Louisiana s nickname is Sportsman s Paradise, not only because of the affinity locals here have for hunting, fishing and water sports, but because of the lush natural landscape and warm climate that make those sports possible It s the same factors that have given birth to two local entrepreneurs. Edward Daniel is the owner of Daniel Outdoors. It s an online company that sells hunting, fishing and shooting products over the internet. The company s success, up against giants like Amazon and other ...
Sep 09, 2016•29 min
Our Cajun Creole heritage in south Louisiana is famous all over the world. People come here for food, music, and historic architecture they can t get anywhere else. And for those who can t get here, or who want a taste of Louisiana once they get back home, we have some crafty entrepreneurs who have figured out how to capture our local culture, bottle it or box it and export it to folks outside Louisiana. Troy Primeaux is the co owner of Primo s Peppers. It s a company that grows several varietie...
Aug 26, 2016•29 min
We all know the internet and the many mobile platforms it has given birth to are changing the way we do business. Still, it s always amazing to learn about some new company or tech start up that is using the latest technology to solve a problem that you didn t even know existed. Stephanie s guests on this episode of Out to Lunch include two Baton Rouge companies that are doing just that. Courtney Sparkman s company, OfficerReports.com, creates affordable and easy to use software that helps secur...
Aug 19, 2016•29 min
When it comes to high tech innovations, sometimes it s not so much a matter of what a new technology can make happen, it s what it can prevent from happening. Today, we have two guests whose companies have come up with innovations that have exciting applications in preventing real world destruction by things like corrosion and fire. Plank Road Technologies is a joint venture that is not based on Plank Road. It s actually located in the LSU Innovation Park business incubator. Plank Road Technolog...
Aug 12, 2016•29 min
Someone famously said that travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer. While travel can be very expensive, no one can deny that getting out and exploring new lands enhances the human experience and does, indeed, enrich the soul. It can also enrich those who make a living in the travel industry. The travel industry has changed a lot over the last 20 years, as the Internet has diminished the need for traditional travel agents. But the digital economy has also opened up all sorts of new...
Jul 29, 2016•29 min
As the way we do business evolves over time, so do the tools we use. Today, products and services that didn t exist 20 or 30 years ago are indispensable parts of our companies and commerce. That s particularly true in the digital economy. "Word of mouth" has a whole new meaning. And power. Like, for example, Yelp. Yelp is the go to public forum for online reviews, recommendations, and warnings about thousands of business in dozens of categories in cities throughout the U.S. The service was found...
Jul 22, 2016•29 min
Did you ever wonder who scored that perfect 100th percentile on the A.C.T. Meet Craig Gehring. Craig is a Baton Rouge native who got a perfect score on his ACT and has turned his genius, test taking ability into one of the fastest growing companies in the area. Mastery Prep started out preparing individual students for the ACT and in just a few short years it has created an entire brand of test prep materials for a variety of standardized tests that is being used in school districts across the c...
Jul 08, 2016•29 min
Baton Rouge may not be the first place you think of in connection with high fashion. But there s one notable exception Haspel. It s the company that invented the seersucker suit more than a century ago. Today Haspel continues to redefine that classic staple of the southern wardrobe, while also designing some of the trendiest and most sought after looks for fashion conscious gentlemen. Laurie Aaronson is President of Haspel, and the granddaughter of the company s founder, Joseph Haspel. While Has...
Jul 01, 2016•29 min
Fifteen years ago, no had heard of an app. They didn t exist. Today, there are more than 1.6 million of them available to download on your smart phone or tablet. And new ones are being designed every day. Apps are an integral part of commerce and communication in our digital age, and here in Baton Rouge we have companies not only using cutting edge apps to improve their business, but designing them as well. Amy Phillips is Creative Director at Teknarus, a full service technology company located ...
Jun 24, 2016•29 min
Nearly 50 of Louisiana s land mass is covered by forest. That s a whopping 14 million acres of tress. And these tress aren t just sitting there beautifying the countryside, they re hard at work. The forestry industry in Louisiana is the state s second largest employer. And there s a huge private sector in the world of woods as well. Warren Peters has built a career around tending to Louisiana s forest lands. His 20 year old company, Peters Forest Resources, provides all phases of forest manageme...
Jun 17, 2016•29 min
In South Louisiana folks often say we we don t eat to live, we live to eat. Stephanie s guests on this edition of Out to Lunch have taken that Louisiana passion for food and turned it into business enterprises. Ryan McNeil is the founder and co owner of Fresh Kitchen, a growing company that sells freshly prepared, prepackaged and healthful meals from two Baton Rouge locations. Fresh Kitchen has only been in business for a little over one year and already it is expanding, with plans to open still...
Jun 10, 2016•29 min
Sight, sound and tatse are three of our five senses. They re also the raison d ewtre of three very different Baton Rouge businesses. SoundIf you spent any time by the pool or at the beach this summer you might have encountered products made by Audio Bomb. The Baton Rouge company makes portable, waterproof, inexpensive, audio equipment. And it keeps coming out with ever cooler products in ever ever cuter little packages. They re even diversifying into an interesting sector tech loaded non electro...
Jun 03, 2016•29 min
We may have heat and mosquitos in Baton Rouge, but we re also blessed to have beautiful surroundings and lush greenery everywhere. Much of the old growth and verdant landscaping is a natural part of the flora and fauna here in south Louisiana, but much of it is cultivated through hard work and attention to detail. Mitch Mayes is the owner of Louisiana Nursery, which was established by Mitch s father more than 33 years ago and today has three thriving locations around Baton Rouge. Louisiana Nurse...
May 27, 2016•29 min
Baton Rouge has a bustling economy and plenty of entrepreneurs with great ideas, but baton Rouge doesn t have an ecosystem for entrepreneurs. Whether it s a culture, a lack of capital, or a little of both, Stephanie s guets on Out to Lunch each have a unique perspective on what it will take to build a better ecosystem for entrepreneurs. Byron Clayton is President and CEO of the Research Park Corporation, which created and operates the Louisiana Technology Park, a business incubator here in Baton...
May 06, 2016•29 min
Hansel Harlan has taken the hook fanged scourge of Louisiana s disappearing wetlands and turned it into a dog s best friend. Hansel is the co founder of Marsh Dog, creators of doggy treats in the form of biscuits and jerky, made out of nutria. If you think giving your dog nutria treats is a little unusual, meet Niki Hansen. Niki can give your pet a lot more than a unique dog biscuit. Niki is the founder of a company with an almost accurate name, Impossible Innovations, that makes what she calls ...
Apr 29, 2016•29 min
One thing you hear a lot from people who come to Baton Rouge after having been a way for awhile is how different it is. How much the city has grown, improved, and special mention is most often made about the rebirth of downtown and revitalization in other up and coming neighborhoods. All this redevelopment didn t happen by accident. There has been a lot of planning over the past 25 years to bring not only downtown, but areas like Mid City, the Perkins Road overpass area, and Old Goodwood back to...
Apr 22, 2016•29 min
Whether you live in Baton Rouge, work in Baton Rouge or just pass through Baton Rouge every now and then, you have experienced the Capital Region s notorious gridlock. Baton Rouge ranks among the very worst mid sized cities in the nation for traffic congestion. Business leaders last year in a Chamber survey listed traffic as the single biggest problem facing Baton Rouge. The issue commanded a lot of attention last year during the governor s race and there has been a lot of talk about what could ...
Apr 15, 2016•29 min
In the age of Internet shopping, retail is an increasingly difficult way to make a living. When shoppers don t care if you re local and, no matter where they live, want current fashion and accessories at a fair price, how does a local business compete Scott Berg says it starts with service. Scott has other strategies too, and proven successes to back them up. Scott is Baton Rouge Market President of Lee Michaels Fine Jewelry including a Pandora franchise in the Mall of Louisiana. Scott was just ...
Apr 08, 2016•29 min
Many of us have a creative streak, or like to think we do, but for most of us it remains an outlet, a hobby. Some of us, though, have the courage and the determination to turn our creative passion into a business enterprise even if only a small one. It can be a dream come true, though it s not without its challenges. Judy Whitney Davis is a Baton Rouge native and a woman of many passions and talents, including motivational speaking and delivering singing tours of historic homes. She is one of th...
Apr 01, 2016•29 min
In 2000, an LSU engineering professor named Kevin Kelly got an idea to build compact, efficient heat exchangers that would help engines perform better. Today, Mezzo is one of the leading companies in the country in the area of micro tube heat exchanger technology, and the company s products are used in dozens of applications and across industries from aerospace to oil and gas to, believe it or not, high performance auto racing. It s not the kind of technology you think of when you think of Louis...
Mar 11, 2016•29 min
If you drive around Baton Rouge, chances are you ve had your car washed at Benny s Car Wash. The locally owned company has 14 locations around the area and is as well known for its quick oil changes and B Kwik convenience stores as it is for its automated car washes, which can be had for as little as 4. Justin Alford is a member of the third generation of the Alford family, which owns the car wash chain. Starting out way back in the 1940 s, Benny s was a world leader in the automated car wash bi...
Mar 04, 2016•29 min
South Louisiana is one of the true food capitals of the world, known for both its Creole and Cajun fare, and, more recently, it s contemporary twist on classic southern dishes. And though New Orleans often gets top billing for its famous restaurants and innovative chefs, Baton Rouge has a growing food scene that is vibrant and exciting in its own right. In fact, Baton Rouge is home to the school that trains many of the chefs that go on to top restaurants around the state and, around the country....
Feb 26, 2016•29 min
When the State created the tax incentive program in the early 2000s to attract movie and TV producers to Louisiana, the hope was to turn Louisiana into Hollywood South. 15 years later, more movie and TV shows are shot in Louisiana than in almost any other state in the country. A big chunk of those productions have been filmed in Baton Rouge, at the Celtic Media Centre. Celtic is the largest studio in the state, with seven sound stages totaling more than 150 thousand square feet over forty acres....
Feb 12, 2016•29 min
We live in a world today where content is king, everyone can be an expert on the Internet, and building your own personal brand is the secret to success in our post modern digital age. While all of that may be second nature to those who were born during the Clinton presidency, some of us need a little help. That s where Kenny Nguen and Big Fish Presentations comes in. Kenny is President and CEO of Big Fish Presentations, a Baton Rouge firm run by four entrepreneurs of the Millennial generation w...
Feb 05, 2016•29 min
If you re driving down the highway almost anywhere in this country you re likely going to see a Lamar Billboard. And while you may know that Lamar is one of Baton Rouge s biggest companies, you might not realize it s also one of the largest outdoor advertising companies in the U.S. Lamar has more than 144 thousand billboards in the US, Canada and Peurto Rico and more than 1.8 billion last year in revenue, and it all started out as a little family business in the deep south. The 4th generation of...
Jan 01, 2016•29 min
South Louisiana is famous for its seafood but can you harness our passion for poisson and turn it into a fast food fish biz, like Popeye s and Cane s have done with chicken That s what Tyler Pizzolatto is banking on. Around a year ago Tyler, whose family is steeped in the Baton Rouge fish biz, opened Crispy Catch the area s first fast causal restaurant featuring farm raised catfish in every menu item. Crispy Catch is in the Perkins Road overpass area of Baton Rouge. You might be suprprised to fi...
Dec 18, 2015•29 min
You may know about Baton Rouge s growing tech industry. What you may not know is that one of the pioneers of internet retailing is right here in the Capital Region. Shopperschoice.com was founded in 1998 and has grown from a mom and pop store selling barbeque equipment to one of the 300 biggest online retailers in the country, behind Google, Amamzon, Apple, eBay and the other household names. It s one of the 100 fastest growing companies, onn and off line, in the US. Annual revenues are heading ...
Dec 04, 2015•29 min
If you re so much as an occasional jogger around Baton Rouge you know Jenni Peters. Even if you ve never donned a pair of running shoes, you know the Varisty brand and the slogan emblazoned on the back of the t shirts that are almost a uniform around Baton Rouge Run Hard Live Easy. Jenni Peters is the creator of the brand and the company, which now has 3 stores in south Louisiana and revenues that this year will top 3 million. Back in the early 2000s, when Varsity Sports was just getting off the...
Nov 27, 2015•29 min
When it comes to entrepreneurship, you won t find many people who know more than John Elstrott. Recently retired as professor of entrepreneurship and director of the Levy Rosenblum Institute for Entrepreneurship at Tulane, John is chairman of the board of directors of Whole Foods, originator of Celestial Seasonings, and runs Elstrott, Maurer and Hunnewell, a consulting practice that advises start up businesses. John also serves on the boards of several public and private corporations as well as ...
Nov 20, 2015•29 min
When it comes to the Blues, Baton Rouge is one of the best known cities on the map. Some will even tell you the Blues were born right here in the Red Stick on the banks of the Mississippi, despite what those in the Mississippi Delta or Memphis might say. For more than four decades Stephanie s guest on Out to Lunch, Johnny Pallazotto has been a tireless promoter, producer, manager and advocate of the Baton Rouge blues scene. He has helped to shape the careers of dozens of artist, auditioned and s...
Sep 04, 2015•29 min
