MBJ_Aug03_2018

INSIDE — June unemployment figures — Page 8 TOURISM

www.msbusiness.com

Another luxury hotel to open in Cleveland — Page 2

MBJ FOCUS

Architects & Engineers {Section begins P9}

August 3, 2018 • Vo. 40 No. 31 • 16 pages

Some positive news on County Line » Intersection with Ridgewood to get two restaurants

» Engineering one of the best paying careers in the country

{The List P11} » Largest Engineering Firms

Page 7

POLITICS {P2}

» WILLIAMS: The U.S. Supreme Court opinion to read in 2018

TACY RAYBURN/MBJ

County Line Road, the dividing line between Ridgeland and Jackson, has long been a dominant retail corridor.

http://msbusiness.com/events/lif/

2 Q Mississippi Business Journal Q August 3, 2018 TOURISM

Another luxury hotel to open in Cleveland

By JACK WEATHERLY jack.weatherly@msbusiness.com The Cotton House. Is there better name for a luxury hotel in the Delta?

Tradition with a wink.

The $17.6 million, 95-room hotel will open early next year in downtown Cleveland, dead center in the region known for the richest soil and earthiest music in the world.

“It’ll be a very high-end product,” said Luke Chamblee, president of LRC2 Properties, whose portfolio contains The Graduate in Oxford and other properties.

Chamblee confirmed that the Cotton House at 223 Cotton Row will carry the Marriott Tribute brand, one of about 40 under that flag in the world.

“We couldn’t be more excited to be partnering with the largest hotel reservation system in the world,” Chamblee said.

“This says a lot about the community and the development.”

The Delta influences the decor, “whether it’s art work, wall coverings, fixtures, furnishing.” He and the design team explored “the Mississippi Delta for a week. We explored all different parts . . . from hole in the walls to major restaurants like Lusco’s,” Chamblee said in an interview.

“It’ll be good for the immediate market and the whole Delta.”

Cleveland Mayor Billy Nowell said the Cotton House is going to be “a game-changer” for downtown.

Judson Thigpen, executive director of the Cleveland/Bolivar County Chamber of Commerce, said the hotel will “bring a

feeling of place to downtown.”

On a practical note, the city cannot accommodate large groups when they come to town, having to send them to nearby towns for lodging, Thigpen said.

Chamblee’s Cotton House Hospitality LLC was approved for the rebate by the Mississippi Development Authority, through state law 57-6-1, which could mean roughly a 30 percent reimbursement over a 15-year period, if certain milestones are met.

Chamblee declined to say how much the investment was, but the Mississippi Business Journal obtained though an Open Records Law request to the Mississippi Development Authority details about the project.

Courtesy of LRC2 The city approved a tax increment financing, or TIF, district, by which tax rev- The 95-room Cotton House will fly the Marriott Tribute flag when it opens early next year. Courtesy of LRC2 Properties enues from the project will be diverted to it for a limited time. The bond issue conThe Mississippi Grammy Museum, rant operated by Cole Ellis, a James Beard nected with it will yield $2 million toward which opened in 2016, and the Mississippi Award-winning chef who is the owner and financing the building of the hotel, accord- Arts and Entertainment Center, or MAX, executive chef of the Delta Meat Market in ing to records provided by the MDA. are cited as the reasons for the law.

Cleveland.

Payroll will range from $1.2 million in Ascent Hospitality Management of Also, the hotel will include Balance Fitthe first year to $1.5 million in the 10th Coral Gables, Fla. Is resurrecting the his- ness Studio and Delta Blue Jean Co. year, assuming 100 employees throughout toric Threefoot Building in Meridian in a Probity Constructon of Florence is the that period. $22 million project. general contractor and the architect is the Suresh and Dinesh Chawla, two broth“The Chawlas have got what appears Renaissance Group of Lakeland, Tenn. ers who own a chain of hotels in the Delta to be a really good development as well,”LRC2 Properties is also an investor in qualified for a rebate of roughly $6 million Chamblee said of the West End Scion go- the Hotel Indigo, which opened last week for their $20 million Scion hotel under ing up in Cleveland that will be owned by in Hattiesburg. construction in west Cleveland, the first of the Chawlas and operated by the Trump The 100-room Indigo is located at 103 a luxury chain planned by the Trump Or- Organization.

S. 30th Ave. near the main University of ganization.

The Cotton House will employ more Southern Mississippi entrance, according The special legislation benefits both Bo- than 100, with the vast majority of those to Chief Financial Officer Seth Miles. It livar County, of which Cleveland is county jobs being full-time, he said. will include a full-service restaurant and seat, and Lauderdale County, where MeThe five-story hotel on Cotton Row will bar. It likewise was designed by the Renaisridian is located. have a rooftop bar and will feature a restau- sance Group.

AGRIBUSINESS

Cal-Maine quarterly performance ‘best in company’s history’

By JACK WEATHERLY jack.weatherly@msbusiness.com Cal-Maine Foods has reported net income of $71.8 million, or $1.48 per share, for the fourth quarter of its fiscal 2018, which ended June 2, compared with a net loss of $24.5 million, or 51 cents per share, a year earlier.

Net sales for the quarter were $443.1 million, a 61.4 percent increase over $274.6 million for the corresponding period a year earlier.

The company narrowly missed the earnings consensus estimate, and so its shares on the NasdaqGS market fell $1 on Monday, June 23 closing at $44.95. Their 52-week range is $33.40 to $52.30.

Nevertheless, Dolph Baker, chairman, president and chief executive officer, stated that Cal-Maine enjoyed “the best fourth quarter performance in the company’s history.”

Propelled by a $43 million, or 89 cents per share, benefit from the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act tax reform legislation, Jackson-based Cal-Maine, the nation’s largest

producer of in-shell eggs, reported a fiscal year-end net income of $125.9 million, or $2.60 per share, compared with a net loss of $74.3 million, or $1.54 per share a year earlier.

Those results also include an after-tax charge of $54.8 million, or $1.13 per share, recorded in the second quarter of fiscal 2018, related to the settlement of previously disclosed antitrust litigation.

Baker said in January that “we reached an agreement on material terms of the settlement of antitrust lawsuits that several large purchasers had filed nearly a decade ago against the company and many other egg producers. While we deny any liability in these cases and still believe that our conduct has always been lawful, we decided that it was in the best interests of our shareholders, customers and employees to settle these long-standing cases at this time.”

For the fiscal year ending June 2, 2018, net sales were $1.5 billion, compared with $1.07 billion for the prior-year period.

Sales gains reflect strong consumer demand and significantly higher average selling prices compared with the

same period a year ago.

“Specialty eggs, excluding co-pack sales, accounted for 25.5 percent of our sales volumes for the fourth quarter, compared with 22.7 percent a year ago,” Baker said. “Specialty egg revenue was 29 percent of total shell egg revenue, compared with 42 percent for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017. . . . Specialty eggs remain a primary focus of our growth strategy.”

Baker said that the company is “closely monitoring” a proposed referendum in California later this year, which, if passed, would require that all eggs consumed in the state to be from cage-free hens.

Baker said the company would continue ”to provide a favorable product mix, including cage-free and other specialty eggs, and look for acquisition or other growth opportunities that enhance our operations” For the fiscal fourth quarter, the company will pay a dividend of 35 cents per share.

August 3, 2018

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ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN MISSISSIPPI

Show me the money

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aving served as lead, co-, or local counsel on greater than $10 billion in debt and equity financings, I have experienced transactions that have closed relatively smoothly and I have also seen transactions fall apart at the closing table. Regardless of whether your company is raising debt or equity, there are some common themes and best practices that business owners need to understand and implement in order to increase the likelihood the deal does not fall apart or come unhinged.

Noted venture capitalist and author Richard Harroch aptly said: “It’s almost always harder to raise capital than you thought it would be, and it always takes longer. So plan for that.” While this should be seemingly obvious, many companies fail to accurately project how long it is going to take to raise capital, regardless of whether it is debt or equity. Fundamentally, the capital raising exercise is a process that includes some degree of financial underwriting, due diligence, document drafting and negotiating, and a closing.

I am unsure whom to attribute the following quote to, but there is no doubt it has been spoken or uttered in various forms countless times: “He who holds the money has the power.” Subject to few exceptions, the investor or lender will be scripting the rules during the capital raising process. From due diligence requests to deal terms and eventually a closing, the investor or lender will be leading the process.

For business owners preparing to raise debt or equity, here are a few recommendations to keep in mind: Present a clean operating business. Investors and lenders are making investments and loans based upon going forward risk. It is critically important that companies eliminate or mitigate legacy risk. This risk can manifest itself in a number of different forms, such as unexecuted material contracts, threats of litigation by terminated employees, unregistered trademarks or trademarks infringing on a third party’s intellectual property, and undocumented chains of title to company intellectual property.

In order to present a clean operating business, it is generally advisable for companies to perform an operational, financial, and legal audit prior to beginning the capital raising process. Spending time and money on the front end to eliminate or mitigate legacy risk will almost certainly guarantee that the due diligence process with an investor or lender will be more efficient and lessen the likelihood that the deal falls apart over some risk the investor or lender did not foresee when a term sheet was provided to the company.

Provide sound and vetted financial projections. Regardless of whether the company is raising an initial seed round from an Angel investor or borrowing a multi-million dollar secured credit facility, the numbers and financial projects of the underlying asset being financed need to be sound, realistic, and vet-

ted by professionals. Having a certificated public account, a financial advisor, and an industry knowledgeable attorney involved in helping set projections can ensure greater success in closing a deal with an investor or lender.

Be able to tell a compelling story. Raising capital can be a technical and mechanical process, but there is certainly a softer side to

it. Investors and lenders alike are making more and more investment and lending decisions around compelling stories of company founders and their products. Companies that are able to passionately and eloquently describe the “why” are more likely to get a term sheet from an investor or a commitment letter from a lender.

Be an industry expert. Benjamin Franklin once said: “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” Companies, regardless of stage, must know everything possible not only about their particular industry, but also their place in it. Investors and lenders will be able to quickly determine whether some-

one has enough industry knowledge to succeed, so companies should commit time to researching and analyzing industry data and trends.

Likewise, many of my Matthew McLaughlin clients have heard me tell them: “All money is green, but it is not all the same.” What I mean by this is that companies seeking to raise capital get significantly more value from investors and lenders that actually

Hosted by Governor Phil Bryant

See McLaughlin, Page 15

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MBJPERSPECTIVE Augustũ3ũ2018ũ•ũwww.msbusiness.comũ•ũPageũČ

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#THE OUTSIDE WORLD

Mission Mississippi marks 25 years

Website: www.msbusiness.com August 3, 2018 Volume 40, Number 31

ALAN TURNER Publisher alan.turner@msbusiness.com • 364-1021 TAMI JONES Associate Publisher tami.jones@msbusiness.com • 364-1011

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» INSIDE MISSISSIPPI

Mississippi GOP quiet on Trump tariffs and bailout

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griculture is a huge part of Mississippi’s economy and soybeans are a major export.

The tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, particularly on China, have resulted in retaliatory tariffs affecting U.S. exports, including soybeans.

When farmers and farm state politicians started complaining, Trump suddenly came up with a scheme to provide a temporary $12 billion bailout for farmers hurt by his tariff policies.

Mississippi exported $109.7 million in soybeans in 2017 – all to China, according to information from USDA as reported by Mississippi Today. As a result of China’s retaliatory tariffs, soybean prices recently hit a nine-year low, costing farmers hundreds of dollars per acre at least on paper. Now, Mississippi soybean farmers hurt by Trump’s policies can get one-time payments from Trump’s bailout to offset these losses.

The bailout is not as popular as the President hoped.

“Lawmakers of both parties called it welfare, a bailout and other derogatory terms,” read a USA Today editorial.

“Eighteen months into office, Trump has turned productive farmers into supplicants, pushed government deep into the business of picking winners

Bill Crawford

and losers, and shamelessly politicized the process of spending taxpayer money.”

“This is becoming more and more like a Soviet-type of economy here: Commissars deciding who’s going to be granted waivers, commissars in the administration figuring out how they’re going to sprinkle around benefits,” Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson told Politco.com. “I’m very exasperated. This is serious.”

Nebraska Republican Sen. Ben Sasse called the scheme a bailout “with gold crutches.” Tennessee Republican Sen. Bob Corker called it “welfare” and “incoherent.” Sen. John Thune, a South Dakota Republican said, “ this doesn’t solve any of the problems agriculture’s got right now.”

There wasn’t a lot of positive hoopla from soybean farmers either.

“While soybean growers appreciate the Administration’s recognition that tariffs have caused reduced exports and lower prices, the announced plan provides only short-term assistance,” the American Soybean Association said in a statement. “ASA continues to call for a longer-term strategy to alleviate mounting soybean surpluses and continued low prices, including a plan to See CRAWFORD,ũPage Ď

quarter century ago, two Jackson businessmen hosted a lunch to share their vision for a citywide crusade involving evangelist Tom Skinner and author Pat Morley.

The friendship of the two men – one white, one black – shined a well-needed light on the racial division in the state’s capital and beyond.

What started as an evangelistic crusade grew into an organization with a board of directors, committees, sponsors and prayer partners.

This organization, which coalesced in the late spring of 1993, was to be called Mission Mississippi.

Its goal, which has become only clearer in its 25 years of work, was to “encourage and demonstrate unity in the body of Christ across racial and denominational lines so that communities throughout Mississippi could better understand the message of Christ.”

In the early years, much of the movement’s work was carried out through prayer, by prayer teams made up of like-minded pastors and lay people.

It seemed Mission Mississippi was becoming a clearinghouse for people long committed to the vision of ending racism and segregation – in their communities and in their churches.

In 2004, Dolphus Weary, then-executive director of Mission Mississippi, visited Tupelo to offer encouragement and support as the Tupelo-Lee County chapter of Mission Mississippi had its genesis.

The local chapter launched with a steering committee to plan recurring activities and regular gatherings, including a monthly prayer breakfast.

Twenty-five years later, Mission Mississippi remains active as a state organization with chapters in various cities around the state.

The work of Mission Mississippi today is as critical as it was 25 years ago – because racism, sadly, continues to be a reality, in our communities, in our cities, in our country.

There’s good news, however. And that is there remain groups of committed people who keep tight rein on the original vision of Mission Mississippi.

Dr. Ed Holliday and Tillmon Calvert are co-chairmen of the TupeloLee County Chapter. The two men and others worked together to plan last Sunday’s community-wide worship service in Tupelo to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Mission Mississippi.

The service, held at Harrisburg Baptist Church, was more than just a celebration of the organization’s past works.

It was Mission Mississippi’s effort to continue to bring people together across racial lines.

Perhaps, Holliday said it best: “There’s really no such thing as separate races. There is only one race: the human race. ... A reason Mission Mississippi exists is to help in times of racial crisis. The goal is to build relationships before any crisis arises. Pastors and church members of black and white churches need to speak to each other and know each other. We need to walk in each other’s shoes.”

For a quarter of a century, Mission Mississippi has existed to help us all learn to walk in each other’s shoes, to see things from another point of view.

We are grateful for the work of such an important organization.

— Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal

PERSPECTIVE » RICKY NOBILE

August 3, 2018 I Mississippi Business Journal

CRAWFORD

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Continued from Page 4

remove the harmful tariffs.”

Farmers and others fear this is just temporary relief to get past the November elections.

“On a conference call with reporters Tuesday, administration officials said they expect the infusion of money to be a one-time shot that will not extend into next year,” an NBC News analysis reported. “Read another way, that means $12 billion for farmers in an election year — and nothing once they’ve voted.”

Republican debt hawks have another problem. Much of the $12 billion bailout will be borrowed from the U.S. Treasury using emergency powers Congress granted to the Commodity Credit Corp.

The total national debt, which he promised to eliminate in eight years, topped $21 trillion in March and is soaring upward under Trump. The Congressional Budget Office now projects annual deficits will exceed WWII levels relative to GDP. No Mississippi Republican politician running for election this November was among those criticizing Trump’s tariffs or the bailout. Instead, they are all-in for Trump. However, it is becoming more and more apparent that is not congruent with being allin for Mississippi.

Bill Crawford (crawfolk@gmail.com) is a syndicated columnist from Merid-

»INSIDE MISSISSIPPI

‘Uniform justice’ a tall task for sentencing group

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o some Mississippi judges sentence criminals more harshly than others? Do black defendants get longer sentences than white defendants?

And if so, should the state try to get judges to do something about it?

Those are some of the thorny questions that could be answered by the Sentencing Disparity Task Force, a group of 14 elected officials, lawyers, judges, and others who started work last week. The law creating the task force is open-ended, saying members should “study and report the existence of possible disparity in sentencing for crimes,” so the state can promote “the interest of uniform justice.”

It won’t be a surprise if the task force discovers justice isn’t currently uniform across Mississippi.

“Anybody who’s spent any time in the criminal justice system in Mississippi can give these stories about differing sentences between similarly situated individuals,” said University of Mississippi law Professor Phillip Broadhead, who spoke to the attendees at their first meeting.

In parallel with the task force, a legislative watchdog committee is supposed to report by the end of November on detention or sentence lengths for people held in each city and county jail across the state.

The state court system already has data on how long people are sentenced, which was distributed to task force members.

“We’re going to collect and process as much data as we can and the numbers are going to speak questions of disparity,” said state Parole Board Chairman Steve Pickett, who was also elected as chairman of the task force.

But the task force and others may be missing a key piece of

information to decide whether a sentence is fair – a defendant’s prior criminal history. With that data, a heavy sentence for a previous offender might look rational when compared to a light sentence for a first offender. Without it, sentences could look wildly divergent.

That was one concern raised in the initial meeting. Another is how judges would greet sentencing guidelines, and how it might affect deals where district attorneys offer leniency in exchange for a plea.

Many states and the federal system have guidelines, which suggest a range of penalties for a crime, typically based on severity of a defendant’s criminal history. That means that while a crime might carry a sentence range of zero to 5 years in law, the sentencing guideline might be a much narrower band, such as 24 to 30 months.

Guidelines for federal judges were once mandatory. After the Supreme Court said Congress couldn’t take away a judge’s discretion in 2005, they’re only advisory. But in Mississippi’s federal courts, it’s unusual to see a judge stray outside the guideline range.

Chief Justice William Waller Jr. said at the meeting that the court system needs to be “fair, even and transparent,” but also said he wasn’t seeking a system that tied judges’ hands or

JEFF AMY

promoted excessive leniency.

“We’re not trying to restrict the judges, restrict the prosecutors or empower the defense attorneys.”

Circuit Court Judge Claiborne “Buddy” McDonald of Picayune repeatedly voiced doubts over the potential im-

It won’t be a surprise if the task force discovers justice isn’t currently uniform across Mississippi. pacts of sentencing guidelines.

“It looks to me you’re going to pretty much stop plea bargaining if you do this,” he said.

Despite those concerns, plea bargains continue apace in federal courts, although what crime a defendant pleads guilty to can become the key determinant of a sentence, as opposed to a prosecutor’s recommendation.

But even a guideline system is unlikely to boil out all the unfairness and imperfection. A 2015 study found that, despite guidelines, black people are more likely to get heavier federal sentences than white people for the same crimes.

JEFF AMY has covered politics and government for The Associated Press in Mississippi since 2011. Follow Jeff Amy on Twitter at http://twitter.com/jeffamy . Read his work at https://www.apnews.com/search/By%20Jeff%20Amy .

6 Q Mississippi Business Journal Q August 3, 2018 GOVERNMENT/POLITICS

The one U.S. Supreme Court opinion to read in 2018

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he U.S. Supreme Court wrapped up the sitting portion of the 2017-2018 term on June 28, 2018. The nine lifetime Justices left 59 signed merit opinions and a stunned public in their wake.

The June opinion releases overshadowed the term. In rapid fire decimation of liberal aspirations, the Court announced a slew of controversial, conservative opinions. Swing vote Justice Anthony Kennedy swung right and then privately announced his retirement, handing President Trump a second appointment to the Supreme Court.

Everyone should read at least one opinion from each term. But which one?

The Runners-Up Here are my choices for the runners-up from this term: 1. Murphy v. NCAA (7-2) invoked the 10th Amendment to invalidate an act of Congress prohibiting sports gaming. The Justices schooled federal judges on the bounds of the Supremacy Clause.

2. Trump v. Hawaii (5-4) condoned the maddening “Muslim” travel ban. The talking heads at CNN should read this opinion with yellow highlighter in trembling hand.

3. Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission (7-2), though sensationalized, has two limiting attributes. The case dealt with Colorado’s anti-discrimination law. Fewer than half the states have such laws and more than half have laws protecting religious freedom. Also, Justice Kennedy sidestepped the real question by wryly holding that the sanctimonious government body charged with fighting discrimination evinced religious hostility and thereby violated the Constitution’s guarantee of freedom to exercise religion.

4. Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Council 31 (5-4) dealt a calamitous blow to unions which can no longer extract fees from non-consenting employees. Estimates of the inevitable decrease in union budgets vary widely. Notably, the majority overturned a 1977 Supreme Court decision.

The one opinion to read from the term My choice for the one Supreme Court opinion everyone should read is ….. Lucia v.

Securities and Exchange Commission.

Really? A case about securities and fraud?

Hardly. This humdinger sports long Constitutional legs. You will appreciate the brevity – the majority opinion runs a mere 13 pages; the political controversy – the Justice Department reversed course; the author – ostensibly liberal Justice Kagan

FORD WILLIAMS

pens a conservative opinion; the dissent – Justices Ginsburg and Sotomayor diss their usually ideologically aligned sister Justice; and the crisis – the state of the Administrative State is at issue.

Factually, the case is simple. Raymond Lucia hawked a retirement plan grandiosely entitled “Buckets of Money.” Disdainful of the slide presentations, the SEC charged the alleged hustler with securities fraud. Lucia got his nine days in court before an SEC Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) appointed to office by the staff of the Commission.

The ALJ conducted hearings, found violations, and issued civil sanctions.

On appeal to the Commission, Lucia’s attorneys went for the jugular – arguing the judge had not been properly appointed to office pursuant to the Appointments Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The Commission - hardly a disinterested party - found the argument inefficacious, as did the D.C. Circuit.

Lucia’s sagacious crusade gained traction when the Supreme Court granted his certiorari petition.

The Appointments Clause The Appointments Clause provides the President “shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to

make Treaties …; and he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint … Judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.”

Supreme Court ruling Justice Elena Kagan, a former presidentially appointed officer in the Justice Department, authored the 7-2 majority opinion. She notes “the sole question here is whether the … ALJs are ‘Officers of the United States’ or simply employees.” If the ALJs are officers, rather than “lesser functionaries,” then they can only be appointed by “the President, a court of law, or a head of a department.”

Kagan cites distinguishing factors – tenure, duration, significant authority and discretion – then quickly concludes the ALJs are “officers.” Since the ALJ hearing Mr. Lucia’s case was not constitutionally appointed, she vacates the SEC ruling against Lucia.

As with last year’s recommended opinion, one might ponder the reason for the foofa-

raw. The inkling of what is at stake spills from the footnotes, concurring opinions and dissents.

Think Swamp, the Administrative State, and Executive power.

The first hint comes Ben Williams on page 4 where we learn the Justice Department switched horses in midstream. The Obama Justice Department supported the SEC’s non-officer position in its Lucia briefings. Not so the Trump Justice Department.

At footnote 1, the plot thickens. The Court declines the Trump Administration’s request to consider the constitutionality of statutory restrictions on removal of officers.

At footnote 4, Kagan participates in an on-the-record spat with Sotomayor about whether “final decision making authority is a sin qua non of officer status.” Kagan wins the argument, and the population of “Officers” grows (and with it, the application of the Appointments Clause).

Concurring Justice Thomas, joined by Justice Gorsuch, would have gone further and held that any federal employee with “responsibility for an ongoing statutory duty” is an officer.

Justice Breyer agrees with the result but not the reasoning. He confronts the room’s elephant by stating he would not “answer the constitutional question that the majority answers without knowing the answer to a different, embedded question” about removal from office. He reproaches the other six Justices for “unraveling, step-by-step, the foundations of the … administrative adjudication system and, perhaps, of the merit-based civil-service system.”

The takeaway and wrap-up Lucia is, as Breyer describes it, a step in the process of unraveling the administrative state. The next step – reserved for a later case and perhaps a later opinion - will deal with removal.

Regardless of party affiliation, one wonders how a U.S. President can run the Executive Branch if “Officers” are not subject to removal. Consider Congress’ attempt to shield the CFTB’s executive director from a successor President. Or whether Robert Mueller, appointed under a regulation (rather than law) and possessing all the powers of a U.S. Attorney without Senate confirmation, is an Officer. Or, whether a Democratic Party successor to President Trump should be long-saddled with officers appointed during the Trump years.

The answer may lie in the salient opening line of Article II of the U.S. Constitution: “The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America.”

And if you’re wondering about Mr. Lucia, the SEC can try again.

Ben Williams the author, is a Mississippi attorney.

Email Ben at MBWJ@aol.com. Ford Williams the artist, is a rising junior at the Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD).

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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

County Line at Ridgewood to get two restaurants

By JACK WEATHERLY jack.weatherly@msbusiness.com

The northwest corner of County Line Road at Ridgewood Road will soon awaken after years of dormancy.

The busy intersection has had no reason to stop for a bite at the Ridgeland quadrant of the crossroads.

One Ridgeland restaurant location has been vacant for two decades and another next to it that has been empty for several years.

Hardee’s, a national chain that specializes in its “Great American Burger,” will start demolishing as soon as this month the former Ralph and Kacoo’s, which had been vacant for about 20 years, according to Alan Hart, director of community development for Ridgeland.

Shrimp Basket Restaurants will take over the former Shoney’s restaurant, empty for several years, and rework it inside and out, according Caitlin Lucas, marketing director for the Gulf Shores, Ala.-based chain that has 28 outlets across the South.

The 180-seat Shrimp Basket will open after the interior and exterior are reworked, Lucas said. It will have several different all-

you-can-eat specials, depending on the day – steamed shrimp, fried popcorn shrimp or fried fish – in addition to poboy sandwiches and the like on a daily basis.

Hart said that corporate decisions played a major role in the slow turnaround of the corner.

Wendy’s bought the Ralph and Kacoo’s space and was satisfied to just collect rent, Hart said. It never opened a Wendy’s, he added.

“We just had a motivation issue, and all of a sudden everything just came together, despite the many, many attempts to try to get these buildings back in service,” Hart said.

The northeast quadrant of the intersection, in Ridgeland, and the southeast quadrant in Jackson got a $2.7 million infusion of capital last year to bring two vacancies to life.

About $900,000 was spent on the former Applebee’s in Ridgeland’s North Regency Square and the $1.8 million was expended to buy and renovate the old Copeland’s in Jackson.

The eastern terminus of County Line Road likewise has been rejuvenated in the past year.

TACY RAYBURN/MBJ

Ralph and Kacoo’s has been closed for about 20 years. Hardee’s will build a restaurant after demolishing the old structure.

The Kroger store at 2000 E. County Line Road in Ridgeland had been vacant for nearly four years.

The Sky Zone, a trampoline-based franchise, and Crunch Fitness, a gym, divided the 62,000-square-foot building on the

opposite end of County Line, long a dominant retail corridor in metro Jackson that has been struggling to keep its footing as newer retail centers siphon off prestige tenants.

June 2018

8 Q Mississippi Business Journal Q August 3, 2018

DeSoto 4.5

Mississippi 5.7 U.S. 4.2

Tunica 6.1

MISSISSIPPI’S JUNE UNEMPLOYMENT FIGURES

UNITED STATES Labor Force Data Civilian Labor Force Unemployed Unemployment Rate Employed STATE OF MISSISSIPPI Unemployment Insurance Data •• Initial UI Claims Continued Claims Benefits Paid Weeks Paid First Payments Final Payments Average Weekly Benefit

Tate 6.0

Coahoma 8.2

June ‘18 163,277,000 6,812,000 4.2 156,465,000

May ‘18 1,293,400 65,800 5.1 1,227,600

May ‘18 161,765,000 5,756,000 3.6 156,009,000

June 2018 6,350 44,537 $6,420,489 32,260 3,334 438 $199.02

June ‘17 1,295,600 78,400 6.1 1,217,200

June ‘17 161,337,000 7,250,000 4.5 154,086,000

May 2018 8,249 34,596 $4,819,902 23,945 1,868 528 $201.29

‘17 Avg. 1,280,000 64,900 5.1 1,215,100

Yalobusha 6.4

Leflore 7.9

Carroll 6.5

Montgomery 6.0

Humphreys 9.4 Sharkey 8.1

Holmes 10.6

Yazoo 6.7

Issaquena 9.0

Monroe 5.8

Clay 7.6 Lowndes 6.2

Oktibbeha 6.5

Choctaw 5.7

Winston 6.7

Attala 6.8

Tishomingo 5.7

Itawamba 5.2

Chickasaw 6.0

Webster 6.3

Washington 8.0

Leake 5.9

Neshoba 5.6

Scott 4.7

Newton 6.0

Noxubee 8.7

Kemper 9.1

Madison 4.4 Warren 6.4 Rankin 4.0

Hinds 5.6

Claiborne 10.5

June 2017 7,934 55,563 $7,885,461 40,113 3,921 613 $196.58

Calhoun 5.1

Grenada 5.2

Sunflower 8.7

Moving Avg.** 161,170,000 6,628,000 4.1 154,541,000

Lee 4.6

Pontotoc 4.7

Bolivar 8.0

Moving Avg.** 1,278,400 60,700 4.7 1,217,700

‘17 Avg. 160,320,000 6,982,000 4.4 153,337,000

Prentiss 5.4

Lafayette 5.5

Quitman 9.7 Tallahatchie 6.1

June ‘18 1,303,500 74,700 5.7 1,228,800

Alcorn 5.1

Tippah 5.3

Union 4.1 Panola 7.4

Labor force and employment security data STATE OF MISSISSIPPI Labor Force Data Civilian Labor Force Unemployed Unemployment Rate Employed

Benton 6.8

Marshall 6.1

Copiah 6.4

Jefferson 14.4 Adams 7.4

Lincoln 5.5

Franklin 6.9

Wilkinson 9.7

Amite 7.2

Pike 6.8

Covington Jones 5.2 5.9

Marion 6.3

Walthall 8.3

Unemployment Rates

9.2 - 14.4

Wayne 6.8

Lawrence Jeff Davis 6.7 7.5

** Average for most recent twelve months, including current month Rates •• Unemployment Insurance amounts presented in this section only represent regular UI benefits, federal program amounts areUnemployment not included.

4.0 - 4.6 4.0 - 4.6 Labor force amounts are produced in cooperation with the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

4.7 - 6.3 4.7 - 6.3 Note: Unless indicated state and county data presented are not seasonally adjusted.

— Mississippi Department of Employment Security6.4 - 9.1

Clarke 6.8

Jasper 6.8

Smith 5.2

Simpson 5.2

Lauderdale 6.0

Lamar 4.4

Forrest 5.3

Pearl River 5.7

Hancock 5.8

Greene 7.2

Perry 6.8

George 7.7

Stone 6.8

Jackson 6.4

Harrison 5.4

6.4 - 9.1 9.2 - 14.4 Source: Labor Market Data Publication Design: Labor Market Information Department, MDES

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August 3, 2018 • MISSISSIPPI BUSINESS JOURNAL • www.msbusiness.com

AN MBJ FOCUS: Architects & Engineers

Engineering six of ten best paying careers in the country

By BECKY GILLETTE mbj@msbusiness.com Six of the top ten best paying professions that require a college degree are in engineering, according to a survey of 1.2 million Reddit users, a summary of which has been published by www.visualcapitalist. com. When you average starting median salaries with salaries after working for ten years, the top four are chemical engineering, computer engineering, electrical engineering, and aerospace engineering.

Industrial engineering comes in eighth on the list, mechanical engineering is ninth and civil engineering is twelfth.

“Engineering is one of the best paying careers nationally,” said Jason M. Keith, dean and professor, Bagley College of Engineering at Mississippi State University (MSU). “The average starting salary for graduate from the Bagley College of Engineering is more than $60,000, and for some areas, such as oil and gas, it is considerably higher. The highest demand See CAREERS, Page 10

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Architects & Engineers

10 Q Mississippi Business Journal Q August 3, 2018

CAREERS

“Future students who are interested in engineering should plan to do an internship or co-op before graduating.”

Continued from, Page 9

engineering jobs are currently in manufacturing, electrical power, process controls, construction, pulp and paper, and oil and gas.”

The Bagley College of Engineering graduated more than 600 students with undergraduate degrees this past year. Keith said disciplinary placements are more than 90 percent within six months from graduation and, in some disciplines, as high as 100 percent.

“Of our engineering graduates, more than half take jobs in the state of Mississippi,” Keith said. “This percentage continues to increase as the state, through the Mississippi Development Authority, attracts companies who offer hundreds of high-quality jobs.”

Students increase their chances of getting a good job after graduation by doing an internship.

Charlie Wilder Campbell

Keith

Wilder

assistant director, MSU Career Center

Charlie Wilder, assistant director– assessment, MSU Career Center, said more than half of their engineering students graduate have either internship experience, cooperative education experience, or both.

“Future students who are interested in engineering should plan to do an internship or co-op before graduating in order to be competitive in the job market, because students who gain this type of experience are more likely to be employed at graduation,” Wilder said. “GPA is also a very important factor in the hiring process for college graduates.”

Megan Upchurch Miller, career planning specialist, The University of Mississippi School of Engineering, agrees about the importance of working in the field

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prior to graduation.

“We have many undergraduate students who complete internships and cooperative education experiences which help them with job opportunities,” Miller said. “We also bring many employers to campus throughout the year to expose our students to various career paths. We have students finding jobs all over the state, country, and world. As industry grows and technology develops, there are more and more exciting careers available for engineering graduates. Our alumni work in a variety of fields including tech startups, manufacturing, oil and gas, the healthcare industry, and even public service. Following graduation, we have students who continue their education with medical school, law school, MBA programs, and more.”

Miller said on a national scale, biomedical engineering (BME) is the fastest growing engineering field.

“We have seen that reflected in the large numbers of students applying to our BME program,” Miller said. “Nevertheless, since our world is so reliant on technology these days, our computer science and electrical engineers help us stay connected. But without our civil and mechanical engineers, we wouldn’t have manufacturing facilities for the latest smartphones and gadgets. Chemical engineering students are finding jobs in every industry from oil and gas to the food industry, to the pulp and paper business. Over the past few years, our graduates have had great success in finding full-time jobs that interest them and align with their educational accomplishments.”

Dr. Shannon Campbell, executive director of the Trent Lott National Center for Economic Development and Entrepreneurship at the University of Southern Mississippi, said engineering is part of the STEM (science, technology, engineering and Math) professions and those occupations pay above average wages and the outlook for jobs in those field is strong.

“For Mississippi, the engineering jobs have been stable in recent years and are anticipated to remain stable,” Campbell said. “Those are good paying jobs and they are going to be around.”

USM now has three engineering programs.

“The polymer engineering undergraduate program just graduated its third class of students,” Campbell said. “Approxi-

mately 50 percent of graduates go directly into the workforce, and 50 percent are accepted into graduate programs of study.

Placement of students in polymer engineering has been very strong.”

The School of Polymers and High Performance Materials is considered a national leader in the multidisciplinary field that does more than work on paints and coatings. The center also does research on everyday items such as LCD TVs, synthetic fabrics, golf clubs and shampoo. The school is based in a $30 million, 104,000-square-foot Shelby F. Thames Polymer Science Research Center where researchers have access to state-of-the-art testing equipment, an advanced microscopy center, and a fabrication and electronics facility to design and create new equipment. The school receives millions of research dollars annually from industry and the government.

Campbell said the polymer engineering program is still a very new field for them having been launched in 2012. Some graduates go straight into a manufacturing job, with about half going into chemical or polymer related processing (considered to be applied processing), and half going into graduate schools to develop new types of polymers and high-performance materials.

Campbell said USM also has two new engineering programs, computer engineering and ocean engineering, both of which began accepting students in the fall of 2017.

“These programs were approved by Institutions of Higher Learning based upon strong industry demand for these skills sets,” she said.

USM’s School of Ocean Science and Technology is the only ocean engineering degree in the state of Mississippi and one of only 10 programs in the nation. It is designed to train people for jobs in the “Blue Economy.”

“The Blue Economy is what we refer to regarding any type of industries or occupations in Mississippi that are in existence because of coastline,” Campbell said. “There is a large presence of Blue Economy jobs in oil and gas, electrical utilities and the energy sector. Also, on the Gulf Coast we have a large defense sector that requires those technical skills. USM started offering ocean engineering because of a gap in the type of skill sets needed.”

Architects & Engineers

August 3, 2018

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Newsmakers

12 Q Mississippi Business Journal Q August 3, 2018

Hattiesburg Clinic earns reaccreditation by IAC Hattiesburg Clinic Heart & Vascular has been granted an additional three-year term of accreditation by the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC) in Echocardiography.

This latest accreditation awarded to the clinic, specifically for the area of adult transthoracic (noninvasive) echocardiogram, demonstrates the facility’s ongoing commitment to providing quality patient care in echocardiography, according to the IAC. Echocardiography is used to assess different areas of the heart and can detect heart disease or signs of serious conditions. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, followed closely by stroke as the fourth highest cause of death. According to the American Heart Association (AHA), more than 2,150 Americans die each day from cardiovascular disease, which amounts to about one every 40 seconds.

There are many factors that contribute to an accurate diagnosis based on echocardiography. The training and experience of the sonographer performing the procedure, the type of equipment used and the quality assessment metrics each facility is required to measure, all contribute to a positive patient outcome.

IAC accreditation is a “seal of approval” that patients can rely on as an indicator of consistent quality care and a dedication to continuous improvement.

The IAC programs for accreditation are dedicated to ensuring and promoting quality patient care supporting one common mission: Improving health care through accreditation®. To date, the IAC accrediting divisions have granted accreditation to more than 14,000 sites throughout the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico.

Steve Sharp named to ranking by Forbes Steve Sharp, Senior Financial Advisor, Senior Vice President - Investments, of Wells Fargo Advisors in Jackson, has been recognized as a 2018 Best-In-State Wealth Advisor by Forbes.

Steve has 19 years of experience in the financial services industry.

Walker joins Peoples Bank as loan officer

Peoples Bank announced Marney J. Walker has joined the bank and will serve as a Loan Officer in Mendenhall at the Jackson Avenue office.

Walker is a 1999 graduate of Simpson County Academy and earned an Associate of Arts degree from Copiah-Lincoln Community College. He continued his education to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University Walker of Southern Mississippi and a Master of Arts degree from Belhaven College. He also became an Education Specialist with the completion of studies at Mississippi College in 2009.

Most recently, he has served as Principal at Simpson County Academy Elementary. He had previously served as an Assistant Principal at Mendenhall Junior High.

Walker is active in a host of church, civic and economic development organizations. He is a member of Goodwater Baptist Church, where he serves on the Security Committee, Kingdom Family Committee and is a Boys Sunday School teacher. He is also a member

Forrest General’s residents complete residency program, pass board exams

Courtesy of Forrest General Hospital

Forrest General Hospital’s second group of residents have passed the American Board of Family Medicine’s Family Medicine Certification Examination and will complete the 3-year Family Medicine Residency Program.The residents are, from left, Jessica Tullos, DO, who will be furthering her training at the John Peter Smith Sport Medicine Fellowship in Fort Worth, Texas; Judd Reynolds, DO, who will join the faculty at the Family Medicine Residency, as well as joining the

of Simpson County Country Club and works on the Tournament Committee.

Walker is the Area Chairman of the Simpson County Ducks Unlimited Chapter and is a Committee Member of the Simpson County National Wild Turkey Federation, Strong River Chapter. In addition, he served on the Board of the Simpson County Development Foundation from 2014 through 2017.

Walker and his wife, DeShea, have three children: Kade, Kolt and Lucy.

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. names Moore VP of Operations Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. has named Josh Moore vice president of operations. Moore will have responsibility for all of Cal-Maine Foods’ production and processing facilities located in Ohio and Kentucky. He will assume the position previously held by Marc Ashby, who will become the new director of special projects for the company. Moore will be located in Rossburg, Ohio, and will report directly to Sherman Miller, president of Cal-Maine Foods.

Moore has been employed with Cal-Maine Foods since 2000. He has served as the general manager for the Company’s operations in Rossburg since 2011.

Prior to holding this position, he was general manager for Cal-Maine Foods in Lake City, Fla. He previously held various management roles in both processing and production for Cal-Maine Foods in Edwards.

Moore graduated from Mississippi State University in 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in poultry science.

He completed a summer internship with Cal-Maine Foods in Edwards prior to his graduation. Moore is a member of the board of the Ohio Poultry Association.

hospitalist staff with Hattiesburg Clinic; Jordan Ingram, MD, who will further his training at the University of Tennessee in Jackson, Tenn., with an Emergency Medicine Fellowship; Joshua Derryberry, MD, who will join the physicians of Galen Medical Group in Chattanooga, Tenn.; Jason Fisher, DO, who will join Hattiesburg Clinic and the new South 28th Avenue Family Medicine; and Meagan Taylor, DO, who will join Hattiesburg Clinic and practice at the Wiggins Clinic.

Community Bank hires branch officer Community Bank’s North Mississippi Region is proud to announce Holley Meriweather has been named Branch Officer.

A native of Tupelo, Mississippi, Meriweather recently served as CSR/Branch Supervisor and has been in the banking industry for almost six years.

Meriweather In her new role, she will oversee the daily branch operations.

Meriweather, is a graduate from The University of Mississippi with a Bachelor Degree in Hospitality Management.

Meriweather is a member of Sanctuary Hospice Junior Auxiliary and First United Methodist Church.

She is married to Clayton, together they have two children, Max and Betsy.

AOP announces Administrator, Office Professional of Year The University of Southern Mississippi’s Association of Office Professionals (AOP) recently named Rusty Anderson Administrator of the Year and Alfreda Horton Office Professional of the Year for 2017-2018.

Anderson is director of Career Services at Southern Miss, and has served in that role since 1995. Horton is coordinator of the Office of Student Ombudsman Services and has been a Southern Miss employee since 1989. Both Anderson and Horton are Southern Miss alums.

The USM AOP was organized in 1974, with the stated goal of providing opportunities for communication and relationship building among staff members of the University.

Danielle Roos named consumer relationship officer Renasant Bank recently promoted Danielle Roos to Consumer Relationship Officer in Starkville. Roos will be responsible for managing daily loan applications and assisting with credit underwriting decisions for Renasant’s Starkville Main location. Roos joined Renasant in Roos 2013, and has served in various roles within the bank.

Roos is a graduate of Holmes Community College with an Associate of Arts in Business Administration, and a graduate of Mississippi State University with a Bachelor of Business Administration.

Roos is a member of First Baptist Church Starkville where she sings in the choir. Her hobbies include attending Mississippi State University sporting events, photography, traveling and spending time with her two nieces.

Newsmakers Liz Corso Joachim receives award from MGCCC Liz Corso Joachim recently received the 2018 Hornsby Award from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. The Hornsby Award, named after MGCCC alumnae Claire Sekul Hornsby, is given annually to a leader, trailblazer and outstanding supporter of the college.

Joachim Joachim, owner of Liz Joachim’s Emporium from 1988-1992, is the owner of Corso Inc., her family’s 90-year-old wholesale distribution and full-line vending company in Biloxi. Joachim has served on various boards of civic and business organizations and has been recognized for her service to the community.

Joachim is a graduate of Sacred Heart High School in Biloxi and The University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Park Campus. She also received training in business management, banking and media. She started the Liz Corso Joachim Scholarship for nursing students at MGCCC in 2015.

Haddox Reid Eubank Betts promotes 7 Haddox Reid Eubank Betts PLLC recently announced the following promotions: Davis Watts, CPA, has been promoted to Senior Manager. He has over eight years of experience in public accounting, having joined the firm in 2010. He manages tax and tax planning in the areas of individual, business, and not-for-profit as well as payroll and bookkeeping.

Matthew Metcalf, CPA, has been promoted to Manager. He has eight years of experience in Accounting.

He spent six years with a variety of companies in Nashville, Tenn., and has been with Haddox Reid since June 2016.

Travis Mitchell, CPA, has been promoted to Manager. He has over 6 years of experience in public accounting. He performs various types of audit and compliance engagements. Mitchell also has five years of experience in the mental healthcare industry in the areas of accounting, finance, human resources, and operations management.

Kurt Schneider, CPA, has been promoted to Manager. He has over three years of experience in public accounting. He has been with Haddox Reid since June 2016. His experience includes compilation, review, audit, and compliance engagements for various types of entities, as well as tax services for individuals and various entities.

Logan Crosby, CPA, has been promoted to Senior Accountant. He has over three years of experience in public accounting. He performs various types of audit and compliance engagements.

Kevin Curren has been promoted to Senior Accountant. He has been a member of the audit department since 2016. He performs various audit and review engagements for the firm. Particular industries of focus include those of oil and gas, machinery and equipment, religious organizations, and local government municipalities and other agencies. Curren also assists the firm with certain filings during spring tax season.

Tyler Madden, CPA has been promoted to Senior Accountant. He has been a member of the audit department since 2016. He performs various audit and review engagements for the firm. Particular industries

August 3, 2018

Employees honored for service at MSH

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Butler Snow ranked by The Legal 500 U.S. The Legal 500 U.S. recently ranked Butler Snow nationally for its pharmaceutical, medical device and health care work. The firm was one of 19 firms ranked in the top tiers nationwide for Dispute Resolution: Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Action: Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices – Defense.

In addition, Alyson Bustamante Jones was one of only five attorneys across the country ranked as a Next Generation Lawyer, and Christy D. Jones was one of only 13 attorneys ranked as a Leading Lawyer.

Attorneys David M. Cohen, William M. Gage and Eric E. Hudson were also noted for their work.

The Legal 500 assesses the strengths of law firms in more than 100 jurisdictions. The rankings are based on a series of criteria and highlight the practice area teams that provide the most cutting edge and innovative advice to corporate counsel.

Courtesy of Mississippi State Hospital

Mississippi State Hospital recently honored employees with June anniversaries for their years of service to the hospital.

Service awards are given to MSH employees in the month of their date of hire, beginning with one year and followed by every fifth anniversary year. Employees receive a Certificate of Appreciation and a Service Award Pin. The program is sponsored by Friends of Mississippi State Hospital Inc. Mississippi State Hospital November service award recipients include: Front row (Left to right): Latasha Johnson (Yazoo City, 5 years), Stacey Davis (Florence, 25 years), Mary Johnson (Clinton, 20 years), Lance Layton (Morton, 25 years). Back row (l-r): Chris Allen (Jackson, 25 years), Craig Martin (Brandon, 25 years), Sharon Brown (Brandon, 30 years). of focus include those of oil and gas, retail, nonprofits and other agencies. He also assists the firm with certain filings during spring tax season.

MVSU professor appointed to Harner board A Mississippi Valley State University professor was recently appointed to the board of a local organization devoted to eradicating cancer, particularly in the Mississippi Delta.

MVSU Assistant Professor of Environmental Health Dr. Mark Dugo has joined the board of directors for the Fannie Lou Hamer Cancer Foundation.

The Ruleville-based non-profit was founded and is led by MVSU alumna Freddie White-Johnson (82’). Its mission includes preventing cancer in the Mississippi Delta by increasing awareness and establishing a public agenda for the prevention of cancer.

Dugo brings to the organization a wealth of knowledge in the areas of health disparities and the underlying causes of cancer.

His term will last two years, and he will be eligible to be re-appointed by the Foundation’s executive board.

According to Dugo, research, education, and advocacy provided by the Harner Foundation are critical in reducing the number of individuals impacted by cancer.

The Fannie Lou Hamer Cancer Foundation was founded and established under the umbrella of The University of Southern Mississippi by White-Johnson, who is also the Director of the USM’s Office of Mississippi Network for Cancer Control & Prevention.

Last year, The foundation identified and assisted 837 women with a screening appointment for a mammogram and Pap test; 360 men with a prostate screening; provided financial assistance for transportation to 23 women and 3 men; and provided cancer education material to more than 10,000 men and

women throughout the state of Mississippi, mostly in the Mississippi Delta.

Rene Bajeux named executive chef at Reunion French Chef Rene Bajeux will lead the culinary team at Reunion Golf & Country Club when the 33,000 square foot, $15 million clubhouse opens this summer.

Bajeux, who joins Reunion from New Orleans’ Dickie Brennan restaurants, where he was the Chef In Residence at all four Bajeux restaurants, including the Palace Cafe.

Bajeux was born and raised in Alsace-Lorraine, France, He spent his early career in Montreal, then moved to Maui, where he worked as executive chef of the Four Seasons Resort, eventually relocating to the Four Seasons Beverly Hills in the same position. His time in New Orleans began working as Executive Chef at the Windsor Court Hotel, overseeing its fine dining venue, The Grill Room.

Bajeux has accrued numerous accolades, including Esquire magazine’s “Best New Restaurants,” “Chef of the Year” from the American Tasting Institute; and inclusion among “America’s Top Tables,” Gourmet magazine. He has hosted many dinners at The James Beard House in New York City and was designated “Outstanding Member, 1997-2000” by The James Beard Foundation.

Jones joins Dale Partners

Dale Partners Architects P.A. is excited to announce that Chip Jones has joined the Dale Partners team. Chip joins the firm with over eleven years of experience and a wide range of projects including: hospitality, education, corporate, civic, retail, housing and a variety of renovations. He Jones will serve as project manager at Dale Partners and will be an integral part of our projects.

“We are glad to have Chip on board,” announced Jason Agostinelli, AIA, Partner, Dale Partners Architects.

“Having someone with his experience level has made an immediate impact on production and he has quickly adapted to our culture like he’s been here for years.”

Chip is a native of Clinton, Mississippi and received his Bachelor of Architecture in 2008 from Mississippi State University. Outside of architecture, he enjoys camping, hiking, golfing and traveling. Chip co-founded Jackson’s first microbrewery since Prohibition, Lucky Town Brewing Company.

Kiddy named commercial relationship officer Renasant Bank is pleased to announce Greg Kiddy has joined Renasant as a Commercial Relationship Officer in Corinth. Kiddy will be responsible for building relationships and assisting clients with their various financial needs.

Kiddy is a graduate of Mississippi State University Kiddy with a Bachelor of Business Administration and Management certificate, and a graduate of the Southeastern School of Commercial Lending.

Kiddy serves his community through organizations such as the Corinth Kiwanis Club, the Corinth Area Arts Council, and the Community Development Council at the Alcorn County Alliance.

He and his wife, Deborah, have one daughter, and are members of the First Presbyterian Church in Corinth.

August 3, 2018

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Mississippi Business Journal

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THE SPIN CYCLE

Majority now get news via mobile devices

he audience tuning into news on mobile devices has nearly tripled in the past five years, according to a recently released survey from the Pew Research Center.

U.S. adults more often get news on a mobile device (58 percent) than those who get news on a desktop or laptop computer (39 percent). Nearly 96 percent said they access news via the Internet, according to the report.

Although young U.S. adults use mobile devices to access news significantly more than desktop computers and at rates greatly higher than older Americans, Pew discovered the growth in mobile use came primarily from older and low-income adults. Nearly 36 percent of Americans 65 and older often access news via mobile devices. About 51 percent of those who have a salary of less than $30,000 annually are the same.

Those with higher income, college graduates and men are more likely to access news online through all devices.

The survey also found that non-whites are more likely to access news through mobile devices than whites, but whites are more likely to use desktops and laptops to access news than other demographics.

The increase in the number of people who access news through mobile devices is valuable intel for the media.

Many reporters work solely from laptop and desktop computers and rarely stop to see how their work looks for users accessing it through mobile devices.

In 2015, The New York Times blocked its employees from accessing its desktop homepage for a week to emphasize the importance of catering to users on mobile devices.

“More than half of our traffic to The Times is on mobile,” Times editors wrote in a memo to staff. “We’re hopeful that this temporary change will help spur us to make mobile an even more central part of everything that we do.”

T

In 2017, the channel was ranked cable’s No. 1 network during the airing of the show, with the opening night its highest-rated Shark Week telecast in the program’s history. The network anticipates that this year will be no different.

Former Shark Week executive producer Brooke Runnette, now chief program officer at the philanthropic enterprise Emerson Collective told the Atlantic in 2012 that the idea for the program was born on the back of a cocktail napkin.

To celebrate 30 summers of sharks, Discovery is “taking things to a whole new level” by partnering with the most licensees – 26 across nine different product categories – since the premiere in 1988. It also added a diverse roster of retailers for this year’s event, including Build-A-Bear Workshop, Walmart Inc., Vineyard Vines – and to get further in the swim, even Swedish Fish.

“We expect this to be the biggest year for Shark Week merchandising to date,” said Leigh Anne Brodsky, executive vice president of Discovery Global Enterprises.

Build-A-Bear, will offer two plush Shark Week-themed killers, a great white and a hammerhead, each with coordinated clothing options.

The Vineyard Vines line includes more than 40 exclusive Shark Week products, including headgear, swimsuits, towels, beach totes, drink ware and neckties.

Discovery is also leveraging its social media platforms to engage shark fans. The network’s Instagram account features a mix of researchers, filmmakers and conservationists who will connect with users through photo and video messages. It will also introduce 100 new shark GIFs and stickers in a partnership with animated graphics company Giphy.

Shark Week showcases marketing with serious bite Shark Week is bearing down on us again – set to pack an even bigger bite in its 30th anniversary season. The annual TV bite binge that bonds the public with everything sharks is expected to be the biggest-ever marketing extravaganza tied to our fascination with the infamous predators.

The Discovery Channel’s 2018 “Shark Week,” the longest-running cable TV programming event in history, feature a school of shark shows running through July 29. The station anticipates it generating $18 million in related retail sales. Since 2016, the annual event sold a combined $3 million in Shark Week products, according to Discovery.

But this year the tie-ins have multiplied.

Waffle Mic | White House becomes Waffle House It seems like the White House has become the Waffle House in the last week after President Donald Trump’s chaotic, frantic and perhaps ill-advised meeting and news conference with Vladimir Putin in Finland.

It was quite a week for this president. Call it the Trump Waffle. It began with the widely touted meeting between the two world leaders. Trump’s news conference remarks were panned by many U.S. officials, the media and the public.

After the heat was turned up, Trump reversed his position on Russia several times, and announced plans to invite Putin to Washington this year. Then, the Trump

MCLAUGHLIN Continued from, Page 3

know the company’s industry.

Surround yourself with the right people. Like so many other aspects of the business world, raising capital is not necessarily about what you know as much as it is who you know.

Companies should surround themselves with a professional network of individuals that can help make introductions to potential investors and lenders. They should also seek out and work with professional service providers like accountants, financial advisors, and attorneys that not only have knowledge of the company’s industry but also an influential network.

In summary, connecting to capital is far more than a simple expectation of “Show

me the money.” Rather, it is an involved process that demands careful planning and executing a long-term strategy. However, the reward can certainly be great and leverage your company for lasting success.

Matthew P. McLaughlin is an attorney with McLaughlin, PC in Jackson, Mississippi, and serves as the executive director of the Mississippi Brewers Guild. Matthew’s passion is working with creative and entrepreneurial-minded people and organizations, having worked with and advised hundreds of entrepreneurs, startups, and social innovators throughout the Southeastern United States. He may be contacted at matthew@mclaughlinpc.com or 601-487-4550, or you may visit www. mclaughlinpc.com for more information.

administration released records at the center of a partisan clash of wiretapTodd Smith ping of a former campaign aide.

In his much condemned news conference, President Trump, standing next to Russian President Putin, publicly challenged the conclusion of his own intelligence agencies about Moscow’s interference in the 2016 presidential election. It was a bizarre display of trust for an adversarial leader.

Before the news conference in Helsinki, the two spoke privately with only interpreters present. Politicians and former officials denounced that decision, pointing to the indictment of 12 Russian intelligence officials in the special counsel’s investigation into election meddling.

Facing almost universal condemnation and some accusations of poor judgment and treason, Mr. Trump later claimed that he had misspoken while discussing whether Russia tried to influence the 2016 election. It was, he said, a bungled attempt at a double negative.

The president and aides offered conflicting narratives about Trump’s assurance and performance during the private meeting, ideas that were countered by the Kremlin, according to The New York Times.

On Capitol Hill, Republicans seemed to be in damage control for much of the week in the wake of the summit meeting, weighing new sanctions and asserting support for alliances with Europe. But then, they moved to action by blocking numerous measures intended to publicly admonish.

Adding to the drama, Trump announced a plan to invite Putin to visit Washington this fall, saying it was another chance to continue the conversation the two leaders had begun in Helsinki. Oh brother, here we go again!

It seems to this recovering journalist, the current occupant of the White House is driven more by vanity and vile than pragmatism and common sense. Trump’s truce with Russia is eerily at odds with reality – and has policy makers, politicians, the media, the Washington establishment and many more scratching their heads over this apparent appeasement strategy that could have lasting challenges.

Todd Smith is president and chief communications officer of Deane, Smith & Partners, a full-service branding, PR, marketing and advertising firm with offices in Jackson. The firm — based in Nashville, Tenn. — is also affiliated with Mad Genius. Contact him at todd@deanesmithpartners.com, and follow him @spinsurgeon.

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