Greater Wilmington Business Journal - First Issue After Hurricane Florence

Sleeping giant Marpac’s sleep time line grows Page 15

September 21-October 4, 2018, Vol. 19, No. 20

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Main attractions

The sea turtle center helped bump up visitor spending Page 6

South Front addition Love, Lydia Bakery fills a neighborhood niche Page 27

Index Economic Indicators .............................. 3 Technology ............................................ 4 Hospitality ..........................................6-7 The List .................................................. 8 In Profile...............................................15 Real Estate .................................... 22-23 Business of Life.............................. 26-27

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PHOTO BY MICHAEL CLINE SPENCER

Clearing the way: In the days after Hurricane Florence’s landfall, workers spread out to clear fallen trees blocking major roadways, such as this one above on Market Street.

THE FUTURE AFTER FLO

H

BY CECE NUNN

URRICANE FLORENCE WILL GO DOWN IN HISTORY AS A DISASTER THAT TESTED THE ABILITY OF A HURRICANE-PRONE REGION TO COPE.

In some cases, emergency preparations were, and are, being pushed to their very limits. And it’s likely businesses, service providers, local governments and residents will be dealing with the aftermath for weeks and months to come.

Even before Hurricane Florence made landfall, officials were predicting a lengthy recovery.

“The message we’re getting from everyone is that this is going to be a major event that’s going to last a long time,” said U.S. Rep. David Rouzer, R-NC.

Despite its downgraded Category 1 hurricane status (from a potential Category 4) when it made landfall Sept. 14 near Wrightsville Beach, the storm hit hard, with record-breaking winds and rainfall leading to flooding that had not reached its peak as of press time.

A number of deaths have been attributed to the storm, with more possible because of the flooding and additional hazards. Fears about the future were high in the hours after Florence made landfall, when at one point even water service in the city of Wilmington seemed in peril. Officials were warning residents who had fled not to come back until receiving the all-clear.

Three days after Florence rolled in, though, power was beginning to be restored in parts of the area, and the community was already looking to

what the future might hold.

WILMINGTON, DISRUPTED

In a previous study by experts at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, research showed that one of the largest economic impacts that can be caused by a hurricane is the lost productivity from the disruption See FLORENCE, page 10

STORM-RELATED COVERAGE HURRICANE

FLORENCE PAGE

PUBLISHER’S NOTE

PAGE

13

IMAGES FROM THE AREA

PAGE

RESOURCES TO RECOVERY

5

14

Page 2

September 21 - October 4, 2018

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September 21 - October 4, 2018

Page 3

| ECONOMIC INDICATORS | JULY UNEMPLOYMENT

JULY SALES TAX COLLECTION

JANUARY–JULY AIRPORT PASSENGER TRAFFIC

NEW HANOVER JULY 2018:

PENDER JULY 2018:

BRUNSWICK JULY 2018:

DOWN FROM JULY 2017:

DOWN FROM JULY 2017:

DOWN FROM JULY 2017:

4.3%

4.9%

5.4%

(New Hanover County) SALES TAX COLLECTION JULY 2018

3.8% 4.1% 4.9%

$20,903,602 DEPARTURES 2018

UP FROM DEPARTURES 2017

UP FROM ARRIVALS 2017

238,607

237,420

150K

300K

$322,634

$328,303

50K

149,834

120K

$307,356

100K

2016

2017

90K 60K

5,751

30K

0

2018

LABOR FORCE

JUNE ROOM OCCUPANCY TAX (New Hanover County)

Q1 2018 AVERAGE WAGE (New Hanover County) 0

$500

$1,000

$1,823,486

$1,975,436 2018 Source: Wilmington CVB

2018

$787

SERVICE-PROVIDING TRADE, TRANSPORTATION & UTILITIES

$730

$2.67

$1,115

PROFESSIONAL & BUSINESS SERVICES

$836

EDUCATION & HEALTH

0

AVERAGE PRICE PER GALLON FOR REGULAR UNLEADED IN WILMINGTON ON SEPTEMBER 11, 2018:

$1,294

INFORMATION

OTHER SERVICES

$2,000

$1,698

MANUFACTURING

LEISURE & HOSPITALITY

$1,500

$922

CONSTUCTION

2017

UNEMPLOYED

Source: N.C. Department of Commerce

Source: Cape Fear Realtors

2017

Source: N.C. Department of Revenue

JULY WILMINGTON MSA (Civilian labor force)

350K

150K

$19,096,587

Source: Wilmington International Airport

AUGUST AVERAGE HOME SALES PRICE (Tri-county area)

200K

ARRIVALS 2018

263,738 261,386

Source: N.C. Department of Commerce

250K

UP FROM SALES TAX COLLECTION JULY2017

AVERAGE PRICE PER GALLON FOR WILMINGTON ON SEPTEMBER 11, 2017:

$328 $541

$500

$1,000

$1,500

$2,000

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

$2.64 Source: AAA

Page 4

September 21 - October 4, 2018

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Greater Wilmington Business Journal

| TECHNOLOGY |

Funding flow: Who’s getting what?

This is an excerpt of a story in the fall issue of the WimingtonBiz Magazine.

To get the full story, sign up as a Business Journal subscriber.

BY JOHANNA CANO ince 2013, local companies have received $144 million in funding, according to filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, although 93 percent went to one firm – nCino.

Funding in the Southeastern U.S. totaled $886 million in the second quarter of 2018, following the trend of less funding by volume but larger deals, according to Pitchbook and the National Venture Capital Association.

Any year in which North Carolina gets over $1 billion in funding is a good year, and there has been strong entrepreneurial activity so far in 2018, said Jay Bigelow, director of entrepreneurship at the Durhambased Council for Entrepreneurial Development.

“In 2013 we did about $400 million,” he said about activity in the state. “We did $800 million in the first half of this year, so that is a lot.”

Bigelow said while Wilmington is smaller in size than Charlotte or the Triangle, there are Wilmington-based companies that have been putting the Port City on the VC map.

The main company is nCino, a fintech company spun off from Live Oak Bank. It was part of the top 10 VC deals in the Southeast for the first quarter of 2018, according to Pitchbook and NVCA. In January, nCino raised $51.5 million. Company officials said the funding would be used to fuel its global growth and product innovation. The company has raised nearly $134 million since it was founded in 2012, according to SEC filings.

Another company that has raised funding is Lapetus Solutions Inc., previously known as Lapetus Software.

The company was founded in 2014 out of a collaboration from Karl Ricanek Jr., a professor of computer science at the University of North Carolina Wilmington and Jay Olshansky, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

They combined their knowledge and partnered to create tools and platforms that help model and predict aging, health and life expectancy.

Ricanek said this information can be used by individuals, insurance companies, cosmetic companies and

INFO J U N K I E Densay Sengsoulavong Government Affairs Director, Cape Fear Realtors Association

S

Densay Sengsoulavong works for Cape Fear Realtors Association, which represents over 2,400 real estate professionals in the region. He serves as lead for the group’s activities in the public policy and political arenas.

PHOTO BY MEGAN DEITZ

One for the ages: Karl Ricanek Jr., co-founder of Lapetus Solutions Inc., helped develop age modeling software. Lapetus has raised more than $4.6 million.

marketing companies, among others.

Lapetus has raised more than $4.6 million in funding. Last year, it raised $3.4 million from 12 investors, according to SEC filings. In 2015, the company raised $1.2 million from two investors.

Most of the funding raised by the company has come from outside the state.

“Our initial round of funding was organized by [CEO Norvell Miller] here in Wilmington,” Ricanek said.

“But he is backed by a European family fund, so this funding reservoir exists outside of the U.S. The investors we have brought on since then are all outside of North Carolina.

Two are multinational.”

SportGait Inc. also recently received funding. It was formed in 2015 at the UNCW’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. SportGait provides technology that can help coaches, parents, players and others on the field determine whether an athlete’s head injury warrants special care or a visit to the doctor.

The company received over $1 million, made up of $205,000 from five investors in November and $835,000 from 17 investors in July. SportGait aims to raise another $360,000 to meet its funding goal of $1.4 million, according to its latest SEC filing.

SportGait is an entity of LifeGait Inc., a company started by President and CEO Chris Newton that has raised about $1 million, including $525,000 from six investors in 2016 and $493,000 from 12 investors in 2017.

One way Wilmington’s VC activity can grow is by highlighting the

successes area startups have had, Bigelow said.

“It’s not a reason for people to go if it’s just one company,” he said.

WordPress conference cancels due to hurricane WordCamp Wilmington was among the events canceled because of Hurricane Florence.

The two-day event was scheduled to start Sept. 22 at Cape Fear Community College’s Union Station and feature seminars, networking events and a keynote talk.

This was to be the third year the conference took place in the Port City.

Attendees who had already purchased tickets were told they be refunded within a week of September 11 cancellation announcement. Anyone who did not see a refund in that timeframe was advised to contact support@wordcamp.org.

Jackson attends tech leadership event Terence Jackson, COO of JCG Consulting Group, attended the Growth Leadership Accelerator Silicon Valley Experience.

The leadership tour included sessions at the offices of Intel, Google and Pinterest with the opportunity to interact with representatives from other Silicon Valley companies, according to a news release.

Jackson is a founding member of the Goldsmith Thompson Growth Leadership Accelerator, the release stated.

“It’s incredible how quickly decisions can be made and how much information is available at our fingertips. If we’re reacting to legislation or making a statement on public policy, we can easily and quickly assemble our leadership and come up with a position regardless of where they are.”

Regularly reads The Economist “for a global perspective”, The New York Times and National Review.

Online checks out Reddit, RealClearPolitics, The Hill and Politico Favorite podcast is Freakonomics Radio: “Every episode is insightful – ‘explore the hidden side of everything.’”

TV show picks include Parks and Recreation, Game of Thrones and The Man in the High Castle Recent read is The Vanishing American Adult by Ben Sasse; Book recommendation is Kiss, Bow, or Shake Hands by Terri Morrison and Wayne Conaway – “a great book exploring the differences in business etiquette across different countries and cultures. As a casual read, it’s an informative and insightful guide to cross-cultural interaction.”

Favorite app: “I check Twitter a least 20 times a day. It’s my go-to for a quick rundown of what’s happening today.”

On Twitter: @sengsoulavong

Greater Wilmington Business Journal

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September 21 - October 4, 2018

Page 5

| PUBLISHER'S NOTE |

W

THE RECOVERY BEGINS

e wanted to update everyone on the status of the Business Journal and what we’re working on to help with our community’s recovery.

We hope you made it through the storm safely. Don’t hesitate to let us know how we can help you individually, or if you have ideas on services we can provide to the community.

Our newsroom (some still in Wilmington; others, outside) have been working since before the storm to keep business owners, homeowners, community leaders and everyone else updatKaiser ed on storm-related and recovery news. We’ve taken down our paywall so nobody is blocked from seeing this coverage.

If you have story ideas or suggestions for the newsroom, please send them to editor@wilmingtonbiz.com.

In our daily email newsletters, we have announcements about businesses and services as they reopen their doors.

PHOTO BY MICHAEL CLINE SPENCER

Cleaning up: City workers clear a downed tree from Market Street , one of many trees that fell throughout the area during Hurricane Florence.

We are building a technology platform for Recovery Resources to help business owners, homeowners and others find what they need.

Finally, I wanted to take an opportunity to recognize and thank our public officials, upstanding citizens and the people coming into our community to help.

I had an opportunity Sept. 16 to walk through the New Hanover

County Emergency Management and 911 Center. You could not ask for calmer hands in a crisis.

Our public officials, public employees, first responders, Progress Duke Energy crews and many more have dealt with massive challenges: hundreds of rescues, relocating shelters, airlifting in food, coordinating with the National Guard, and finding fuel for CFPUA, to just name a few.

Cots were spread out around the county's emergency center, which had been relocated overnight to another part of the building due to a power outage. Signs taped to the wall requested quiet voices because people are sleeping. Some custodians slept in closets, so they could be there the next day to clear away trash.

Walking in amid all these issues, what struck me most was the orderliness of the operation.

This spirit matches what’s happening in communities throughout our region. Neighbors are banding together to start cleaning up their communities. Those with chainsaws are clearing paths.

For those of you outside of our community, please know there's a ton of trees down, but our community spirit hasn’t buckled. It has gotten stronger.

Again, don’t hesitate to let us know how we can help you and our community.

- Rob Kaiser, Publisher Greater Wilmington Business Journal/WILMA Magazine rkaiser@wilmingtonbiz.com

Page 6

September 21 - October 4, 2018

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Greater Wilmington Business Journal

| HOSPITALITY |

State releases visitor spending data

V

isitor spending increased in Pender County for 2017, with a growth rate that outpaced Brunswick and New Hanover counties, and even the state. The statistics released recently by Visit North Carolina SHERRI revealed the 5.14 percent increase over 2016.

So how did that spending soar? Pender County officials point to a number of prominent factors including the area’s attractions and natural resources. They also point to something that adversely affected visitor spending in 2016.

Hurricane Matthew caused visitor spending to dip in 2016 by about $200,000, said Pender County Tourism Director Tammy Proctor.

Hurricane Florence is expected to have similar impacts.

“We will have a loss of revenue in

CRAWFORD

tourism,” Proctor said. “This will be more harmful to our tourism industry.”

In 2017, visitors to Pender County spent a little over $97 million. Spending was $92.31 million the previous year and $92.34 in 2015.

In comparison, New Hanover County increased a little more than 4 percent in 2017, to $578 million.

Brunswick County was up 3.36 percent, with visitors spending at $562 million in 2017.

The visitor spending figures come from a yearly study commissioned

by Visit North Carolina, which is part of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina, and conducted by the U.S. Travel Association.

“Topsail Beach won a national award for their beach nourishment (program) [and] they were named one of the top five beaches in the country,” Proctor said about some of the draws last year.

Topsail Beach also was voted Best Little Beach Town in the USA by TripAdvisor readers in 2016. The

Pender County beach was “named among the top 10” in USA Today, Proctor added.

Also behind the increase, said officials, is the county’s array of visitor attractions, offering enticement beyond the area’s beaches.

Among the most popular is the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center in Surf City. It’s ranked No. 2 – eclipsed only

by Topsail Island – on a list of “29 things to do in Surf City,” on TripAdvisor.com.

“People want to see this endangered species and when you take a look at them, you just fall in love with them,” Proctor said. “They’re one of the largest on the East Coast that’s dedicated to the care of sea turtles…. and the fact that it’s run by volunteers, people just love that.”

Like the sea turtle hospital (as it’s referred to), Pender County’s historic attractions are another draw – and one that extends beyond the high summer beach season. Promoting an extended visitors season has been a successful marketing strategy, ac-

cording to tourism officials.

History buffs are drawn to Pender County’s colonial background and Moore’s Creek National Battlefield, while others flock to the Missiles and More Museum.

“With us being the birthplace of rocket technology, families love visiting and learning about the rocket technology that was developed here,” Proctor said.

Visit North Carolina’s annual visitor spending study also shows that Pender County generated $4.67 million in state tax revenue, through state sales and excise taxes on personal and corporate income. An estimated $6.81 million in local taxes was generated from sales and property tax revenue from travel-generated and travel-supported businesses.

New Hanover County's travel industry payroll was $141 million in 2017, up nearly 8.7 percent from the previous year. New Hanover's state tax receipts grew 3.5 percent to $28 million, while its local receipts grew nearly 5.8 percent to about $23 million.

Greater Wilmington Business Journal

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September 21 - October 4, 2018

Page 7

| HOSPITALITY | In Brunswick County, state tax receipts grew to $26 million for a nearly 2.6 percent increase and local receipts were up nearly 5 percent to about $34.6 million, while its travel industry payroll grew by almost 7.7 percent to $113 million.

The highest growth in visitor spending in 2017 took place in Polk County, where the $100 million Tryon International Equestrian Center opened in 2015. Spending there grew by 8.3 percent to more than $30 million.

Gov. Roy Cooper announced in May that visitors to North Carolina set a record for spending in 2017.

The $23.99 billion in total spending represented an increase of 4.2 percent from 2016.

-Cece Nunn contributed to this article.

Pender names new parks and recreation director Officials in Pender County announced the hiring of a director for the county’s new parks and recreation department.

According to a news release, Doug Shipley of Wilmington will helm the position.

PHOTO C/O PENDER COUNTY TOURISM

Drawing visitors: The Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center is a main attraction for Pender County, which saw its visitor spending totals increase last year over 2016.

“This is a new director position in Pender County,” said Pender County Manager Randell Woodruff, in the statement. “Mr. Shipley has the skills

and experience to bring recreational programming and park development to the residents of Pender County.”

Shipley, whose credentials include

a master’s degree in sports management from the University of Georgia County, will help develop the parks and recreation department. Officials said they want to expand available activities and programs to better serve the county’s growing population.

“I have experience spanning two decades in the parks and recreation field,” said Shipley. “I look forward to contributing to the development of the Pender County Parks and Recreation Department.”

Currently, Pender County operates three parks – Hampstead Kiwanis Park, Pender Memorial Park ballfields located in Burgaw, and Miller’s Pond in Rocky Point. Features of the latter include a canoe and kayak launch, one-half mile walking/nature trail, fishing pier, and more.

The county also operates the Holly Shelter Shooting Range in conjunction with North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission, according to the release.

Shipley relocated to the Cape Fear area from Charlotte. His background includes athletic and recreation facility management, recreation management and event management.

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Nonprofit – $50 Organizations with current or pending 501c3 status, includes all organization members

Entrepreneurship nurtures emerging companies and works to accelerate the entrepreneurial ecosystem in southeastern North Carolina.

Over 40 programs already scheduled for the first half of 2018. Membership gets you into programs and workshops for free or at a discounted rate.

UNCW Faculty/Staff – $45

Individual – $75 Open to individual community members Startup – $125 Two entrepreneurs and/or executives in the same company or organization Stakeholder < 50 Employees – $250 Open to all company employees Stakeholder > 50 Employees – $450 Open to all company employees

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UNCW is an EEO/AA institution.

Page 8

September 21 - October 4, 2018

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Greater Wilmington Business Journal

| THE LIST |

Catering Companies

Ranked by number of full-time employees RANK

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

NO. OF LOCAL FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES/ NO. OF LOCAL PART-TIME EMPLOYEES/ % BUSINESS-CATERING

MIN-MAX SERVED/ PRICE RANGE PER PERSON

FOOD SPECIALTIES

Middle of the Island Catering 614 S. College Road Wilmington, NC 28403 256-4273/info@middleoftheisland.com www.middleoftheisland.com

30 150 100%

50-10,000 $9-$40

A Thyme Savor Catering and Market 5941-G Carolina Beach Road Wilmington, NC 28412 262-2962/jeff@athymesavor.com www.athymesavor.com

14 16 100%

Coastal Catering and Events* 591 S. Shore Drive Southport, NC 28461 845-2516/joe@coastalcateringandevents.com www.coastalcateringandevents.com The Beam Room Catering & Events 9 N. Front St. Wilmington, NC 28401 769-4085/theBeamRoom@gmail.com beamroomcatering.com

COMPANY ADDRESS PHONE/EMAIL WEBSITE

Bon Appetit Catering 3704 Carolina Beach Road Wilmington, NC 28412 796-0520/Claudia@bonappetitwilmington.com www.bonappetitwilmington.com Diamond Catering* 127 S. College Road Wilmington, NC 28403 399-3811 or after hours 392-7167/ diamondfoodenterprises@gmail.com www.diamondcateringservices.com Little Pond Caterers 2016 Princess Place Drive Wilmington, NC 28405 960-7663/info@littlepondcaterers.com www.littlepondcaterers.com

TOP LOCAL OFFICIALS

YEAR LOCALLY FOUNDED

Southern buffets, fried seafood, breakfast, prime rib/steamed oysters, crab legs; mobile kitchens for cooking on-site

C.M. Rogers Owner

1988

20-1,200 $7-$60

Mediterranean, Italian, Southern and American cuisines

Jeff and Danielle Cousler Owners

2006

10 40 100%

2-1,500 $10-unlimited

Any style of food; customized menus for clients

9 7 100%

1-300 $7.50 and up

On and off-site catering and bar services, hors d'oeuvres and entrees, American cuisine with Southern influences.

Kevin Kozak Courtney Motz General Manager Event Coordinator

2009

8 7 50%

1-1,000 Varies

American, some international cuisine

Claudia Costa Owner

1999

7 N/A N/A

30-2,500 $8 and up

Geared to client wishes: chicken entrees, pastas, beef, seafood, appetizers, salads, sandwiches and wraps

Steve Lambros Owner

1991

2 20 80%

2-125 $20-$85

Cuisines from many regions and cultures; special diets accommodated

Karin Mills Co-Owner

2005

List is based on voluntary responses to a Business Journal survey and includes companies whose business is made up of 50 percent or more from catering services. *Because of Hurricane Florence, several companies that have made the list before were unable to respond to the updated survey. They are listed here with their previous employee counts.

2007

Greater Wilmington Business Journal

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| ACHIEVERS | Send information about company hires, promotions or awards to editor@wilmingtonbiz.com

Obiora joins NHRMC General Surgery Specialists EMEKA OBIORA has joined New Hanover Regional Medical Center’s Physician Specialists-General Surgery Specialists, as part of its surgical oncology team.

Obiora is offering a full range of surgical oncology services and is seeing patients at the NHRMC Zimmer Cancer Obiora Center.

Most recently, Obiora worked as a surgical oncologist at Sentara Surgery Specialist -Surgical Oncology Cancer Network in Newport News, Virginia.

Obiora received his Bachelor of Science in biology from the University of Michigan. He earned his medical degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, and completed his residency at Temple University St. Luke’s School of Medicine.

During his last year of residency, he was selected as the general surgery chief resident. He then completed his fellowship in complex general surgical oncology at Wake Forest School of Medicine.

Tayloe/Gray hires Lee Tayloe/Gray announced that JOSH LEE has joined the firm as a marketing strategist and media planner.

Lee comes to Tayloe/Gray with more than 20 years of experience in broadcast and Lee digital media. Prior to joining the company, Lee worked

with Capitol Broadcasting, where he helped businesses to grow brands through radio, television and digital advertising campaigns.

Lee has been involved with placing more than $40 million for his clients over two decades.

In his new role at Tayloe/Gray, Lee will be able to expand his reach with the company’s national client base, company officials said..

Schweighardt named CIO at Intracoastal Realty Intracoastal Realty Corp. has announced that JOHN SCHWEIGHARDT has joined the company as chief information officer.

Schweighardt brings experience in customer service technology and corporate growth to the real estate firm, officials said. As CIO, he leads all aspects of Intracoastal’s technology and information systems.

Schweighardt He was formerly the CIO and vice president of operations for Fonville Morisey Realty in Raleigh.

Leath HR welcomes Miles Leath HR Group has welcomed RACHEL MILES, a performance consultant and coach, to its team.

Miles will complement the mission of Miles Leath HR Group, a human resources consulting firm founded in 2017.

“What I offer is ongoing support to leverage people’s innate talents to make them and their organizations more successful,” Miles said.

September 21 - October 4, 2018

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September 21 - October 4, 2018

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Greater Wilmington Business Journal

| FROM THE COVER | From FLORENCE, page 1

caused by storm preparations, said Adam Jones, regional economist at UNCW. Some Florence preparation by area companies and residents started early and was frenzied because the hurricane was at one point a Category 4 storm, with winds up to 156 mph.

Of Hurricane Florence’s economic impact in general, “This storm will be considerably more costly.

If we look at other storm samples, the storm will displace activity from now to the future and reshape spending as people repair homes rather than spend on consumption and fun expenditures,” Jones said.

While many stayed, many other employees at Wilmington-area companies headed out of town before the storm came ashore. A couple days after Florence’s landfall, those who had fled were concerned about how they would get back to the Wilmington area, with many roads impassable and others potentially susceptible to becoming impassable as a result of additional flooding.

Members of the business community were predicting the need for time and patience long before Florence’s

strike.

“We are hopeful that impacts will be minimal for you personally and professionally, but know that getting our business community back to normal may take days or weeks,” wrote Natalie English, president and CEO of Wilmington Chamber of Commerce, in a president’s report Sept. 13.

Woody White, chairman of the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners, said Sept. 17 that it was natural for people to be worried about what the economy will look like in the wake of a disaster.

“Realtors are concerned about pending closings or short-term future sales. I’m sure the retail market is concerned about access to goods and food stuffs or prepare meals and sell things; the service industry – lawyers and waiters and hotel workers – are all without employment right now.

So in the short-term, the economy does contract significantly, but any first-year economist will tell you that that contraction is short-term and also ultimately results in expansion as the essential infrastructure gets reestablished via roads and electricity.

“Everyone has to play the same 18 holes of golf. Everybody is going

through this together and we will all recover together.”

REBUILDING

Contractors to do repair work for homes and businesses could be at a premium as a result of Hurricane Florence, experts say.

In one example, the city of Wilmington already had an emergency response contract with DRC Emergency Services for tree and debris removal and was able to mobilize 30 crews in the two days after Hurricane Florence hit to begin making roads passable.

But it remains to be seen whether contractors will be available to address regionwide repairs.

“An idea to be wary of is that this will help the economy because of all the spending on cleanup,” Jones said.

“First, that claim ignores the fact that every dollar spent on cleanup cannot be spent on something else, kind of like spending on new tires for the car, it has to be done but I’d much rather spend the money on a vacation….

The destruction of storms is only damaging over the long run as capital is destroyed. Further, in a tight labor market like we are currently in, finding labor and construction crews

to do the work is going to be difficult and will likely lead to price increases as services are bid up in cost.”

Woody Hall, retired UNCW professor and economist for Cape Fear Realtors, said after Hurricane Fran, “the wait time [for a contractor] was fairly substantial, and this is going to be as substantial if not more.”

Despite the anticipated challenges, Jones said he is optimistic.

“Looking to Houston and Hurricane Harvey as an example, workers and talent are likely to come to the region to help rebuild; maybe we can retain some of that talent for the future and ‘social capital’ measured many different ways is a robust contributor to growth,” Jones said. “This storm has tugged at the fabric of our region, but it is not torn and the bonds formed as we go through this could be a valuable piece of social capital going forward.”

FLOODING AND ISOLATION

On Sept. 16, state and local officials warned residents that there were no safe routes to the city of Wilmington.

“Road conditions across the state are changing constantly, and motorists are asked to stay away from

Greater Wilmington Business Journal

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September 21 - October 4, 2018

Page 11

| FROM THE COVER |

“

Everybody is going through this together and we will all recover together.”

– Woody White, chairman New Hanover County Board of Commissioners

areas affected by the massive and slow-moving storm. As of noon today, Wilmington remained inaccessible by road,” a news release stated.

The N.C. Department of Transportation was reporting that several sections of interstates 95 and 40 were flooded.

The next day, some officials said there was some access to the city, but did not appear to want to publicize a route, continuing to warn drivers of the potential for drowning if they attempted to drive through floodwaters. In one of 17 deaths in North Carolina that were attributed to the storm as of Sept. 17, a 1-year-old boy in Union County was swept away in floodwaters and died after his mother drove around barriers that someone else had pushed aside, according to news reports.

In Wilmington, despite downed traffic lights and damaged roads in

some parts, residents ventured out into the area in search of gas and supplies. Some gas was available and some grocery stores were open, allowing a small group of people in at a time.

“There’s a shortage of everything so people want to stock up, make sure they have what they need,” said Ron Lickfeld, a truck driver and Wilmington resident who was standing in line at a Lowes Foods grocery store on Sept. 17. “As people panic and groceries and fuel and stuff don’t get in here people are going to start... it’s getting crazy already.”

Food was on the way to area counties on Sept. 17 ahead of setting up distribution centers, with 20 trucks coming in to the Port City carrying food and water from Fort Bragg in one example.

On the same day, some Pleasure Island residents return to the towns of Carolina and Kure beaches, and Wrightsville Beach reopened to residents and business owners the following day. In Brunswick County, crews from the county public utilities were working to restore water pressure to some of its customers, officials said.

Also on Sept. 17, the Northeast Cape Fear River near Burgaw in

Pender County rose higher than it did during Hurricane Floyd in 1999, considered one of the worst storms in North Carolina’s history because of the flood damage it caused.

Three days after Hurricane Florence made landfall, 12 miles of N.C. 53 were underwater, in some cases 7 feet deep, between the Northeast Cape Fear bridge and the town of Maple Hill.

Nearly 200 homes were already underwater in that part of the county.

REAL ESTATE

While the real estate market in the area felt little impact from Hurricanes Bertha and Fran, the same was not true for Hurricanes Bonnie and Floyd, said Hall.

In a previous study, Hall and other UNCW researchers found that Floyd and Bonnie resulted in a noticeable decline in home sale prices as compared to before the storms hit.

Jones said Hurricane Florence could jolt the real estate industry.

“The real estate market may take a little bit of a hit over the next year as some people sell their homes and move away and others avoid moving to Wilmington for fear of storms,” Jones said. “However, with baby

boomers retiring and the city rebuilt, I expect migration to Wilmington will recover fairly quickly.”

In a statement after the storm had passed from Cape Fear Realtors, officials said, “It’s hard to process the estimated impacts to the housing market, but our collective spirit is stronger and stronger together than the damage. Wilmington is a great place to live, work and play.

No storm can change these facts.

The flood waters will recede and we will rebuild our roads, homes, and community. We know that the heart and soul of our community were unshaken.”

Before the storm, realtor.com chief economist Danielle Hale stated in a release, “Prior to the Hurricane Florence, the Carolinas real estate market was experiencing an inventory shortage resulting in fast-selling properties and rising prices, similar to the rest of the country. Extensive property damage from the storm will only exacerbate its already-limited inventory conditions. While this would ordinarily drive up prices, a drop-off in demand should tame price increases post hurricane as would-be buyers reevaluate whether to live in these areas.”

sponsored by:

The Coalition is a Collaboration of Organizations for Small Businesses and Entrepreneurs in the Wilmington Region

October 3 CFCC’s Union Station 7:30AM Visit CoalitionRoundtables.com for details TEN GROUPS DEVOTED TO THE GROWTH OF ENTREPRENEURS AND SMALL BUSINESSES IN OUR REGION HAVE BANDED TOGETHER TO HOST A SPECIAL BREAKFAST EVENT.

The Coalition is bringing together subject matter experts from a range of industries as resources to local companies.

This is also a great opportunity to meet the leaders of the ten organizations — UNCW’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, CFCC’s Small Business Center, BCC’s Small Business Center, SCORE, SBA, SBTDC, tekMountain and the North Carolina Military Business Center, AARP, and Coastal Women’s Ventures.

Each attendee will have the opportunity to participate in three roundtable discussions on different topics.

TOPICS WILL INCLUDE:

ACCOUNTING FOR BUSINESS

BUSINESS LAW

BUYING & LEASING OFFICE SPACE

FINANCIAL PLANNING

HEALTH INSURANCE & OTHER EMPLOYEE BENEFITS

LEVERAGING TECHNOLOGY FOR GROWTH

REACHING YOUR COMPANY’S TARGET AUDIENCE

SECURING BUSINESS LOANS & CREDIT

WINNING GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS

THE COALITION MEMBERS

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SCENES FROM

HURRICANE

FLORENCE

PHOTOS BY MICHAEL CLINE SPENCER

(Clockwise from top) A U.S. Coast Guard crew checks on residents in the Orchard Park neighborhood on Sept. 16.

Roberts Grocery in Wrightsville Beach gets boarded up ahead of Hurricane Florence’s arrival.

Duke Energy linemen deploy to restore power, which went down for most of area.

Downtown Wilmington sees flooding from the Cape Fear River, which also exceeded Hurricane Floyd levels near Burgaw and set a new record there.

Part of Middle Sound Loop Road collapsed after the storm.

Downed trees was a major issue from the storm’s strong winds.

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Checklist of post-storm resources

BY JOHANNA CANO urricane Florence has left many homes and businesses in the area with damages that range from simple repairs to more complicated and time-consuming ones. There are many steps that affected residents can take to begin reparations and resources that can help them along the way.

H

U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOUNDATION Disaster Help Desk can assist small business owners with various aspects of the recovery process. (888) My-Biz-Help

U.S. SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Businesses of all sizes, nonprofits, homeowners and renters in New Hanover, Brunswick and Pender counties are eligible for low-interest disaster loans through the SBA. disasterloan.sba.gov

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY By filling out its “Find Assistance” questionnaire individuals and business owners can get a list of assistance programs and loans they may be eligible for. disasterassistance.gov

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

• Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybee and Farm-raised Fish Program: provides emergency assistance funds that can cover losses due to weather.

More info at the Pender County Farm Service Agency in Burgaw.

Business and Industry Loans: loan guarantees for rural businesses including nonprofit that can be used for business repairs. rd.usda.gov/nc

FARM SERVICE AGENCY

• Tree Assistance Program: provides payments to qualifying orchardists and nursery tree growers after a natural disaster

• The U.S. Department of Agriculture agency offers funding and loans for farmers and ranchers. To apply or for more info go to the Pender County Farm Service Agency in Burgaw or go to sa.usda.gov.

• Livestock Indemnity Program: The FSA program offers payments to livestock producers for animal deaths caused by bad weather.

• Emergency Conservation Program: funding and assistance to repair damage to farmlands caused by natural disasters.

Apply at the Pender County Farm Service Agency in Burgaw.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TREASURY

• Disaster Assistance and Emergency Relief Program for Individuals and Businesses. Individuals and businesses in federally declared disaster areas can get a faster refund by claiming disasters on their tax returns.

• Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program: FSA offers payments to producers of eligible crops to protect against low yields due to a natural disaster. More info at the Pender County Farm Service Agency in Burgaw.

FEMA

• The Individual and Households Program: Qualified individuals can get housing assistance money for necessary housing-related expenses caused by a disaster as well as for needs such as personal property, childcare, medical expenses, transportation among others.

• Farm Operating Loans: Farm Service Agency offers loans for operating costs such as buying feed, paying family living expenses and minor improvements and repairs. fsa.usda.gov

fema.gov • National Flood Insurance Program: NFIP policyholders should file a claim with their insurer, prepare for inspection, work with an adjuster and complete proof of loss. floodsmart.gov

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Those whose job was lost or interrupted due to the hurricane and are not eligible for regular unemployment insurance benefits can receive temporary benefits by filing a claim with the N.C. unemployment agency. des.nc.gov

NEW HANOVER COUNTY LANDFILL

The public can bring debris from Hurricane Florence to the county’s landfill, which is now open during its normal hours from 6:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Monday through Friday and 6:30 a.m. to noon on Saturdays.

N.C. LICENSING BOARD FOR GENERAL CONTRACTORS The NCLBGC website can help with finding licensed contractors for hurricane repairs in homes or businesses. There are also resources on how to avoid scammers and get the best contractor for the job. nclbgc.org

said that ‘all lasting business starts “ It haswithbeen friendship.’ At North State Bank, we believe in making friends first and then inviting people to do business with us.

When they do, we stand by them.

Larry Barbour

”

President & CEO

NMLS# 411971

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| IN PROFILE | Marpac adds tools for better sleep

BY CHRISTINA HALEY O’NEAL

A

Wilmington-based company is crashing further into the sleep industry with a line of products to help people get shut eye.

Marpac LLC, a company that makes and sells sleep products, has been manufacturing white noise machines since the 1960s and continues those same operations – with modern designs – at its headquarters on Capital Drive in Wilmington, said Marpac Co-CEO Jimmy Sloan.

The company employees more than 50 people, the majority of whom are at the Wilmington site, Sloan said.

Marpac manufactures most of its white noise sound machines using hand-and-tool assembly. More than a dozen workers assemble the machines and test them on-site, Sloan said.

Parts come from all over the world to be assembled, packaged and shipped from Marpac’s Wilmington headquarters, Sloan said.

The company has been in the Wilmington area since 1972 and has moved around a bit, but the company found its current home inside a roughly 27,000-square-foot space on Capital Drive, which along with assembly, holds the company’s offices and warehouse distribution space.

Marpac Co-CEO Gordon Wallace said Marpac came to be as a sound machine company.

“We created the category back in the 1960s,” said Co-CEO Gordon Wallace. “Jim Buckwalter, who’s the founder of Marpac – a person that moved the company to Wilmington in the first place – he invented the first electromechanical white noise

MADE Great Goods from Greater Wilmington

PHOTO BY MICHAEL CLINE SPENCER

Aiding rest: Marpac Co-CEO Jimmy Sloan stands at the Marpac headquarters where it manufactures its white noise machines, one of many sleep tool products sold by the company globally.

machine, so in essence, created the category of sound machines. And Marpac has been a key player in sound machines ever since,” Wallace said.

The company’s Wilmington production includes the Marpac Dohm Classic and Marpac Dohm. These products have fans inside an enclosed adjustable dome-shaped shell, that produces a calming sound for sleep.

Co-workers and friends, Sloan and Wallace knew each other from graduate school and working in

the Charlotte banking world years before joining forces to purchase Marpac in 2010.

The two are now taking the company to the next level in expanding its line of products.

Marpac early last year acquired Yogabed, an online mattress company, Wallace said. The company is now shipping Yogabed mattresses and some bedding accessories globally.

And the company aims to expand its “tools-for-sleep” business model with an aroma diffuser to make the

bedroom “more conducive from an olfactory perspective to relax and sleep,” Wallace said.

“The real focus in all of this really is the sleep environment,” Sloan said.

The company also has plans to increase its international growth, particularly in Europe, Sloan said.

“We like to say we help people get the sleep they deserve, because we know broader impacts of not getting a good night’s sleep affect everything we do. So we’re trying to do our fair share,” Sloan said.

Waking up the sleep market MARPAC LLC

2015 Capital Drive, Wilmington

locally: Marpac assembles the vast majority of its white noise machines in Wilmington.

Places of product distribution: North America and around the world Year founded: 1962 What made the company decide to make its goods locally? Sloan: Top local officials: Jimmy Sloan, co-CEO and chief creative officer and “Marpac was founded in 1962

by Jim Buckwalter … Wilmington Gordon Wallace, co-CEO and chief was perfectly situated between operating officer his relatives located in Florida and Company description: Makes those in the Northeast.” products to help with sleep What’s planned next? Sloan: Description of products made “Marpac’s strategic growth plans are No. of employees: 55

based on our company becoming a Sleep Tools brand … Historically that meant only selling ‘sound’ products, but in just the past year we’ve … expanded into ‘touch’ – we purchased bed-in-box innovator Yogabed late last year. In early October we’ll begin selling our first ‘scent’ product, called the Purest.

EDITOR’S NOTE To be considered for the Business Journal’s MADE feature, contact editor@wilmingtonbiz.com.

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MANAGING AND GROWING YOUR WEALTH

SCOTT WINSLOW Managing Partner, Nabell Winslow Wealth Management

C

SUSAN WILLETT Director of Trust Services, Old North State Trust, LLC

MATTHEW THOMPSON NC Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning and Probate Law, Ward and Smith, P.A.

BRETT TUSHINGHAM Managing Member & CCO, Tushingham Wealth Strategies

ontinued economic growth and a mostly favorable economic forecast are good signs thus far in 2018. However, even in a stable market, it’s good practice to protect assets against any future volatility. We asked four financial professionals for their advice on solid investment strategies and long-term planning goals.

What is your outlook for the stock market in 2018?

SUSAN WILLETT: We are still cautiously optimistic.

The market has reached an all-time high and continues to rise. The underlying fundamentals are still attractive, and the new tax bill is spurring growth, so we see further potential. As always, we continue to advocate diversification in all markets, since no one has a crystal ball.

SCOTT WINSLOW: We believe stocks are likely to outperform bonds in 2018. We also think that after a very low-volatility market in 2017, normal volatility

will return.

After years of domestic equities outperforming international equities, we believe it is time to have exposure to international stocks. Our position is based on a strengthening economy, an accommodative monetary policy and the stimulating effect of the government’s reduction in regulation and taxes for corporations.

MATTHEW THOMPSON: As an estate planning attorney, my focus is on the transfer of clients’ assets to their chosen beneficiaries, whatever those assets might be. I don’t provide investment advice.

That said, we always pay close attention to the market, interest rates and other economic factors,

because varying conditions make different planning strategies more or less appropriate at the time. We must be nimble and take advantage of circumstances as they change, because some strategies are best employed when the market is down.

So long as the current run continues, we all will be happy when we check our accounts. If there is a temporary dip in the market, however, we’ll be prepared to take advantage of it from an estate planning standpoint.

BRETT TUSHINGHAM: The current trends in data we follow bode very well for certain sectors of the U.S. economy, at least in the short term.

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A properly designed trust “will be creditor-protected,

be it from a divorcing spouse, a debt collector or otherwise.

”

“

We believe that clients need to pass on human and intellectual capital, as well as financial capital, to the next generation.

”

MATT THOMPSON NC Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning and Probate Law, Ward and Smith, P.A.

Our investment process is datadependent, so our outlook changes as the data changes. On a longer-term basis, the outlook is anybody’s guess.

We don’t make long-term projections because we feel it is futile.

That being said, U.S. growth has accelerated year over year for six straight quarters. Wages are increasing, company profits are improving, and unemployment is near all-time lows. All those factors historically bode very well for certain sectors in the U.S. economy, including technology and consumer discretionary stocks, and not so well for bonds and bond proxies, such as utilities.

We have some concerns down the road, like the level of consumer debt and the rise in student loan default rates.

Market volatility will return at some point, so people should be prepared and employ an asset allocation that fits their situation.

What is the most common mistake people make in financial planning?

THOMPSON: Some people just don’t have a plan or, if they do, they get bored with it and chase something more exciting that gets them off track.

In my role as an estate planning attorney, it is interesting to see how different clients with very similar backgrounds and incomes can end up in completely different places economically over time, largely because one took their plan seriously and the other ignored it.

TUSHINGHAM: Not having a plan at all. I know it sounds silly but it’s as simple as that.

SCOTT WINSLOW Managing Partnet, Nabel Winslow Wealth Management

One of my favorite sayings is, “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.” That applies in this situation. You need to establish goals, develop strategies to get there and proactively monitor your progress to determine if any modifications are necessary.

And by not having a plan, there’s no way to determine that. There’s no way to determine if you’re saving enough, living above your means, or getting further away or closer to achieving your goals.

I feel that is the biggest mistake, but other mistakes include paying excessive fees for investment management, using retirement assets to pay for children’s college - thereby jeopardizing their family’s ability to achieve their own retirement goals - and just not having an investment process at all and letting emotions drive investment decisions.

WINSLOW: Procrastination and not saving enough. We live in a consumerdriven culture. Many people fail to discipline themselves in their spending.

We try to counter that by educating our clients on the time value of money and how that relates to the cost of discretionary goods.

Not having a disciplined savings and investing plan makes it easy to buy unnecessary goods and services, creating habits that equate to a spending vacuum.

Nabell Winslow Investments has its own simplified budgeting process that makes planning easy without cumbersome spreadsheets and journals that make financial planning so boring and tedious.

WILLETT: Not doing it. Not having a plan is never an option. People put it off for various reasons, just like they do going to the dentist. But making a plan can be the single-most important decision you ever make. There’s a reason

the saying goes, “An ounce of prevention prevents a pound of cure!”

How do you advise clients regarding income tax-deferred investments versus other investments?

WINSLOW: Most firms deploy some kind of asset allocation and diversification process to protect clients.

At Nabell Winslow, we take it many steps further. We do asset location planning. This process is how we construct portfolios based not only on tax, but also on investment strategy. We are likely to put more passive strategies in non-retirement accounts - versus more active - that create gains or taxable income in the deferred accounts.

We also construct plans that map to the client’s tax returns, both in the accumulation stage and the retirement years. We aim to have strategies designed to have strong after-tax results.

WILLETT: IRAs and other tax-deferred vehicles offer unique benefits that few other planning techniques do, so they should be taken advantage of to the fullest. No one likes to give money away and that’s what happens when a tax benefit is available, so take advantage of the savings. At Old North State Trust, we offer self-directed IRAs for investments in unique assets, such as real estate, LLC, etc., that don’t typically fit into other IRAs. TUSHINGHAM: Tax-deferral and compounding are extremely valuable tools in building wealth. We always recommend that clients contribute enough to their employer retirement

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plans to obtain any company matching contributions or, as we call it, “free money.”

Above and beyond that, it usually makes sense to optimize employer retirement contributions in accounts, such as 401(k)s. The 2018 limit is $18,500 and $24,500 for people over the age of 50 before year-end.

Sometimes people in lower tax brackets will benefit more by contributing to a Roth 401(k), and that just depends on the client’s situation. For most self-employed people, we utilize accounts like SEP IRAs, Solo 401(k) s and cash balance plans. These plans allow business owners to contribute substantial amounts of money on a pretax basis.

We firmly believe in tax diversification - having multiple buckets of assets to choose from when income is needed down the road. Therefore, we also encourage investing in taxable accounts on an after-tax basis to compliment the pre-tax investing in company plans and IRAs. Distributions from IRAs and 401(k)s will be subject to ordinary income tax. Taxable account distributions will be subject to capital gains tax, which is usually much lower for clients. This provides us flexibility by giving clients the money they need when they need it in the most tax-efficient manner.

THOMPSON: For many of our clients, much of their wealth is tied up in retirement accounts. Any distribution from a traditional IRA is subject to income tax. Being tax-adverse, a lot of our clients are predisposed to take only the “required minimum distributions” from those accounts.

In some cases, however, we encourage clients to consider drawing on their IRAs more aggressively if they are likely

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to be in a lower tax bracket than their children, who otherwise will inherit the IRA accounts and eventually be responsible for the tax at their higher rates.

For clients who have charitable objectives as part of their estate plan, we try to source those gifts from the IRAs, because the charities do not pay tax upon receipt of funds from the IRA. To the extent clients want to have individuals as the beneficiaries on their IRA accounts when they die, we want to make sure those beneficiaries can receive the assets in an income tax-efficient way.

When a beneficiary is named outright, she can choose to establish an inherited IRA account and “stretch out” the distributions over a period as long as her life expectancy. This results in smaller amounts of income being realized annually by the beneficiary, as opposed to all of the income being realized at once if the IRA is simply cashed out.

Some clients, however, want to leave assets in trust for their chosen beneficiaries - rather than outright - for asset protection, management, tax or other reasons. Normally, designating an IRA to a trust can cause an accelerated pay-out - and a less-efficient income tax result.

We spend a lot of time incorporating provisions into our trusts so that the stretch-out rules apply as if the trust beneficiary had been named individually.

The IRS rules around IRAs are complex, so the trust needs to be properly designed to avoid an inefficient tax result.

How could the federal tax plan impact estate planning, particularly for clients with existing formula gifts?

THOMPSON: The new tax law doubles - from $5.5 million to $11 million - the amount an individual can leave in total to beneficiaries other than a spouse or charity without incurring gift or estate taxes. The law remains that transfers to a spouse or charity are not subject to gift or estate tax. Therefore, a married couple can pass about $22 million without transfer taxes if they plan correctly. These

larger exemptions likely eliminate the gift and estate tax as a major concern for most people.

Estate planning, however, always has been about much more than minimizing gift and estate taxes. Our clients, regardless of level of wealth, are concerned about many other practical issues.

They want to ensure what they leave is protected against their beneficiaries’

a carve-out of the exemption amount to children immediately, with the remainder passing to a surviving spouse.

Now that the exemption has increased so dramatically, that sort of plan could result in the surviving spouse being disinherited altogether!

In general, we are suggesting clients brush off and review with us documents that are more than a few years old.

WILLETT: The new law raises the lifetime exclusion amount significantly, so advisors should be discussing existing estate plans with clients to ensure their plans are still …Most families aren’t appropriate. For receiving the guidance they

“

need when it comes to paying for college.

”

BRETT TUSHINGHAM Managing Member & CCO, Tushingham Wealth Strategies

creditors. They are worried about making sure a young beneficiary’s inheritance doesn’t create a disincentive for him to work. They want to make sure a disabled beneficiary doesn’t lose her benefits because of what was left to her. They worry how to benefit a current spouse while ensuring the children of a prior marriage are not disinherited.

They are looking for ways to simplify and make private the administration of their estates upon death. These and other issues are universal.

Even with the increased exemptions, I do think clients with a net worth of more than $7 or $8 million should consider keeping in place documents that contemplate and plan for the possibility of estate tax, and for those with very large estates, these documents are a necessity.

There simply is too much risk that the exemption figure will go back to a lower amount if the current law sunsets as scheduled in a few years. In the current environment, there is a premium on the documents being flexible, so various factors can be evaluated and elections made at the time of death to achieve the best tax result.

Regarding “formula gifts,” many older documents were drafted when the estate tax exemption figure was much lower.

In those documents, we frequently see

example, the new limits will eliminate the need for the old “A/B” planning or Credit Shelter/Marital trust plans for many couples. It will simplify plans greatly.

WINSLOW: The first thing clients should do is set up a meeting with their estate planning attorney and other advisors. The recent tax reform has raised the exemption up to $22.4 million for a married couple. Most people do not have that kind of wealth, thus the estate tax will only affect a fraction of one percent. Most gifting strategies opt to forgo the step-up in cost basis to elude the estate tax. We have seen many scenarios already in which ceasing the gifting strategy will likely have a better forecasted outcome to the family.

How has technology changed the way in which people invest?

TUSHINGHAM: Technology has made access to information more readily available. It has also provided people with alternative investment platforms, like robo-advisors.

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I personally feel that the increased investment options have forced advisors to become more transparent with their fees and services. This has resulted in advisors developing their own roboplatforms to compete, as well as fee compression across the industry. More financial advisors are now displaying fees on their websites, which I’m all for; we do that here. It allows people to compare fees and services to industry peers. In the past, they couldn’t do that.

People are more informed. They are asking their advisors questions, and advisors are being forced to substantiate their value proposition and prove their worth, which is great for the consumer.

WILLETT: We live in an extremely fast-paced, information-driven world.

Technology has put information within reach for everyone, so that we all know exactly what the markets are doing every second. That helps our clients become much more informed. It also helps us stay connected with our clients more than ever before.

We can communicate with clients all over the world via e-mail, Skype and all sorts of creative ways. Technology is ever-present and a tool just like so many others that we use to enhance our client experience.

THOMPSON: I can’t speak to the investment side, but one trend we see is people using estate planning documents they find or produce on the internet.

I like to think our clients pay for my advice, and the documents we produce and techniques we employ are just an extension or result of that advice. I worry that people who use internet documents are not getting that advice, and I wonder whether those documents really are appropriate for their circumstances or accurately reflect their intent.

WINSLOW: Technology has and will continue to change the way people conduct all aspects of their lives in an exponential way. Investors have more access and options than ever before.

Just 10 years ago, most clients received paper statements, whereas today only a small percentage request paper statements. We have clients very late in retirement reviewing their accounts online, when just a few years ago they said it would never happen.

What cybersecurity

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measures are in place to protect against the risks of new wealthmanagement technology?

WINSLOW: Regulation in the financial services industry has grown exponentially due to opportunistic people out there without integrity. We have put in long hours of incorporating sophisticated encryption software to protect our clients.

However, technological solutions are only one measure of protection. We are constantly educating our clients on how to curb their risk of fraud. At the corporate level, we are putting policies in place to have strict procedures to protect our clients’ assets and information. We take pride in getting to know our clients and protecting them from identity theft.

TUSHINGHAM: Technology can make life easier and pose more problems at the same time. Cybersecurity has come to the forefront recently, as it should. Many well-known companies, such as Yahoo, LinkedIn and Equifax, have suffered breaches.

As a firm, we utilize many measures to combat breaches. We use thirdparty cybersecurity monitoring. We encrypt all our files. We use two-factor identification. We change passwords quarterly. We encrypt all emails that contain personal data, such as account numbers and social security numbers.

We vet our service providers to ensure they are using similar measures, so our clients are protected.

WILLETT: We have developed an entire set of policies and procedures to combat cybersecurity. In fact, our regulators have even started a separate examination process specifically for IT functions due to the heightened nature of the risk posed by this aspect of our industry.

What are the benefits of working with a wealth advisor versus a robo-advisor?

WILLETT: What are the benefits of ever

having human interaction instead of talking to a machine, especially when dealing with something as important as your financial wellbeing? There simply isn’t any comparison.

A human advisor can not only answer your questions and help you design a plan tailored to your specific needs but also help you address issues you may not have even thought about.

They can provide you with real-life examples from their experience, work with your other advisors, meet and get to know your family, learn about who you are and what’s important to you, understand the nuances of the relationship and a million other things that can only come from having a relationship.

process. Most kids don’t graduate in four years and the dropout rate is increasing, so some aren’t graduating at all, which means students are taking on a lot of debt and have no degree to show for it.

We look at college as an investment in terms of how much income and loans will be used to fund it and what the student is likely to make with that degree when they graduate. Some children are being asked to make an investment the equivalent of a mortgage at age 17. We want to guide them in this process. Ultimately, we just want them to make a wise investment in education and their future.

I think it’s important to match the child with the college from a personality standpoint. Is the college too big? Do they want to be close to home? Does the college offer a broad array of majors in case the student is unsure of a career path?

We offer college assessment tests to try to determine what interests a student has, what majors might be a good fit and

TUSHINGHAM: This just depends on what the person is looking for. For someone who believes in a buy-and-hold investing strategy and seeks limited or no planning, the robo-advisor could be a sound solution. That’s why you’re seeing so many financial advisors and firms develop their own robo-advisor platforms.

Alternatively, someone looking for assistance with more complex No one likes to give money planning matters, away and that’s what happens such as tax-mitigation when a tax benefit is available, strategies,

“

so take advantage of the tax savings.

”

SUSAN WILLETT Director of Trust Services, Old North State Trust, LLC

social security optimization and latestage college planning, which we specialize in, should benefit by working with a fiduciary financial advisor.

For example, we help clients integrate their college planning and retirement planning into one strategy. Some colleges now cost over $300,000 to attend, and most families aren’t receiving the guidance they need when it comes to paying for college. Our goal is help families get their children in the right school, pay the lowest price, graduate with minimal student loans and protect their retirement assets.

College selection is the most important part of the college planning

what jobs they might want to pursue after college. We also like to match the client with a college where the child’s academics rank in the top 20 percent of the incoming freshman class. This makes the student more desirable, and the college is more likely to offer merit aid. And we want to match a child with a college based on the family financial situation.

Clients also looking for a more tactical investing approach and transition planning - someone going through a divorce, the death of a family member or sale of a business, for example - might be better off working with a fiduciary advisor, such as a certified financial planner.

People seeking financial advice should

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have options, so they can match their needs with the appropriate services.

THOMPSON: From my experience, a financial advisor can help protect a client from investment decisions based on emotion. They can ask hard questions and make the client deal with issues they would otherwise ignore. They also can recognize issues that are not strictly investment-related and help bring in professionals to ensure those issues are addressed.

As an example, I had an elderly client’s financial advisor call me because she noticed unusual withdrawals from her account. It turned out one of the client’s children was using the account for her own purposes, and we were able to address the situation before it got too out of hand. A robot-advisor would not have called me.

WINSLOW: A skilled and experienced wealth advisor will be able to offer a much more complete array of services to coordinate your wealth. Robo-advisors provide vanilla offerings that may be appropriate for very small accounts.

However, in the end, they will struggle with the new fiduciary laws, since they cannot get to know the client and coordinate with other professionals while managing income, taxes and other risks that investors face.

What advice would you give about transferring assets to future generations?

TUSHINGHAM: This depends on what you’re trying to accomplish. The new individual estate exemption is $11.2 million. That’s $22.4 million for married couples. This will dramatically reduce the number of households subject to estate tax and reduce the need for gifting as an “estate reduction” strategy.

However, many states still have a state-level estate tax. North Carolina is not one of them, fortunately. So, depending on where you live, it might still be beneficial to utilize a gifting strategy to reduce the size of your estate.

Gifting appreciated assets to people in lower tax brackets can really be an effective tax-planning strategy when done properly.

It really depends on what your goal is.

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For example, we use gifting as a strategy for college planning. So, families who will not qualify for need-based financial aid can gift appreciated assets to their children. Then, the children can sell the assets after college and use the proceeds to pay down student loans or for a down payment on a house. Additionally, the taxes paid can be substantially less when compared to the parent’s tax rate.

WINSLOW: At Nabell Winslow, we incorporate a three-legged stool approach. We believe clients need to pass on human and intellectual capital, as well as financial capital, to the next generation.

Human capital are the skills to interact with people. Having integrity and empathy, among other things, are crucial traits to pass to the next generation. Intellectual capital is education. Both formal education and real-life experience are necessary for the next generation to astutely deal with a changing world and have the leg up they will need to compete.

Last of all is financial capital, although without the first two legs of the stool, this will not matter. Access to financial capital is important. It has been said that making your first million is the hardest. Financial capital opens doors and allows for investment in opportunities that may not have been there without it. We believe if there are three strong legs to the stool, it will create the most optimal outcome.

WILLETT: Work with a trusted advisor to develop a reasonable, flexible plan. I always say plan for the worst and hope for the best, because no one can predict the future. You need flexibility to allow for both scenarios.

Great things can happen with the transfer of generational wealth, but statistics show it can also lead to the total loss of that wealth by the third generation. The advisor needs flexibility to be able to work with whatever develops in the future.

THOMPSON: More of our clients are leaving assets in trust for their children and more remote descendants, rather than making outright distributions to

them. The reasons for using a trust are compelling. A properly designed trust will be creditor-protected, be it from a divorcing spouse, a debt collector or otherwise. It also can provide controls and tax efficiencies that otherwise are not available with outright distribution.

For a beneficiary who would not need a trust but for the protections and advantages it provides, that beneficiary can be established as her own trustee.

She can be given broad discretion regarding investment and distribution decisions, as well as the right to direct any remaining trust assets upon death.

Of course, the trust can be more restrictive if circumstances warrant it.

Another consideration we discuss with clients is making lifetime gifts instead of having all assets pass at death. Smaller gifts made at an earlier point in life often are more helpful to the recipients. Plus, our clients often find a real satisfaction in witnessing the recipient enjoy the gift. Of course, working with a financial advisor to ensure you can afford the gift without impacting your lifestyle is important.

How can clients ensure their assets are used responsibly by their heirs?

WINSLOW: As noted before, clients must work on advocating for strong human characteristics and education for their heirs. That being said, circumstances do arise that create needs. We believe clients should have a competent, experienced estate planning attorney to consult and draft trusts that act as financial servants to their family when they pass.

Creating a well-thought-out estate plan is a responsibility of stewarding your assets that should not be taken lightly.

THOMPSON: In an ideal world, our clients would feel comfortable that their values regarding money and financial responsibility have been imparted on their children and grandchildren before they receive an inheritance. As a practical

HAVE SOMETHING INSIGHTFUL TO SAY?

matter though, we often use trusts to reinforce those lessons and values. Trusts terms can be flexible and custom-fit the situation.

For example, many clients create terms to provide for education and exploration at young ages and incentivize work through young-adult years, finally allowing partial and full control upon reaching certain ages or milestones.

These terms, in essence, allow you to continue the education of the younger generations even after you are gone.

WILLETT: No matter how much you trust or distrust the next generation, people do change and so does the law, so build flexibility into the plan. There are some great techniques for building incentives into plans that require beneficiaries to meet certain goals or adhere to specific guidelines to receive benefits.

Nothing will guarantee that your loved will become the person you want him or her to be, but at least these tools will provide peace of mind that your assets will be used wisely.

TUSHINGHAM: I think it starts with financial literacy. I’m a big proponent of financial literacy and educating children at a young age on some of the basics of sound financial planning. This includes investing early, minimizing debt and utilizing tax-deferred accounts, to name a few.

The more informed children are at a young age, the more likely they are to make sound financial decisions later in life, such as choosing the right college and minimizing student loans.

For 100-percent assurance, families can always establish trust accounts that dictate when children can access money, how much they can access and for what purpose. So, utilizing financial literacy and trust accounts in concert will be the best choice for some clients.

What are your top three tips to investors for managing their portfolio in 2018?

WILLETT: Diversify - same advice in 2018 as always!

Be timely. Don’t be a market timer, but don’t wait for things to happen; be proactive.

Manage cash. Interest rates are creeping up, but there are some pockets of opportunity out there for good cash returns. We have an excellent one at Old North State Trust, so take advantage of ones when you find them.

TUSHINGHAM: Our investment philosophy is predicated on protecting principle and avoiding major drawdowns in portfolios.

That said, our recommendations are based on risk management. So, number one would be to focus on your asset allocation. I think most people are taking more risks than they think they are. Asset allocation means spreading your wealth across different assets, like stocks, bonds, cash, real estate and commodities. Avoid going “all in” in one asset class and adopt an allocation that will help you get through the next correction.

Second, use proper position sizing.

This means that within each asset class, make sure you’re taking equal risk in all your investments. By risk, we mean the volatility of each investment. Some investments go up and down more than others. For example, you shouldn’t be investing the same amount of dollars in a small technology company when compared to a Blue-chip stock.

Third, have an exit strategy. We utilize stop losses on most investments. When a certain investment hits a set price target, based on its historic volatility, we generally sell and reallocate the proceeds.

It’s just another way we manage risk. It’s a sound risk management process that takes all the emotion out of investing.

The last thing you want to do is invest with emotion.

WINSLOW: Review your cash and income strategy. Knowing your income and cash is secure for the next six to 18 months will make you a better investor.

If that means taking some gains to replenish your emergency fund, do it.

We believe that when you know your bills are paid, you can probably better

UPCOMING INSIGHTFUL DISCUSSIONS: For more info, contact Melissa Pressley: (910) 343-8600 x203

NOVEMBER 16, 2018

DECEMBER 14, 2018

JANUARY 4, 2019

HUMAN RESOURCES

TECH TRENDS FOR 2019

TAXES & ACCOUNTING

FEBRUARY 1, 2019

FEBRUARY 15, 2019

APRIL 5, 2019

CYBER SECURITY

WEALTH MANAGEMENT

LAW

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September 21 - October 4, 2018

Greater Wilmington Business Journal

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REAL ESTATE

Investing in affordable housing

BY CECE NUNN recent high-dollar deal in Wilmington represents not only a little more affordable housing in the city but also a good investment for the buyer, a broker said recently.

Eighty-three downtown Wilmington historical dwellings, which contain 93 rental units, changed hands in August for the second time in a little over two years.

Tom Cruz and John Lewis of TJ Real Estate Holdings LLC purchased the portfolio of rental units, along with a small amount of unused land, from members of the Olson family for $6.3 million with the intent to improve the properties and hang on to the portfolio as a long-term investment. At the same time, the owners have been working to increase the number of the rentals that are available to people who participate in a housing voucher program.

Broker Sharon Cushing of Coldwell Banker Commercial Sun Coast

A

PHOTOS C/O JEFF HOVIS

Sprucing up: Crews worked were working before Hurricane Florence to make improvements to rental homes (shown in before and after photos from left to right in first two photos) in downtown Wilmington that investors recently purchased.

Partners represented the Olsons in the sale, and Jeff Hovis, a broker and Realtor with Intracoastal Realty, represented TJ Real Estate Holdings.

“They can provide a product that they know has clients that need it,” Hovis said of the buyers. “People can afford to live in these homes that are

centrally located and close to public transportation … They’re in it for the business, but they see that providing this kind of service is something that has a conservative income stream.”

A majority of the homes in the TJ Holdings downtown Wilmington portfolio are located between Sev-

enth and 17th streets and are two- to five-bedroom houses, mainly built between 1910 and 1925.

At the time of the sale, 10 percent of the homes were available to tenants using the Housing Choice Voucher Program, previously called Section 8.

“We’re going to be increasing that probably close to 30 percent,” working with the Wilmington Housing Authority, Cruz said in August.

The federal voucher program enables private landlords to rent apartments and homes to qualified lower-income tenants.

“There’s a huge waiting list,” said Cruz, who also had 50 rental properties of his own before the August purchase, mainly in downtown Wilmington.

“A lot of these houses that I buy, you can tell previous landlords are just not taking care of them, so that’s our big thing … We would want to live there before we rent it out to anybody,” Cruz said. “It’s a long-term

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September 21- October 4, 2018

Page 23

| REAL ESTATE | investment for me and my partner.

That’s why we’re in the process of renovating so many units, to get them to where we would want to live in them.”

The deal involved a lot of moving parts, including providing research about the need for such rentals in Wilmington, keeping existing leases and tenants in place, connecting the buyer to Wilmington Housing Authority officials who could explain the voucher program and appraisals and inspections for each dwelling, Hovis said.

Hovis was on the board of the Wilmington Housing Authority for nine years, serving as chairman for two years. Before moving to Wilmington, Hovis worked for the National Corporation of Housing Partnerships, a private owner of affordable and conventional housing.

The Wilmington City Council recently adopted financing revisions to its Homeownership Opportunities Program (HOP) because only a small percentage of the 120 potential buyers who completed the program’s education portion, and who were prequalified, were able to purchase a house.

“Unfortunately, these eager home-

buyers have not been able to find a home that is affordable within the City limits. Of the eligible HOP borrowers, only seven closed on a home loan,” wrote City Manager Sterling Cheatham in the resolution on the changes approved Aug. 21.

He cited Cape Fear Realtors data that has been recording rising home prices in the area.

“The existing HOP guidelines allow for a maximum loan amount of $185,000 for existing homes,” Cheatham wrote. “The average sales price of an existing home in New Hanover County was $337,894 for the period January-June 2018; for that same period the average sales price for a condo/townhome was $243,847.”

The HOP program is available on a one-time basis to borrowers purchasing homes within the corporate limits of the city as their primary residence, according to city documents.

Also on Sept. 4, the City Council adopted a resolution improving incentives for the city’s Rental Rehabilitation Incentive Loan Program (RRIL), which “provides loans to developers, investors, nonprofits or those entities who could build on vacant in-fill lots or rehabilitate exist-

ing vacant units,” a city news release said.

Some property owners and affordable housing advocates say that private investment and public-private partnerships are critical to provide more affordable housing in Wilmington and beyond, with the definition of “affordable” being a housing payment and other expense associated with housing being less than 30 percent of a household’s income.

“I think affordable housing will be best solved with private investment into the area combined with public partnerships,” Cruz said in an email.

“I think this is the case because the demand for affordable housing is higher than the demand for luxury $2,500/month apartments on the river.

“The investors that are doing private large-scale development in Wilmington are looking for the high-income tenants with disposable income. So that leaves investors like me that want to purchase entry-level homes, renovate them so they are desirable, and then have a steady stream of qualified tenants from the voucher program to occupy them quickly.

“Our goal is to acquire hundreds of homes in New Hanover County

that we will renovate and offer to the private market and supplement with Section 8.”

Cruz said his rental rates vary greatly, from $700 for a one-bedroom unit in a quad building to $1,400 for a four-bedroom, 1,500-square-foot house downtown.

He said some potential investors have misconceptions about voucher program participants.

“I have found that some of the best tenants come from the voucher program, and I rarely have issues with damages/evictions. This is especially beneficial because the team at the Wilmington Housing Authority does an amazing job of providing landlords with guaranteed direct deposit payments, a list of pre-screened (criminal checks) tenants that are ready to move in, and resources if you have any issues,” Cruz said.

Hovis said another benefit of the TJ Holdings purchase is that it’s not a case where the buyer plans to knock down homes in favor of dwellings that would fetch higher prices and be out of the “affordable” range for many, Hovis said.

“This is stabilizing the neighborhood,” he said. “And I think that’s important.”

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| BIZ LEADS | 219 Station Road, Suite 202 Wilmington, NC 28405 (910) 343-8600 Fax: (910) 343-8660 www.wilmingtonbiz.com PUBLISHER Rob Kaiser rkaiser@wilmingtonbiz.com PRESIDENT Robert Preville rpreville@wilmingtonbiz.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Judy Budd jbudd@wilmingtonbiz.com EDITOR Vicky Janowski vjanowski@wilmingtonbiz.com ASSISTANT EDITOR Cece Nunn cnunn@wilmingtonbiz.com REPORTER Christina Haley O’Neal chaley@wilmingtonbiz.com VP OF SALES/BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Melissa Pressley mpressley@wilmingtonbiz.com SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Craig Snow csnow@wilmingtonbiz.com ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Polly Holly pholly@wilmingtonbiz.com Lynn Murphy lmurphy@wilmingtonbiz.com BUSINESS MANAGER Nancy Lee Proper nproper@wilmingtonbiz.com

KEN

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ADVERTISING For advertising information and rates, call (910) 343-8600 x203 © Copyright 2018 SAJ Media LLC

Reader’s Guide BizLeads is a collection of information gathered from greater Wilmington courthouses, state government offices and informational websites. These listings are intended to help the business community find new customers and stay on top of happenings with current customers, vendors and competitors.

New Corporations lists firms that were recently incorporated in the state of North Carolina. All information is gathered from the North Carolina Secretary of State website. Addresses listed may not be the actual address of the business.

Building Permits are issued by area Building Departments.

NEW CORPS Sept. 1-11

717 MARKET STREET LLC 302 N Lumina Avenue Wrightsville Beach 28480 Agent: Robert Rosenberg ACE OF TOPSAIL ISLAND LLC 16191 US Hwy 17

Hampstead 28443 Agent: Mark I. Nunalee AI BRIDGE LLC 1132 Arboretum Dr Wilmington 28405 Agent: Joseph Carl Masi Jr AIRPRO HEATING & AIR CONDITIONING OF COASTAL CAROLINA LLC 217 E. Henry St Atkinson 28421 Agent: Carl H Royal

ATSC SOLUTIONS LLC 6023 Larson Place Wilmington 28403 Agent: Mark Jeffrey Williams BHIBS LLC 313 Walnut Street #101 Wilmington 28401 Agent: Aaron D. Lindquist BLUE PARADISE CUSTOM HOMES INC. 901 East Beach Dr Oak Island 28465 Agent: Gary Weiker BOON TIDE LLC 1340 Marsh Line Court Shallotte 28470 Agent: Jennifer Mooney Coleman BUCKER LLC 5078 Killogren Way Leland 28451 Agent: Beth Klingbeil Bucker C & C MEDICAL ACQUISITIONS LLC 107 Vella lane Wilmington 28411 Agent: Jonathan S. Crane CAMPBELL’S TREE SERVICE LLC 61 Pap’s Point Rocky Point 28457 Agent: Stephen A Campbell CAPE FEAR

ACQUISITIONS INC. 1 Stone Street Wrightsville Beach 28480 Agent: Frederick Evan Barton

Agent: Arthur Robbins COASTAL PLAINS TIMBER LLC 8620 River Road Wilmington 28412 Agent: Michelle Carlisle

CAPE FEAR MEDICAL BILLING LLC 204 Peninsula Drive Carolina Beach 28428 Agent: Terry Wyckoff

COMPUTER GURUS LLC 6412 Beach Drive SW Ocean Isle Beach 28469 Agent: Shane E. Petersen

CAROLINA POND & STORMWATER INC. 10206 Hawkeswater Blvd Leland 28451 Agent: Gary Scott Blevins

CORAL VENTURES LLC 301B Coral Drive Wrightsville Beach 28480 Agent: Benjamin R Rhodes

CAROLINA’S FRAMING LLC 4405 Jay Bird Cir Unit 105 Wilmington 28412 Agent: Julian Resendez

CROWN JEWEL PROPERTY GROUP LLC 3806 Providence Ct Wilmington 28412 Agent: Richard Garrigan

CASTLE AND MAIN TRAVEL COMPANY L.L.C. 5014 Dockside Drive Wilmington 28409 Agent: Meredith C Holland CJAZ LLC 510 Majestys Ct. Southport 28461 Agent: James D Robertson CLEAN AIR ENVIRONMENT LLC 3270 Holden Beach Rd Supply 28462

CUT ABOVE RENOVATIONS L.L.C. 433 Darlington Avenue #306 Wilmington 28403 Agent: Daniel D. Mahn DIGITAL BATH LLC 7105 Crabwalk Court Wilmington 28405 Agent: Julie L. Canoutas DOWN TO A TEE LLC 4709 Shaw Drive Wilmington 28411 Agent: Nikia McKoy DRH MEDIA AND ACTIVATION INC. 5000 Crosswinds Dr Wilmington 28409 Agent: Regina Consoli DUCLOS CONSULTING & MANAGEMENT LLC 26 Boundaryline Drive NW Unit F Calabash 28467 Agent: Keith F. Duclos E S SOLUTIONS INCORPORATED 6708 River Rd Wilmington 28412 Agent: Richard E. Wilkins EASTCOAST MOBILE WELDING AND FABRICATION INC. 402 Endicott Court Wilmington 28411 Agent: Christopher Wood ELBOW GREASE VINTIQUES LLC 3019 Valderama Way SE Bolivia 28422 Agent: Wanza L. Wiley ELREM PROPERTIES LLC 2187 ARNOLD PALMER DR. Shallotte 28470 Agent: Merle S. Purvis EVELYN’S BIRDS OF A FEATHER INC 5021 Pender Road Shallotte 28470 Agent: Angela W. Settlemyre EXTERIOR SOLUTIONS & HANDYMAN SERVICES LLC 4629 Branton Rd Wilmington 28405 Agent: Adam J Fuson FORTUNA PROPERTIES

LLC 1270 Whiteville Rd NW Shallotte 28470 Agent: Kathleen Fortuna GOING NATIVE GARDENS LLC 6117 Sweet Gum Hollow Rd Wilmington 28409 Agent: Joyce Huguelet GOOD HANDS INTERPRETING L.L.C. 1319 Military Cutoff Rd Wilmington 28405 Agent: Joey A Malott GRAYSON H. CHEEK PLLC 1224 Country Club Road Wilmington 28403 Agent: Grayson H. Cheek H AND L LAND HOLDINGS LLC 1200 North Lumina Ave Wrightsville Beach 28480 Agent: Hunter A Tiblier HEMP 12 LLC 5209 Gate Post Ln Wilmington 28412 Agent: Candy Hug HOME HELPERS GROUP INC. 12490 SW 20th Street Davie 33325 Agent: Jorge Fernandez HYDRA INVESTMENTS SDIRA LLC 8209 Sage Valley Drive Wilmington 28411 Agent: Andrew J Vamvakias ICONIC GRILLE WORKS LLC 605 I Ave Kure Beach 28449 Agent: Shanna Hudson ILM RENTALS LLC 3905 Oleander Dr Ste 3 Wilmington 28403 Agent: Samuel H Pate J AND M LLC 5202 Old Garden Road Wilmington 28403 Agent: Connie Gattis JACKSONVILLE AUTOMOTIVE GROUP LLC 2406 N Marine Blvd Jacksonville 28546 Agent: Mary Margaret Latham JJSC LLC 6124 Seagrove Ct Wilmington 28412 Agent: John Monaco JWB KHB RENTALS L.L.C. 1001 Military Cutoff Rd Ste 204 Wilmington 28405 Agent: Brandon M. Colby KAN JU CURRY HOUSE INC. 4152 Breezewood Dr. Wilmington 28412 Agent: Kelly Toms LATEGANO ENTERPRISES INC. 42 Angel Oaks Ct Hampstead 28443 Agent: Jamie A Lategano

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2018 Women to Watch FRIDAY

October 12 5:30 to 10pm Hotel Ballast Food | Drinks | Dancing Live Music by Lunar Tide

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September 21 - October 4, 2018

A TRANE IS RIGOROUSLY TESTED TO LOVE OCEAN AIR AS MUCH AS YOU DO.

RESTAURANT ROUNDUP

BUSINESS OF LIFE

This is a sampling of stories from the Business Journal’s weekly Restaurant Roundup email.

Subscribe at wilmingtonbiz.com.

Osteria Cicchetti in Monkey Junction closes

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For all of your commercial real estate needs in Brunswick County SHALLOTTE OFFICE BUILDING FOR SALE Office Building for Sale in the Town of Shallotte, NC. This 3,336 SF building features a waiting room, greeting area, library, kitchen, conference room, storage area, six individual offices and an open area that could be used for Administrative Duties. $289,000.00 Call Wayne Durham (910) 612-2007

SUNSET COMMONS SHOPPING CENTER SPACE FOR LEASE IN OCEAN ISLE BEACH Under New Ownership and Competitively Priced to Lease, the Sunset Commons Shopping Center offers restaurant, retail and professional services space from 1,400 SF to 3,200 SF. Serving the high net worth populations of Shallotte, Ocean Isle Beach, Sunset Beach, Calabash and Carolina Shores. Starting at $9 PSF Call Kelly Stuart (910) 393-7275

TWO RARE SHOPPING CENTER OR COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES 22.4 Acres on Highway 17 & Thomasboro Rd in Calabash, and 26 Acres on Highway 17 near Highway 904 in Ocean Isle Beach. Both properties are minutes from the NC/SC line, yet miles from significant commercial development. These sites draw from four of the top five of the Wilmington Region’s Wealthiest Zip Codes by Population.

Call David Stuart (910) 368-1187

PRIME MEDICAL SPACE FOR LEASE 4,429 SF Fully up-fitted medical space located in Oceanside Plaza in Ocean Isle Beach, NC. Great tenant mix, ample parking, and high exposure. $12.50 PSF. Call Chris Bryan (910) 443-1189

PREMIUM MEMBER

After five years, the Osteria Cicchetti restaurant location in Monkey Junction has closed, and another restaurant is expected to open under new ownership.

The restaurant at 5104 S. College Road, which was opened by Circa Restaurant Group owner Ash Aziz in a building that previously housed an O’Charley’s, served its last meal as Osteria Cicchetti in Monkey Junction on Sept. 8.

The owners of King Neptune’s restaurant in Wrightsville Beach, Danny and Earl McPherson, are expected to buy the business, with more details anticipated soon about their concept for the location and reopening timeline.

Aziz said that with five other restaurants in operation in Wilmington and another planned downtown, his own plate has been full and it was time to lighten his load.

“It’s been a very good run for us, but it’s been five years, and the opportunity came up” to sell, Aziz said.

His other restaurants are Circa 1922, Boca Bay, Brasserie du Soleil, Osteria Cicchetti in The Forum on Military Cutoff Road and Pizzeria il Forno at The Pointe at Barclay. A restaurant planned for River Place, the mixed-use development replacing the Water Street Parking deck in downtown Wilmington, has not yet been named, but more details could be finalized for that new eatery, a major project for Aziz, by early next year, Aziz said.

The 6,600-square-foot Monkey Junction restaurant is expected to reopen soon under its new ownership, according to an Osteria Cicchetti in Monkey Junction Facebook post.

While the restaurant business is chaniging hands, the property is owned by ZP No. 116 LLC, a Zimmer family company.

-Cece Nunn

RiverLights gains bar, bottle shop Marina Village at RiverLights is home to a new bar and bottle shop, Southern Shores Craft Beer & Wine.

Owners Josh Lacy, Nathan Baird and Caitlin Pyatt say they look forward to providing a space for residents and visitors to gather at RiverLights.

Lacy said the idea was to create a hybrid between a bar and a bottle shop, both a place to hang out and a place to stop in and grab a bottle of wine or a six pack on the way home or on the way out to enjoy the sunset along the river.

Southern Shores carries an extensive selection of North Carolina craft brews, and has several locally brewed beers on tap. In addition to beer and wine, Southern Shores also offers a full bar and several televisions for game watching. Lacy said that he is working with Tammy Tilghman of neighboring Magnolia Social Café to create a menu designed specifically for Southern Shores guests.

Southern Shores has a large, 34seat bar with a lounge area, as well as outdoor seating.

Southern Shores is currently open Monday-Thursday from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. Weekend hours are noon to 12 a.m.

-Jessica Maurer

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September 21- October 4, 2018

Page 27

| BUSINESS OF LIFE | Love, Lydia Bakery moves in

BY JOHANNA CANO alking into Love, Lydia Bakery and Café you will find traditional, staple baked goods such as rich coffee cake and big, salted chocolate chip cookies along with intriguing new twists such as tahini cookies and lavender-infused shortbread cookies dipped in chocolate.

The bakery was dreamed up by Lydia Clopton, pastry chef at PinPoint Restaurant.

“It is just something that I’ve always loved doing, and I’ve been looking for several years for somewhere to open one, but this property came up and just felt right,” said Clopton.

She opened Love, Lydia in July at 1502 South Third St. The location was previously a home that was remodeled into the bakery.

There is an inside seating area as well as an outside porch with tables and rocking chairs.

Clopton decided to open the bakery at South Front Street because she sensed it could fill a void.

“I just felt like this area really needed a coffee shop and breakfast and lunch spot,” Clopton said. “I knew that there was going to be a lot of growth in this area, and I was excited to be part of that.”

Clopton grew up in Athens, Georgia, where she figured out she wanted to be a pastry chef soon after college.

“I graduated from college, and I was baking a lot as a hobby and I got a job at a restaurant baking and decided that’s what I wanted to do,” Clopton said. “I have always loved doing it.”

Athens is where she waited out Hurricane Florence. From away, she said, it seemed like the bakery fared OK in the storm.

“Whenever we do get up and running it will probably be mostly coffee and some limited pastries,” she said.

“From photos I’ve seen, the bakery doesn’t even look like it has a hair out of place. I’m very anxious to get back and get up and running as soon as possible.”

Clopton has an extensive background in restaurants. She worked at Five & Ten restaurant in Athens where she learned to use high-quality ingredients.

She then perfected her cake-making skills at Ike & Jane Café and Bakery, also in Georgia.

Clopton moved to Asheville where she helped open Nightbell, a restau-

T

RESTAURANT R O UND UP

PHOTO BY MEGAN DEITZ

Baker’s dozen: Pastry chef Lydia Clopton opened Love, Lydia Bakery this summer as part of the growing South Front district.

rant with modern American cuisine.

She also made pies for The Thunderbird, a pop-up restaurant.

Clopton moved to Wilmington in 2015 when she became the pastry chef at PinPoint Restaurant, which is co-owned by her fiancé and executive chef, Dean Neff, and manager Jeff Duckworth.

The knowledge Clopton garnered all those years can be seen in the new bakery, where everything is made from scratch, and the options include a mix of traditional American pastries along with daily selections like French canelés and Italian focaccia.

“I’ve worked in restaurants for a really long time as a pastry chef, so I’m kind of maybe a little bit more adventurous with flavors and things like that,” Clopton said.

At the bakery, patrons can expect a selection of sweets – what goes in the pastry case is based on what Clopton feels like making that day.

“There’s a lot of things in the case that I’ve just been making for a long time and also some new things,” Clopton said. “We try out seasonal things. We’re constantly going to be adding and changing what’s in the case.”

With the bakery opening, Clopton has had changes in her daily working routine.

PHOTO BY ANDREW SHERMAN C/O LOVE, LYDIA

Restoration work: The bakery opened in former house on South Third Street that was gutted and underwent extensive renovations.

“I haven’t really been at PinPoint a whole lot. I haven’t really had much time unfortunately,” she said. “My fiancé is the chef and co-owner, so we used to work together twenty-four hours a day, and so now we don’t see each other as much, so that has been a big change.”

Clopton has been busy at the bakery, spending most of her time working.

“I mostly just work all the time. I haven’t figured that out yet, but I’m working on it,” she said.

All her hard work has been paying

off, and she says the bakery has been well received by customers.

“It’s been really fun meeting with people that live around here. They kind of slowly stop by saying hi. It’s been good,” Clopton said. “It’s mostly been pretty, pretty busy.”

Clopton is currently working on getting more items on the breakfast and lunch menu and wants customers to enjoy visiting the bakery.

“I hope that they kind of feel at home here and comfortable and want to hang out for long periods of time and come back,” she said.

Page 28

Greater Wilmington Business Journal

wilmingtonbiz.com

September 21 - October 4, 2018

OCTOBER

The Coalition Calendar is a Monthly Roundup of Events for Small Businesses and Entrepreneurs in the Wilmington Region

sponsored by:

2

8-11Am: Are you looking for your first new hire and not sure where to start? Do you want to add to your existing team but can’t find the right local talent? This open discussion of the hiring process will cover topics, such as: writing an effective job description; how and where to find talent; reviewing resumes; interviewing; and competitive pay scales. Speaker: Corey Lewis, President of Cape Fear Jobs. Location: UNCW Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, 803 S. College Road in Wilmington. Investment: Free for members; $15 for nonmembers. More info: uncw. edu/cie/events

4

TH UNDERSTANDING THE FARMING

MARKET & CUSTOMERS

5:30-8:30pm: In this latest installment of the eightweek “Farm School,” discover how to find your niche, business concept and opportunity, as well as fine-tune your value proposition and determine the best customers for your business. Dinner will be provided.

Speaker: Robert Woodard, Next Right Decision.

Location: Cape Fear Community College’s Burgaw campus, Building B-110, 100 E. Industrial Drive in Burgaw. Investment: Free. More info: cfcc.edu/sbc

10

11

TH CAN CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT

ND THE HIRING PROCESS

TH BUILDING RESTAURANT

PROFITABILITY

6-9pm: Is your prime cost – total food and labor costs – more than 50 percent of your net sales? In this seminar, restaurant owners and managers can learn important techniques for improving their prime costs. Speaker: Scott Armstrong. Location: Brunswick Community College, Building B, Room 105, 50 College Road in Bolivia. Investment: Free.

More info: www.brunswickcc.edu/continuingeducation/small-business-center

INCREASE PROFITS?

1-2pm: The key to a successful business is customers.

Yet, new and growing businesses on a budget may struggle to find the best way to engage customers.

This webinar will cover: how to establish a strong digital presence; using content to attract and engage customers; and tools and tips for converting online customer engagement into money. Speaker: Kristie Arslan of the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council. Location: Cape Fear Community College, Union Station, Room U-527, 502 N. Front St. in Wilmington.

Investment: Online. More info: capefear.score.org

16

TH MANAGING ONLINE PRESENCE

VIA SMART PHONE

2-3:30pm: This Small Business and Technology Development Center workshop will help you elevate your business’s Internet presence, branding and sales from their phones. Participants will get tips on improving how customers and media partners find and learn about your business, including advice on making videos using a phone. Speaker: Toya Wilson, CEO of NexGeneration Digital Marketing Inc. Location: UNCW Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, 803 S. College Road in Wilmington. Investment: Free. More info: uncw.edu/cie/events

17

TH ABCS OF SMALL BUSINESS

MANAGEMENT

5-7pm: This course, sponsored by the Small Business Administration, is geared toward startup or small business owners still seeking the basics of how to start, market, manage and grow. Discussion will include: elements of the business plan; putting the plan to work and assessing results; developing the marketing plan; conducting a needs assessment; types of legal structure; strategic small business investment strategies; and developing effective customer outreach initiatives. Speaker: Don Spry, Senior Area Manager of the U.S. Small Business Administration. Location: Brunswick Community College, Building B, Room 105, 50 College Road in Bolivia.

Investment: Free. More info: www.brunswickcc.edu/ continuing-education/small-business-center

18

TH

STRATEGIC SMALL BUSINESS GROWTH

1-2pm: To grow your business successfully, you need to coordinate several moving parts into one smooth machine. In this webinar, participants will get a 360-degree view of key aspects to consider and the necessary steps for developing a growth plan. Highlights will include: the different kinds of growth paths; important elements of any growth strategy; determining internal and external readiness for growth; and emotionally preparing for changing roles and responsibilities. Speaker: Sandra Holtzman, Chief Strategy Officer of Marketing Cures. Location: Online. Investment: Free. More info: capefear.score.org

23

RD DYNAMITE MARKETING ON

A FIRECRACKER BUDGET

2-5pm: Learn more than 50 ways to pique the interest of potential customers, as well as attract new ones and reinforce relationships with current ones. Among other topics, this session will highlight: creating a simple, winning marketing plan; and stretching $100 into a marketing success; getting free media exposure.

Speaker: Mike Collins. Location: Cape Fear Community College, Union Station, Room U-529, 502 N. Front St. in Wilmington. Investment: Free. More info: cfcc.edu/sbc

26

TH SOUND BUSINESS SYSTEMS

AND STRUCTURES

4:30-6Am: This workshop for existing business owners will define structure and highlight how it not only impacts daily operations but also a business’s ability to sustain and grow. Learn the critical areas in creating systems and structures for your business. Topics will include structures for marketing, sales, operations and finance, as well as working with contractors and vendors. Location: UNCW Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, 803 S. College Road in Wilmington.

Investment: Free for members; $15 for nonmembers.

More info: uncw.edu/cie/events

THE COALITION MEMBERS