

Old Crow Medicine show caught the ear of legendary musician Doc Watson in 2000 while busking in front of Boone Drugs in downtown Boone. He gave them a chance to play at his Wilkesboro festival, Merlefest, and that helped ignite their career. The Grammy-winning band is probably best known for their hit song “Wagon Wheel.”

Pokey LaFarge is another busker who successfully moved into the limelight. He met two of his bandmates on the

Call Today!

828.254.6141

24/7/365 HAYNES Electric Service HAYNES Plumbing Available HAYNES Heating & Cooling HAYNES Solar FREE Site Assessments

Best of WNC!

| July 2016

- Residential - Industrial - Commercial - Institutional

Proudly Employee-Owned!

Quality Commitment Character 50

www.mbhaynes.com

An equal opportunity employer

streets of Asheville. Third Man Records released his self-titled album in June 2013. He’s currently on tour this summer, but far from the streets of Asheville—his concerts will take place in a variety of European locales, as well as Boulder, Long Beach, and the Minnesota State Fair, among others.

Laura and Derek Graziano busked full-time for about three years as the duo Celestially Rooted (CelestiallyRooted.com)

less. These days he only busks about once a week. I am mom most of the time now. I very rarely get out to play.”

Derek crafts custom designed hammered dulcimers as well as Native American flutes. Examples of his work can be found on his website (Sourceofsound.com).

Coming Together

It’s unknown at this point when a city busking plan will go into effect. “It’s amazing how slow things move in a bureaucracy,” says Councilman Bothwell. “It seems like it could have been hammered out last fall so we would have a plan for this summer. I frankly think we’ll wind up with a plan for the following season.”

“To me, the buskers are a key part of the life of this city,” says restauranter Fleer. “I think, especially with the CVB’s emphasis on Asheville as a music city in the coming year, the more we can promote performers on the street, the better off we’re going to be. The qualified performers are nothing but an asset.”

"The more we can promote performers on the street, the better off we’re going to be. The qualified performers are nothing but an asset.” before they branched out into other areas. “We used to busk as our main source of income,” notes Laura, “I’d say we busked full time from the spring of 2011 until summer 2013. Derek is building instruments more [now] and playing

An Education for an Inspired Life Asheville School prepares high school students for a lifetime of education. Motivated by a challenging academic experience, our students develop critical thinking skills, communicate effectively, and form strong study habits. Students learn life lessons in a nurturing, close-knit community of 285 students from 20 states and 16 countries. The majority of our recent graduates are attending colleges and universities Barron’s rates as “highly selective” and “most selective.”

Call today to request more information about our day or boarding program for grades 9 through 12.

ashevilleschool.org • 828.254.6345 • Visit ashevilleschool.org/app • admission@ashevilleschool.org July 2016

| capitalatplay.com

51

THE OLD

NORTH

STATE [

news briefs

The Earth Renews Itself in Mysterious Ways charlotte

Jimmy Contreras’ RJ Waste Recovery is a small waste hauler. He started the company with his wife, Ruth. The industry is dominated by big businesses, like Republic Services and Waste Management. But, thanks to technology, a company called Rubicon is able to do the job cheaper and acquire market share. Rubicon’s co-founder, Nate Morris, worked with Oscar Salazar, former CTO of Uber, to develop an app that connects haulers and customers. Rubicon Pro, which will be released in June, helps garbage men find the quickest routes, avoiding road closures and delays. It also helps haulers source the best prices on equipment and track down runaway

]

geotagged receptacles. Morris promises emergency pickups within the hour. In addition to operating with far less overhead, haulers like Contreras have more incentive than large haulers, who often own and operate their own landfills, to do more recycling and composting.

The model is so efficient, analysts are speculating about how the large haulers will compensate Rubicon; a buyout is practically inevitable.

Getting Seniors Back in Gear wilmington

Five Star Senior Living is opening its latest managed community for senior care in North Carolina. To be known as Morningside of Wilmington, it will

provide spacious and well-appointed, if not “stunning,” private accommodations. Assisted living facilities will help aging loved ones with things like medical reminders, personal hygiene, and transportation. It is mainly for people unable to live alone but not needing hospital-level care. Using Bridge to Rediscovery, a Montessori-based program, Five Star provides personalized care for patients suffering dementia, with an emphasis on safety and engagement.

Short stays are available for any reason, be it “test-driving” the facility before committing, or ensuring needed attention while caregivers are out of town.

Five Star’s LifeStyle360 program helps seniors maintain active and rewarding paths to holistic health and wellness.

It seeks to continually develop the five dimensions of wellness: intellectual, social, physical, emotional, and spiritual.

Five Star also has a number of eBooks on how to help family members in various stages of dementia.

On Price and the Machine statewide

Encompass Indemnity Insurance, a company that sold Allstate policies through independent agents, has exited

Protecting your assets, while providing the responsive service you deserve.

Business Home

Auto Life

Health Boat

Hometown Friendly. Multi-State Strong.

(828) 253-2371 52

| July 2016

77 Central Avenue, Suite C, Asheville, NC 28801 www.BankersInsurance.net

the North Carolina market. In February the company notified the North Carolina Department of Insurance of its intentions to stop writing policies March 1 and stop renewing existing policies in May. Encompass’ business included approximately 3,500 auto and 4,500 property policies, with total premiums valued at $10.6 million. Encompass held only about 0.1% of personal policies in the state. While Encompass did not say why it was exiting, analysts suspect its pricing may have been “too low.” The company that would become Encompass first formed in 1897. Today, with over 2400 agents, it is one of the largest brands to sell policies exclusively through independent offices. Encompass is helping policyholders transition to new carriers with minimal disruption. North Carolina is now the eleventh state in which Encompass does not do business.

20

72

carolina in the west

national & world

the old north state

New York, the company develops user interfaces to help banks connect with customers. Its clients include PayPal, 3M, Adobe, Pandora, MasterCard, and Virgin. The city was selected due to its relatively low cost of living, low wages, and large talent pool. WalkMe’s Raleigh office will start out with ten employees.

The business is very scalable, so no harm will be done if the company doesn’t meet its ambitious goal of expanding North Carolina operations to employ hundreds.

WalkMe offers its services free for independent developers and gets paid through licensing agreements based on the number of users. In four years, the company has worked with about 1,000 customers and raised $50 million. It did not receive economic development incentives to locate in Raleigh because it met neither the Wake County minimum of investing $25 million in the local economy or Raleigh’s minimum of $10 million.

be in Charlotte and operated by franchisee Jeff Adams and JNZR Enterprises.

Grabbagreen was begun in Scottsdale, Arizona, in 2013 by “moms and childhood friends” Keely Newman and Kelley Bird. It has now signed 50 franchise agreements in various states, and it has 180 agreements in various stages of negotiation.

Grabbagreen serves drinks like pressed juices and fresh-blended smoothies, along with grain and greens bowls. The menu is built around superfoods; proteins are free of additional hormones and antibiotics.

All offerings on the Grabbagreen’s Eat Clean® menu are free of preservatives, gluten, and GMOs. A typical store will be between 1400 and 1700-sq.-ft.. Two of the Charlotte locations, one on the Epicentre and another in Ballantyne, should open in the fall. Details on the other Charlotte locations have not been released. Two additional Grabbagreens will open in the Triangle, and another in Greensboro.

Raleigh Judged Economically Sound for Startup

O, to Lose That FastFood Headache

Max Headroom Just Got Beautiful

raleigh

charlotte

durham

Silicon Valley startup WalkMe has set up an office in downtown Raleigh.

With other sites in Sidney, Tel Aviv, and

Grabbagreen has announced its intentions to open eight casual fast and healthy restaurants in North Carolina. Five will

PRSONAS has completed a $525,000 round of fundraising in which most of the capital came from North Carolina angel

: Montreat College

CASE STUDY

“The signs look amazing; we are all so very pleased!

Thanks to the team at FASTSIGNS of Asheville for delivering such an excellent product. We look forward to working with them for future projects. ” -Annie Carlson, Executive Director of Marketing and Communication, Montreat College

PREVIOUS DESIGN

FASTSIGNS of Asheville recently provided a comprehensive wayfinding package for the newly renovated Black Mountain Athletic Campus at Montreat College.

FASTSIGNS INSTALLATION

FASTSIGNS® ILLUMINATED DIVISION

1202 Patton Ave. Asheville, NC 28806

Ready to get started? Your FASTSIGNS consultant is more than ready to help.

(828) 251-2211 www.fastsigns.com/241

Asheville

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

53

T:11.5”

the old north state

T:10.5”

Where brains meet brawn.

The 2016 GLE. It’s been put through some of the most rigorous testing in the industry. It has the ability to brake by itself, park itself and help you steer. The Intelligent Drive system warns you of danger from almost any angle, including vehicles in your blind spot and stopped traffic up ahead.

The GLE is more than a luxury SUV — it’s one of the most intelligent SUVs we’ve ever made, and it’s also a 2016 IIHS Top Safety Pick. MBUSA.com/GLE

THE 2016

GLE

STARTING AT

A 2016 IIHS TOP SAFETY PICK

$

51,100*

Skyland Automotive, Inc.

255 Smoky Park Hwy, Asheville, NC 28806• 828-667-5213

2016 GLE 350 4MATIC® shown in Palladium Silver metallic paint with optional equipment. Vehicle will not stop itself in every condition. Please refer to the operating manual for details on Brake Assist safety systems. *MSRP excludes all options, taxes, title, registration, transportation charge and dealer prep. Options, model availability and actual dealer price For more information, call 1-800-FOR-MERCEDES, or visit MBUSA.com. may vary. See dealer for details. ©2016 Authorized Mercedes-Benz Dealers

HEADLINE: 32 pt. • BODY COPY: 11 pt

investment groups like the Inception Micro Angel Fund. PRSONAS makes digitally-displayed mannequins—holograms—that interact with real people.

Co-founder Chuck Rinker had spent six months on fundraising and is now working on expanding staff. Four openings are posted, and he hopes to employ a total of fifteen people by the end of the year. PRSONAS software is used in conjunction with digital silhouettes created by American Underground.

The images of mannequins capable of interacting with humans are leased to companies like Microsoft for lobby greeters, and they may soon replace cashiers, airport security, and hotel concierges.

PRSONAS recently completed an artificially-intelligent, interactive dinosaur for the North Carolina Zoo. Companies can also use data collected from interacting people to build informatics profiles. The mannequins cost $10,000 upfront, plus $375 in maintenance per month.

200 Varick St. New York, NY 10014 : Phone 212-805-7500

MR2_GEN_P64650_6Col

Client: MERCEDES-BENZ USA, LLC RDA

WO: ’16 GLE NN IIHS Toolkit “Brains brawn...”

PATH: M.P_MECHANICALS:Mercedes:MR2:GEN:P64650:MR2_GEN_P64650_6Col

SPECS L/S: None DOC SIZE: 11.5” x 10.5” B: None G: None

TEAM Creative: Kirk Mosel Eddie Vanbloem Acct: Julie Anzulewicz Prod/Traf: Stephen Brady Lynn Mathis Studio: bd

IMAGES

MEDIA / PRINT INFO Pubs: None Media: Newsprint Line Screen: None Printed: 3-3-2016 6:25 PM @ None

COLORS Cyan Magenta Yellow Black

CMYK 0/0/0/99 FONTS Corporate S Light, Bold, Regular TT Slug OTF Bold, Regular Corporate A Condensed T Regular Helvetica Neue 57 Condensed Oblique

MB_2015GLE_BrainsBrawn_Cn_200.tif (CMYK; 71%; 281 ppi; SuperStudio:ART:MNH:MERCEDES:2015:2015 CORP:2015 GLE SUV_Brains Brawn:MB_2015GLE_BrainsBrawn_Cn_200.tif) MB-star_M_n_4C.eps (26%; SuperStudio:Logos:Mercedes:2015 Mercedes-Benz Brand Marks:M-B Starmark EPS:MB-star_M_n_4C.eps) MB-wm_claim1EN_la_ML_n_1C.eps (26%; SuperStudio:Logos:Mercedes:2015 Mercedes-Benz Brand Marks:M-B Wordmark Best or Nothing Claim:MB-wm_claim1EN_la_ML_n_1C.eps) 2016_TSP_badge_box.eps (24.48%; SuperStudio:Logos:Mercedes:IIHS+:2016_TSP_badge_box.eps)

Your source for Hearth & Patio needs 264 Biltmore Ave. Asheville, NC | 828.252.2789

54

| July 2016

Dealers Deal for Dealerships matthews

North Carolina denied Tesla Motors the license necessary to set up a second dealership for its electric cars in North Carolina. State law requires automobile manufacturers to sell through a thirdparty dealership. Tesla, however, uses a direct-sales model. The company finds that direct feedback and control lead to products that better serve customers.

Dealership groups and state legislators across the country are challenging Tesla’s model, though, saying it hurts customers. The new dealership would have been set up at the existing gallery and service center outside Charlotte.

Tesla’s first, and so far only, dealership is in Raleigh. Four dealership groups, including Sonic Automotive, Inc., and Hendrick Automotive Group, led the latest charge against granting Tesla an exemption. Administrative Hearing Officer Larry Greene of the Department of Motor Vehicles ruled in their favor,

saying there were at least three independent dealers capable of owning and operating a Tesla dealership “in a manner consistent with the public interest.”

As the Private Insurance Industry Erodes durham

Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBS) lost $282 million on plans sold on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) exchange in 2015. To compensate, it raised rates an average of 32.5% for 2016. It has now asked the North Carolina Department of Insurance to approve an 18.8% increase for 2017.

BCBS currently covers 330,000 ACA customers, an influx that has not been offset by sufficient enrollment of young and healthy paying customers. There has been a sharp increase in emergency room visits, orthopedic procedures, and expensive drug prescription. The last factor was compounded by rising prices on drugs widely used by ACA patients.

BCBS also has to cover costs for the additional customer service required when a technological problem caused thousands of ACA enrollees to be double-billed, enrolled in the wrong plan, or left without proof of insurance.

While BCBS may have to stop offering ACA policies in some counties, a third insurer, Cigna, is talking about entering the ACA business in the state. The second company, Aetna is expected to impose an average 24.5% increase in 2017.

How’s That for Dealership? morrisville

Practichem, a biotech startup that develops advanced, internet-controlled instrumentation for research labs, is offering employees a new perk. They wanted something that would reinforce the corporate culture and help

employees start their day with a boost.

So, they announced all full-time employees would be given a lease on a Tesla Model 3s. Both companies are driven to help humanity in a big way. Practichem is seeking to double its employment with 10 new hires, and CEO Nick DeMarco expected leasing Teslas would be less expensive for the company and more alluring to prospects than contracting with a headhunter. Yet, the decision was still somewhat of a gamble. Practichem could have an explosive rollout and need more employees than anticipated, or it could fizzle. The mid-range Tesla Model 3s, valued at $35,000, is expected to hit the streets in 2017. Practichem is not the first company to offer Teslas as perks.

Traction on Demand of Canada offered to put down $1,000 for the reservation fee for the Model 3s for 200 employees.

Economies of Scale charlotte

The Charlotte Agenda is expanding—to include a Raleigh Agenda.

The Charlotte Agenda is an online lifestyle news site. Its objective is, “to help readers live a smarter, better local lifestyle.” It was begun just thirteen months ago with $50,000 from key players. It was running at a profit by January. Add sales and sponsorships make up 85% of the agenda’s income, which is expected to total $600,000 to $800,000 this year. Additional revenue comes from memberships that offer discounts for $5 a month. Around 250,000 unique visitors stop by the site each month and 15,000 subscribe to its newsletter. The plan is to start slowly in Raleigh, as was done in Charlotte. Charlotte now has five fulltime employees, three part-timers, and about 25 freelance writers. The Raleigh Agenda, set to launch July 1 plans to hire one on-site, full-time employee.

Raleigh was selected because it is the second-largest media market in the state and the increased coverage will help take advantage of better media rates and statewide advertisers.

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

55

ZEN TUBING photo by Mike Belleme

A River

Runs Through It From the Nolichucky to the French Broad, with businesses offering access throughout Western North Carolina, the rivers of our region have become renowned destinations for tourists and locals alike. written by toni sherwood

S

UMMER IN THE SOUTH, WITH ITS HUMIDITY

and endless sun, brings tourists, vacationers, sports enthusiasts, and locals flocking to the renowned Western North Carolina rivers for fun and refreshment.

The French Broad River is the third oldest river in the world; beginning from headwaters in Rosman, North Carolina, this wide, shallow river winds its way north, traversing four counties and passing through Asheville and Hot Springs, en route to Tennessee. The Green River, which runs through The Green Gorge in Saluda, boasts level-V rapids that attract expert kayakers from around the globe. And there’s also the region’s Nolichucky River, which runs through both Tennessee and North Carolina, and is considered a top-notch white water rafting destination. So whether you’re a rafter, tuber, or kayaker; whether you’re into fishing, canoeing, or caving; or if you’re just looking for some solid, simple family fun involving the cool, clean waters of the region’s pristine network of waterways: There are plenty of opportunities to learn new skills and enjoy favorite pastimes.

56

| July 2016

leisure & libation

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 57

leisure & libation

An outdoor river activity is available for every age, every disposition, and every fitness level, from guided trips to going with the flow alone—literally, whatever floats your boat. Water temperatures on the French Broad reach into the 70s in July, making for a refreshing plunge. And don’t be surprised when, on any given day (particularly weekends), you find yourself accompanied by scores of other fellow enthusiasts.

Rolling On the River “The minute it gets warm, the phone starts ringing,” says Heath White, co-owner of Asheville’s Zen Tubing [ Zentubing.com ].

White has been in the river industry since he was 18, so perhaps it’s not surprising how he met his partner Jen Ditzler: He was her raft guide. In 2012 they opened Zen Tubing, dedicated to carefree tubing on the French Broad River. They currently have two locations, one off Brevard Road near Bent Creek, and another on Riverside Drive near downtown Asheville.

For many, tubing brings to mind a donut-shaped black plastic tube. Maybe even an old tire. But the Zen Tubing experience is on another level. Their top-of-the line colorful tubes have backrests, solid seating (no hole in the middle), cup holders, and straps designed to easily connect multiple tubes together.

With three different sized tubes to choose from, floaters are given paddles to steer, and even a separate float for their cooler.

photo by Karin Strickland

58

| July 2016

Similarly, Matt Moses of USA Raft [ Usaraft.com ] started as a whitewater rafting guide in Maine. It was a summer job he held while working towards his degree in outdoor recreation and facilities management from Green Mountain College, Utah. He has now been in the river business for 26 years. “Raft guiding is my favorite.” Although USA Raft’s headquarters are in Erwin, Tennessee, seven out of the nine miles they travel on the Nolichucky River tours are in North Carolina. They also have two additional outposts: Bluff City, Tennessee, is the meeting spot for Worley’s Cave tours, while Marshall is where they run a two-hour rafting tour. This location is very popular and attracts a lot of tourists looking for a day or half-day excursion. The Erwin location is more remote, with bigger whitewater. “It’s a longer, more involved trip, for people who want to immerse themselves in the mountains,” owner Moses says. (There are also two luxury cabins on the property including a “tiny home” built by Tiny House Nation.)

“We treat people as if it’s the only fun thing they get to do all year,” Ditzler says. “If the water is not high enough for a good quality trip, we won’t put people out there,” White adds.

In fact, last season they had to close shop for a few weeks due to low rain and the resulting low water levels.

Headquartered out of Boone, River & Earth Adventures [ Raftcavehike.com ] offers canoeing, tubing, and whitewater kayaking, as well as rock climbing, caving, guided hikes, and

gem mining. Like USA Raft, and many adventure companies, River & Earth Adventures also has additional outposts, with rafting and cave tours originating from their riverside outpost in Elizabethton, Tennessee, and whitewater rafting from their Marshall, North Carolina, locale. Their Boone headquarters is actually two locations. One is a small building attached to an old gem mine in downtown Boone on HWY 105. In Vilas, seven miles away, they have a 5000-sq.-ft. building with garage bay style doors for storage, check-in, and retail.

Grant Seldomridge started River & Earth Adventures with his wife, Laura. Grant is the water-based program director and a certified whitewater kayak instructor by the American Canoe Association. Laura is their land-based program director and teaches geology at Appalachian State University.

"I’ve been coming here since I could walk,” White notes.

Over the years he has seen the river greatly improve.

What makes River & Earth Adventures so special is that the Seldomridges regularly guide the excursions. “We’re guideowned and -operated, so we’re very hands-on,” Grant says.

“And that rubs off on everybody who works for us.” Although the couple’s mutual interest in education trickles down into their tours, they promise not to geek out too much. “Lots of outfitters take you out, but we try to have concrete educational topics like hydrology, which is the study of water movement,” he says.

INFLATABLE KAYAKING the Green River photo by Karin Strickland

Clear Change River adventure businesses share the water, and they are all committed to keeping it clean, recognizing that no one wants to swim or fish on a polluted river. Leave it better than you found it is a familiar refrain.

Zen Tubing’s White grew up in the Bent Creek area and has a lot of love for the French Broad. “I’ve been coming here since I could walk,” White notes. Over the years he has seen the river greatly improve. “We used to shoot cans and tires floating down the French Broad,” he adds, recalling his boyhood days.

Since then, groups like Riverlink and Mountain True have worked tirelessly to clean up trash and debris in the rivers.

They’ve also planted vegetation on shorelines to contain erosion.

Grant Seldomridge explains that the New River and Watauga River are very clean because the waterways’ headwaters start in Blowing Rock and Boone, respectively, flowing through more

photo by Mike Belleme July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 59

leisure & libation

wilderness areas. “Unfortunately, the French Broad is susceptible to industrial and human waste runoff. But it’s also so big it gets flushed out. I’ve seen a lot of improvement over time.”

White agrees, saying, “The French Broad River is so much cleaner than it was in the 1970s and ‘80s. There are otters here now, and bald eagles and osprey.”

But before nonprofits like RiverLink and Mountain True came along to revitalize the riverfronts, and river cleanups by organizations and concerned local citizens became routine, a few entrepreneurs took a gamble on the river recreation industry and helped transform it into what it is today.

In 1992, Dave Donnell, co-owner of Asheville Outdoor Center [ AOC; Ashevilleoutdoorcenter.com ] was just getting established (at the time, it was called Southern Waterways) when he attended a City of Asheville Chamber of Commerce meeting and got a big surprise.

“We went around and everybody said what their business was. I said, ‘I’m going to start a canoe rental business,’” Donnell recalls. “Then I hear Dave Whitmire say, ‘I’m going to start a canoe rental business.’”

Dave Whitmire and his wife, Debi, were also just starting a business, Headwaters Outfitters in Brevard, about an hour’s drive from Asheville. Donnell laughs when he remembers how they just looked at each other at the time. “But it worked out well,” Donnell admits. “We even did some cross promotions.”

Now, both companies are about to celebrate their 25th year.

They’ve endured floods, economic turndowns, and a slew of new businesses to compete with as the regional outdoor recreation industry exploded. But somehow they’ve survived, and even thrived, with hard won wisdom to show for it.

What’s SUP

WATERFALL RAPPELLING photo by Karin Strickland 60

| July 2016

As the river adventure business expands, whether to add the latest fad to their repertoire of activities is something each of these owners has weighed. “A lot of our competitors decided to expand into zipline and canopy tours,” Matt Moses says.

“But I felt like it quickly reached critical mass, and there were too many in the area.”

The latest river activity craze is the Stand Up Paddleboard (SUP). “SUP is the fastest growing segment of paddle sports and possibly of the whole outdoor industry,” he says. “We offer instructional river SUP. We start students in flat but moving water, then move on to areas with rocks to navigate.”

Regardless of the extra cost, he feels it’s a necessary investment. “Even though we’re a rafting company, we can’t afford to be the mom-and-pops of old,” Moses admits. “Every business seeks new revenue streams.”

“We always try something new each year,” Laura Seldomridge says. “This year it’s SUP.” River & Earth now sells and rents paddleboards. “We avoided SUP for a while,” Grant adds. “Personally I don’t love it, but people want them.”

photo courtesy USA Raft

USA Raft also offers complimentary SUP Yoga classes on their pond. The strategy is to get guests comfortable with the boards doing simple yoga, and then they may try other sports.

Getting Creative with the Financing One thing all of these business owners have in common is difficulty getting financing. Whether they are just starting their business, or improving an existing one, financing tends to be an art in itself.

For example, the Seldomridges, at the beginning, were just a young engaged couple with no assets and a dream. “We started [River & Earth Adventures] from nothing,” Laura recalls. “We started out of our driveway.”

“Banks want collateral; I had cash and a TV,” Grant adds.

With few options, Grant took an unconventional approach to financing. He took out every student loan he could while studying Recreation Management at Appalachian. Despite low interest rates and the ability to defer payments, it was still a risky proposition. In addition, Grant maxed out his credit cards and sold his car to purchase a 15-person passenger van.

A business was born.

“I wouldn’t recommend taking out student loans to purchase a business,” he says. “I’ve paid mine off now.”

For his part, USA Raft’s Moses got lucky having the opportunity to purchase the business directly from the owner (also his mentor) and obtain owner financing. “Banks don’t understand us,”

Moses says, of the adventure industry.

Moses spent significant cash to buy equipment when he launched instructional SUP last year. He purchased four boards to start; good ones run about $1000 each. “Any investments come out of pocket or through private investors,” he admits.

Asheville Outdoor Center’s Donnell was no stranger to having his business underwater or cleaning up the aftermath.

But a major flood that hit the area in 2004 had an impact on Donnell’s attitude. “The flood happened in the fall, and the next season was a recovery; cleaning up our property and the river, all the debris and trees,” he recalls. “I was down. Flooding is always an issue, or a concern; but this one caused me to change my outlook.” Although 2009 was hard economically, the word ‘staycation’ arrived. “Every year since then has been a growth year.”

Caving – Wet, Wild, & Otherwise While the river adventure season typically runs from March through October, caving is a year-round sport. Caves in North Carolina tend to remain around 54 degrees throughout the year.

River & Earth Adventures’ season runs Memorial Day through Labor Day, but they offer tours year-round to Worley’s Cave.

Blending education with adventure attracts a lot of scout troops to River & Earth, especially on the overnight caving trips. “We have a lot of repeat customers,” Grant says. “So we get to watch these Boy Scouts grow up.”

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 61

leisure & libation

USA Raft also runs caving tours to Worley’s Cave, but Moses just unveiled a brand new cave destination: Salt Peter Cave.

USA Raft has an exclusive lease to operate tours for small groups inside the privately owned cave in Tennessee. Moses designed the trip himself: finding footholds, deciding which route to take, where to store medical supplies. “It’s fun to be setting parameters on a new project,” Moses admits. “I’ve been in a lot of caves—the ‘wow’ factor in Salt Peter Cave is beyond compare to any commercial cave.”

Salt Peter Cave has a 50-foot underground lake that adventurers will tube across. Moses calls it a “wet cave” and warns that there will be areas cavers must crawl through. “We get filthy and muddy,” Moses says. “This is wild caving, the real deal; scrambling on slippery, muddy rocks in the dark.”

Wearing helmets with headlamps, cavers cover almost four miles underground in about four hours. If that’s not enough time underground for you, USA Raft runs overnight caving excursions as well, with meals delivered.

Salt Peter Cave will have stricter requirements than Worley’s; the minimum age will be 12 rather than seven, and there will be one guide per five guests at Salt Peter, whereas at Worley’s it’s one guide per eight guests. “That’s how you control risk,” says Moses.

FLY FISHING photo by Karin Strickland

It's called Fishing, not Catching Paul and Kacie Kisielewski started Southern Appalachian Anglers [ SA A; Southernappalachiananglers.com ] in 2013.

Their specialty is fishing, and that is what they are most passionate about.

“In a world governed by technology, there is something completely romantic about leaving the phones behind, making a peanut butter sandwich, and heading to the lake or river together,” Kacie says. “Not only is it an adventure, but I am a firm believer that the serenity of nature provides the most authentic setting possible to truly get to know someone.”

Another staple of the fishing community of Western North Carolina is the previously mentioned Headwaters Outfitters [ Headwatersoutf itters.com ], located at the headwaters of the French Broad River in Rosman, North Carolina. Dave and Debi Whitmire built the hardy outpost in 2007, and the clean and modern store features fishing supplies, plus just about everything you need on the water, even personal floating devices for your dog. Just beyond the outpost, steps lead down a grassy hill to a picnic table beside the water, creating a tranquil atmosphere.

“I’m a canoeist,” Dave says. “That’s my passion.” He still guides groups, although he has hired several guides for his staff.

Wife Debi serves as president, and Whitmire as vice president of the company. Their business is split about 50/50 between paddling (kayaking, canoeing, and SUP) and fishing.

“We take people fishing where it’s quiet and they don’t have to compete with other fishermen,” he says.

One smar t move these entrepreneu rs made wa s purchasing several properties along the river to create an exclusive fishing and camping experience. They own a campsite with six sites, each with lots of privacy. It has a put-in and takes about three hours to paddle to. They offer fishing year-round, both by wading and boats. They even have special sit-on-top fishing kayaks that have rod holders and anchors attached.

"I would have to say the most challenging thing about running a fly fishing guide service is cleaning the equipment.”

62

| July 2016

1

BlueTerra P o o l

C o n s t r u c t i o n

“DISTINCTIVE DESIGN AND BUILD WITH COMPLIMENTARY VIE WS”

Asheville | 828.782.3060 blueterrapools.com | info@blueterrapools.com BlueTerraCapitalAtPlayAd.indd 1

6/9/16 1:59 PM

THE

Brands YOU LOVE, AT

YOU WILL LOVE EVEN MORE BUY, SELL, OR TRADE HIGH QUALITY: Harley, Honda, Kawasaki, Yamaha, Suzuki, & BMW

SOUTHERN Appalachian Anglers photo by Kacie Kisielewski

BLUERIDGERIDERS.COM • 828.505.7575 • ASHEVILLE NC

it’s about the journey ™ July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 63

PLAYING in the River photo by Mike Belleme

Headwaters also runs SUP trips on nearby lakes because the French Broad is too shallow at their location. Safety is a top priority. If there’s a big rain that brings the river up a foot or so, Headwaters Outfitters will temporarily stop sending trips.

“The French Broad becomes a Type II level at that point and it is harder to self-rescue,” Dave explains. They do offer tubing, however, if they deem it safe in those water conditions.

“I would have to say the most challenging thing about running a fly fishing guide service is cleaning the equipment,” Paul Kisielewski says. “We have a lot of equipment we use, and we keep it clean so our next clients can stay as comfortable as they would as if it’s brand new.”

“Life is often wrought with stress and unforeseen challenges,” Kacie adds. “But fishing provides a way to escape that reality for a few hours. When I’m out on the water, my worries tend to drift away from me, and I allow myself to soak in the beauty of simplicity.”

Are You a Day Half-Full Person?

Many guided trips are half-day excursions, so it raises the question, what to do with the other half-day?

Avid hiker Deanna Braine recommends Sliding Rock as a destination. “You can just keep sliding down over and over, which is awesome,” Braine says. “It’s like nature’s water slide!”

This 50-foot cascade of water-worn rocks eventually drops into a seven-foot deep plunge pool. It’s a busy summer destination that gets 64

| July 2016

crowded, but that might be part of the allure. Braine says it’s almost as much fun to watch other people slide as it is to slip down the rocks oneself. There are two observation platforms to do just that. Lifeguards are on duty seasonally. And best of all, it’s easy to access. “You don’t have to be super outdoorsy, since there isn’t a hike required to get there,” Braine says.

There is a small admission fee for sliders, but no fee to watch.

It’s located in the Pisgah National Forest, just north of Brevard and 7.6 miles from the junction of US Highways 64 and 276. [ Visitncsmokies.com/listing/sliding-rock-waterfalls ] Meanwhile, if you’re looking for more of a swimming hole, the Sunburst Swimming Area is a good choice, located in Canton, in Haywood County about 13 miles west of Asheville.

Fed by mountain streams, the water is clear and cold. In some areas, smooth rocks form a gentle shoreline. With two swimming areas to choose from, there’s room to stretch out.

Take Highway 215 and head towards Lake Logan until you pass Sunburst Campground on your right. The swimming hole will be the river area on your left. [ Visitncsmokies.com/listing/ sunburst-swimming-area-2 ] What about a dog-friendly water destination? If you are looking for one that’s not hard to access, you might want to check out Catawba Falls. Just three miles off I-40, east of Black Mountain and near Old Fort, this beautiful waterfall area is accessed by a short walk from the parking lot. There is a cool wading pool at the bottom of the lower falls, perfect for dogs and kids to frolic in.

photo by Kacie Kisielewski

From I-40, it’s just off Exit 73. Before the ramp ends, turn right onto Catawba River Road. Go three miles to the end of the road. The parking area is on the left side of the road, just across the bridge, and the path to the falls starts at the parking lot. [ Hikewnc.info/trailheads/pisgah-national-forest/grandfather-ranger-district/catawba-falls ]

Libations

photo courtesy USA Raft

Who doesn’t love an ice-cold beer after a day in the sun?

Most river businesses embrace adult beverages, post-trip, but fewer recommend drinking while on the river due to safety. Each company makes its own rules. Drinking alcohol is not illegal on most rivers, with the exception of the Green River.

“The Green River had become a destination for tubing and drinking,” recalls Sara Bell, of Saluda-based Green River Adventures [ Greenriveradventures.com ]. She operates the kayaking business with her husband, Tim, and they recently added waterfall rappelling trips on Bradley Falls to their roster of activities. “Don’t get us wrong,” she explains.

“A beer and a river are a pretty perfect combo, but the trash and general mayhem from people being absolutely trashed was overwhelming for other river users and the natural resource.”

By the middle of the last decade, police officers and wildlife resource officers were pushing for a law prohibiting alcohol on the river, as well as 50 feet from the riverbank. When the law finally went into effect August 1, 2006, Sara says the results were immediately visible, and she felt even more confident her family-friendly river business could thrive.

Asheville Outdoor Center has a no-alcohol-on-the-river policy. “I’m ultra cautious,” owner Donnell says. “Guest safety is primary.” Donnell pays careful attention to any potential safety issues, and alcohol on the water isn’t worth the risk to him. His conservative approach has paid off; the Center has had zero incidents in 25 years. But when the trip is over, they’ll gladly serve you a beer at their River Oasis Taproom.

In similar fashion, Headwaters Outfitters host their “Cruise Then Booze” event on Fridays. Floaters meet at Oskar Blues Brewery in Brevard at 5:30 PM. Headwaters provides the floats and transports everyone to the put-in.

As the sun sinks, floaters spend two leisurely hours on the French Broad, ending up back at Oskar Blues Brewery.

Once on dry land, they can bask on the patio of the brewery with an ice-cold beer in hand.

Clean Water photo by Mike Belleme

“Things like user safety and drunk driving certainly played into the decision to outlaw alcohol on the Green July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 65

leisure & libation

River,” Sara Bell says. “But I believe the main motivation was river cleanliness.”

Headwaters Outfitters’ Dave Whitmire’s dad used to put him and his cousins in a canoe and pick them up down stream; at that time, hardly anyone was on the water. “Used to be, we had refrigerators and tires floating down the river,” he recalls. Now he sees the improvements that long-term revitalization has made.

“We’ve got Hellbenders here now, which is a threatened species of salamander.

They wouldn’t be here if the water wasn’t clean.” Whitmire credits nonprofit agencies like the above-mentioned RiverLink and Mountain True for making the difference.

“RiverLink started as a riverfront revitalization program,” Whitmire says. “But it expanded to bring the whole watershed together.”

Each spring, Headwaters hosts a river cleanup with 75-100 participants. “We love giving back to the river,” he says. “It does so much for us—it’s good karma.”

Asheville Outdoor Center has made river cleanup a part of its regular schedule as well. “We’re closed on Mondays, so for

ten years we’d go out in canoes and have a competition picking up junk, like how many tires fit into a canoe,” Dave Donnell quips. “Turns out, it’s 17-20.” Fortunately, the tires are pretty much gone, but the cleanups continue. AOC partners with Asheville GreenWorks on routine river maintenance.

“The best part of this job is showing people in this day and age there’s more to life than cell phones, internet, and the drama we see on TV.” Green River Adventures participates in cleanups each year, but their drivers also use down time between trips to pick up garbage in public access points along the river.

“It keeps things looking good for our clients,” Bell admits.

“Also, it’s just the right thing to do—taking care of the natural resource that takes care of us.”

There’s probably no business more at risk than fishing when it comes to river cleanliness. “As stewards of the rivers, we care about maintaining river cleanliness so the

www.skisugar.com • 828-898-4521 Hiking and Biking Trails May 6 - October 16 Fourth of July Sports Shop Sale July 1-4 Fireworks on Top of Sugar Mountain

(Chairlift rides 10:00am - 10:00pm)

July 2

Weekend Scenic Chairlift Rides July 2 - September 4 Oktoberfest October 8-9

66

| July 2016

fish can live long and healthy lives,” SAA’s Kacie Kisielewski says. They always catch and release at SAA, with a big focus on teaching clients the proper techniques to release each fish as quickly and safely as possible.

“With so many clean rivers and streams in the mountains, Asheville has become a world class fishing destination,” Paul says.

Incidentally, SAA is holding a river cleanup in late August to help benefit wildlife, stream life, ecosystem, and landowners.

Volunteers can contact SAA by phone [828-691-1506] or by email [ staff@southernappalachiananglers.com ] to attend.

You can also combine supporting river cleanliness with a fun—and free—activity this summer. RiverMusic is an ongoing free concert series, put on by RiverLink, and usually held on the second Friday of each month (with the exception of August, which is a Saturday) featuring three live bands performing at the RiverLink Sculpture and Performance Plaza in Asheville’s River Arts District. Food and drink will be available for sale from local vendors. You can even float right up to their river access point, or set anchor and enjoy from the cool clean waters of the French Broad. [ Details: Riverlink.org/rivermusic-2016-lineup-kicks ]

In the End, It’s All About Family Fun All of these family-run businesses seem to naturally extend their family to include guides and staff—the ongoing, common goal being to promote healthful and fun activities for the individuals and families making up their clientele.

“We empower anybody who works for us to come up with creative ideas for a trip or an event,” Headwaters Outfitters’ Whitmire says.

Southern Appalachian Anglers, likewise, bond with their staff over the love of the river, always seeking new spots to share with clients. “We spend our days off scouting new, untouched rivers,” Paul Kisielewski says.

Perhaps the digital era, with its demands and distractions, lends all this an urgency of sorts.

Says Kacie Kisielewski, “Mother Nature faces some serious competition when it comes to iPads, gaming systems, and Netflix. Fishing teaches children patience, hones fine motor skills, and provides them with a greater appreciation for nature.”

“The best part of this job,” Zen Tubing’s White says, “is showing people in this day and age there’s more to life than cell phones, internet, and the drama we see on TV.”

Experience Waterfalls

Like a Local !

100% FREE

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 67

financial column

70 is the New 50

$

he ather a . banks

Wealth Advisor First Bank Wealth Management www.localfirstbank.com k atherine morosani

Registered Representative Invest Financial Corporation www.investfinancial.com thomas arnold

Wealth Counselor Boys, Arnold & Company www.boysarnold.com If you have any questions you’d like to hear answered in such a column, please email us at editor@capitalatplay.com.

68

| July 2016

I

N A N EFF ORT T O CR E AT E ENGAGING content on financial issues that are relevant to you, our engaged reader, we have reached out to some experts. The kind of experts who live in Western North Carolina and understand the people in their communities. Especially the kind of experts who know how to explain things in a way that can be understood by the rest of us. For our first installment of this Capital at Play series, published in the June issue and titled “Young Money,� we looked at questions relevant to our younger readership. In this second article, we ask a few questions that are of particular interest to our older and more experienced audience, particularly those who are at or nearing retirement age. If 70 is the new 50, are you prepared for the future? The intelligent responses we received and have printed below might come in useful one day soon.

Capital at Play: How do I know if I am properly prepared for my retirement?

he ather : By accounting for your total estimated expenses during retirement, you can then work backwards into a minimum income (also known as an income floor) that will be necessary to maintain your lifestyle during retirement. By piecing together known various sources of income (social security, pension, income from 401k/IRA assets, investment/rental income), you can know with some certainty what your guaranteed income will be. You should work with a financial professional to determine if your assets will be enough to provide for your projected minimum income necessary during retirement, set realistic goals and expectations about your income during retirement, and plan around how to reach your financial goals. Once your income floor is established, the remainder of assets can be used to cover other financial goals, such as additional disposable income to provide for travel, hobbies, charitable gifting, or legacy planning.

k atherine : It will depend on your age until retirement, but here are some factors to take into account. What age will you retire? Are you retiring full or part-time?

What age will you start taking Social Security? The longer you wait, the more they will pay you when you do start. Know your income and outflows. Healthcare is a potentially huge expense. What long term care plans have you made? Some people will pay out of the pocket, while others get LTC insurance to mitigate this expense.

$ thomas : On what plane? Financial—have a realistic budget, a conservative return

expectation, a comprehensive plan, and a safety net. And assume longer life than you dare. Well-being—be sure you really want to retire; have a long-term plan of things you want to be engaged in; have an honest discussion (with spouse) about how you want to be cared for in the later years; and incorporate that in financial plan.

What are the best ways to be saving at the age of 60? 70? 80? th o m a s : The best ways are the same at any age. (1) Analyze where you’ve

spent your money over the last year or two. (2) Determine which expenses are controllable, in that they can be eliminated altogether (i.e., a membership that is no longer important) or can be reduced (i.e., a cable TV service). (3) Outline a list of adjustments and calculate the savings. (4) Track your own progress and evaluate the impact of any impulse purchases before you commit the money.

katherine : The #1 fear is, “Can I retire?” The #2 fear is, “Will I outlive my money?”

Prepare with a financial planner to know your budget, income goals, and results to assuage your fears. You’re in your 60s—when are you going to start Social Security?

The longer you wait, the more Social Security will pay you when you start. In your 70s—you might downsize to a smaller home or move to a retirement community.

Does this change anything with your budget or estate plan? In your 80s—expect someone in the couple to die or become incapacitated. Have you prepared to pay for the long-term care eventuality?

BUSINESS SUCCESSION CAN BE VERY COMPLICATED AND HAVE A LOT OF MOVING PIECES. THE BEST STRATEGY IS TO WORK WITH A FINANCIAL PROFESSIONAL THAT CAN LOOK AT ALL ASPECTS OF SUCCESSION.

How can I plan properly for my business succession prior to retirement? k atherine : The first step is to objectively value your business. You want to ensure

a fair price for your life’s work. Are you the founder? Don’t underestimate how emotional it will be to let your “baby” go. Consider a buy/sell agreement so everyone understands how the business succession will happen. he ather : Business succession can be very complicated and have a lot of moving pieces (business valuation, taxability of the sale of a business, liability for the prior and new owners, etc.). The best strategy is to work with a financial professional that can look at all aspects of succession and coordinate with other professionals (for example: real estate attorney, CPA, commercial lender) that can work as a team in the years prior to and during the business owner’s retirement. thomas : Start early, before you think seriously about retirement. Decide whether

your employees are capable of stepping in, both financially and from a management standpoint. If they are, consider adopting an Employee Stock Ownership Plan or other means of transferring ownership to the employees (either select employees,

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina selected Pardee as a Blue Distinction Center Plus for total knee and total hip replacement.

That means that in addition to demonstrating expertise in knee and hip replacement surgeries, Pardee is on average 20% more cost-efficient as compared to other hospitals.

High Quality, Affordable Health Care.

Sometimes, it really does exist.

Why go anywhere else? pardeehospital.org

Blue Distinction Centers (BDC) met overall quality measures for patient safety and outcomes, developed with input from the medical community. A Local Blue Plan may require additional criteria for facilities located in its own service area; for details, contact your Local Blue Plan. Blue Distinction Centers+ (BDC+) also met cost measures that address consumers’ need for affordable healthcare. Each facility’s cost of care is evaluated using data from its Local Blue Plan. Facilities in CA, ID, NY, PA, and WA may lie in two Local Blue Plans’ areas, resulting in two evaluations for cost of care; and their own Local Blue Plans decide whether one or both cost of care evaluation(s) must meet BDC+ national criteria.

National criteria for BDC and BDC+ are displayed on www.bcbs.com. Individual outcomes may vary. For details on a provider’s in-network status or your own policy’s coverage, contact your Local Blue Plan and ask your provider before making an appointment. Neither Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association nor any Blue Plans are responsible for non-covered charges or other losses or damages resulting from Blue Distinction or other provider finder information or care received from Blue Distinction or other providers.

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 69

financial column

or all). If they are not capable of running the business, your primary objective is to maximize your realization in dollars, or maximizing the odds that your business model is sustained over the long term. Engage your trusted advisors—lawyer, CPA, and wealth advisor—in these deliberations and seek out information about how transactions are typically done in your industry.

What is a good financial strategy for transferring wealth from boomers to Gen-Xers? k at h e r i n e : Are you transferring a business, real estate, or cash? Team with your estate lawyer, your CPA, and your financial planner to create a holistic strategy. Depending on the type of wealth you want to transfer and when, there are several estate planning vehicles and financial tool combinations to help accomplish the wealth transfer goal you want to achieve, and minimize the tax consequences on the estate and heirs.

Please consult your legal or tax professional for guidance on your particular situation.

attorney, and financial advisor before establishing a trust for the specific purpose of intergenerational gifting. Outside of trusts, there are several financial products that provide the ability to transfer assets to a younger generation, while still maintaining some control over the assets, even after death.

Annuities and life insurance policies are two of these types of products. However, the rules affecting the taxability of these products at the time they transfer must be considered. Your financial professional and accountant should be consulted before making any decisions.

AT SOME POINT IN THE FUTURE IT IS INEVITABLE THAT SOMETHING MUST CHANGE IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN THE SUSTAINABILITY OF THE PROGRAM.

thomas : Beyond annual gifting of the permitted $14,000 times

two (if you and your spouse both gift), an effective mechanism is your ability to pay educational and medical expenses directly to the providers without those payments being treated as gifts.

If one has multiple grandchildren, these payments can grow to a significant amount over time. Health insurance premiums qualify. Gifts into 529 College Tuition Plans do qualify as gifts and are counted against the annual exclusion. The advantage of this type of wealth transfer is that it avoids the possibility of the money being squandered. h e ath e r : Trusts intentionally control the distribution of assets to younger generations, but because of the potential tax implications of a trust, you should consult with an accountant,

What major changes, if any, are projected for Social Security in the next 5-10 years? thomas : One has to assume that there will be pressure to

extend the age at which payments begin. It is a simple way to improve the sustainability of the social security funds, consistent with the longer life expectancies of men and women. h e ath e r : While no major future changes to Social Security have been announced at this time, at some point in the future it is inevitable that something must change in order to maintain the sustainability of the program. In the coming years, more For The Love of Sewing:

CA

ITALat

LAY

the free spirit of enterprise

$15.

12 editions a year

95

| July 2016

with a new sewing machine purchase

subscribe

online today at C APITALATPLAY.COM

w e s t e r n n o r t h c a r o l i n a' s b u s i n e s s l i f e s t y l e m ag a z i n e

70

Free Sewing Classes

FABRIC • SEWING MACHINES

BERNINA • BABY LOCK • HORN 1378 Hendersonville Road, Asheville (next to Fresh Market) 828-277-4100 • Mon-Sat, 10a-5:30p

www.ashevillecottonco.com

When is the latest I should purchase life insurance, and how do I know what type of life insurance is best for me? k atherine : The latest you should buy life insurance is the

day before you die. But seriously, depending on your goals, life insurance is a financial tool you would use to pay for estate taxes, final expenses, debt, home mortgage, or other needs.

Clients need life insurance if there is a spouse or children who will need to replace lost income. It allows the tax-free cash and time for the surviving spouse to grieve and get back on his or her feet without you. he ather : The answer to this question is really dependent upon the purpose behind the purchase of life insurance. For many younger families, life insurance is purchased to replace the potential future income of one of the spouses, provide for children, and pay off outstanding debts in the event of one spouse’s demise. Life insurance may be purchased by those later in life as a tool for legacy planning or supplementing retirement income tax-free. Determining the type of life insurance is also dependent upon the individual’s intended purpose behind the purchase. Your financial professional can answer the specifics of this question based upon your individual circumstances and financial goals. thoma s : These are questions that can only be answered

in the context of one’s own particular circumstances and

56% of Americans have no idea how much they’ll need to retire.

philosophy/objectives. Therefore, I recommend that you explore this with an independent financial planner who does not sell insurance to clarify your needs prior to entering the market and evaluating products.

What should same-sex couples know about investing together, insurance beneficiary naming, and state/federal tax filings? he ather : Now that same-sex marriages are recognized as a legal union, financial planning for same-sex couples is really no different than planning for heterosexual couples. If the couple is not legally married, but intends for their assets to pass to their partner in the event of their death, it is vital that all accounts be titled properly. For instance, setting up a joint account as “joint tenants with the right of survivorship” provides that should something happen to one of them, the other will continue on with the account as it is established.

TOD, or transfer on death, should be established on individual accounts so that assets can pass directly to the beneficiary designated without having to pass through probate first.

My spouse fell unexpectedly ill and we were not prepared for the medical expenses.

Where do we begin? thom a s : (1) At your budget, for ways to reduce expenses

outside of healthcare; (2) At cash values of life insurance policies, which you may be able to borrow; (3) At equity position in your home, with an eye toward re-financing with a higher loan amount; and (4) At the possibility of adding greater health insurance coverage—a long shot.

The answer can be as simple as sitting down with me.

Even if you haven’t saved much already, I can help you set a reasonable goal. I’ll show you all the ways that life insurance and annuities can help make your money work harder.

A good plan, and a good life, starts with someone you know. Call me to learn more.

Bill Shytle 828-684-8582 100 Julian Ln., Ste. 140 Arden, NC 28704 billshytle@allstate.com Life Insurance • Retirement Savings • Mutual Funds • IRAs • Annuities • College Savings Plans Life insurance offered through Allstate Life Insurance Company, Northbrook, IL; Allstate Assurance Company, Northbrook, IL; Lincoln Benefit Life Company, Lincoln, NE; and American Heritage Life Insurance Company, Jacksonville, FL. In New York, life insurance offered through Allstate Life Insurance Company of New York, Hauppauge, NY. Securities offered by Personal Financial Representatives through Allstate Financial Services, LLC (LSA Securities in LA and PA). Registered Broker-Dealer. Member FINRA, SIPC. Main Office: 2920 South 84th Street, Lincoln, NE 68506. (877) 525-5727. © 2015 Allstate Insurance Co.

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

163262

than likely we will see the minimum age requirement and full retirement age for Social Security increase. In addition, only the first $118,500 (adjusted annually for inflation) of income for an individual is currently taxed for OASDI/Social Security. We may see this program limit increase or the limit be removed completely.

71

UPDATES FOR

&

NATIONAL WORLD [

news briefs

Requires Legitimate Business Purpose san francisco, ca

Instagram has announced the launch of its tools for business. The added features help build business contact lists, analyze customer data, and turn Instagram posts into ads with a tap of the screen. Instagram worked with hundreds of companies in identifying unmet needs. Business owners said they wanted better ways to manage contact profiles; data analytics, for better understanding of customers, prospects, and people that can lead them to more customers; and options to help their profiles and posts stand out more. Instagram now has 200,000 active users, most of whom represent small to medium businesses.

The new upgrade will allow customers to

]

tap to contact or view maps on Instagram ads. A Facebook business page is needed to qualify for the upgrade. It serves as payment credentials. Eligible users must also engage in a legitimate commercial purpose. Instagram will, however, be tracking statistics on self-promoters with a lot of followers to see if they should revise this policy.

video businesses, like Netflix, Hulu, and HBO, sell more premium videos to make more money. Buying video on Amazon, however, makes it easier to become an Amazon Prime member, and once somebody pays the annual Amazon Prime membership fee, they will be shopping across categories for other things on Amazon to get the most value out of that membership. Bezos has no current intention to branch out into getting a Prime Video app on Apple TV, or selling Apple TV or Chromecast on Amazon. His reason was failure to negotiate acceptable terms. Amazon pulled Chromecasts and Apple TV from its online retail store in October. Competitive products like the Roku and PS4, presumably, negotiated acceptable terms.

Real Team Players Play by the Rules

It’s All in the Acceptability of Terms seattle, wa

At the recent Vox’s Code Conference, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos explained the strategy behind Prime Video marketing.

He would like to make it the fourth pillar of Amazon, with retail, general Prime, and web services. He said other

vienna , austria

OPEC, the 13-member cartel of oil-producing nations, met for the second time since April. Negotiations for a production ceiling fell through at the earlier meeting, largely on Saudi Arabia’s insistence that Iran cooperate with any agreement. At the time, Iran was ramping

your complete

Fabric center Largest selection of upholstery fabric in WNC

Fast, friendly service

Drapery material/lining | Comforter and bedspread material

U.S. 25 North 72

| July 2016

|

Fletcher, NC

|

684-0801

up to go gangbusters once economic sanctions were lifted. It was hoped that a production ceiling would mitigate oil’s largest price crash in recent history. At the latest meeting, Saudi Arabia’s new oil minister, Khalid Al-Fahi, was going to be more of a team player. As it turned out, no agreement was reached on a price ceiling at the latest meeting, either. Upon receiving the news, United States and international benchmarks West Texas Intermediate and Brent futures fell another fraction of a percent. The nations did agree on one thing. They appointed a new secretary-general, Mohammed Barkindo, former head of the Nigerian National Petroleum Commission.

Super Sporty Car Spotted maranello, italy

Ferrari has unveiled its 458 MM Speciale. It was spotted on the Fiorano Circuit, Ferrari’s private testing track. It is a one-off vehicle, custom made for an unnamed British client. The chassis and power train are the same as those of the original 458 Speciale, but it has been made sportier per the client’s request.

It also incorporates all the advantages

20

52

carolina in the west

the old north state

of the current 488 design. The A-pillars were painted black to achieve the ordered “visor effect.” Additional air intakes were added to the sides to cool the turbocharged V8 engine, and the rear air spoiler has been given a new shape. The car is silver-white with an Italian flag motif running down the middle. Reconfigured lights, a custom sound system, and special wheels add to the uniqueness. Ferrari is no stranger to one-off production. It once made a $4.7 million 1980s era Berlinetta Boxer for Sir Eric Clapton and, on another occasion, a fleet of 456 sedans for the Sultan of Brunei.

Oh, Deer hopland, ca

A woman was arrested after picking up a fawn she found at the side of the road and attempting to sell it on Craigslist. Lacy Jean David posted a photo with the ad and asked $300.

California game wardens set up a sting operation, pretending they wanted to buy the deer. The lady told authorities she was trying to help what appeared to be an orphaned animal. The authorities took the deer into custody at a wildlife rescue facility in Lake County, and it

national & world

is safe and unharmed. Selling wildlife is against California law. David was arrested, but on an unrelated warrant for failure to appear in court for drug charges. She was released on bail. The California Fish and Wildlife Department has, nonetheless, recommended the Mendocino County District Attorney charge the woman and her boyfriend w ith unlaw f u l possession of and attempting to sell—wildlife.

Drones or Drudge bentonville, ar

Prior to Walmart’s annual shareholders’ meeting, Vice President of Emerging Sciences Shekar Natarajan demonstrated a drone that could work at the company’s distribution centers.

When Natarajan joined the company in 2014, he was tasked with investigating cutting-edge technologies that would make business sense for the enterprise.

A drone squad could inventory the 1.2 million-sq.-ft. distribution center in a day, whereas humans take a month. The drone is a quadcopter, about 3ft. x 3ft., with a camera fitted on top. Snapping 30 images per second, the camera scans for tracking numbers and reports items to a control center as matched, missing, or

THE ALTERNATIVE CLINIC Chinese Medical Treatment for Injury & Illness

Andrew & JulieAnn Nugent-Head

Bring to Asheville 30+ Years Experience in China

Acupuncture • Herbal Prescription • Therapeutic Massage 828-398-0667 | www.alternativeclinic.org | 23 Broadway Street, Downtown Asheville

learn more on our site walk in or schedule online July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 73

national & world news

Since 1977

mismatched. One employee will monitor the drone on a computer screen.

Natarajan estimates the technology will take another six to nine months to develop. Walmart has 190 distribution centers worldwide, and it promises to find work for those who will be laid off.

Simple, SpaceAge Widgets uss harry s. truman, at sea

HANDMADE

RUGS Hand knotted one-of-a-kind rugs Turkish, Persian & Caucasian 562 Long Shoals Rd. Arden NC 28704

828-687-1968

TogarRugs.com 74

| July 2016

Aboard the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman, sailors in the 3D printing lab were asked to solve a common shipboard problem. The clasps on handheld radios kept breaking. At a cost of $615 each, the Truman had run up charges of $146,000 replacing them over the last two and a half years. The sailors tried a few designs and came up with the Tru Clip. It’s a simple, figure-eight design that costs about six cents apiece.

The government liked the design so much, it is transferring the technology to its entire fleet, and the digital file for making them has been sent to the International Space Station. Putting a 3D printer on the aircraft carrier is a pilot project. It is anticipated it will one day replace warehouse space for spare parts. Already it has been used to replace anesthesiologist hoses and switch covers for lights that people kept bumping off.

The Difference a Piece of Metal Makes lake park, nd

Dan Hudson is working on marketing a belly dump trailer attachment invented by his brother Tim. It all started when Tim, who ran a farm and TJM Trucking, had to turn down paving jobs because they were not technologically feasible.

Traditionally, trucks have to get up to 25-30 mph before they can spread gravel evenly. So, Tim cut a blade out of a recycled oil pipe and rounded up some

more scrap metal from the farm. Then, he attached the tool to his trailer’s push block. His neighbors started taking note, and he soon realized there was a lot of demand for such a device. Dan, Tim, and Tim’s son, Jarrett, solicited expert opinion and made a lot of tweaks. They hired MidMach to build a prototype and made over 70 test dumps with different aggregates in different conditions. The product, now sold as GT Spreader II, can attach to any trailer with an existing push block.

Never Leave Your Pizza Burning saskatoon, canada

Mike Ransom and Jackie Martin of Viking Innovations have sold their first fifty Dalmations. The Dalmation is a large metal device that works with smoke detectors. Unlike the alarm, which only signals, the Dalmation immediately acts on the signal to cut power to major appliances; namely, the stove and any wall plugs programmed for shut-down. The idea came to Ransom after a couple sleepless nights. He was an electrical journeyman whose wife had left a pot of pasta cooking on the stove when she went to take their kid to swim class. Ransom came home in time to save the smoky house. Martin explains the Dalmation gets its name because, “It’s the fireman’s dog looking over your house.” The Dalmation retails at $299 and up, and it requires professional installation. It comes with a smartphone app that allows people to check if they turned off the stove and, if necessary, shut it off remotely before the smoke detector has to go off.

Good Night, Sleep Tight, & Thank Fido new york, ny

Dogs’ noses have just been applied to another human benefit. Their acute

YOUR WHOLE WORLD IN

EXPERT HANDS sense of smell picks up the scent of bed bugs. Exterminators therefore find them powerfully thorough inspectors, capturing 97% of bed bugs in spite of clutter, poor lighting, and other obstacles. The dogs must, however, be certified. Each year, dog teams must learn the latest in techniques, and handlers are kept up to date with the latest strategies evasive bed bugs are deploying. The dogs must pass a test, which requires them to sniff out hives within a certain time. Only 21 teams are certified by the National Pest Management Association in New York. Assured Environments, an exterminator that employs five of the teams, describes their work as versatile, environmentally friendly, and sustainable.

Hello, Hammock

We do Estate Planning. We do it Well.

Estate Planning/Asset Protection and Business Succession Planning Lawyers Licensed in North Carolina, Florida & South Carolina 77 Central Avenue, Suite F Asheville, NC 28801 828-258-0994

104 N. Washington Street Hendersonville, NC 28739 828-696-1811

http://strausslaw.com

vero beach, fl

The Robomow team is reaching out to dealers. It needs help selling its robot lawnmowers, but dealers must be officially certified. Lawnmowers are now the second most popular category of domestic robots. Operating a lawn mowing robot has been likened to playing a video game with a smartphone. In fact, all robot settings can be controlled from an app. Teens will likely be happier to answer a call to play Robomow than do sweaty chores. Users can control a bot like a drone, or program it to dutifully perform its chores while humans are away. Unlike teenagers, the robots can be controlled to avoid gardens and finesse other details.

They also run silently and demand no allowance. Says the Robomow website, “Legend has it that one hot summer’s day, [co-founder Udi] Peless’ wife asked him to mow the lawn. While trying to avoid this impending chore, Udi fantasized about...”

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 75

OUTFITTERS Store from the River

Growing ON THE River In 2007 Sutton Bacon took the reins of Bryson City’s Nantahala Outdoor Center. As our ScaleUp WNC case study reveals, in less than a decade he has essentially reinvented the business by redefining its mission. written by angel a m . r aimondo and maggie cr amer photos courtesy of the nantahal a outdoor center

76

| July 2016

SUTTON BACON photo by Anthony Harden

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 77

ADVENTURE CENTER 78

| July 2016

N

antahala Outdoor Center (NOC) began in 1972 as a fledgling whitewater outpost with little more than a gas station, a restaurant, and a small lodge.

But its founders quickly transformed NOC into one of the country’s premier whitewater rafting destinations. And for decades, it has been home to some of the best rafting guides in the world. The center advertises itself as the “Harvard of Whitewater Paddling,” offering a rafting guide school and several certification courses, including a master guide course. What’s more, Olympic and national team paddlers routinely head to NOC for recreation.

About 10 years ago, however, success stalled, and the company came to a crossroads. Interest in rafting was declining, its founder was retiring as CEO at age 74, and economic issues after the recession meant its leaders needed to think about the company’s future. So, in 2007, they brought on a new CEO to spearhead a NOC reinvention: Sutton Bacon, 26 years old at the time. Bacon was thrilled to grab the reins of the business—nearly a decade older than him—that taught him to enjoy the river as a child. He jumped right in, taking a hard look at the market and ways to effectively paddle NOC forward.

When a Changing Market Threatens Your Core Business “On a macro level, fewer people are rafting than 20 years ago,” Bacon says, citing the multiplicity of people’s outdoor options nowadays as part of the harsh reality NOC has faced since he took over in 2007. “As people are changing, they want different activities. There are more kinds of outdoor activities for them to do, and there’s significantly more competition for people’s time.”

He adds, “Rafting as an industry may continue to decline slowly but surely, since people are risk averse and don’t have time to raft.”

Today, NOC—find it online at NOC.com—is well-positioned to continue facing this trend. But when Bacon started as CEO, rafting made up about half of the company’s business. His thought? “We can’t have 50 percent of our business based in a slowly declining market.” Rather than reducing prices in an attempt to recapture the market share, the forward-thinking CEO looked at diversification. “We didn’t want to be the best typewriter in the typewriter industry and say, ‘Hey! We have the most awesome typewriter!’ We wanted to get ahead of the curve.” He recognized that the business was “real estate rich and cash poor,” and used the existing brand of excellence in outdoor adventure to reframe who NOC is—as well as who it wanted to be and what it could offer.

Now, he says, NOC is an enigma of a company. “A lot of people don’t realize the scope and breadth of what we do,” Bacon shares, stressing that the company is no longer solely July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 79

NOC'S MOUNTAINTOP ZIP LINE TOUR has you 350 ft above the forest floor at one point.

dependent on the rafting experiences it has long been known for. Instead of 50%, those experiences now account for about 20% of NOC’s focus. The company uses its premier outdoor land holdings to offer 120 additional recreational activities, including mountain biking, kayak instruction, and educational programs like wilderness medicine. NOC also operates 10 restaurants and retail stores. Its resorts, conference centers, and camps can accommodate more than 800 guests at any time—almost 600 of the beds are located at the Ocoee Retreat Center, NOC’s conference center located on 300 acres in Cherokee National Forest near Ocoee, Tennessee.

Altogether, NOC hosts more than a million guests per year. In other words, although the adventure resort calls the banks of the Nantahala home, it’s expanding tremendously on its 500 acres by setting up zip lines and adding more offerings—expansion is extending to other areas, such as Gatlinburg, too. “We’re not just a rafting business anymore, folks!” Bacon says, with a laugh.

To support this growth, NOC employs 250 full-time people.

Technically, it’s considered a small business, but that number increases dramatically during peak season. “We hire about 80

| July 2016

800 to 1,000 people for three months every year, making us a medium-sized business, but the rest of the year we are a big small business.”

Spring Cleaning When you have a staff comprising the best in the business, but in an industry that’s slowly declining, how do you convince them to get on board with significant change? That’s a key challenge Bacon faced when he sought to steer the company toward this diversification of services. Before he could expand operations, he had to deal head-on with shifting and reigniting company culture.

NOC’s three co-founders—Horace Holden, Aurelia Kennedy, and Payson Kennedy—were all passionate about the river when they established NOC. They quickly grew their tiny river spot into a multi-million-dollar operation and set out on what Bacon calls a sort of “overt social experiment.”

“In 1974 Payson Kennedy, who is the visionary founder of the business—and also a world explorer—came back with different

business philosophies. He basically gave the company away to his employees,” Bacon explains. Kennedy and the other founders decided to make the company employee-owned, and they started an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP). The company experimented with multiple forms of ESOPs before ultimately ending up with a KSOP, a retirement plan that combines an employee’s ESOP with a 401(k). This model worked well when it was first implemented in the 1970s.

Bacon explains that Payson adopted this approach because he wanted to build up employee pride in the business. He hypothesizes that the model worked in this way for 25 years but eventually ran its course. “With the advent of post-Enron regulations around retirement plans, compliance and administrative costs made it unsustainable. That directly impacted the level of investment that could be made into the business, and I walked into the tail end of that,” Bacon says. “For the first 30 years of the business, there had only been two CEOs, then there were four CEO changes in a row. Payson came back in when he was 70 to ‘stabilize it’ in 2004, a few years before I came on board.”

When Bacon began, he initiated a process to shift employee culture. Many employees had their NOC jobs because they loved the river and had made it their life’s mission to spend as much time on it as possible. NOC had become their home, which created a conundrum for the service-based enterprise. In some respects, the staff prioritized the internal community at NOC rather than viewing NOC as a customer-driven business.

This sometimes made the company seem more staff-centric than guest-focused. “At some points in our past, our employees would have conversations about wanting to confine growth and restrict business,” Bacon admits. “We wanted to sharpen the focus on our guests, service culture, and changing consumer sensibilities, while maintaining the core values and staff community that had created the place.”

“Without much of NOC’s original leadership left at the company when I arrived, there was limited investment, modest vision, and waning enthusiasm. It was an interesting culture, for sure,” Bacon continues. But, he says, “I was able to successfully change over the leadership of the business. We now have probably 30 or 40 people I would consider manager-level, and July 2016 | capitalatplay.com

81

82

STAND UP Paddleboarding at NOC | July 2016

of those, there are maybe three who are doing the same jobs as when I came. The company is 40 years old, and a lot of people have been working here a long time. Many of those were promoted from within and others we were able to source from the outside.

“We’ve worked through the 90-hour weeks and the headaches and difficult transition. Restructuring a business is not fun. We’re done with 90 percent of that, and now we’re in a good spot. We get to look at new opportunities, in places like Asheville and Atlanta, and I get to work full-time looking for ‘now’ opportunities.”

Right Leader, Right Moment It’s a tough proposition to come into a company as the new guy and lead employees who have spent their lives working there. When those same employees are actually owners, it’s even tougher.

“I’ve been an entrepreneur my whole life,” Bacon says. “I told my mom I wanted to be a tycoon when I grew up. I’ve always had the entrepreneurial spirit, and started and sold other businesses. It’s easy to start a business; it’s really hard to make it successful. It’s even harder to take it to the next level.” Just how difficult?

“It’s like a musician with a hit song—making the second one is even harder.”

He credits many summers spent at Camp Carolina in Brevard as a young person as a life-changing experience. An avid kayaker himself, running NOC fuses Bacon’s passion for business and the outdoors. “I want to share that passion with others,” he says. “I want to get young people out there. I tell the staff all the time that summer camps are growing our greatest customers. And that you better be nice to those campers who are on your raft because they might be your boss one day!” (That’s why NOC recently acquired the summer camp in Tennessee.)

Bacon brought with him, and continues to draw upon, his lifelong entrepreneurial spirit, as well as experience as a national advocate for outdoor recreation on public lands. He has more than doubled the size of NOC since he took over. His background as a management consultant specializing in innovation and brand development for large companies like Coca-Cola, Intercontinental Hotels Group, and Georgia Pacific—coupled with his personal experiences as a kayaker and president and board member of American Whitewater, a nonprofit protecting American whitewater rivers—made him the perfect choice for the position. But he never just wanted to be CEO.

The Buyout “I knew right away I wanted to invest in the company,” he says, about moving into the position in 2007. Despite making an offer for purchase then, it took five years of due diligence, research, and talking with the employee-owners before a deal was finally brokered. “There was quite a bit of relationship building to get the deal done,” Bacon recalls.

“But we were able to convince everybody that it was the right thing to do and that the Employee Ownership [model] was actually holding the business back. We had a lot of trapped shareholders who had no options for liquidity.”

To raise money for the deal, Bacon brought together private capital from investments out of family offices and individuals, including himself. “It was literally a group of friends. There was no pitching or capital process,” he says.

The group that invested in NOC is made up of six equal partners, and Bacon describes it as a lifestyle investment.

“NOC is cool to be associated with. It was an equity raise of like-minded individuals who have all experienced success in the corporate worlds, but who are as passionate about NOC and our mission as our founders and employees are.

Collectively, we all share a long-term focus.”

“It’s easy to start a business; it’s really hard to make it successful. It’s even harder to take it to the next level.”

Bacon’s investment group bought out the ESOP in 2012, and the founders and a number of former employees remained shareholders as well. After the buyout went through, the investors were excited to really get underway. And then— “2013 was a train wreck because of the weather,” Bacon says. “At the end of the day, we can have all the best players in the world, but a significant impact can be made by the weather. Mid-summer floods completely shut us down. That was a once-every-40-year-hiccup; July fourth was completely closed down.” Like it does for so many businesses, life threw NOC a curveball. But it recovered, and Bacon confidently asserts that “things have never been better.”

After dedicating himself to the major culture shift within the company and addressing any negativity, he was able to really start interfacing with customers and focus on growth and expansion. Bacon attributes a successful transition in part to his ability to relate to kayakers and younger staff.

He admits it was tough for him as a “young guy” to lead employees who had been there for so long. But at the end of the day, he connected with the crew and his enthusiasm for the company sustained them.

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 83

HIKERS ON THE Founders Bridge

It’s clear the self-taught entrepreneur has a passion for business. “I actually majored in music in college,” Bacon says.

“Some people are averse to numbers, but you have to be a numbers person if you’re going to grow. Most importantly, you have to understand a balance sheet, because you can’t gauge your cash flow without knowing the balance sheet.”

Finding Your Best Customers Another key driver of NOC’s renewed success has been a savvy identification of its top customer segments—and the ability to market effectively to the right audience. It’s not surprising that kayakers and outdoor enthusiasts flock to NOC for its many activities. But the company’s main customer profile is actually affluent active families with kids between the ages of eight and twelve years old. “That is our bread and butter—people who choose value over price,” Bacon says.

84

| July 2016

The core demographic for NOC is made up of professionals, doctors, lawyers, and two-income homes all with one big thing in common: They’re active. “Their kids are in triathlons or camping on the weekends. They’re not just sitting around playing video games,” he notes. “They want to go outside, and that active lifestyle is the core underpin of our entire business.

Whether it’s a day trip or week with us, doing activities and spending $2,000 on a vacation with us pales in comparison to spending $10,000 with Disney. A lot of rafting businesses and companies in the outdoor space are price sensitive, but we have a different demographic in the market because we are both a price leader and a volume leader. We’ve been able to maintain that tricky position.”

NOC thinks of the entire picture when a family wants a getaway. “By and large, we are a vacation-planning market; we try to reach people while they are planning for their vacations versus letting them figure it out when they get there,” he says.

“We use digital marketing tactics like web, pay-per-click, and social media. We have 250,000 Facebook fans. There’s never a silver bullet; you just have to do a lot of different things and track it well to see what works. We’re probably going to do TV for the first time, most likely in B markets like Greenville, for example, instead of Atlanta.” (Note: NOC also has an extremely robust YouTube channel featuring scores of videos that offer the proverbial birds-eye view of outdoor activities.)

He adds, “We do a lot of things and it depends upon the market.” Geographically, NOC draws its business primarily from the Southeast, with North Carolina in first place.

Florida is second, then Atlanta; much of the rest of their business comes from South Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia, and then is geographically disbursed nationally.

Looking Ahead The long-term vision is to continue growing the brand and to look at other geographic areas to keep NOC relevant. “We really want to get the Nantahala adventure resort model right and then look at different geographies. First the outdoor adventure, retail, dining, shopping, lodging approach—and now we have the capital and expertise,” Bacon says.

When speaking about all NOC has had to change and embrace, Bacon says, “The culture shift was the biggest piece, but it was probably the easiest because we’d laid the groundwork.” To some degree, NOC is still dealing with changing staff mentality from not just having a love for the river but having a love for serving guests at the same time. But now, Bacon notes, “There’s a youthful spirit and engagement and it sharpens our focus relative to families.”

Finance your dream home with a bank that’s homegrown Around here, we understand the power of homeownership. That’s why we we’ve spent the last 80 years helping people in Western North Carolina get the financing they need to buy, build or even refinance their dream home.

Now’s the time to take advantage of still historically low rates.

Our local lending experts will provide you with the personalized attention you deserve to make the mortgage process simpler.

Start by knowing your buying power with our quick, free pre-qualification.* *Subject to credit approval

800.222.3230 | AshevilleSavingsBank.com July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 85

The diversification and growth of the business is getting the staff excited again.

“I was NOC’s first external-facing CEO,” Bacon says. “The others were inward-facing, all about culture and getting people to work their best.” Bacon does what you’d expect

operations of running the business that they don’t have the time to follow trends and see what’s headed their way for the future. Attending networking events and trade shows stop being the primary concern.

“The first step is the hard self-actualization that some founders and CEOs are often not always good COOs, which was a really good lesson for me,” Bacon says. “The CEO is not always the COO. It’s important to separate the tasks of dealing with everything on a daily basis. It’s hard for people to realize that they may not be the best person to run the business. Emotionally, this is difficult because the business is your baby. You live it every day; the staff is your family.

It’s an emotional process and there isn’t an easy recipe for people working through that. Raising money means losing control, always. Unless it’s a really rare situation, you may not give up all of the control, but you will then have stakeholders telling you what to do, when before you didn’t.”

“The first step is the hard self-actualization that some founders and CEOs are often not always good COOs, which was a really good lesson for me,” Bacon says. “The CEO is not always the COO.” from the owner of an outdoor center: He gets outdoors as much as he can and makes friends with competitors in different markets. He also goes overseas to stay current with global trends.

Business owners and leaders may agree with Bacon’s observation that many CEOs get so caught up in the daily

86

| July 2016

when it comes to outdoor activity. The big question is how do we monetize it. The economics are really clear; we do economic impact studies, and there is a strong economic impact.”

At the end of the day, Sutton Bacon relies on his well-developed business instincts that have shaped NOC into a thriving, growing company. “I’m bold and have big ideas,” he says. “It’s worked so far.”

Indeed it has.

Case study provided by ScaleUp WNC, a program of Mountain BizWorks that annually provides 30 regional entrepreneurs with intensive growth strategy development, mentorship, access-to-capital support, and a rich network of peer business owners. Find additional cases and learn more about the program at Capitalatplay.com/scaleupwnc.

• Aico • American Drew • Bassett • Hammary •

• Rowe Furniture • Vaughn Bassett •

Bacon sees focusing solely on operations as a real liability, which is why he continues to keep himself active outside the confines of the center. “I intentionally try to get out as much as I can and see the world outside of the Nantahala Gorge. It’s important to see what’s out there, because if not, you could miss out on the opportunities.” Staying connected to the bigger picture keeps him on track, and he notes that by doing so, “you can learn more about your trends or meet someone who could change the entire course of your business.”

He certainly recognizes the importance Asheville plays in driving Western North Carolina’s outdoor tourism industry.

“It’s awesome what the Outdoor Gear Builders group has done; they are good folks and they give us great props. Western North Carolina can’t move forward without Asheville. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if Patagonia [Ventura, California, based outdoor clothing and gear retailer] would put a distribution center here,” he says, citing the area’s booming outdoor industry.

The Pisgah National Forest in Brevard is also on the drawing board for NOC. “Pisgah is a huge untapped opportunity: It’s the third-most-visited national forest in the country,” Bacon says.

“The Smokies get all the attention, but the Nantahala-Pisgah National Forest has huge opportunity. I love Brevard; I’ve always loved Brevard. People are coming. There isn’t any kind of lack

Discounting Name Brand Furniture since 1995

Town & Country Furniture 106 Sutton Avenue • Black Mountain

828-669-0075 www.towncountryfurniture.net

• Homelegance • Fairfield Chair • Flexsteel • Lea • Legacy Classics • Robin Bruce • July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 87

People Play at 2

1

3

4

6

7

1. Alex Powell of BMW talks shop with a client 2. (L-R) Meherdil Irani, Rachel Moeller, Emmy Bowers, Britt Arndt, and Kara Irani

88

5

| July 2016

3. (L-R) Johanna Ramer, Walker Rackley, and Tom Rackley 4. Mark Hornsby

5. Jack Cummins of BMW talks with clients 6. Collin Atkins and Robyn Crecentini 7. Gabe and Christine Quinley

BMW and Blue Jean Ball

MANNA FoodBank Fundraisers June 4 & 14, 2016 | BMW photos by Anthony Harden , Blue Jean photos courtesy of MANNA FoodBank.

8

9

10

11

12

13

8. Jerry Prickett of Manna 9. Abby Easter and Allison Pine 10. Melissa Murray (center, in white) with the

Mosaix Group team and guests 11. (L-R) Katie Denit, Mindy Allen, and Johanna Rackley

12. Sandy Freelander, Louise O’Connor, Hanna Toland, Gail Astle, and Joy Benton 13. Stephen Pyles and Phil Butera

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 89

events

july

EVENTS july 1- 3

41st Annual 4th Of July Powwow Acquoni Expo Center 1501 Acquoni Road, Cherokee, NC Immerse yourself for three straight days in nothing but authentic Cherokee music, dance, food, and festivities. Organizers promise fast-swirling eyefuls of color, incredible choreography, and “music made to move you.”

> Admission: $12/day > 800-438-1601 > Visitcherokeenc.com july 1

Jim Peterman Quartet 7-10PM Rogers Park Amphitheater 55 Howard Street, Tryon, NC The Jim Peterman Quartet plays R&B with a Hammond organ, drums, ax, and

Your Beretta dealer in asheville:

sax. Max Hightower sings lead. The tunes, as those shared by opening act Stolen Hearts, are billed as “danceable blues.” Manna Cabanna will be vending the health food, while O’Duggan’s Ice Cream will handle the rest. The production is part of Summer Tracks at Rogers Park Amphitheater, sponsored by the Town of Tryon.

> Free: Donations are encouraged. > Summertracks.com july 1- 3

Mary Poppins 7PM (Fri-Sat), 2PM (Sun) Hayes Auditorium, Lees-McRae College, 19 Main Street, Banner Elk, NC Every kid has to see this, even though they don’t care about the plot. Every adult must see this musical to see if Mary can really fly with her umbrella, and if the chimney sweeps’ choreographed dance is anywhere near as unbelievable as Dick Van Dyke’s and pals’.

>Tickets: $18-$40 > 828-898-8709 > Lmc.edu/summertheatre

july 1

A Man of Many Beds Book Signing 2-3PM Blowing Rock Art & History Museum 159 Chestnut Street, Blowing Rock, NC Author Warren L. Bingham will give a lecture and sign some copies of his latest book. It’s about a man who went on a tour to the tune of many parties, dinners, and parades. He wasn’t a rock star, though.

He was General George Washington, fulfilling duties as first president of the United States. Bingham enjoys researching Southern history, with special focus on Washington’s Southern Tour.

> 828-295-9099 > Blowingrockmuseum.org july 1- 31

Sugar Mountain Summer Fun Sugar Mountain Resort 1009 Sugar Mountain Dr, Sugar Mountain, NC The famous ski resort is open for summer, but not for skiing. Every weekend, the high-speed, six-per-chairlift will run folks to the top of the mountain to enjoy the view and more. The tennis courts

Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon I

828-633-1806 www.wingsnclays.com

trident program

offering introduction to sporting clays classes monthly 90

| July 2016

and golf course will be open, as will all the village shops. A cool thing to do is go up the mountain to see all the fireworks on July 2 (not July 4 this year).

> 800-SUGAR-MT > Skisugar.com july 1- 31

Cherokee Bonfire 7-9PM Oconaluftee Island Park Hwy 441 & Hwy 19, Cherokee, NC Light up your nights Friday and Saturday with a roaring bonfire and traditional Cherokee storytelling and dance.

Costumes are authentic 17th-century dress. Themes include heritage, wilderness survival, and native mythology. Beverages and marshmallows for roasting are on the house—the longhouse.

> 800-438-1601 > Visitcherokeenc.com

Colonists loved their independence and didn’t like people micromanaging them and levying taxes all the time. They had a name for their oppressors and it rhymed with fire ant. They’d take it to the streets, and instead of tipping cars, they’d show the man by burning a big, stuffed puppet in his likeness. At this event, re-enactors will read the Declaration of Independence, participants will Halifax-toast some cider, and then the action will begin. This is just one tiny part of what’s going to be going on at Horn in the West all summer long.

> Donations appreciated. > 828-264-2120 > Horninthewest.com july 6

Broyhill Chamber Ensemble

july 2

8-10PM Rosen Concert Hall, Schaefer Center for The Performing Arts 733 Rivers Street, Boone, NC

5:30-6:30PM Hickory Ridge Living History Museum 591 Horn in The West Drive, Boone, NC

This isn’t your ordinary quilt of fancy music. Gil Morgenstern has assembled something special for his ensemble. The quartet consists of Morgenstern on violin, a cellist, a pianist, and a narrator. In the ensemble’s opening performance of the

Burning in Effigy of King George III

season, they will interpret four works for strings touching on ancient Greece, Intelligent Design, modern science, and digital imagery. This could blow your mind.

> Admission: Adult $20, Student $10 > 828-262-4046 > Theschaefercenter.org july 7- 24

The Importance of Being Earnest Flat Rock Playhouse Downtown 125 South Main Street, Hendersonville, NC Like all good legislation, these two crooks take on the name of exactly the opposite of what they’re doing. They call themselves Earnest and set about trying to lighten hearts in the audience. This work is among playwright Oscar Wilde’s most widely-acclaimed. Wait. Did I spill any beans by calling them crooks?

>Tickets: $15-$40 > 828-693-0731 > Flatrockplayhouse.org july 7-10

61st Annual Grandfather Mountain Highland Games

October 6 - 9, 2016

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 91

events

Lower School Lower School Grades Pre-K to 5

Grades Pre-K to 5 Critical foundational skills and Critical foundational skills and exceptional enrichment program exceptional enrichment program including STEM, Art, Spanish including STEM, Art, Spanish

Key School

Key School Grades 1-8

Grades 1-8bright Model school for Model with school for bright students language-based students with language-based learning differences learning differences

Middle School

Grades 6-8 Middle School

Single-gender classrooms, peer Grades 6-8 group program, expedition learning Single-gender classrooms, peer

group program, expedition learning

Upper School

Grades 9-12 Upper School Full-time professional Grades 9-12 college counselor working Full-time professional with students to prepare for college counselor working college and beyond

with students to prepare for college and beyond

Asheville’s Pre-K/12 Independent Asheville’s Co-Ed Day School

Pre-K/12 Independent A Balanced Approach to Building Co-Ed Day School

Character and Developing Intellect

A Balanced Approach to Building

APPLYand NOW FOR 2016-17.

Character Developing Intellect CarolinaDay.org/Apply

APPLY NOW FOR 2016-17.

828.407.4442 CarolinaDay.org/Apply 828.407.4442 92

| July 2016

Macrae Meadows US Highway 221, Linville, NC It’s time again to watch men in skirts throw telephone poles. Shucks. You know it’s more than that. Scottish culture to the max will come out on the mountain. Events include brawnybrawn games, bagpipes, traditional dance to kinder and gentler Celtic music, and border collie sheep herding.

Genealogists will be on hand to help you maybe find your tartan. Enjoy the Gathering of the Clans as well; 80 clans will shout their involvement in the games.

> 828-733-1333 > Gmhg.org july 8 -10 , 15 -17, 22 - 24 , Titus Andronicus

29 - 30

7:30PM Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre 92 Gay Street, Asheville, NC Michael MacCauley, a Shakespearean guru, will direct this work by the Bard that is so full of senseless blood and guts, it is often not performed. It is a story of a Roman General, returning from war, and vengeance, vengeance, vengeance. If one says it is not recommended for children, that only encourages them.

> Free > 828-254-5146 > Montfordparkplayers.org JULY 9

about. The day starts with a 5k, which is followed by a parade of whatever the locals want to float down main street.

Since every dog must have its day, this one goes to the coons. The usual festival trappings will be there, of course.

> saluda.com JULY 11 & 18

UNC-Asheville Concerts On the Quad 7-8:30PM The Quad; UNC-Asheville, 1 University Heights, Asheville, NC The University’s concert series continues with two Monday evening shows.

This summer, traditional music of the Southeastern United States will be highlighted. That means anything from bluegrass to salsa to jazz. The first show will feature prog southern rocker Joe Lasher, Jr., a Weaverville native who is now a rising Nashville star. Singer/rapper/guitarist Leeda Jones (a.k.a. Lyric), who got her start busking Asheville, will play on the 18th.

> FREE > 828-251-6674 > Unca.edu/concerts JULY 14

Tac Talk: The Grandfather of Appalachian Tourism 6-7PM

53rd Annual Coon Dog Day Festival

Blowing Rock Art & History Museum 159 Chestnut Street, Blowing Rock, NC

8AM-11PM

Avid hiker and writer Randy Johnson will present his latest book, Grandfather Mountain: The History and Guide to an Appalachian Icon. After owner Hugh Morton closed the trails on the mountain in response to hiker deaths, Johnson did what it took to get them back open. His latest tribute to the

Downtown Saluda, NC This institution has been part of Carolina culture for over fifty years. Folks in the tiny town see their population expand way more than tenfold for just a day, as tourists come to see what it’s all

An future...

An investment investment in the future... mountain is about as comprehensive as it gets.

> Admission: Nonmember $5, Member FREE > 828-295-9099 > Blowingrockmuseum.org

JULY 14-20

Always... Patsy Cline Hayes Auditorium Lees-McRae College, 19 Main Street, Banner Elk, NC Enjoy the old classics by Patsy Cline as you go back to a simpler time and place, where two housewives would share a cup of coffee, and one uses the kitchen as a dressing room to perform her most beloved hits.

>Tickets: $18-40 > 828-898-8709 > Lmc.edu/summertheatre JULY 15

Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo Melissa Etheridge 8PM Holmes Convocation Center Appalachian State University, 111 Rivers Street, Boone, NC If you’re “the right kind of seena to release my inner fontasy,” you’ll probably be scraping the aftermarket for tickets by the time you read this. Yes, the trained opera singer turned hard rock pixie, Pat Benatar herself, will pay us a visit on tour with her husband and bandmate, Neil Giraldo. They’ll be joined by special guest Melissa Etheridge. No. Really.

> GA Tickets: Adult $50, Student/ Child $40 > 828-262-7890 > Appsummer.org

At Carolina Day School, At Carolina Day School, our inclusive community,

our inclusive community, inspiring faculty, inspiring faculty, and innovative program and innovative program combine to create combine to create the ideal balance the ideal balance for transformational for transformational character development character development and intellectual growth. and intellectual growth.

...yields a lifetime of value. ...yields a lifetime of value.

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 93

events

JULY 15-16

Sugar Grove 1-10PM (Fri) & 10AM-10PM (Sat) Cove Creek School 207 Dale Adams Road, Sugar Grove, NC

LET’S PLAN YOUR

POOL!

NOW ACCEPTING NEW CLIENTS FOR SUMMER 2016 PROJECTS!

1200-C Hendersonville Rd. Asheville, NC • 828-277-8041 • waterworkswnc.com

We Build Dreams.

CUSTOM CARS & RESTORATIONS

1967 El Camino

RESTORATIONS CUSTOM CREATIONS CUSTOM PAINT KIT CARS

828-693-8246

www.bealandco.net 5522 Willow Road, Hendersonville, NC

94

| July 2016

This is an open-air music fest celebrating the music of Doc and Merle Watson.

Organizers have added to the natural greenery of the mountain amphitheater by featuring a solar-powered stage. This isn’t your typical “sit like a bump on a log and watch the famous people” thingies. Participants can attend musicians’ workshops, jam, and otherwise mingle with the pros, by right and without rushing past some bald-headed security guard. The Doc & Merle Watson Folk Art Museum is a hop, skip, and a jump away.

>Tickets: Adult $25/day, Child with Adult Free > 828-297-2200 > Blueridgemusicnc.com JULY 15-16

Spruce Pine BBQ & Bluegrass 4PM-10:30PM (Fri), 9AM-10:30PM (Sat) Riverside Park East Tappan Street, Spruce Pine, NC This event is intended solely to add BTU’s to Spruce Pine, where the average summer temp is only 79oF. It’s a cook-off where chefs from all over strive to make the best BBQ. They will be judged by a panel of experts, but for just $10 extra, any old “man on the street” can share his opinion in a people’s choice award.

In between, cloggers will be going at it, and big bluegrass bands like Buncombe Turnpike will be pickin’ and grinnin’ the chord transitions out faster than you can shout, “Fire!”

> Admission: Friday Adult (13+) $10, Saturday Adult $18, Child Free > 828-237-1125 > Sprucepinebbqbluegrass.org

JULY 15-17

Man of La Mancha 8PM (Fri & Sat), 3PM (Sun) Diana Wortham Theatre 2 South Pack Square, Asheville, NC First of all, the Asheville Lyric Opera is a class act, drawing upon national talent.

Now, on to the storyline. The tale is told by Miguel de Cervantes as he awaits trial for an offense during the Spanish Inquisition.

Cervantes acts out the incomplete manuscript of Don Quixote, the dude famous for tilting at windmills. The song, “The Impossible Dream,” factors heavily.

>Tickets: Adult $32, 44, 62; Student $15,25,42 > 828-236-0670 > Ashevillelyric.org JULY 17

Big Crafty Pack Place & Pack Square 121 College Street, Asheville, NC This is bazaar. The Big Crafty has been voted the Best Arts/Crafts Fair by the Mountain Xpress readers’ poll for seven years running. It’s like an intentional street festival. Participants are juried local artisans whose forms of hand-crafted expression include the sonic and the tangible. And… beer.

> Thebigcrafty.com JULY 17

Peggy Ratusz Full of Blues 7-10pm Rogers Park Amphitheater 55 Howard Street, Tryon, NC Peggy could be that lady lounging across the piano singing the blues. Her voice can handle all kinds of blues, jazz, soul, and R&B, from Ella to Bonnie Raitt.

Manna Cabanna will be vending the health food while O’Duggan’s Ice Cream will handle the rest. The production is

part of Summer Tracks at Rogers Park Amphitheater, sponsored by the Town of Tryon. Donations are encouraged. (I’ve heard that somewhere before.)

> FREE > Summertracks.com JULY 21-24

American Cornhole League Championship Of Bags Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort 777 Casino Drive, Cherokee, NC The American Cornhole League’s COBS 2016 main events will be live-streamed on ESPN3. Participants compete for a cash prize pool of $50,000 and titles. If you’re like me, you’ve never heard of cornhole, and you can’t figure it out from what’s online, but it must be legal. Cornhole authorities are hoping the ESPN coverage will be educational.

> 828-497-7777 > Iplaycornhole.com JULY 21-31

Folkmoot 2016 Venues/locations vary Folkmoot is one of those shows so big, people who don’t go to shows have to go. It’s much, much more than people in Slavic costumes holding hands and going around in a circle. This is more like stunning athletics and grace, in the most brilliant colors of native costume. (Think headdresses, flags, and fire.) It’s like the “It’s a Small World” ride on steroids—lots and lots. But this year, they’ve shaken things up, and rather than hogging all the excitement to themselves in Waynesville, Folkmoot will also host events in Clyde, Bryson City, Hickory, Canton, Flat Rock, Junaluska, Franklin, and Asheville.

Exclamation point.

>Tickets: $0-$1000 (Really.) > 828-452-2997 > Folkmoot.org

109 BROADWAY

BLACK MOUNTAIN

(828) 669-5000 Mon. - Sat. 9am - 5:30pm TysonFurniture.com SPECIAL FINANCING See store for details.

July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 95

EILEEN FISHER

CELEBRATING 20 YEARS

events

JULY 21-24

Craft Fair of the Southern Highlands 10AM-6PM (Thu-Sat), 10AM-5PM (Sun) US Cellular Center 87 Haywood Street, Asheville, NC This twice annual event brings craftspeople together with a chance to put their art before the public. Over 200 quality vendors from the mountain counties of the Appalachian states will showcase their creations with one mighty rule: No middlemen. The fair is sponsored by the Southern Highland Craft Guild.

2onCrescent

828.274.1276 • 2oncrescent.com Open Everyday 11am - 5pm 4 All Souls Crescent, Biltmore Village

> Admission: Adult $12, Child FREE > 828-298-7928 > Southernhighlandguild.org JULY 23

Bridging the Gap: Uniting Human & Canine Worlds 9AM-12PM Lenoir-Rhyne University 36 Montford Ave, Asheville, NC

Feather Your Nest

CONSIGNMENT SHOP

Specializing in upscale one-of-a-kind furnishings, housewares, home decorative items and vintage & fine jewelry.

New items arriving daily!

Come see for yourself!

Learn what your dog is telling you and have a less fearful, calmer, and more relaxed dog. Also discussed: ways to improve your dog’s mental health, and how proper nutrition impacts your dog’s health longevity and behavior. Note that this will have limited seating, and 10% of all profits will benefit Blue Ridge Humane Shelter.

828.693.3535 Accepting Quality Consignments

96

| July 2016

> FREE > 828-68-MUSIC > Theleaf.org JULY 30

Kellie Pickler 7:30PM Smoky Mountain Center for The Performing Arts 1028 Georgia Road, Franklin, NC Native North Carolinian Pickler rose to stardom as a contestant on American Idol. She is now a television personality, having won ABC’s Dancing with the Stars in 2013; and a country singer and songwriter with multiple tracks from two of her three albums charting. She says her life is a country song, and she will show you what that means—if you go.

>Tickets: $45, $50, $55 > 828-524-1598 > Greatmountainmusic.com

> Registration: $25 prior to 7/10, $35 at the door > 828-275-2487 > Squareup.com/store/angels-pawsacademy

Tuesday through Saturday | 10am to 4pm 1215A Greenville Hwy. Hendersonville, NC

The LEAF people have been putting on a four-day campout festival in Black Mountain for years. It’s an education and awareness thing about diverse cultures featuring standout solid and performing arts and food. For the second year, this institution is also holding a summer shindig at its, shall we say, Asheville satellite office. Among the musical acts: WAR, The Broadcast, Big Sam’s Funky Nation, Jon Stickley Trio, Bill Myers & the Monitors.

Capital at Play is a co-sponsor of LEAF.

JULY 30-31

LEAF Downtown 12-10PM (Sat), 10AM-6PM (Sun) Pack Square Park 121 College Street, Asheville, NC

If your organization has any local press releases for our briefs section, or events that you would like to see here, feel free to email us at events@capitalatplay.com.

Please submit your event by six weeks in advance.

%

1.09

%

1.49

APR

APR

I F B Y LA N D .

I F B Y S EA.

Introductory Auto Loan rates as low as 1.09% APR for 6 months

Introductory Boat and RV Loan rates as low as 1.49% APR for 12 months

%

1.99

%

3.50

APR

APR

FOR THE REMAINING 30 MONTHS

FOR THE REMAINING 48 MONTHS

WHEN YOU’RE READY TO CRUISE, WE’RE READY WITH THE BEST RATES:

MOTORCYCLE — NEW

RV — NEW

BOAT SLIP

As low as 5.25% APR for up to 72 months

1.49% APR for 12 months, then 3.50% for the remaining 30 months

2.99% APR for 12 months, then 4.50% for the remaining 108 months

Introductory APR available to qualifying customers. Not all borrowers will qualify. 100% financing is available for auto loans. Motorcycle, boat, RV and boat slip require 20% down payment. For new auto loans, based on 3 year term, borrower will pay 6 monthly payments of $28.24 per $1,000 borrowed and then the remaining 30 monthly payments will be $28.57 per $1,000 borrowed. For new boat and RV loans, based on a 5 year term, borrower will pay 12 monthly payments of $17.30 per $1,000 borrowed and then the remaining 48 monthly payments will be $18.01 per $1,000 borrowed. For new motorcycle loans, based on 6 year term, borrower will make 72 monthly payments of $16.22 per $1,000 borrowed. For certified boat slips, based on 10 year term, borrower will pay 12 monthly payments of $9.65 per $1,000 borrowed and then the remaining 108 monthly payments will be $10.29 per $1,000 borrowed. Financing examples illustrate lowest rates available. Ask us about other loan terms that are also available. Loans are subject to credit approval.

Equal Housing Lender | Member FDIC

LOCALFIRSTBANK.COM/CRUISE

ASHEVILLE DOWNTOWN 828-252-1735 | LEICESTER HWY 828-251-9254 SOUTH ASHEVILLE 828-687-7450 97 July |2016 | capitalatplay.com

ANYTOWN SUBARU ANYTOWN SUBARU

Built to take you to the As seen on Good Good news. news. place you’ve never been. r winding roads. or scenic winding roads. routes.

It’s It’s winter. winter.

winding ones. nwinding ones.

The The all-new all-new 2012 2012 Subaru Impreza.

Impreza.

The The optimist’s optimist’s car car ofof choice. choice.

Symmetrical You have the go-anywhere capability of a Subaru, alongSymmetrical with Less Less of of a aSubaru test test drive. drive. mance that comes with Subaru engineering, the All-Wheel All-Wheel Drive Drive and and 36 mpg* mpg* get get you you further in any any weather. weather.

Traction Traction and stability stability X-MODE and a36 surprisingly spacious upgraded interior.

It’s and the The 2016 Subaru Impreza.

A further 2015in IIHS Top Safety Pick+ with More More of of a a joy joy ride. ride. rmance that comes with Subaru theAllmost fuel-effi cient midsize crossover inengineering, America at 33smiling mpg. control control help help avoid avoid slippery slippery situations. situations.

It’llIt’ll keep keep you you warm warm and and smiling allall winter winter long. long.

Driver Assist Technology.

Symmetrical optional EyeSight ™

®

2

1

excitement to your drive, even if you’re not in a hurry.

The all-new Subaru Outback is bound by in nothing.

And awhat Rear-Vision improved Wheel Drive +2015 37 mpg. excitement toloveyour drive, even ifmakes you’re not hurry.

Experience Experience love that that lasts. lasts.

Love.

Love.

It’s It’s what makes aIntroducing Subaru, aCamera Subaru, afor Subaru. aaSubaru.

Introducing the the ®

®

5

driver visibility. Because the more road you see, the better. new new 2011 2011

Legacy Legacyand andOutback.

Outback.

Impreza Impreza . .Well-equipped Well-equipped atat$17,495 $17,495 ® The all-new 2015 Subaru Outback ®

®

†

†

The 2016 Subaru Impreza ®

Subaru, Forester, Impreza, Legacy, Outback, and EyeSight are registered trademarks. Pandora is a registered trademark of Pandora Media, Inc. 5 EPA-estimated hwy fuel economy for 2016 Subaru Impreza CVT non-Sport models. Actual mileage may vary.

Subaru, Forester, Impreza, Legacy and Outback are registered trademarks. 1EPA-estimated hwy fuel economy for 2015 Outback 2.5i models. Actual mileage † † *EPA-estimated *EPA-estimated hwy hwy fuelfuel economy forfor 2012 2012 Subaru Subaru Impreza 2.0i2.0i CVT CVT models. models.

Actual Actual mileage mileage may may vary. vary.

MSRP excludes excludes destination destination andand delivery delivery charges, charges, tax,tax, titletitle andand registration registration fees. fees. oneconomy EPA-estimated hwy fuelImpreza economy for 2015 model vehicles within the IHSMSRP Automotive, Polk Non-Luxury Midsize CUV segment. may vary. 2Based Dealer Dealer sets sets actual actual price. price.

2012 2012 Impreza Impreza 2.0i2.0i Limited Limited pictured pictured hashas an an MSRP MSRP of $21,595. of $21,595.

2011 2011 Legacy Legacy

Sunbelt Version Sunbelt Version 585 585Tunnel TunnelRoad RoadAsheville, Asheville,NC NC28805 28805• 828-298-9600 • 828-298-9600 98

| July 2016

2011 2011 Outback Outback

www.prestigesubaru.com www.prestigesubaru.com

we’re not about selling a project, we are not about finding solutions. we’re about selling a project, we are about finding solutions.

Resources are are oneone thing, resourcefulness is is our Resources thing, resourcefulness ourthing. thing.

We’llWe’ll take take ownership of the problem or or opportunity withoutthe therunaround. runaround. ownership of the problem opportunitywith withyou youand anddeliver deliver results results without Assurance | Tax | Advisory | Asheville| 828.254.2254 | 828.254.2254 | | Hendersonville Hendersonville | 828.692.9176 Assurance | Tax | Advisory | Asheville 828.692.9176 | |dhgllp.com dhgllp.com July 2016 | capitalatplay.com 99

Whether it’s gourmet sandwiches for eight or a cocktail reception for 500, The Chef ’s kitchen is dedicated to providing fresh, beautifully presented, and affordably priced menus that are sure to delight you and your guests.

Visit Us At www.TheChefsKitchen.com

100

| July 2016