Issuu

CELEBRATING

YEARS

OF HYUNDAI PRODUCTION IN ALABAMA

Q&A WITH CLEVELAND POOLE PAGE 10

MOM & BABY CENTERS IN THE SPOTLIGHT

PAGE 16

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SPEEDS UP

PAGE 32

CONTENTS

MAY 2015

COVER STORY:

MEMBER NEWS 24 Member Profile: Popcorn Pizzazz

CHAMBER NEWS 06 Calendar 26 Reporter’s Notebook 64 Business Buzz 69 Members on the Move 72 New Members 73 Ribbon Cuttings & Ground Breakings 74 Economic Intel

Hyundai celebrates 10 years of production in Montgomery.

FEATURES 10 Q&A WITH CLEVELAND POOLE Update on Region 7 Workforce Development Council 16 DELIVERING MORE COMFORT Baptist Medical Center East expands women’s services 20 A NEW WARM WELCOME Jackson Hospital renovates Mom & Baby Center 32 NEW CONCEPT, NEW NAME Montgomery Mall gets a new purpose 36 BREAKFAST, LUNCH, DINNER AND GROCERIES Cash Saver provides options for shoppers and diners

38 A NEW DAWN IN THE WEST END OF FAIRVIEW Developer invests millions in Faircourt Shopping Center 52 STILL SHINING IN THE EAST New stores and restaurants flock to EastChase and the surrounding area 56 ENGAGE. EDUCATE. INSPIRE. EMPLOY. Montgomery Public Schools readies pipeline of future workers 58 JUST WHAT DOWNTOWN ORDERED Three restaurants help revive Lower Dexter Avenue

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

THE NUMBER ONE BUSINESS SOURCE FOR MONTGOMERY AND THE RIVER REGION PUBLISHER

Randall L. George EDITORIAL

Tina McManama David Zaslawsky Lashanda Gaines Melissa Bowman DESIGN

Copperwing Design PHOTOGRAPHER

Robert Fouts ON THE COVER

Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama President and CEO JunHa Kim (front center) is joined by a handful of the companyâ€™s team members, including Rick Neal (second row, right), senior vice president of human resources and administration for HMMA. ADVERTISING

Linda Drumheller 334-240-9494 mbjsales@montgomerychamber.com

Montgomery Business Journal c/o Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce Post Office Box 79 41 Commerce Street Montgomery, Alabama 36101 Telephone: 334-834-5200 Fax: 334-265-4745 Email: mbj@montgomerychamber.com www.montgomerychamber.com/mbj The Montgomery Business Journal (USPS NO. 025553) is published monthly except for the combined issues of June/July/August and November/December, by the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce, 41 Commerce Street, Montgomery AL 36104, (334) 834-5200, www.montgomerychamber.com. Subscription rate is $30 annually. Periodicals Postage Paid at Montgomery Alabama, 36119+9998, USPS NO. 025553. Volume 7, Issue 5.

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

POSTMASTER send address changes to Montgomery Business Journal, c/o Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 79, 41 Commerce Street, Montgomery AL 36101, or email mbj@montgomerychamber.com. The Montgomery Business Journal welcomes story ideas from its readers. Email to: editor@montgomerychamber.com. Subscriptions are a part of the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce dues structure. Subscriptions can also be purchased for $30 per year at www.montgomerychamber.com/mbjsub.

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May 4 > ALABAMA UPDATE

CHAMBER NEWS

EVENTS

Presenting Sponsor: Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles P.C. 11:30 AM @ Embassy Suites Montgomery Hotel & Conference Center 300 Tallapoosa Street, Montgomery Registration: montgomerychamber. com/ALupdate

4 > BUSINESS PLANNING SEMINAR Sponsored by BWS Technologies 4 PM @ Montgomery Chamber Business Development Center 600 South Court Street, Montgomery $10 at the door

7 > CHAMBER GOLF CLASSIC Presenting Sponsor: Wynlakes Golf & Country Club 7 AM @ Wynlakes Golf & Country Club 7900 Wynlakes Boulevard, Montgomery Registration: montgomerychamber. com/golf

13 > 60 MINUTE COFFEE Sponsored by Embassy Suites Montgomery Hotel & Conference Center 8 AM @ Embassy Suites Montgomery Hotel & Conference Center 300 Tallapoosa Street, Montgomery Free event, exclusively for Chamber Members

18 > BUSINESS PLANNING SEMINAR Sponsored by BWS Technologies 4 PM @ Montgomery Chamber Business Development Center 600 South Court Street, Montgomery $10 at the door

28 > BUSINESS AFTER HOURS Sponsored by Regions Bank 5 PM @ Regions Bank 201 Monroe Street, Montgomery Free event, exclusively for Chamber Members

June 1 > BUSINESS PLANNING SEMINAR Sponsored by BWS Technologies 4 PM @ Montgomery Chamber Business Development Center 600 South Court Street, Montgomery $10 at the door

10 > 60 MINUTE COFFEE Sponsored by Walker360 8 AM @ Walker360 2501 East Fifth Street, Montgomery Free event, exclusively for Chamber Members

15 > BUSINESS PLANNING SEMINAR Sponsored by BWS Technologies 4 PM @ Montgomery Chamber Business Development Center 600 South Court Street, Montgomery $10 at the door

18 > MILITARY APPRECIATION DAY AT THE ZOO Presenting Sponsor: Guardian Credit Union @ Montgomery Zoo 2301 Coliseum Parkway Montgomery Free with Military Identification

25 > BUSINESS AFTER HOURS Sponsored by Alabama Wildlife Federation & PowerSouth Energy 5 PM @ Alabama Wildlife Federation/Lanark 3050 Lanark Road, Millbrook Free event, exclusively for Chamber Members

The Montgomery Chamber Event Calendar is at montgomerychamber.com/events 6

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

Dr. Steve Grice, Alumnus Business Professor. Father of four.

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From The Princeton Review, August 1, 2014 © 2014 TPR Education, LLC. All rights reserved. Used by permission and protected by the Copyright Laws of the United States. The printing, copying, redistribution, or retransmission of this Content without express written permission is prohibited.

CHAMBER NEWS

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT TR AINING AIDT/Montgomery Regional Workforce Training Center is offering training industries need now to meet their workforce needs.

For more information go to montgomerychamber.com/AIDTtraining

THE WORKFORCE PIPELINE Last fall, the Montgomery Chamber unveiled an unprecedented partnership linking the Alabama Community College System, Trenholm State, Montgomery Public Schools, the Alabama Region 7 Workforce Development Council and AIDT as a part of a new workforce development pipeline for Montgomery and the River Region. AIDTâ€™s plan is for the Montgomery Regional Workforce Training Center to be strategically housed as part of the new Career & Tech One Center at the former Montgomery Mall site. AIDT is already teaching classes at the Chamberâ€™s Business Development Center. Training for existing industries and the local workforce is an important part of the workforce pipeline. These Montgomery Regional Workforce Training Center class topics are based on feedback the Montgomery Chamber received from local industries on workforce development needs. Soft skills and essential workforce skills training were at the top of the list. Training is conducted by certified AIDT trainers.

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

May 12 > WORKFORCE BEHAVIORS AND CHALLENGES Training by AIDT 8:30 AM @ Montgomery Chamber Business Development Center 600 South Court Street, Montgomery Registration: montgomerychamber. com/AIDTtraining

June 17 > PUBLIC SPEAKING AND CRITICAL THINKING Training by AIDT 8:30 AM @ Montgomery Chamber Business Development Center 600 South Court Street, Montgomery Registration: montgomerychamber. com/AIDTtraining

Job Search Has Gone Social How Social Media Influences the Attraction and Recruitment of Job Candidates In the past decade, social media has gone mainstream, becoming a

While Baby Boomers are least likely to turn to social networks

powerful tool for attracting potential employees. Doing so successfully

to find a job, Millennials totally embrace the digital route. Not

requires far more than knowing whether to focus on Facebook or

surprisingly, IT workers were the most likely to find a job online,

LinkedIn and where Pinterest fits in the mix. It requires a clear

although accounting/finance, customer service and administrative

understanding of how social media connects to the attraction and

professionals also found jobs through digital sources.

recruitment of employees, because without making the right connections, social media is just another distraction to an organization

What Are Employers Doing?

focused on growth.

While greater specialization may be the secret to successful sourcing, talent attraction remains a one-size-fits-all approach for

Understanding Social Media and the Workforce

many companies. The Emerging Workforce® Study study found

For nearly 17 years, Spherion® has been exploring shifting trends

that less than half (45%) of companies utilize tailored recruitment

and changing attitudes in the American workforce. Its Emerging

strategies, despite clear preferences emerging according to age,

Workforce Study reflects the input of nearly a quarter of a million

gender and profession.

workers and hundreds of employers. According to Angela Swarts, owner of Spherion® in Montgomery, “Through our research, we have

Capitalize on the Power of Social Media

seen an overall increase in activity across the social media landscape.

Social media offers both a pipeline to a high-performance workforce

Not only has it become an increasingly popular means to identify

and a showcase for the employer brand. It can significantly enhance

opportunities, job candidates use it to research potential employers

the potential to attract stellar employees. Join the growing number of

and engage their networks for referral and reference purposes.”

smart employers who embrace social media to ensure their ability to connect with all the strong performers in the digital world who could

Reputation Reigns Supreme in Job Search

positively impact the future of the organization.

The Spherion study found that more and more, workers are taking an especially close look at a company’s online reputation. In fact, nearly

Founded in 1946, Spherion is a staffing leader with 175 offices

half said a company’s online reputation is no less important to them

nationwide. Spherion offers clients the personalized service of a local

than the job offer itself. These sentiments are particularly strong

business combined with the resources and expertise of a $2 billion

among the youngest generation of workers, and in terms of gender,

workforce leader. Local owner Angela Swarts and her staffing team

slightly stronger for women than men.

have been serving the recruiting and staffing needs of Montgomery and the River Region for more than a decade. From flexible to direct

The majority of employers surveyed by Spherion recognize the

hire, they specialize in administrative, light industrial, customer

influence of their digital brand on their ability to attract employees,

service, non-clinical healthcare and professional placements. Find

yet fewer of them have either a dedicated resource to manage

out how Spherion can help you build a high-performance workforce

their online reputation or any kind of tracking system in place to

to propel growth.

determine what that reputation is.

The Power of Social Job Search The influence of social networking in job search continues to grow. According to the Spherion research, while referrals are the number one source of job leads, 33% of job seekers found their last job though some form of online/social/digital media, including company websites, internet/job boards and online social networking.

Cleveland Poole

is the chairman

of the Region 7 Workforce Development Council. He was recently interviewed by the Montgomery Business Journalâ€™s David Zaslawsky.

Q&A PREPPING THE PIPELINE FOR SKILLED EMPLOYEES interview by David Zaslawsky photography by Robert Fouts

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

Montgomery Business Journal: What is the Regional Workforce Development Council? n Poole: The Regional Workforce Development Council is basically a tool that brings education and industry together to make sure that our education partners – K12 and community college system – are responsive to the needs of industry. So the continual flow of employees is being trained on what they need to be trained.

Big picture: What does the Workforce Development Council hope to accomplish and are there metrics to measure success? n The hope is to accomplish a better communication between industry and education.

How do you characterize Region 7 Workforce Development Council? n We are really in a rebuilding mode in our Regional Workforce Development Council. It kind of faded away for a little bit and we’re working hard to get industry to be more excited and interested in it. It’s not hard to get the educational folks to come to meetings. It’s harder to get business people to come to meetings. You have to have something there that is interesting to them and that’s useful for them that adds value. What we’re trying to do is twofold: One, is having meetings that offer content that is useful to business. The other is – at the same time – be able to show business what the education partners can offer them and put them together so they are talking, because that’s not always been the case. Traditionally in economic development it’s been a two-thrust: It’s been attracting new industry and loving up on your existing industry so they stay or expand. More recently, economic development is more of a three-pronged event, which is new industry, existing industry and workforce development.

Talk about the importance of a certification program that employers can easily access to view a job applicant’s skills. n We need to make sure that the industry-type certifications that the high schools are able to give out are recognized and appreciated for what they are by industry.

In addition to a business buy-in, you’re also talking about educating business as well. n That’s right, and at the same time from an educational point of view, you have the problem of … trying to convince the parents to put their kid in that (technical education) program and their recollection of that program is not how they view their kid. I need to educate parents, too – that these types of skills are marketable and (students) can walk right out of high school and walk straight into a job. There are a lot of kids who aren’t going to go to college. You can go straight out of high school, get a well-paying job with good benefits and have a good standard of living and raise a family.

How many members are there in Region 7? n Actual voting members is 15 and associate members

Workforce development is such a hot topic now.

25 to 30 – the educational part. They are non-voting. The (council) started as an oversight committee for funding for the community colleges. It still has that component of it, but one of the things that they just instituted is, the regional workforce council has to approve the dual enrollment programs that the community colleges have with the high schools. The Regional Workforce Development Council is looking at whether what you’re offering is high-wage, highdemand job training.

n It’s something that nobody thought about until

Which counties are in Region 7?

recently. There has never been as much of a gap between the available skills and the available needs.

n It’s six counties: Butler, Crenshaw, Lowndes,

Are you trying right now to get more of a business buy-in to the program? n Yes, that’s exactly right.

Montgomery, Autauga, Elmore. The glue that holds these six counties together is the automotive industry, especially Hyundai. But at the same time there are differences. Autauga, Elmore and Montgomery are pretty high-density, metropolitan-type areas where Butler, Lowndes, Crenshaw would be considered a lot more rural. Continued on page 12

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

Continued from page 11

What are some of the strengths and weaknesses of the overall workforce? n The major weakness across the board is work ethic or what people now call soft skills. Here’s the deal – you hire for skills; you fire for behavior. The behavioral things are work-ethic type things: Showing up late, taking too many days off, not passing a drug test. One of the problems we have is an unrealistic expectation on the part of industry to expect somebody to do something they have never been taught to do.

For some young people, there are no daily examples or positive role models. n That’s right.

them to do, they are going to get eaten up in the system in some negative way. The state has spent incredible amounts of money within the education department equipping the career technical centers with state-ofthe-art equipment to train kids on welding or industrial maintenance or nurses or whatever and then they shut down at 3 o’clock. You have this incredible investment that is not used half a day.

You’re saying those resources should be used after 3 o’clock. n That’s right, and have the school open for additional classes that are offered to people who are underemployed or unemployed so they can learn these skills and (get jobs).

“The key is to make sure the schools and industry are talking so that the curriculum that is being developed by the school is what the industry needs.”

-Cleveland Poole

What are the occupations in Region 7 that have the best future? n Industrial maintenance for sure. All the companies are fighting over the supply. Welding is in high demand all over the place. Good welders can make really good money. A lot of skills that you learn are going to be on-the-job-training-type skills. Having basic work ethic skills are hugely in demand.

I read a report that stated a worker shortage is a top priority through 2030 and it will need to be filled with local people because of a lack of migration. Is the council tackling this issue? n Part of what we have to do is work with education to create opportunities for the people that for instance are out of high school and out of work. They are not in college and they are not in high school anymore. If there is not something positive for

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

That could be through the community college system or Alabama Industrial Development Training program. n Right.

Talk about the critical role education now plays in workforce development and being responsive to industry’s needs. n That’s the key in what we’re trying to develop. The K12 system went for a long time, throwing out the idea (of) career tech or vocational education, and that everybody has to go to college – everybody has to go to a four-year college. Luckily for industry, that is no longer the case. They have begun focusing and funding career tech. The key is to make sure the schools and industry are talking so that the curriculum that is being developed by the school is what the industry needs. Continued on page 14

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Aren’t schools moving in that direction? n The K12 system has created a new job called career coach. The hope is that there will be a career coach that appears at least one day a week at every high school in the state. Their job is to map out a career for kids starting in high school. They are mapping out the curriculum for these kids to take.

Don’t you need buy-in from the students as well? n That’s exactly right.

The students need to see what success looks like and talk to each other to reinforce their goals. If 18- and 19-year-olds share their success stories with younger people it can be very motivational and relevant. n That’s why the job coaches bring in industry people to talk to their kids. If I’m a high school teacher, I can talk till I’m blue in the face about a subject. If I bring in other people that are saying the same thing, it starts to resonate and especially if I can bring in the 18- or 22-year-old person that these kids saw when they were in middle school or a freshman in high school.

In a Region 7 report, it stated that more jobs will require some postsecondary education and training. Talk about the impact of additional education and training, which is a big change. n It is. I saw a statistic recently that said something like 45 percent of the jobs by 2020 would require a twoyear degree. Once you go to a community college, you focus on the critical, actual training to do a job rather than (a general subject). You’re going to a job when you are working for Hyundai, the ability to communicate is important, but after that you don’t need to know how to conjugate a verb.

What are you hearing from business and industry in addition to improving soft skills? n They like the idea of the high schools training kids to do … at least with an introduction to the skills they are going to need when they go into the factories. If you want to learn to weld and you’ve taken some welding in high school, then you know if it’s something that you want to do when you get out of high school. Job experience in high school not only teaches you what you want to do, but teaches you what you don’t want to do. It helps them determine where their appetite is. It’s a really good segue into the workplace. I worked for a dentist when I was in high school. I cleaned up after patients and developed X-rays. That was one thing I didn’t want to do.

“Job experience in high school

What else are you hearing from business and industry?

not only teaches you what you

n Far and away, not Region 7, but the United

want to do, but teaches you what you don’t want to do.” -Cleveland Poole

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

States and the world – work ethic. When I started (dealing) with this stuff, I found a website that is www.workethic.org. It’s the Center for Work Ethic Development in Denver, Colorado. They have actually developed a curriculum that teaches work ethic and our company is sponsoring that in the high schools in Butler, Lowndes and Wilcox counties. Every ninthgrader in the State of Alabama has to take a career preparedness course. The state is being responsive to the overall needs (of business and industry). The governor, in December, had a press conference asking K12 and postsecondary to make a harder push to integrate soft skills to all of their programs. That’s one

“If we can convince industry of the things that we’re requiring as the region for the community colleges for their dual enrollment – is to ensure that they have soft skills training embedded into all of their programs.

I read an interesting recommendation from the Region 7 report of incorporating soft skills, work ethics and customer service in K12. That sounds like a game-changer. Will it happen in the next five years? n It has to come. Here’s one of my frustrations that everybody is teaching work ethics in some form. You have the Department of Labor, AIDT, K12, postsecondary and I know I’m leaving out two or three other agencies or groups in the state. They are all teaching it, but nobody is talking to anybody about what they are doing and what’s working and what’s not working. The problem is if we have to wait 20 years, then it’s too darn late.

Is this coming soon? n It has to and you can’t wait until high school to teach it. You have to start in the second or third grade.

What is it going to take to get to where we need to be with workforce development? Is there a funding issue or mostly a communication issue? n Communication is key as it is in everything. One of the things we want to try and develop within our region and the governor’s workforce council is try to promote it in all the regions in the state and that is public-private partnerships. When Mark Heinrich, who is the head of postsecondary, was the president of Shelton State College in Tuscaloosa, he sat down with the Mercedes folks and created this program (mechatronics). I don’t know if it was 50 kids a semester or a year, but Mercedes actually interviewed these kids and paid for half of their tuition their first semester and if they hit a certain grade-point average they would pay the entire books, fees, tuition up to 108 college hours. Has that program been successful? Mercedes hasn’t hired every one of those people that has come out of the program because Toyota and Honda have hired the ones that (Mercedes) hasn’t. If we can convince

to create what they need in a skill set and help pay to train the kid to do that, then there will be a flow of trained folks coming to that business.” -Cleveland Poole

industry to create what they need in a skill set and help (community colleges) pay to train the kid to do that, then there will be a flow of trained folks coming to that business.

Is success for the Region 7 Workforce Development Council a seamless pipeline of skilled employees, who also have soft skills for jobs that are needed? n I think that is exactly right. Having industry develop alongside with educational partners the skill that they need and that educational folks have available – the training – and put the kids through the pipeline (so) that once the educational folks are done with them, they are ready to go work.

The Region 7 report stressed the importance of an integrated software system to provide employers with easy access to see the skill sets, certificates, training and degrees of potential employees. n There is nothing like that that exists. That’s one of the things that the governor’s workforce council has recommended in its report. One of the things that the state has integrated is Work Keys. It is a nationally observed system (that shows proficiency in a variety of areas). n

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

Delivering More Comfort by David Zaslawsky photography by Robert Fouts

Baptist Medical Center East adds 26 postpartum rooms

Baptist Medical Center East is one of the busiest in the state for births, ranking fifth in 2013 and just 36 births away from being No. 4. Now, the Montgomery facility will have the beds to move up the ladder. “It would not surprise me for us to get close to 4,000,” Baptist Medical Center East CEO Jeff Rains said about the number of births in the near future. He is forecasting close to 3,500 births this year. To keep up with

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

the growing demand, Baptist is adding 26 postpartum (after-delivery) rooms as part of a $5.5 million renovation mostly for women’s services. There will also be an intensive care step-down unit. The two-story project is adding 20,000 square feet and is expected to be completed by November. Continued on page 18

Jeff Rains is CEO of Baptist Medical Center East.

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

Here are artist renderings of expanded women’s services at Baptist Medical Center East, including a new postpartum room.

Continued from page 16

“OB/women’s services are a major service line for Baptist Medical Center East,” Rains said. “We are by far the largest provider for that service in Central Alabama. It is a big part of not only what we do; it obviously is a big part of our revenue and our income stream.” “There is a continued demand. We continue to see growth from not only the Montgomery area, but from outlying areas where moms want to come and have their newborn here in our facility. We’re very fortunate to be able to step up and meet that demand for the community.” He said the medical center delivers about 10 newborns a day. “That volume has continued to increase because of the medical staff that is here; the facility; and obviously the quality outcomes,” Rains said. “We think that will continue to grow in the future, especially as smaller hospitals struggle to provide OB (obstetrics) services in rural communities.”

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

The 26 new postpartum rooms will be about twice the size of the existing 27 postpartum rooms, Rains said. The new rooms will average about 240 square feet. “The existing rooms that we have in postpartum is our largest area of opportunity for improvement in our women’s and children’s services,” Rains said. “Those rooms when they were built in 1978 were not built for that service line. These were small, individual private rooms that really weren’t designed or configured for layout or size or amenities for postpartum utilization.” He said that new rooms being designed are fully functional with much more space for family members and more convenience “for mom and dad and their newborn,” Rains said. There is a sofa bed for dad, but it features popup trays to have a meal or place an iPod. “Everyone needs to be comfortable,” Rains said. Each room is equipped with a flat-panel LCD television and has data ports for electronic devices.

“We spent a lot of time designing lighting,” Rains said. “We spent a lot of time designing furniture and furniture layouts as it relates to the bassinette.” He said everything in that space “will be completely new.” Paula Brennan, director of women’s services at Baptist Medical Center East, said in a statement: “This addition to our hospital will not only enhance the patient’s delivery experience, but also better meets the needs of our patients and families.” Rains said the goal is to make the experience “as much like a hotel as you can” while following the rules and regulations. “This is a very important part and many might say ‘the warm and fuzzy part of health care is having a child.’ It’s probably the one service line that we provide in our industry that our customers look forward to. After the intensity of the delivery process, we really want to focus on that next step. That next step is not only providing comfort and convenience for mom and for dad and for families to come and visit that newborn and that loved one. It gives us an opportunity to really focus on the areas of education; skin-to-skin breastfeeding; any other type of education that you might have – really providing that environment so that mom is now comfortable going forward and taking that baby home and raising them in a very safe and healthy manner.”

There will be two waiting areas at opposite ends of the new unit, according to Rains. “It’s important to have alternate waiting areas that are not disruptive,” he said. “This is still a very important time for mom and baby to bond. We want to have enough room for families and community to relax while they’re taking turns visiting with the family.” The facility’s women’s unit is in two sections, Rains said. There is a labor room for both natural births and C-sections. Then the mother moves to a postpartum room. Rains said that because women make most of their family’s health care decisions, you hope that by giving birth at the facility the family will use other services at Baptist Medical Center East. “It’s an area where not only do you capture loyalty from early on, but then you have a pediatrician … If we can work with mom in ways that will please her and create a good, positive experience then hopefully we’ll be at the top of that list if we’re ever needed for another service down the road,” Rains said. n

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30 May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal 19

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

A New Warm Welcome JACKSON HOSPITAL RENOVATES MOM & BABY CENTER by David Zaslawsky

photography by Robert Fouts

Joe Riley (right), president and CEO of Jackson Hospital, and Carl Barker, chairman of the Jackson Hospital Foundation, look over the plans for the renovation of the Mom & Baby Center.

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

A custom mosaic mural will greet families and visitors when they enter the renovated and redesigned Mom & Baby Center at Jackson Hospital in November. Mosaic artist Enid Probst has been commissioned to design the mural, which according to Jackson Hospital’s Partners publication will let people know: “You have arrived at a special place.” The $3 million project will result in the same 14 rooms, but the rooms will be twice the size – about 300 square feet. The goal is to keep most of the patients in the same room for labor, delivery and recovery. Michael James, vice president and chief operating officer of Jackson Hospital, calls it “a full-service room. We’re hoping you come in here and spend your two or three days in the same room.”

Here is an artist rendering of the renovated room in the Jackson Hospital’s Mom & Baby Center.

The rooms will be “more open, user-friendly; room for the family; the patient, to accommodate (others) as needed,” James said. He said that the unit has been designed in zones – zones for staff, baby, patient and family.

Everything will be new “from the bathroom to the baby holding area,” James said. He means everything. And it will be decorated to the hilt. “The unit will focus on botanical elements and new life in flowers and butterflies – elements of nature that will carry through the unit,” said Janet McQueen, president of the Jackson Hospital Foundation, which is funding the renovation project. She said the unit will have photos of blooms of flowers, blades of grass – “elements of nature that you would find uplifting.” There will be a contest to encourage local photographers to submit entries, which will be judged by a professional panel. “By integrating nature photography, we will be reinforcing new life and hope,” AnnMarie Jackson, director of interior design for the architectural and engineering firm of Sherlock, Smith and Adams Inc., said in Partners. The local firm is designing the unit. “We’re determined to be the very best that we can be and the most aesthetically pleasing that we can provide for our patients,” McQueen said. “We’re going to lighten, brighten; just gear it to kind of a spa-like feeling for our patients.” The rooms will have sleeper couches as well as bedside tables and overbed tables not to mention dual televisions. “As we look at the community needs, which is what we do when we are planning for our services, we know that women are a very important part of the health care decision-makers,” said Joe Riley, president and CEO of Jackson Hospital. “We want to serve the women of the River Region so that’s how this project blossomed.” He expects Jackson Hospital, which had about 1,300 births last year, will grow that number by 3 percent in 2015 and eventually reach between 1,400 and 1,500 births a year. “We are focused on the communities that we serve and the family experience at Jackson Hospital,” Riley said. The Jackson Hospital Foundation has funded numerous projects, but not one of this magnitude, including a near $3 million capital campaign when the hospital was being built.

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

The foundation did fund the original da Vinci robot that cost $1 million-plus and have funded a number of $600,000 projects. “We purchased all the simulated mannequins used for nursing education,” McQueen said. The foundation paid for the sixth-floor heating unit renovation. McQueen said that the foundation “was in complete agreement (about) an opportunity to start this project from scratch and create the kind of experience that a woman would hope to have who is hospitalized. It’s patient-friendly. It’s spacious with an amazing amount of taste.” Carl Barker, chairman of the Jackson Hospital Foundation, said, “The foundation’s whole purpose is to serve the mission of the hospital – to serve this community. When we started talking and heard Joe, Janet and Michael’s enthusiasm about this particular project everybody was 100 percent on board.” The board consists of 15 to 20 “professionals in the community who care about the community and care about the hospital,” Barker said.

“People give to us to watch their dollars go to work in a positive way and that’s what this (project) is going to do,” McQueen said.

The renovated Mom & Baby Center at Jackson Hosptial will feature nature photos as well as a custom mosaic mural.

Riley said that the renovated unit is “less fragmented. We’re using the space better for the continuum of care and the functionality of coming in for triage; having a baby; having all the education required as far as mom and baby care; just everything geared toward the convenience and comfort of the mother and baby.” n

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

Member Profile

POPCORN WITH PIZZAZZ

One-of-a-kind retailer offers gourmet popcorn by David Zaslawsky

photography by Robert Fouts

Claire Nobles (center) and her daughters, Lisa Gilliam (left) and Jaqueline Provo, own Popcorn Pizzazz.

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

Popcorn Pizzazz generated a lot of buzz when it opened at the Publix-anchored Dalraida Commons on Atlanta Highway in November 2013. The name did create some confusion. “Some people thought it was a pizza place,” said Claire Nobles, who owns the company along with her daughters, Lisa Gilliam, the store’s general manager; and Jacqueline Provo. There are three part-time workers. Well, it’s not a pizzeria, but Popcorn Pizzazz does sell a pizza-flavored popcorn. The company has just about every imaginable flavor of popcorn. “Every flavor that we have to sell, we have every day and we’re coming up with new flavors all the time,” Nobles said. She said there are close to 50 flavors and that the lengthy list includes Butterfinger, Oreo, Reese’s, cheesecake, cotton candy, margarita, Dr. Pepper, dill pickle, mac & cheese, sweet heat, bacon cheddar ranch, caramel cashew and caramel pecan. So far, the favorites have been extra cheesy cheese, white cheddar, caramel pecan, caramel cashew, cotton candy, cheesecake, peanut butter chocolate and Reese’s, Gilliam said. This truly is a unique business. It is not a franchise. “There is nothing like this in Montgomery – we’re the only one,” said Nobles, who works two days a week at the store and four days a week for the State of Alabama as a personnel director at the Alabama Historical Commission. “There is a really good market for (popcorn),” Nobles said. “It’s not something that people absolutely need, so we are very customer-service oriented. We treat people like family when they come over here. We realize this is not something people have to have. It’s something that we want them to want to have.” In addition to having a flavor for all possible pallets, Popcorn Pizzazz offers six basic sizes: mini, junior, small, medium, large and X-large. There is also a party size. Those sizes can range from $1 for a mini butter size to $119.99 for an X-large chocolate flavored container. There are eight general categories of popcorn: butter, chocolate, candied, savory cheese, extra cheesy, caramel, kettle corn and blends.

The popcorn business “has been really good,” Nobles said. There are cycles that the three owners learned about. Fall is a busy time with football season. The store creates blends with different colors for football fans. Christmas and Valentine’s Day are also busy times. “For holidays, people think about us,” Nobles said. “We do gift baskets and tins and tailor it to what people want.” Popcorn Pizzazz delivers orders to schools and conducts a lot of business with Maxwell Air Force Base and Gunter Annex, according to Nobles. She said they also deliver to parties and weddings. This is the family’s first business venture and grew out of a love for what else – popcorn. It was at a family retreat at Christmastime that they decided on a popcorn store. “We had some recipes and we started expanding on the recipes,” Nobles said. What really got the business concept rolling was when Nobles and Provo enrolled at the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce Entrepreneurial University at the Chamber Business Development Center. “Entrepreneurial University helped us realize the real costs,” Nobles said. “It was quite an eye-opener for us. It was so helpful – we just learned a lot. If we had not done that, I think we would have been in a lot of trouble.” The two learned how to operate a business. They developed a business plan; obtained financing; and looked for a location. “We wanted to be in a location that is central and that had good traffic flow,” Nobles said. “We looked at quite a few places before we decided on this particular place.” Then they learned how to tweak the business and that included reducing freight expenses by buying in bulk. “Most things we have to get brought in because there is nothing like this here,” Nobles said. Popcorn Pizzazz as you can imagine, goes through a lot of popcorn – about 150 pounds to 200 pounds a week. They also use about 140 pounds of coconut oil a week. They create their own flavors.

“WE REALIZE THIS IS NOT SOMETHING PEOPLE HAVE TO HAVE. IT’S SOMETHING THAT WE WANT THEM TO WANT TO HAVE.” -Claire Nobles, Owner of Popcorn Pizzazz

Nobles credits the store’s success to customer service and “having a niche market at this time because there is nobody else.” On the store’s Facebook page it states: “It’s not just popcorn … it’s popcorn with pizzazz.” n

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK

by David Zaslawsky

Construction Outlook Upbeat Total construction put in place for this year is forecast to increase 8 percent and top $1 trillion for the first time since 2008. The sectors expecting the best growth rates, according to FMI which conducted the survey, are: lodging construction (16 percent); commercial construction (15 percent); manufacturing construction (11 percent); office construction (11 percent); and residential construction (9 percent). “The current growth cycle appears to be broad based and sustainable,” Randy Giggard, managing director of research services for FMI, said in a statement. “Most of the new construction activity is in the private sector.”

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

NEW LEADER FOR ALAGASCO

CAR SALES STAY HOT

A 34-year veteran will take over at Alabama Gas Corp. Ken Smith will succeed Dudley Reynolds as company president. Smith, who has been an executive at Alagasco for 17 years, was vice president of system integrity before taking over the top spot.

New vehicle sales are expected to have the best first quarter since 2007 at 3.9 million units, according to Kelley Blue Book. That represents a 5.1 percent increase from the first quarter last year.

Smith will report to Steve Lindsey, chief operating officer of distribution operations for Laclede Group, which purchased Alagasco last year in a $1.6 billion transaction with Energen Corp.

Sales are forecast to hit 16.9 million units in 2015, which is the highest total since 2005.

HOSPITALS FLEX FINANCIAL MUSCLE The state’s hospitals were responsible for $19 billion in economic activity in 2013, according to a study from the American Hospital Association. The state’s 93 hospitals spend a combined $4.5 billion annually on wages and benefits as well as $9.7 billion in goods and services, the study concluded. The hospitals accounted for 84,000-plus direct jobs and another 86,000-plus health-related

jobs, the survey found. Those figures represent nearly 9 percent of the state’s workforce. “Alabama hospitals provide excellent care and lifesaving emergency services, but they also provide thousands of jobs that are critical to the economic infrastructure of our state,” J. Michael Horsley, president of the Alabama Hospital Association, said in a statement.

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

Enplanements Still Soar The Montgomery Regional Airport has enjoyed eight straight months of increased enplanements and is two months away from matching 10 consecutive months of gains from late 2009 to the first half of 2010. During the current streak of eight straight months, enplanements are up 17 percent over the same period a year earlier.

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

ServisFirst Bancshares received the 2014 Raymond James Community Bankers Cup, which recognizes the top 10 percent of community banks. ServisFirst Bancshares ranked third out of 306 community banks nationwide that are exchange-traded domestic banks with assets between $500 million and $10 billion as of Dec. 31, 2014. The banks were judged on profitability,

operational efficiency and balance sheet. â€œOn behalf of ServisFirst Bancshares, it is an honor to receive this prestigious award as a top-three performing bank in the nation,â€? Tom Broughton, president and CEO of ServisFirst Bancshares, said in a statement.

in Montgomery, is a subsidiary of ServisFirst Bancshares. The company also announced a 20 percent increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.06 per share, which was payable April 15.

ServisFirst Ranked Third

Birmingham-based ServisFirst Bank, which has two branches

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

ALABAMA BUSINESS PRIORITIES

IMPORTANCE OF AGRICULTURE The theme for National Ag Day was â€œAgriculture: Sustaining Future Generations.â€? That is certainly important to Alabama, where agriculture and forestry are the stateâ€™s largest industries and have a

combined $70 billion annual economic impact. There are 580,000-plus Alabamians employed in agriculture, forestry or related fields. As part of National Ag Day, 1,500 pounds of food and nearly $4,000

were donated to the Montgomery Area Food Bank. That cash donation will provide almost 24,000 meals for those in the food bankâ€™s 35 counties.

The top statewide priority for business leaders is education/workforce training, according to the Alabama Business Confidence Index quarterly survey.

The quarterly survey is conducted by The University of Alabamaâ€™s Center for Business and Economic Research in the Culverhouse College of Commerce.

Business leaders ranked competence in government, which included taxation, prison reforms and state Constitution (No. 2); economic and business development (No. 3); job growth (No. 4); health care costs (No. 5); and infrastructure (No. 6).

The top issues for companies (in order): company finances and development; government (taxation, regulations and uncertainty); lack of qualified workforce; economic recovery and growth; and health care costs.

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Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

One of the Best Central in The Alley was named one of the top three restaurants in the state by the Charleston Food Bloggers. “I love what Chef Leo Maurelli is doing at Central,” Scott Wink, who founded the blog along with his wife, told the Montgomery Advertiser. Two Birmingham restaurants – The Highlands and Hot and Hot Fish Club – were on Wink’s top three list.

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

OLD MONTGOMERY MALL TO EDUCATE AS ‘ONE CENTER’ by David Zaslawsky photography by Robert Fouts

Blue Ridge Capital is transforming the old Montgomery Mall to One Center. Steve Patrick is the vice president of leasing and management and Beverly Calloway is a project director for the firm.

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

NEW CONCEPT, NEW NAME

When Blue Ridge Capital acquired the old Montgomery Mall, the real estate investment company tried for years to sell or lease the massive facility. Steve Patrick, vice president of leasing and management for the Atlanta-based company, said that he had 120-plus meetings with developers, potential buyers and potential joint-venture partners. He even took some to City Hall. “They saw the vision, but the timing wasn’t right for one reason or another,” said Patrick, whose firm specializes in turnaround projects. The firm had acquired the mall after it financed multiple properties for the previous owner. When that firm was unable to repay the loan, “we decided the simplest thing to do was take back one of the properties,” Patrick said. “As we looked at the multiple properties we felt like the Montgomery Mall had the greatest potential in the long run. We took back the mall and the JCPenney building.”

There was even talk of tearing down some of the mall or “tear down the whole thing,” Patrick recalled. “We want to save every inch of it. We think it can be back in service in total – in phases; it won’t happen overnight.” The city helped restore life to the mall when it redeveloped 180,000 square feet and placed a fire station and police station in the former Steve & Barry’s building. “For us, it certainly showed people that this project can come back to life,” Patrick said. More recently, Montgomery Public Schools announced it was building two new schools at the mall: Loveless Academic Magnet Program High School (at the former Parisian’s building) and Montgomery Preparatory Academy for Career Technologies at the former JCPenney building. Those facilities are planned for fall 2016. Continued on page 34

The timing could not have been worse. It was in late 2008 during the Great Recession. “It was a wonderful time to be in the real estate business,” he said sarcastically. “There was no chance of anything happening.”

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange was among the speakers for the ribbon cutting for One Center along with Nancy Beggs, state interposition officer at Montgomery Public Schools. They are joined by (from left) Steve Patrick, vice president of leasing and management for Blue Ridge Capital; and Montgomery County Commission Vice Chairman Dan Harris.

“It’s all about partnerships. It’s about the partnerships with the state. It’s about the partnerships with the county. It’s about the partnerships with the City Council. It’s about the partnerships with the (Montgomery Area) Chamber of Commerce and certainly the local business community.” -Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

Continued from page 33

Now, Blue Ridge Capital can tell prospective tenants that there will be two schools. “We would love to have construction going on in the mall while the schools (are being built),” Patrick said. Blue Ridge Capital is talking to a call center that could bring 400 to 500 jobs and occupy about 60,000 square feet or nearly one-quarter of the firm’s 256,000 square feet. Those talks are in the preliminary stages, according to Patrick. He said that company “likes what we’re doing.” And Blue Ridge Capital has unveiled a different model as well as a new name and logo for the mall that was vacant for years and frustrated Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange’s attempt to occupy the space. The new name is One Center and the new concept is truly unique. “We hope it will be an educationbased, industry-based, workforce development model for the whole State of Alabama,” Beverly Callaway, project director for Blue Ridge Capital, said at a news conference.

She said plans call for a food court and an education learning center; there could be office space and medical offices. “We certainly would love to have a performing arts center in this mall,” Callaway said. “We hope to have a day care center; an elementary school. There are a lot of different uses that will be going on in this mall. We have plenty of space. We are breathing new life into this mall starting today.” She talked about partnering with H. Councill Trenholm State Technical College, which is located across the street. Blue Ridge Capital is looking at bringing Trenholm’s culinary arts program to One Center. Callaway said that One Center could play a role in the dual enrollment program where a student attends high school and Trenholm at the same time. She said there may be an energy center, where utility firms “come together to have a center where they do job training.”

Montgomery County Commission Chairman Elton N. Dean Sr. said, “It’s incumbent upon the county to continue to work with the city, the City Council, the mayor and the Commission and state to enhance this area. This is going to be the icon.” Strange said “it’s all about partnerships. It’s about the partnerships with the state. It’s about the partnerships with the county. It’s about the partnerships with the City Council. It’s about the partnerships with the (Montgomery Area) Chamber of Commerce and certainly the local business community.” Callaway noted that the mall opened in 1968. “We certainly hope to bring this mall back to the grandeur that it was when it first opened. There is not another model like this, where we can partner business and industry and education.” n

Callaway would like to see One Center being a science, technology, engineering, arts and math facility partnering business and industry and education. “It will be an education learning center,” Callaway said. “We hope to make it a pre-K through PhD learning center, partnering with colleges in the area.”

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May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

CASH SAVER PROVIDES OPTIONS FOR SHOPPERS AND DINERS by David Zaslawsky photography by Robert Fouts Bryan Howard is the store manager for the Cash Saver by Vowell’s on South Boulevard.

BREAKFAST, LUNCH, DINNER & GROCERIES There is another option for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and it’s right next to Alfa Insurance and across the street from Baptist South Medical Center. It’s not a restaurant. It’s a discount grocery store – Cash Saver by Vowell’s – but inside the 45,000-square-foot location is a restaurant with both indoor and outdoor seating. There is also takeout for those wanting to bring home dinner.

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

And the prices are tough to beat: $3.99 for breakfast, which includes meat, two sides, a bread and a drink. That’s the full price out the door. Lunch can be $4.99 out the door or more for a premium plate. Lunch includes meat, two sides, a bread and a drink. “It’s another added service that we provide,” Cash Saver President Todd Vowell said after a ribbon-cutting at his cost-plus food outlet. That added service comes in handy for all those employees at Alfa and Baptist South as well as all the medical offices around the area. How about dinner? Cash Saver has you covered there as well. “If someone comes in and they’re shopping for groceries and realize they didn’t have anything for dinner, they can pick up something for dinner and take it (home),” said Vowell, who owns 21 grocery stores in Alabama and Mississippi. “We provide good, Southern cooking – the from-scratch cooking that tastes like your grandmother made it,” he said. “We can do that on the deli side, which is your hot food. We can also do it with the baked goods and sweet goods. We have everything from the healthy stuff like green salads to the more tasteful stuff like red velvet and coconut cake.” Cash Saver is not your typical grocery store. The pricing strategy is 10 percent over cost and those signs are everywhere to remind customers that there is a 10 percent charge on top of the posted price.

“The cost-plus format is 100 percent predicated on volume,” said Vowell, who opened the South Boulevard location at the end of January. The Cash Saver on Atlanta Highway opened in May 2013. Both locations are former Food World sites, but the Atlanta Highway store is 25,000 square feet because some of the original building was acquired by Citi Trends. He currently has 120 employees at the South Boulevard site. Bryan Howard, store manager of the South Boulevard location, said that customers have thanked Cash Saver employees for opening a store in their neighborhood. There is a grocery store about one mile away, but it does not have all the departments that Cash Saver has. “There are so many houses around this store,” Howard said. “They’re happy to have us.” That’s the key reason that Cash Saver opened on South Boulevard. Vowell based his decision on population density and how much square footage of shopping there is in a 3-mile circle. Vowell, who said he invested $8 million into the two locations, gutted the South Boulevard site, leaving basically the four walls and floor. He even put a new roof on it.

He said the company prides itself on its meats. “In the South, especially Mississippi and Alabama – meat is going to be how a customer decides where to shop,” Vowell said. “We realize that and variety is the key word. We try to have your healthy options and heat-and-eat, already-prepared items. We have ones that you grill yourself. We have a large variety of seafood, both fresh and fresh frozen.” Vowell told Retail Merchandiser that the company strives “to maximize quality, freshness, variety and price in the perishables department. Those fresh categories are what we really strive to do better than anyone else.” He grew up in the grocery store business, which has been family-owned since his grandfather started the company in 1945. It is based in Mississippi. “We really like the greater Montgomery area,” Vowell said. “We haven’t been here an extremely long time, but we’re really pleased with the reception that we have received from the citizens of the greater Montgomery area. We would not be opposed to looking at future growth options (in the area).” n

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May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

DEVELOPER INVESTS MILLIONS IN FAIRCOURT SHOPPING CENTER by David Zaslawsky photography by Robert Fouts

A NEW DAWN IN THE WEST END OF FAIRVIEW A Montgomery developer said he heard that the McDonald’s on Fairview Avenue near Interstate 65 is the No. 2 site for sales in the region. He also heard that the Advance Auto Parts and AutoZone sites on Fairview Avenue are the companies’ No. 1 outlet for sales in the market. “It’s a densely populated, underserved market,” Lee Willcoxon, who operates Willcoxon Properties, said about West Montgomery. “When I bought in, Fairview was poised to grow. I felt like it was going to make a comeback.” He bought the Faircourt Shopping Center on West Fairview Avenue in 1999 and bought the Sears parking lot in 2000. The latter was a $2 million investment for what became the site of Gas Depot, which along with 16 gas pumps had a

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

Lee Willcoxon is has invested millions of dollars in the Faircourt Shopping Center on West Fairview Avenue.

restaurant, convenience store and car wash. The Gas Depot was rebranded Sunoco last year. “At the time, Fairview was lacking a big convenience store/gas station,” he said. “I was trying to fill a need in the market …” Willcoxon said he had looked at other properties, but the West Fairview Avenue locations “had the most potential for added value. I felt there was a lot I could do to improve that shopping center and I felt there was a lot of upside potential.” At the time of his purchase, Food Fair was the anchor of Faircourt Shopping Center, which opened in 1971, but had not had a major remodeling since. There was a variety store,

rental store, thrift store, beauty salon and beeper store. The only remaining tenant is the beauty salon, but with a different owner. He has invested about $1.8 million in the shopping center. Unfortunately, when Food Fair’s owner went bankrupt, that left a huge vacancy at the shopping center back in 2005. “I worked hard to bring another grocery store to the center,” Willcoxon said. That grocery store is the city’s only Piggly Wiggly, which has 27 employees. “I wanted to offer the neighborhood residents another shopping option and it was a good decision.” The grocery store also attracts people for nostalgic reasons. “People that are traveling through Montgomery will stop there to buy T-shirts and hats and things like that,” he said. Willcoxon is now in the midst of expanding the shopping center by 13,000 square feet as Citi Trends will move from a 10,500-square-foot site at the center. He said that should be completed by the summer. Willcoxon is looking for a tenant

to lease the space occupied by Citi Trends, which has been at the shopping center since 2001. The shopping center has in addition to Citi Trends and Piggly Wiggly, Shoe Time, Beauty & Beyond, Sugar Shack, 21st Century Salon, Wing Master, Always Money, Cell King, Computers & Beyond, Furniture & Beyond and a Cricket cell phone store. He still has some undeveloped property at the shopping center and could add another 10,000 square feet for a handful of smaller shops or add 14,000 square feet for a big-box retailer. “This redevelopment and expansion project represents a rebirth and a renewal of West Fairview Avenue,” Willcoxon said. “There is a sense of excitement and energy among the residents. This is a major investment for Fairview Avenue that adds value to the neighborhood and will enhance the quality of life. It has created jobs and more are on the way.” n

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May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

Working at Hyundai has its Benefits:

CELEBR ATING TEN Y E ARS of Hyundai Production in Alabama BY DAVID ZASLAWSKY

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROBERT FOUTS

A production job at the Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama plant in Montgomery is truly not for everybody. It’s a modern-day factory job. “It’s hard work,” said Rick Neal, senior vice president of human resources and administration for HMMA. It’s not only repetitive working in general assembly, but employees rotate shifts every month and there are three shifts: Days, swing and nights. And employees must be on time because the assembly line is moving. “The whole process is not easy,” Neal said. “It’s very difficult and not everybody is cut out for it. A lot of folks who get hired think, ‘I’ve got all these great wages and benefits and I’m just going to cruise.’ And then they suddenly find out how difficult it is and they can’t do the work or they can’t follow the policies and pretty soon they are out the door.” The ones who stay – the ones who can handle the work and policies – are rewarded with top wages and a generous benefit package. “I don’t think there is a private employer that pays as well as we do or offers the wide variety of benefits that we provide,” Neal said. Of course, a senior Hyundai executive cannot be objective, but don’t just take his word for it. Consider this: The average gross wage last year for a production

Plant Location Announced and Ground Breaking

2002

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

employee (HMMA calls its employees team members) including overtime and incentives was $67,571.80. The average gross pay last year for maintenance employees, who make sure the machines and robots are running smoothly, was $96,142.41, including overtime and incentives. That’s right. For enduring a job that is not for everybody and really is hard work, a production employee can make close to $70,000 a year and a maintenance employee can earn nearly six figures. Those who can handle it “have an excellent career,” Neal said. Those average annual wages do not include a host of benefits that add up to a considerable sum of money, but more on that later. Neal said those average gross wages were not a surprise. Before adding 877 employees for a third shift, production team members worked “substantial amounts of overtime,” Neal said. Back in 2011, average annual gross wages for production employees were almost $75,000 and just shy of $100,000 for maintenance employees.

This is a company that pays its employees incentives just to show up to work on time and work their full shift. It’s that critical to producing nearly 400,000 vehicles a year. On the assembly line, all jobs are important and all employees are important and need to show up and perform.

Grand Opening and President Bush Tour

The attendance incentive works like this: If an hourly production employee has zero unexcused absences (tardy or leaves early)

Sonata Production Begins That third shift was added to reduce overtime and the fatigue factor on employees as well as increasing production capacity, Neal said. “The company gets more cars and it’s easier on team members,” he said. It’s a win-win for HMMA, which produces the Elantra and Sonata, the company’s top two sellers in the country, which typically account for about two-thirds of all Hyundai vehicles sold in the U.S.

they receive an incentive of 2.5 percent of their base wage plus overtime. Close to half of the production employees (44 percent) received that extra money. If a production employee has one unexcused absence, they receive 1.25 percent of their base wage plus overtime. If a production employee has two unexcused absences, they receive 0.6 percent of their base wage plus overtime. Continued on page 44

Theta Engine Plant Incentive Agreement Signing

Santa Fe Production Begins

2005

2006

Theta Engine Plant Ground Breaking

2007

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

work two hours of overtime. “That’s the only time during the regular work week where there is an opportunity for overtime,” Neal said.

Continued from page 43

There is also a “Hyundai Attendance Incentive Credit.” The production employees have a 38-hour, 45-minute work week, but receive credit for 1 hour, 15 minutes per week for perfect attendance. The policy was implemented when production went to a three crew, three shift operation in September 2012. “We wanted to make sure that the team members would be made whole for a 40-hour week,” Neal said. Once again, it’s just a matter of showing up on time and working a full shift. When production employees work the second or third shifts (evenings and nights), the company pays a shift premium of $1.10 per hour. There are opportunities for those working the last shift of the week, which is the night shift, which starts 10:30 p.m. Friday and ends 6:45 a.m. Saturday. If there was some down production time, those third shift workers may

The plant did run 14 overtime days last year and is scheduled for the same number of Saturday overtime days. Hyundai has a discretionary incentive called an annual achievement award. “It’s based on our productivity and meeting our targets; meeting our quality goals,” Neal said. He stressed that the incentive is not given every year, but was the last two years. Each of about 2,300 fulltime production employees received $4,000 in both 2013 and 2014. That runs into the millions of dollars. In early March, Hyundai employed 3,607, which included 2,902 full-time workers; 657 temporary workers and 48 Korean expatriates. The headcount constantly fluctuates up and down. The Korean automaker’s annual payroll is $260 million. Let’s talk about health insurance premiums. How does HMMA stack up? Pretty well, by paying 93 percent of an employee’s premium whether it’s for single coverage or family coverage.

Theta Engine Production Begins

1,000,000th Vehicle Built in Alabama

2008

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

2009

Let’s say an employee wants to buy a new Hyundai at Capitol Hyundai. The employee discount is 23 percent to 27 percent off the manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP). That meant in March, an employee could have purchased a 2015 Sonata SE for $16,302 that had an MSRP of $21,150. A 2015 Sonata Limited for an HMMA employee was $19,041 back in March for a vehicle with an MSRP of $26,525. The prices are subject to change. The program – “Hyundai Circle Plan” – actually permits a HMMA employee to buy up to four vehicles a year for themselves and immediate family members. There is also a discount buying plan for an employee’s other family members and friends. An employee receives two weeks of vacation after 90 days and adds one vacation day a year starting the second year of employment. It adds up to 20 days (four weeks) after 10

years. There’s more. There are 14 paid holidays a year, which includes up to six days off for the annual winter shutdown. Add three personal days a year and that’s 37 paid days off after 10 years. “If an individual chooses not to use all their vacation and personal days, they receive that (amount) in the form of a check after the year is complete – usually in February,” said Robert Burns, senior manager of public relations for HMMA. Most workers buy clothes for their jobs, but not HMMA employees. They receive 10 team wear items – shirts and pants – at no charge. For the production employees, they can replace their team wear each year while administration employees can replace items every 18 months. Hyundai will provide an employee $75 if they are required to wear steel-toed boots. If you get sick at work or injured in an accident, you visit an onsite doctor or nurse practitioner/ physician assistant. No charge for that and the service is available 24/7. Free flu shots are available annually, typically beginning in October. Continued on page 46

Production Record of 300,000 Cars Built

2010 Elantra Production Begins

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

Continued from page 45

Hyundai operates two cafeterias – one in the administration building that seats 400 people and one in general assembly that accommodates 700 to 750 people. There is something for everybody and that includes a meat-and-three; salad bar; pizza station; sandwiches; two different soups daily; Korea/Asian station; and hot grilled items. A full meal costs between $5 and $7. “Oftentimes I go down and just get a large bowl of soup and that runs $2.40,” Neal said.

1,000,000th

Sonata Built Other employee benefits include: > A 100 percent match up to a 4 percent 401(k) contribution. > Life insurance at two times an employee’s base salary at no charge. > Accidental death and dismemberment insurance at two times an employee’s base salary at no charge. > A sports complex with a softball field, basketball courts, tennis court, walking trail and children’s playground. > A fitness center. > An onsite Wells Fargo branch.

Hyundai received Alabama Large Manufacturer of the Year

On top of all this, the company gives small gifts to employees. “When the company achieves some milestone event, whether it’s a quality award or a productivity award of meeting some FTT (first time through) target – we like to show our appreciation by providing small gifts,” Neal said. Those small gifts have been HMMA jackets, hats, folding chairs, grills, beach towels, coolers and weather radios. Continued on page 48

2011

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

Elantra is Named North American Car of the Year

2012

Third shift added

Continued from page 46

The company recognizes team members with birthday cards while giving a baby gift for team members’ newborns and bereavement flowers for a death in an employee’s immediate family. Those are some small things, but HMMA does something unparalleled by sending employees to Korea at an average cost of $5,000 per employee. “I know of no other foreign transplant that sends a group of team members on an annual basis for what amounts to a free, all-expense-paid trip halfway around the world just to experience the Korean culture,” Neal said. The week-long trip is in addition to an employee’s vacation time. The company expects to send three groups of about 30 employees to Korea this year and to date has sent nearly 1,300 employees.

2015 Sonata Production

To again show appreciation to its employees, Hyundai provides special meals once or twice a year and those meals are special – filet mignon and grilled shrimp or prime rib and lobster. Those special meals are served to all full-time and part-time employees as well as contractors and vendors. That’s around 4,500 meals of prime rib and lobster. Those are free. In addition to the special meals, there is the annual “Team Member Appreciation Day,” which Neal said “is for the express purpose of showing our team members how much we appreciate their dedication and hard work.” The event has been held both onsite when HMMA transforms some property into a carnival with inflatables for children; food and drink; and even musical acts. The event has also been held at the Alabama National Fair and team members and their immediate family members receive free admission and a $10 food coupon per person. Neal stressed that the company’s work environment is “harassment-free, discriminationfree; and violence-free. We don’t put up with any nonsense in that regard.” Another huge benefit – think of winter and summer in Montgomery – is heating and cooling 3.2 million square feet under roof. “We try to maintain a constant temperature of 74 degrees in the plant so that our team members, while they’re doing hard work … can do it in comfortable conditions. And you know as well as I do, when it gets to be 100 degrees in the summertime, 74 feels pretty good,” Neal said. It certainly does for the employees and having the plant at 74 degrees feels pretty good to Alabama Power, too. The electric bill is “large,” he said. “I can say that Alabama Power is very happy to have us as a customer.” n

Production Record of 399,500 Cars Built

2013

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

2014

Craig Stapley is the director of engine subdivision for Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama.

DRIVING AHEAD by David Zaslawsky photography by Robert Fouts

When Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama began producing vehicles at its Montgomery plant 10 years ago this month, Craig Stapley envisioned the plant would be building as many vehicles as possible.

First-year production, which began in May 2005, resulted in about 90,000 vehicles and climbed to about 250,000 units two years later. The plant has built nearly 400,000 vehicles in each of the last two years. Stapley has worked at a variety of production areas since joining the company in 2003 when the plant was under construction. He is now the director of engine sub-division for HMMA, which operates two engine shops. “The first time I laid my eyes on that YF Sonata – the very first time I saw it – I knew that we were going to generate as many automobiles in this plant as it could possibly put out,” Stapley said about the 2011 Sonata. “When I looked at that Sonata, I said, ‘That’s a game-changer.’ It was so well engineered and went together so well. The first one we built on line as a trial, we had zero down time; zero skips or spaces. And it started and drove off the line.” Then the company added the Elantra to the plant. “On the heels of that (Sonata), I saw the

Elantra that we currently build and I said, ‘We’re not going to keep up. We will never keep up with the demand and we haven’t.” Korea still ships Elantras to the U.S. The company is rumored to be considering another manufacturing plant to keep up with demand. “I call it manufacturability,” said Stapley, who came to Hyundai from Nissan. “When I looked at the parts and the processes, it was so well engineered and went together so well. It just lent itself to good quality.” He understands the importance of having enough Sonatas and Elantras at dealerships. If a customer walks away because the dealer doesn’t have the vehicle they want, “it’s a lost sale and we’re not in the business of losing sales,” Stapley said. “It’s something we educate our people on all the time because we’re here to make a profit and make as many customers as we can. We have to maintain that market share.” When HMMA began producing vehicles in Montgomery 10 years ago, the production staff was inexperienced – about as inexperienced as you can get when it comes to building cars. That is one of the key ways the production staff has evolved – from novice to expert automotive workers, Stapley said. Continued on page 50

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

The latest challenge is building increasingly more complex vehicles. “The NF Sonata that we were building when we started was a much simpler car overall,” Stapley said. Now the new vehicles at the plant are equipped with lane departure detection, smart cruise control, rear intervention system, Bluetooth, sophisticated navigation and audio systems and Blue Link. “All those systems make the vehicle much more complex, so again, it’s attention to details and how you make all the processes repeatable,” Stapley said. He said that being able to consistently repeat processes is critical. Although the production staff is building more complex vehicles, there are now fewer hours required to do the job because of efficiencies. It takes approximately 15 hours to build a vehicle, which includes nine hours in the paint shop and six hours in final assembly. Much of the plant is more automated than it was 10 years ago, although general assembly has added probably the least automation, Stapley said. Stamping, welding, paint shop and engine shops have become more automated, but he said jobs were not lost. In the engine shops, machines tighten nuts and bolts, which is more reliable than people, who may over-tighten or not tighten enough. Robots in the engine shops check about 60 items on each engine, he said.

Continued from page 49

In 2004, groups of new hires were sent to Korea for a month to learn how to build cars. “Folks we hired on that very first trip to Korea that were hourly vehicle assemblers have come up to be team leaders, group leaders, assistant managers and managers,” Stapley said. “That’s something that I am very proud of as local, home-grown people that have succeeded in this business that are true automotive professionals.” Stapley recalled the task of getting 1,000 to 1,200 people in general assembly “all on the same page; all understanding what their roles and responsibilities were and individual accountability, and then seeing that group mature through the years.” He explained that as a startup, the company had to bring in expertise. “What we created is sustainability and that’s even within our talent pool,” he said. “In all of these shops, you have a bench of people that inherently know what needs to be done to support what has to be done. The only thing we added over the years is more challenges.”

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

Even with the automation, no jobs were lost. Production employees were given other duties. “We don’t have a downscale in the work force,” Stapley said. “We have never done that.” Over the years, the production employees developed a comfort level, said Robert Burns, senior manager of public relations for HMMA. Now those same employees are making suggestions to improve production. Stapley challenges the team leaders in the engine shop to work on an improvement in their area each week. Those suggestions “generate better and better and better work environments because now they’re tasked with going out and improving something whether it be cost, safety, quality, efficiency or productivity,” Stapley said. “That has kind of a snowball effect.” He said that group leaders across the plant spend one hour each week on line with a different employee to get to know them and talk about their job and possible improvements. “It’s really important that the supervisor knows his people and the people know their supervisor,” said Stapley, who worked on the assembly line for nearly five years with another automaker. He said that he personally invests a lot of time in getting to know the employees. For Hyundai, it is one of the core values – people.

HYUNDAI SHATTERS ALL-TIME MONTHLY SALES RECORD

The engine shops, which supply the nearby Kia plant in West Point, Georgia, with about 250,000 to 275,000 engines a year, produce a total of about 710,000 engines annually. They are operating at capacity, Stapley said.

by David Zaslawsky

Stapley, who has been in the automotive business for 30-plus years, said “if you create well-lit spaces, the team member on the line doesn’t feel constrained and it improves quality.” By eliminating clutter and presenting less material to assembly line employees, it makes their job less complicated. Lighting is that important. “You will be amazed by just adding light makes all the difference in the world,” said Stapley, who has run every shop at the plant. He talked about eliminating the seven wastes, which originated in Japan and are called “muda.” Those include waste of time; waste of money; waste of space; waste of effort. “You start reducing all those wastes and then it’s only about adding value to the product that you’re building,” Stapley said. “Everything else doesn’t matter. Whatever adds value directly to the product is what people pay for.” n

There is something about March that seems to bring out the best in U.S. sales for Hyundai and the trend has been going on since 2012. That’s not very long, but four of the Korean automaker’s best months have been March, including this year’s all-time monthly record of 75,019 units that shattered the previous record by more than 4,000 vehicles. The March 2015 record also was 12 percent more than

March 2014, which now ranks as the 10th all-time best month. The Montgomeryproduced Elantra was the top-seller in March with 28,794 units, an all-time high for the model as well as any vehicle in the lineup. The Sonata’s monthly record of 25,195 units was set in June 2014. It too is produced in Montgomery at the Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama plant. Sonata did have 18,340 sales in March.

With a record-setting month, Hyundai now boasts a record-setting first quarter with sales of 172,029 units and is already 12,000 units ahead of last year’s record pace when an all-time high of 725,718 sales was achieved. The new 2016 Tucson was introduced at the New York International Auto Show and is expected to spark sales this year. n

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Vickie Lawrence is marketing manager for The Shoppes at EastChase and The Plaza at EastChase.

STILL SHINING IN THE EAST

New stores, restaurants flock to EastChase, surrounding areas

NEW STORES AND RESTAURANTS FLOCK TO EASTCHASE AND THE SURROUNDING AREAS by David Zaslawsky photography by Robert Fouts

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

The shopping pie just keeps getting bigger and bigger at and near EastChase with a development across Taylor Road and another even closer by. That’s the good news for The Shoppes at EastChase and The Plaza at EastChase, which are managed and leased by Birmingham-based Bayer Properties. “The key for a lifestyle center is synergy, and that has evolved and manifested more in the past few years than ever before,” said Vickie Lawrence, marketing manager for The Shoppes at EastChase, which along with the Plaza at EastChase and a few outparcels, is owned by JPMorgan Chase. “Right now with all that we added, we’ve become more of a lifestyle center, which is what we are,” Lawrence said. “We have all the different elements. You have an apartment complex, which contributes to our success. You have a grocery store – you have Earth Fare and across the street you have Whole Foods. In addition to that you have electronics; you have soft lines. Everything that a person needs for their lifestyle is here.”

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There is even an office building – Lakeview Center – and plenty of restaurants. Two more restaurants – Outback Steakhouse and Buffalo Wild Wings – will be at Chase Corner, across Taylor Road from The Shoppes at EastChase. Chase Corner, which is being developed by Aronov Realty Management, will be anchored by Whole Foods Market. There will also be a Jared jewelry store, according to a local television station and a developer’s website. Meanwhile, the 16,000-square-foot EastChase Station, which is being developed near The Plaza by Alfa Realty and Jim Wilson & Associates, has just two spaces remaining. The center has two restaurants – Urban Cookhouse and Pizza 120 – along with Bama Fever, an Alfa Insurance office and Kelly’s Nail Salon. It is being leased by Terra Equities in Birmingham. Continued on page 54

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Across from EastChase Station will be a 109-room, four-story Hilton Garden Inn on a 2.7-acre parcel that was purchased by Ram Hotels. Kobe Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Bar plans to open near the hotel. “You can take care of your insurance needs and get your nails done,” Lawrence said. She said that with very busy schedules, people are looking for convenience. “We have less time with all that we have going on. People need a place to shop that is all-inclusive.” The Shoppes at EastChase and The Plaza at EastChase have a combined 66-plus stores and 13 of those have been added in the last three years. There are just two vacancies for Bayer Properties

and Lawrence all-but-guaranteed that those will be filled this year. She said one will most likely be filled by a new retailer to the area, something that is common with EastChase. “It’s an ideal location,” she said. “I think the reason we’re considered to be the entrance-way for the area is because of placement; because of location. We are right off I-85. We’re accessible; we’re convenient; we’re visible. In addition, I have to give credit to the city – Montgomery is an awesome city with a growing economic base. You layer the fact that we’re in a very good place within Montgomery.” While many of the stores and restaurants at EastChase are new to the River Region; many are new to Central Alabama and some are new to the state such as Blackfinn Ameripub, which opened in March. “It’s the first new-generation pub and has the traditional elements of a pub,” Lawrence said. She said the company, which is based in North Carolina, “redesigned the feel of a traditional pub so that it not only caters to an upbeat and lively bunch, but if you want to visit and have a quiet dinner; a business lunch – there is an opportunity for that as well.” She said the Montgomery site is a new prototype. “They decided to revamp their content.”

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

“Montgomery is an awesome city with a growing economic base. You layer the fact that we’re in a very good place within Montgomery.”

-Vickie Lawrence, marketing manager for The Shoppes at EastChase

Firebirds Wood Fired Grill opened two years ago, but remains a big draw and is the first location in Central Alabama. “It affords people a place to go if they want to have a girls’ night or guys’ night out and also if you want to celebrate something like a graduation or what have you. It’s a nice go-to-place for that, too.” She credits those restaurants along with Which Wich?, a fast-casual restaurant that specializes in sandwiches and salads – for increasing the foot traffic to The Shoppes and Plaza.

A remerchandising effort a few years ago also has spurred more shoppers, Lawrence said. Before Bayer Properties took over, a side of The Shoppes was nearly vacant when Hollister went out of business. “We changed the retail mix,” she said. Now that area has DSW, PeachMac, Anthony Vince Nail Spa and Versona Accessories. “It was the right mix according to the demand in the area,” Lawrence said. “That definitely has increased our traffic on that side.” n

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

Margaret Allen is the superintendent of Montgomery Public Schools district.

ENGAGE. EDUCATE. INSPIRE. MONTGOMERY PUBLIC SCHOOLS READIES PIPELINE OF FUTURE WORKERS by David Zaslawsky

EMPLOY.

photography by Robert Fouts

The Montgomery Public Schools district is the foundation for a new workforce development pipeline for the area. That pipeline is providing the future employees and eventually the future employers in the River Region. Of course, the district is not alone in preparing tomorrow’s skilled workforce, but partners with Trenholm State Technical College, Alabama Department of Education, Alabama Community College System, Region 7 Workforce Development Council, Alabama Industrial Development Training and the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce.

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

“I understand that we are initially the pipeline,” Montgomery Public Schools Superintendent Margaret Allen said. “I understand that very well. It is truly important.” To prepare the region’s future workers, the district is adding programs to its technical education division as well as a new name as it readies for a move to One Center and a new building in the fall of 2016. The name is being changed from the Montgomery Technical Education Center, which is located on Hugh Street, to the Montgomery Preparatory Academy for Career Technologies or MPACT.

There are now about 200 students in the technical education program, which needs room to expand. “Each one of these areas need space to really do a great job,” Allen said. “There are additional pieces of equipment that they need that are not here, but can be (at the new facility).”

It also coincides with the district’s mission: “To engage, to educate and inspire.” Allen said that MPACT “works like a glove because students are in classrooms where they have interests, so that’s going to engage them. The wonderful teachers in those areas will be educating them. Hopefully, through that education, they will be inspired to go out there and take those jobs. “I mean they are coming out of high school with credentials. You are fit for the job and probably more fit than the general populace because they would have had recent training and be introduced to recent technologies. They will be ready to go and we’ll be very excited for them.” Their future employers will be quite excited, too, for that pipeline, which will continue to grow as the school district expands MPACT. The district currently offers heating, ventilation and air conditioning; graphic design; electrical engineering; welding; and construction/building science. In the fall of 2015, the district hopes to add information technology networking, fire science and public safety. Three more programs are expected to be added in fall 2016 for the new facility, which was the old Montgomery Mall. Those programs are industrial systems, which includes industrial maintenance; preengineering; and medical sciences. Two of those programs – industrial systems and medical sciences – were high on the list of industry and business leaders who have been talking to the school district for months about their needs. “Everything that we have here,” Allen said, referring to a list of programs, “is indeed a response to some need from a business or industry. We listened to what they were saying.”

The goal is to have 300 students in the fall program and then 400 for fall 2016. The new school, which will be located in the former JCPenney building, is in the early designing stages. Allen said the name change came about when the principal, teachers and central office staff talked about the new facility coming to the recently named One Center. “We are moving to a center and we wanted to give it a new technological push into the process that we’re trying to incorporate.” Nancy Beggs, state interposition officer for Montgomery Public Schools, told the Montgomery Advertiser: “I want to say that we are trying to elevate the rigor in career technical education so we are proposing what used to be called career technical programs be called career and technical majors.” Allen said that the new name “adds character.” She also liked the acronym MPACT. “That’s what we want to do,” Allen said. “That’s what we want each program to do for each student that attends. We want them to leave there so ready, so prepared for future endeavors and hopefully those future endeavors are great jobs.” n

“Everything that we have here is indeed a response to some need from a business or industry. We listened to what they were saying.” -Margaret Allen, superintendent, Montgomery Public Schools

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

With more restaurants coming to downtown Montgomery, the cityâ€™s coffers will continue increasing this year.

T A H W N T W S U O J WNT DORDERED O

sky uts aslaw obert Fo Z d i R v a y D b y by graph photo

evive r p l s he t n a r estau r e e venue A Thr r e Dext r e w Lo May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

“Montgomery is on the move.” - Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange

Three restaurants will be opening on Lower Dexter Avenue this year.

After the first five months of the fiscal year (OctoberFebruary), the city’s sales and use tax collections were up 5.9 percent over the same period in 2013-2014. That’s a difference of more than $2 million and if the trend continues, the city will top $100 million in sales tax this year. The city has not seen sales tax eclipse that milestone since the Great Recession. Three restaurants will open on Lower Dexter Avenue, although one – Cucos Mexican Cafe – is moving a short distance from South Court Street next to the Irish Bred Pub at 72 Dexter Avenue. Cucos, which was expected to reopen in April, will have about the same space, but

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

it is configured differently. The new site was designed and built by John H. Foshee, who runs Foshee Design and Construction. Momma Goldberg’s Deli, which was going to open at the historic Webber building in downtown before there was a partial building collapse during a $3 million renovation, will now be located at 44 Dexter Ave. Island Delight, a Caribbean restaurant, is leasing space at 28 Dexter Ave. All the sites are part of the Market District, created by the Foshee Companies. The restaurant announcements mean more jobs. Cucos, which was only open for lunch Monday-Friday at its former South Court Street location, will now be open seven days a week for lunch and dinner and will serve alcohol. Owner Oscar Franco said he plans to

hire 10 to 12 people in addition to his current eight employees. “I hope we do well and I may hire even more people,” Franco said. His revenue will jump with new hours 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-10:30 p.m. FridaySaturday and 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday. Franco said the new location will enable him to hold groups of 25 to 30 instead of the old site’s 10 to 12. The new site will seat between 85 and 90 compared with 75 at the former South Court Street location.

July or early August, will be open seven days a week, including lunch and dinner Monday-Saturday. It will seat close to 100 people. The current location on Air Base Boulevard is small – seating about 35 – and is open only for lunch Monday-Friday. She said a lot of customers asked about the restaurant offering dinner. The Dexter location will also have a natural juice bar and a smoothie bar, Melissa Smith said.

John H. Foshee (left) and Golson M. Foshee, who operate the Foshee Companies, are developing Lower Dexter Avenue as part of their Market District project.

Continued on page 63

Island Delight expects to hire 16 employees for the new location, according to Melissa Smith, who is co-owner along with her husband, Richard Smith. The new site, which is scheduled to open either late

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

“We’ve been trying to get downtown for a while. We think we’ve got a good concept for downtown. We’re quick and we’re fairly inexpensive.” - Hal Newell, owner of Mama Goldberg’s Deli

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

Continued from page 61

â€œMontgomery is on the move,â€? Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange said at a news conference, announcing the three restaurants coming to Lower Dexter Avenue.

Island Delight owner Richard Smith told the Advertiser: â€œI say strike the iron while itâ€™s hot. Weâ€™re doing that.â€?

It will also be a second location for Momma Goldbergâ€™s, which has a site at Sturbridge Village and for Cucos, which has a restaurant on Chantilly Parkway. â€œWeâ€™re excited that these are local Montgomery folks,â€? Golson M. Foshee, who owns the management company division, said about the restaurant owners. â€œExpansion is key. Jobs are very important to us.â€? Momma Goldbergâ€™s, which opened in 1976 in Auburn and has more than 25 locations in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina, will actually face a shared alleyway with other restaurants.

Golson Foshee said that more announcements are coming soon. He said another lease is signed and another potential tenant has signed a letter of intent. Strange thanked the restaurant owners â€“ â€œthose entrepreneurs that have these restaurants in Montgomery that are willing to come and be part of whatâ€™s happening in downtown.â€? He also praised the Foshee brothers. â€œI feel so good about the young generation and what theyâ€™re doing and all of us that are part of the older generation what we want to do is just get out of the way and let them create.â€? n

â€œWeâ€™ve been trying to get downtown for a while,â€? owner Hal Newell told the Montgomery Advertiser. â€œWe think weâ€™ve got a good concept for downtown. Weâ€™re quick and weâ€™re fairly inexpensive.â€?

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May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

MEMBER NEWS

BUSINESS BUZZ BELL MEDIA ACQUIRES DIGITAL MEDIA COMPANY MONTGOMERY – Bell Media has acquired Highlands Digital Media Inc., raising its digital display screens to 1,000-plus.

The expanded advertising and inhouse marketing screens Scott Bell are located in restaurants, businesses, fitness centers and health care facilities in Alabama, Georgia, Florida and Tennessee. Birmingham-based Highlands Digital Media is an indoor digital media firm. “This acquisition represents a tremendous opportunity to expand our statewide digital advertising network and further invest in managed in-house digital marketing opportunities,” Scott Bell, founder and CEO of Bell Media, said in a statement. “We thank the team at Highlands for working with us and are excited to welcome them to the Bell Media family.”

The Highlands Digital Media acquisition is the latest for Bell Media as part of an ongoing expansion across the Southeast. The diversified media company manages advertising networks in the top five markets in Alabama as well as Nashville, Tenn.; Columbus, Ga.; and Pensacola, Fla. In addition to a local indoor advertising network, Bell Media offers in-house marketing screens, an established outdoor advertising network and online advertising services.

John Chambless Jr. and Stephen King are principals in Chambless King Architects.

LAGOON PARK BUSINESS CENTER RECEIVES ADVANTAGESITE DESIGNATION

CHAMBLESS KING ARCHITECTS RECEIVES STATE AWARD MONTGOMERY – Chambless King Architects was honored recently with an Alabama Council of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Award for design excellence.

a multistory renovation for the historic Teague Warehouse building in downtown Montgomery. The renovation encompasses about half of the triangular-shaped top floor and accommodates an open studio for a design and production staff with adjacent private offices for senior staff and auxiliary functions.

MONTGOMERY – The Lagoon Park Business Center received AdvantageSite designation. John Chambless Jr.

The AdvantageSite program requires that community economic development organizations provide documentation specific to a proposed industrial site, including a set of standard AIA Alabama data related to ownership/ recognizes projects control, environmental and that exemplify geotechnical conditions, and Stephen King design excellence and infrastructure status. Sites achievement in various must also meet size, zoning and categories of building design at its accessibility requirements. annual Design Awards Gala. The Chambless King new office project was granted honorable mention from a national panel of judges who evaluated 45 projects. The office project was part of

The 90-acre business center park, owned by Montgomery East Inc., is located within the Montgomery city limits directly off U.S. 231 on North Eastern Blvd. The site is less than 4 miles from Interstate 85 and less than 7 miles from I-65. The Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce is marketing the site for industrial purposes. The application

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

process was managed locally by the Chamber with a team of local entities supporting and/or participating in the process. â€œThe AdvantageSite designation of Lagoon Business Center is extremely important to our business recruitment efforts,â€? Ellen McNair, senior vice president, corporate development, Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement. â€œThis designation proves to our clients that this site is ready for any prospective industry and that we are able to meet short project timeframes.â€? The property is being developed by Hodges Warehouse + Logistics/ Hodges Commercial Real Estate, which also has sites available from one-half acre to 3 acres, some of which front North Eastern Boulevard. Traffic counts there are nearly 40,000 daily.

TWO WARREN AVERETT STAFFERS BECOME CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS MONTGOMERY â€“ Warren Averett, LLC, Certified Public Accountants and Advisors announced that John Taylor and Adrienne Sanderson have successfully completed and passed all four parts of the examination to become a certified public accountant (CPA).

professionals who meet special requirements of education, experience, knowledge, professional reputation and character. Taylor is an associate in the estate and trust group of the Montgomery office. He has been with the firm for one year and specializes in estate and trust returns as well as individual, S Corporation and partnership tax returns. Sanderson is a senior associate in the Montgomery office audit division. She has been with Warren Averett for two-plus years and works with nonprofit audits and single audits.

In another development, Irby Thompson member Irby Thompson has been approved Thompson has spent more as an accredited estate planner than 35 years in the financial (AEP). The designation is awarded services industry and serves as vice to credentialed estate planning CONTINUED ON PAGE

Make Your Plans to Attend!

Buckmasters Expo returns to downtown Montgomery, Alabama in 2015. This yearâ€™s Friday-Sunday event will feature some of the hottest names and products in the hunting industry. Whether youâ€™re looking for deals on the latest gear, watching the worldâ€™s best archers compete in the Top Bow Championship, entertaining the kids in the Young Bucks area, snapping your fingers at the country music concert, or having your buck scored for free, thereâ€™s something for everyone at Expo. Make your plans to attend! And keep watching the Montgomery Business Journal for details regarding future Buckmasters Expo announcements!

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$0 May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal 65

CONTINUED FROM PAGE

president of Warren Averett Asset Management as well as a member of the investment committee. After graduating from the University of Alabama in 1976, he was an owner and principal of Thompson Insurance, Inc., a commercial lines insurance agency, for 20 years. In 1990 he joined a registered investment advisory firm as a consultant. During his tenure there he worked with clients of all sizes, and headed the firm’s relationship with its largest client, a $300 million retirement plan.

ALFA INSURANCE UPDATES WEBSITE

Walter Overby

MONTGOMERY – Alfa Insurance announced the release of its latest and most comprehensive update to AlfaInsurance.com.

The redesigned site touts more user-friendly features, a streamlined look, mobile optimization and an enhanced customer care section. Alfa’s Vice President of Corporate Internet and E-Business Walter Overby said the redesign simplifies search and other processes that will ultimately enhance the user experience. Among the new features are a one-step login for current customers and an Alfa Life quoting process that directs visitors to a local agent based on their zip codes. “We are very proud of the improved functionality and enhancements the new AlfaInsurance.com offers,” Overby said in a statement. “This delivery is part of our ongoing efforts to improve relationships among our customers, agents and customer service representatives through Web and mobile platforms.”

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

Alfa’s mobile app, Alfa2Go, also received an updated look to mirror the updated website. Current Alfa2Go users are asked to install the latest app update on their iPhones or Android devices before use to avoid system errors. To download the free app, search for “Alfa2Go” in the iTunes App Store or the Android Apps on Google Play.

CADENCE BANCORP ANNOUNCES SUCCESSFUL DEBT ISSUANCE

MOORE COMPANY REALTY EMPLOYEES WIN AWARDS

Steve Hughes

Gene Cody

HOUSTON – Cadence Bancorp, LLC, announced the successful completion of a $50 million debt issuance to foster the continued growth and solid capital position of the company.

Cadence Bancorp is an $8 billion bank holding company with 80plus locations in five states: Texas, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi and Tennessee.

Hughes also won an award for the No. 1 Sales Professional by State. The awards were presented by Coldwell Banker Commercial.

Hughes has 40-plus years of experience in real estate and Cody has more than eight years. “It is my honor and pleasure to say that these two are an inspiration to our entire team and I am most grateful for their contributions, which also led to Moore Company Realty Inc. winning the No. 1 commercial office in the state,” Jerome Moore, president of Moore Company Realty, said in a statement.

“We are pleased that the continued demand for high-quality, mid-cap investment opportunities has enabled us to complete this successful transaction,” Paul B. Murphy, CEO and president of Cadence Bancorp, said in a statement. “Investors continue to be confident in our ability to capitalize on Scott Lindley the growth opportunities throughout our footprint.” Cadence Bancorp is the parent company of Cadence Financial Corp. and Cadence Bank, N.A. The bank has a branch in Montgomery.

MONTGOMERY – Steve Hughes and Gene Cody of Moore Company Realty Inc. received the Circle of Distinction Silver and Bronze Awards, respectively.

MAX CREDIT UNION UPGRADES BILL PAY SERVICE MONTGOMERY – MAX Credit Union has upgraded its bill pay service that can be accessed through a desktop or MAX’s mobile banking app.

There is no charge for the service, which enables customers to: > Pay bills from multiple accounts. > Send single or recurring payments. > Initiate expedited payments. > Make person-to-person payments. > Store payment history for 18 months.

> Set-up text alerts and payment reminders. > Send gift checks or donations. “In today’s society, our customers are always busy and on the go,” MAX Chief Information Officer Scott Lindley said in a statement. “At MAX, we strive to provide smarter solutions to make managing finances simpler. MAX Bill Pay is one way we do this.”

MOWERY NAMED TO ‘40 UNDER 40’ LIST NEW ORLEANS – David Mowery of Mowery Consulting Group has been honored by the American David Mowery Association of Political Consultants (AAPC) as one of the top 40 campaign professionals under 40 years old currently working in the U.S. Only 15 Republicans, 15 Democrats, and 10 nonpartisan operatives in the United States were named to the exclusive “40 under 40” list. The campaign professionals were graded on a 40-point scale and selected for achievements in politics and public affairs. Contributions to the health of the political business community through volunteer work and other forms of philanthropy were also considered. “This is a major honor,” AAPC President Art Hackney said in a statement. “It was amazing to see the large number of nominations for this new recognition; all of them worthy, and all of them the future of our industry.” Mowery is founder and president of the Montgomery-based Mowery Consulting Group.

The top 40 list was announced at the 2015 annual Pollie Awards & Conference when members of the political advertising and communications industry receive awards.

JACKSON HOSPITAL RECEIVES AWARD FROM MONTGOMERY AREA COUNCIL ON AGING MONTGOMERY – Jackson Hospital was the first recipient of the Rick Heinzman Memorial Meals on Wheels award. The hospital was recognized for its 42-year partnership and commitment to Meals on Wheels, a program of the Montgomery Area Council on Aging (MACOA). The award was established to honor Richard Ruel “Rick” Heinzman, who was the executive director of MACOA for 14 years from May 1998 to July 2012. Meals on Wheels volunteers deliver hot lunches to 340-plus homebound seniors Monday-Friday.

STERLING BANK RECEIVES CUSTOMER SERVICE AWARDS MONTGOMERY – Sterling Bank, a division of Synovus Bank, recently announced that Synovus received 19 national Greenwich Customer Service Excellence awards in middle market and small business banking from Greenwich Associates. “Delivering exceptional customer service is something our team members focus on every single day at Sterling Bank,” Alan Worrell, president and CEO of Sterling Bank, said in a statement. “We are grateful to again be honored for our ability to exceed the expectations of our small and middle market business customers. I want to

recognize our exceptional team for consistently caring for our customers by offering personal service and banking solutions that support their business success.” In middle market banking, Synovus was recognized nationally for overall satisfaction; likelihood to recommend; relationship manager capability; overall satisfaction (cash management); and customer service (cash management) In the Small Business Banking category, Synovus received national awards for overall satisfaction; likelihood to recommend; relationship manager capability; financial stability; branch satisfaction; overall satisfaction (cash management); accuracy of operations (cash management); customer service (cash management); product capabilities (cash management); and sales specialist performance (cash management). Synovus was also honored with four South regional awards, including two in middle market banking for “overall satisfaction with banking relationships” and “overall satisfaction with cash management relationships,” and two in small business banking Alan Worrell for “overall satisfaction with banking relationships” and “overall satisfaction with cash management relationships.” In compiling the rankings, Greenwich Associates interviewed nearly 13,000 middle market firms with sales of $10 million-$500 million and more than 15,000 small businesses with sales of $1 million-$10 million across the country. Sterling Bank has operated four branches in the Montgomery and Prattville markets for 26 years. CONTINUED ON PAGE

68 May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

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HUNTINGTON LEARNING CENTER CELEBRATES 30th ANNIVERSARY MONTGOMERY – The new franchise owner of Huntington Learning Center on Zelda Road brings a decade of experience. The learning center has been serving the families of Montgomery for 30 years, helping children build the skills, confidence and motivation they need to be successful in the classroom and on tests such as the ACT. The center recently held a grand reopening and ribbon Len Silverman cutting to celebrate the 30th anniversary and to welcome its new franchisee. “Things have certainly changed a lot since 1985,” Len Silverman, the new franchise owner, said in a statement. “One thing that hasn’t changed, though, is that students still want to be successful. We have found that through the evaluation of student skills, the development of a complete and individualized lesson plan, and academic instruction delivered by professional educators, we continue to help our students be the best they can be in the classroom.” Silverman has owned a Huntington franchise in Nashville, Tenn., for the past 10 years. He said that he is excited about what he sees in Montgomery. “We have very active and motivated parents here in Montgomery and the school personnel I have met since taking over in February have been very dedicated to student achievement. That is always a recipe for success.” Huntington Learning Center is a tutoring and test prep firm with certified teachers providing individualized instruction in reading,

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

phonics, writing, study skills, elementary and middle school math, algebra through calculus, chemistry and other sciences. Huntington preps students for college entrance exams as well as state and standardized tests.

SPEAKER OFFERS SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVE HEALTH CARE FOR BLACK BELT MINORITIES MONTGOMERY – The keynote speaker at the S. Rexford Kennamer Distinguished Lecture talked about the importance of using trained volunteers to increase the detection of cancer in minorities in the Black Belt.

Established in 1978, the distinguished lecture series brings nationally and internationally recognized leaders in health care to Montgomery to interact with the medical, business and political community and discuss their views on important issues in medicine. The Kennamer Distinguished Lecture is sponsored by the Montgomery Regional Medical Campus of the UAB School of Medicine.

AUM OUTREACH SECURES GRANT TO IMPROVE MENTAL HEALTH IN REGION MONTGOMERY – Auburn University at Montgomery Outreach recently secured a $96,529 grant to support a program it is leading that will give decision makers in the River Region better information on behavioral health issues in their communities.

Dr. Edward E. Partridge, director of the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Evalina B. Spencer Endowed Chair in Oncology, talked about the marked disparity in the overall incidence of and mortality from breast and gynecologic malignancies in the African-American population in the Edward E. Partridge Black Belt. He said there are several projects in which UAB has partnered with other institutions in the South, the Centers for Disease Control and the National Cancer Institute. In one project, trained volunteers worked with Black Belt minority residents to undergo screening for breast and cervical cancer. In another project, trained volunteers served as guides for patients diagnosed with cancer at 12 sites in Alabama, Mississippi, Florida and Georgia. The guides were instrumental in improving the quality of care while also reducing the overall cost. Both of the projects are ongoing.

The funding will enable testing for the Community Behavioral Health Early Warning System, which has the potential to be a model for communities nationwide. AUM Outreach is working with The River Region Healthy Minds Network, a collective impact initiative whose goal is achieving a coordinated mental health care system in the River Region that provides effective, efficient and reliable services for consumers so they may achieve wellness through awareness, prevention and appropriate care. Compounding the River Region’s challenges is the lack of child or adolescent beds in the four counties of the Montgomery Area Mental Health Authority (Autauga, Elmore, Lowndes and Montgomery), forcing families to hospitalize their children many miles from home. n

MEMBERS ON THE MOVE BBVA COMPASS PROMOTES CRAWFORD TO CEO MONTGOMERY – A. Bruce Crawford has been promoted from city president of BBVA Compass in the Montgomery area to CEO.

ALABAMA WILDLIFE FEDERATION HIRES DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR

Bruce Crawford

Crawford, who was the city president for 14 years, joined Compass Bank in 1997 as a vice president and commercial relationship manager. BBVA Compass wrote in a press release that the move is “aimed at fostering deeper ties to clients and communities in the growing region.” Crawford’s new role is part of the bank’s reorganization in which retail, wealth management and commercial were combined into one unit. “Bruce has built his career in Montgomery and has strong relationships with our local clients, and that makes him an excellent choice to lead our efforts in this part of the state,” BBVA Compass Chief Operating Officer Rafael Bustillo said in a statement. “He has the expertise to help the bank and our clients in an area that’s enjoying success in health care, commercial, government and manufacturing.”

MILLBROOK – The Alabama Wildlife Federation (AWF) has hired Ronny Robertson of Tuscaloosa as director of development.

Robertson, who has 10plus years of experience as a development professional, will enhance and expand development programs and strategies that sustain growth in each of organization’s core program areas: conservation education, natural resource stewardship, and hunting and angling heritage.

MEMBER NEWS

Prior to joining AWF, Robertson served the last 10 years as director of development for athletics at The University of Alabama.” “I have known Ronny for a number of years and know that he has an eagerness to work hard as a leader and team member with a positive, passionate, can-do spirit,” Horace Horn, AWF president of the board of directors, said in a statement. “We will all benefit from his leadership.” The Alabama Wildlife Federation, established by sportsmen in 1935, is the state’s oldest and largest citizens’ conservation organization. CONTINUED ON PAGE

“Ronny brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to our organization,” AWF Executive Director Tim L. Gothard said in a statement. “We are incredibly fortunate Ronny Robertson to have him join our development team and take the lead in managing and growing long-lasting, rewarding relationships with our members and supporters.”

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RENAISSANCE MONTGOMERY NAMES DIRECTOR OF SALES MONTGOMERY – With more than 20 years of hospitality sales experience, Perry Grice Perry Grice has joined Renaissance Montgomery Hotel & Spa at the Convention Center as the director of sales.

MONTGOMERY – Welch Hornsby Investment Advisors announced that Kellie H. McDowell has joined the firm as an investment consultant.

She has more than 12 years of investment experience involving publicly traded securities and private equity. Her background includes organizations such as SunTrust Banks Inc., and TRUSCO Capital Management, where she had responsibility Kellie H. McDowell for developing institutional client relationships.

Before coming to Renaissance Montgomery, he spent 12 years at Callaway Gardens in Georgia. Grice was director of sales for 10 years at Callaway Gardens and spent his final two years there as director of sales and marketing at the Lodge & Spa at Callaway Gardens.

Grice started his hospitality career at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Fla. He has worked in various sales and marketing leadership positions at Georgia State Parks & Conference Center, Renaissance Waverly Hotel in Atlanta, the Renaissance Nashville Hotel and Stouffer Riverview Plaza (now Renaissance Riverview Plaza) in Mobile. Renaissance Montgomery Hotel & Spa at the Convention Center, which opened in 2007, has 342 rooms and more than 140,000 square feet of meeting space.

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

TRUSTMARK BANK NAMES COMMERCIAL BANKING MANAGER

WELCH HORNSBY HIRES INVESTMENT CONSULTANT

McDowell received the chartered financial analyst designation and holds a bachelor’s degree with a minor in business administration from Vanderbilt University.

MONTGOMERY – Trustmark Bank announced that Mark R. Hope has been named commercial banking manager for the Montgomery market.

Mark R. Hope

He has more than 21 years of experience in the financial industry with a concentration in small business and commercial banking for the past 14 years. “We are delighted to have Mark join our Trustmark team,” Trustmark Regional President Linwood McClain said in a statement. “His extensive experience in commercial banking will be an asset to our organization.” Hope, a Montgomery native, received his undergraduate degree from The University of Alabama.

“Kellie is another excellent addition EXIT HODGES REAL ESTATE to Welch Hornsby,” Edward V. ANNOUNCES HIRE Welch Jr., president and CEO of Welch Hornsby MONTGOMERY – Investment Advisors, Makina L. Wallace has said in a statement “She joined EXIT Hodges deepens an already Real Estate. talented investment “We’re excited to consulting team with her welcome Makina to EXIT background, experience and Makina L. Wallace Realty,” Paul Hodges, ability. Kellie represents all broker of EXIT Hodges that is important to us here at Welch Real Estate, said in a statement. Hornsby and we are pleased to “EXIT is growing and attracting welcome her.” quality business people like Makina Welch Hornsby, a registered each and every day.” investment advisory firm, was Wallace, a native of Montgomery, founded in 1998. The company returned to the River Region in 2013 headquarters is in Montgomery and with several years of experience in the firm has offices in Birmingham college admissions, recruitment and Charlotte, N.C. and business-to-business sales in Alabama, Florida, Georgia and South Carolina.

“I pride myself on my ability to truly listen to my clients’ needs and connect them with opportunities that best match those needs,” Wallace said in a statement. She graduated from Robert E. Lee High School and the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

The federation also announced that Matt Wilson, a broadcaster with almost 18 years of experience, has joined the communications staff as a broadcast production assistant.

“I am very excited about this opportunity,” Bristow said in statement. “I am ready to work not only with farmers, but also for farmers.” In addition to working with farmers to improve their livelihoods, Bristow said he would also be a promoter of peanuts.

ALABAMA FARMERS FEDERATION NAMES HEAD OF PEANUT PRODUCERS GROUP MONTGOMERY – Caleb Bristow of Henry County is the new executive director for the Alabama Peanut Producers Association (APPA), a division of the Alabama Farmers Federation.

levels was among the things that attracted him to the career move.

Caleb Bristow

“Peanut farmers produce a delicious, healthy food that is safe and affordable,” Bristow said. “Helping encourage consumers to eat more of what our farmers grow is an exciting opportunity I’m looking forward to.” The 26-year-old Bristow, who lives in Headland, was previously a manager and salesman for Kelly Ag in Headland.

Matt Wilson

Bristow’s family raises nearly 3,000 acres of peanuts and cotton and has a herd of beef cows. He is an Auburn University graduate with a master’s degree in agronomy (weed science) and a bachelor’s degree in agronomy and soils. “We are fortunate and thrilled to have Caleb join the APPA and the federation family,” Federation Governmental and Agricultural Programs Director Brian Hardin said in a statement. “He will provide excellent leadership with his natural talents. Caleb is a smart, hard worker who has a great ability to connect with people and make them feel comfortable.” Bristow said the federation’s reputation as a conservative, familyfriendly organization that represents farmers on the state and national

APPA President Carl Sanders said Bristow represents the future of peanut farming. “Caleb’s energy and enthusiasm will serve farmers well as we navigate a new farm bill and spring planting begins,” Sanders said in a statement. “His first-hand knowledge of the peanut industry will allow him to understand what our farmers need and help them get it.” Wilson, 41, will work alongside broadcast director Kevin Worthington to produce stories for Simply Southern, a weekly, rural living television show presented by the federation and Alabama Farmers Cooperative. Wilson also will provide photography and videography services for other federation programs and Alfa Insurance, including event videos, educational productions and marketing projects.

“The addition of Matt to our team will allow us to better meet the growing video needs of the organization,” Jeff Helms, public relations and communications director, said in a statement. “It’s rare to find a broadcast professional who combines writing, editing and videography skills with an appreciation of rural Alabama. Matt has the talent and experience to hit the ground running and immediately help us reach our communications goals.” Wilson received a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Auburn University before returning to Montgomery to work in broadcast news. Wilson later worked in corporate communications for PowerSouth Energy Cooperative in Andalusia for seven years, where he produced videos spotlighting the organization’s rural customer base. In 2009, Wilson left PowerSouth to obtain a postproduction certification from Video Symphony in Burbank, Calif. Most recently, he worked with the Alabama News Network in Montgomery as technical director and assignment manager. “I am very excited to come on board,” Wilson said in a statement. “Agriculture is as much in my family history as it is for many who call Alabama home. The grassroots spirit of the farmers federation is also at the heart of my experience as an Alabama native. To have the opportunity to be a part of telling farmers’ stories is a blessing. I’m looking forward to getting started.” n

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

CHAMBER NEWS

NEW MEMBERS AUDIO-VISUAL CONSULTANTS & DESIGNERS

AUBURN AUDIO Ricky Clark 211 Orr Avenue Opelika, AL 36804 334-821-2701 CONSULTING SERVICES

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SERVICES LLC James Wright 4131 Carmichael Road, Suite 3 Montgomery, AL 36106 334-244-4411 TASHA M. SCOTT-BUSINESS GROWTH COACH Tasha Scott 8620 Minnie Brown Road Montgomery, AL 36117 334-603-2046 THE RON DRINKARD GROUP Ron Drinkard P.O. Box 5229 Montgomery, AL 36103 334-399-0123 CONTRACTORS

ELSAJA DEXTER Zac Gibbs One Court Square, Suite 101 Montgomery, AL 36104 334-544-0650 IAP WORLDWIDE SERVICES Mario Cafiero 7315 North Atlantic Avenue Cape Canaveral, FL 32920 334-784-7100 CONVENIENCE STORE

WOODMERE RACEWAY Rajiv Sharma 1319 Eastern Boulevard Montgomery, AL 36117 334-396-3395

CREATIVE DESIGN

HEALTH CARE SERVICES

OFFICE EQUIPMENT/SUPPLIES

COTTON & PINE CREATIVE Steven Lambert 3300 Eastern Boulevard Montgomery, AL 36116 334-271-6879

ASCENSION CATALYST NURSING SERVICE Melissia Carter-Duncan P.O. Box 242354 Montgomery, AL 36124 334-498-2975

CARTRIDGE WORLD OF MONTGOMERY Wiley Dempsey 6383 Atlanta Highway Montgomery, AL 36117 334-819-8797

INSURANCE COMPANIES/

PET BOARDING/

SERVICES

GROOMING/DAYCARE

STATE FARM INSURANCE, KRIS STALLWORTH Kris Stallworth 3460 Eastdale Circle Montgomery, AL 36117 334-277-5665

PET PALACE HOTELS Kelly Hellums 565-A Pike Road Pike Road, AL 36064 334-676-2070

DENTISTS

STEINEKER & DILLON, PC Darren Dillon 4730 Woodmere Boulevard Montgomery, AL 36106 334-277-5665 EVENT PLANNER

DIVINE STYLE EVENT PLANNING, INC. Regina White P.O. Box 240174 Montgomery, AL 36117 256-452-9903 RELLY RUE CREATIVE STUDIO Sherell Lewis 1932 James Avenue Montgomery, AL 36107 334-324-3476 FACILITY MAINTENANCE/ SERVICES

TRI-DIM FILTER Matt Grooms 700 Hyundai Boulevard, Paint Dock PO3 Montgomery, AL 36105 334-312-6815 FINANCIAL SERVICES

ALABAMA TILTLE LOANS, INC. Dan Dew 3530 Atlanta Highway Montgomery, AL 36109 334-244-9043 LENDMARK FINANCIAL SERVICES Mike Gallagher 6653 Atlanta Highway Montgomery, AL 36117 334-833-1360 FITNESS TRAINING

RESOLUTION FITNESS, LLC Corey Ellis 213 Madison Avenue Montgomery, AL 36104 334-309-4341 72

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

JANITORIAL SERVICE/ SUPPLIES

JANI KING OF MONTGOMERY David L. Wright 2000 Interstate Park, Suite 301 Montgomery, AL 36109 334-265-9830 MAINTENANCE/REPAIR COMPANY

KOAM MAINTENANCE, LLC I B Kim 4520 Selma Highway Montgomery, AL 36108 334-717-0622 MARKETING/MARKETING RESEARCH

PRIMA 1 MEDIA Kelly Primus 9142 Hanston Place Montgomery, AL 36117 334-531-2377 MUSIC PRODUCTION/RECORDING

TITANIUM MUSIC PRODUCTIONS GROUP, INC. Lisa Perkins 20 Sandy Springs Drive Wetumpka, AL 36092 334-213-3034

PUBLICATIONS

GUMPTOWN MAGAZINE Jamal Thomas 1623 London Town Lane Montgomery, AL 36117 334-245-4127 RECYCLING

DYVIS INC. Daniel Kim 150 Hyundai Boulevard Montgomery, AL 36105 334-288-8812 RESTAURANTS

THATâ€™S MY DOG, LLC Charles Lee 232 West Jeff Davis Avenue Montgomery, AL 36104 334-356-3040 RESTAURANTS-DELI

WHICH WICH? Mehul Patel 7030 EastChase Parkway Montgomery, AL 36117 334-356-1744 RESTAURANTS-SEAFOOD

BONEFISH GRILL Joshua Reed 7020 Eastchase Parkway Montgomery, AL 36117 334-396-1770

RIBBON CUTTINGS & GROUND BREAKINGS

CHAMBER NEWS

PET PALACE HOTELS

GANDER MOUNTAIN

CALIBER PATIENT CARE

565 Pike Road • Pike Road, AL 36064 334-676-2070 • www.petpalacehotels.com Kelly Hellums-Owner • Pet Barding/Grooming/Daycare

2424 Eastern Boulevard • Montgomery, AL 36117 334-239-4385 • www.gandermountain.com Michael Rhodes-Store Manager • Sporting Goods/Equipment

825 Chaseway Drive • Pike Road, AL 36064 334-244-8968 • www.caliber.care Mark Porterfield-Owner • Transportation Services

HUNTINGTON LEARNING CENTER

BLACKFINN AMERIPUB

CASH SAVER #26

2800 Zelda Road, Suite 200-6 • Montgomery, AL 36106 334-277-1180 • www.HuntingtonHelps.com Len Silverman-Executive Director • Christi Davis-Center Director Tutoring Services

7424 EastChase Lane • Montgomery, AL 36117 334-517-1760 • www.blackfinnameripub.com David Fettes-General Manager • Restaurants

2020 East South Boulevard • Montgomery, AL 36116 334-288-1128 • www.vowellsmarketplace.com Todd Vowell-Owner • Groceries-Retail

CONNER INDUSTRIES, INC.

HILTON GARDEN INN-EASTCHASE

DIVINE STYLE EVENT PLANNING, INC.

201 Smothers Road • Montgomery, AL 36117 334-391-0419 • www.connerindustries.com Bryan Welch-Plant Manager • Lumber/Wood Products-Mfr.

7665 EastChase Parkway • Montgomery, AL 36117 706-660-5620 • www.ramhotels.com Rinkesh Patel-President • Hotels/Motels

P.O. Box 240174 • Montgomery, AL 36117 256-452-9703 • www.divinestyleepinc.com Regina White-Owner • Event Planner

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

CHAMBER NEWS

ECONOMIC INTEL UNEMPLOYMENT RATES

Civilian Labor Force FEBRUARY P 2015

AREA

JANUARY R 2015

Unemployment Rate

FEBRUARY 2014

FEBRUARY P 2015

JANUARY R 2015

FEBRUARY R 2014

Montgomery MA

168,116

168,148

172,449

5.50%

6.10%

7.60%

Autauga County

25,057

25,028

25,636

4.90%

5.40%

6.90%

Prattville City

16,370

16,348

16,628

4.70%

5.10%

6.00%

Elmore County

35,918

35,838

36,817

4.90%

5.30%

6.90%

3,772

3,805

3,946

10.30%

11.40%

14.50%

103,369

103,477

106,050

5.70%

6.40%

7.70%

91,105

91,265

93,334

5.80%

6.50%

7.70%

531,056

527,024

537,704

5.10%

5.50%

7.00%

92,248

91,744

93,823

6.70%

7.30%

8.90%

Huntsville MA

205,171

204,673

210,659

5.20%

5.60%

7.20%

Huntsville City

89,145

88,978

91,197

5.60%

6.00%

7.10%

Mobile MA

180,227

179,601

185,670

6.40%

7.10%

8.70%

Mobile City

84,378

84,181

87,080

6.60%

7.40%

9.00%

2,111,624

2,106,032

2,159,554

5.80%

6.30%

7.90%

156,213,000

156,050,000

155,027,000

5.80%

6.10%

7.00%

Lowndes County Montgomery County Montgomery City Birmingham-Hoover MA Birmingham City

Alabama United States

SALES TAX

MA=Metropolitan Area. pPreliminary rRevised Estimates prepared by the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations in Cooperation with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, based on 2014 benchmark.

MARCH 2015

MARCH 2014

Montgomery County

$3,389,229

$3,399,717

City of Montgomery

$8,194,516

YEAR OVER YEAR % CHANGE

YTD 2015

YTD 2014

-0.31%

$10,690,972

$10,177,039

5.05%

$7,930,453

3.33%

$25,413,991

$24,011,777

5.84%

$161,110

$134,675

19.63%

$517,181

$464,084

11.44%

Prattville

$1,566,489

$1,497,460

4.61%

$5,452,573

$5,061,455

7.73%

Millbrook

$482,016

$461,516

4.44%

$1,523,181

$1,452,576

4.86%

Autauga County

$680,352

$623,662

9.09%

$2,060,204

$1,928,269

6.84%

Elmore County

$199,649

$181,298

10.12%

$692,699

$651,453

6.33%

Wetumpka

$432,257

$436,966

-1.08%

$1,355,170

$1,363,475

-0.61%

Pike Road

Sources: Montgomery County Commission, City of Montgomery, City of Pike Road, Autauga County Commission, City of Prattville, Elmore County Commission, City of Wetumpka, City of Millbrook Note: YTD numbers are January 2015 thru current month.

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

HYUNDAI SALES VEHICLE

MAR 2015

MAR 2014

YTD 2015

YTD 2014

Accent

7,494

5,843

16,799

16,008

Sonata

18,340

19,248

44,690

40,253

Elantra

28,794

21,518

56,742

53,237

9,895

9,726

26,406

23,440

616

760

1,957

2,118

Tucson

4,222

4,627

11,127

12,116

Veloster

2,380

2,782

5,237

6,686

3,064

2,170

8,430

5,236

214

331

641

918

75,09

67,005

172,029

160,013

Santa Fe Azera

Veracruz Genesis Equus Total Source: Hyundai Motor America

tŚĂƚ͛Ɛ zŽƵƌ ŚĂůůĞŶŐĞ͍

'ĞŶĞƌĂƚŝŶŐ ƋƵĂůŝĨŝĞĚ ůĞĂĚƐ ĨŽƌ ǇŽƵƌ ďƵƐŝŶĞƐƐ͍ ŽŶǀĞƌƚŝŶŐ ůĞĂĚƐ ŝŶƚŽ ĐƵƐƚŽŵĞƌƐ͍ dƵƌŶŝŶŐ ĐƵƐƚŽŵĞƌƐ ŝŶƚŽ ĐůŝĞŶƚƐ͍ /ŶĐƌĞĂƐŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ǀĂůƵĞ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ĐůŝĞŶƚ ƌĞůĂƚŝŽŶƐŚŝƉ͍

>Ğƚ͛Ɛ dĂůŬ ^ƚƌĂƚĞŐŝĞƐ Θ ^ŽůƵƚŝŽŶƐ͗ ϭ͘ϯϯϰ͘Ϯϲϯ͘ϯϰϭϵ ŝŶĨŽΛŐƌĂƉŚŝĐƐĂŶĚŵĂŝůŝŶŐ͘ĐŽŵ

'ƌĂƉŚŝĐƐ Θ DĂŝůŝŶŐ ^ĞƌǀŝĐĞ͕ /ŶĐ͘ ;'D^͕ /ŶĐ͘Ϳ ŽĨĨĞƌƐ ƐŽƵŶĚ ĂŶĚ ƉƌŽǀĞŶ ƐƚƌĂƚĞŐŝĞƐ Θ ƐŽůƵƚŝŽŶƐ ĨŽƌ Ăůů ǇŽƵƌ ĚŝƌĞĐƚ ŵĂƌŬĞƚŝŶŐ ĐŚĂůůĞŶŐĞƐ͘ tĞ ĐĂŶ ŚĞůƉ ǇŽƵ ĨŝŶĚ ŶĞǁ ĐƵƐƚŽŵĞƌƐ͕ ǁŝŶ ŵŽƌĞ ƐĂůĞƐ ĂŶĚ ŵŽƚŝǀĂƚĞ ƌĞƉĞĂƚ ďƵƐŝŶĞƐƐ ĂŶĚ ƌĞĨĞƌƌĂůƐ͘ dŚĞ ƌĞƐƵůƚ ŝƐ ŝŶĐƌĞĂƐĞĚ ĐƵƐƚŽŵĞƌ ƚƌĂŶƐĂĐƚŝŽŶĂů ǀĂůƵĞ ĂŶĚ ƌĞůĂƚŝŽŶƐŚŝƉ ŐƌŽǁƚŚ͘ 'D^͕ /ŶĐ͘ ƉƌŽǀŝĚĞƐ ƚƌĂĚŝƚŝŽŶĂů ƉƌŝŶƚ ĂŶĚ ĚŝƌĞĐƚ ŵĂŝů ƐƚƌĂƚĞŐŝĞƐ ĂůŽŶŐ ǁŝƚŚ ĞǆĐŝƚŝŶŐ ĚŝŐŝƚĂů ƐŽůƵƚŝŽŶƐ ŝŶĐůƵĚŝŶŐ ƉĞƌƐŽŶĂůŝǌĞĚ ƉƌŝŶƚ ĂŶĚ ĞŵĂŝů ĐĂŵƉĂŝŐŶƐ͘

dĞůů ƵƐ ĂďŽƵƚ ǇŽƵƌ ĐŚĂůůĞŶŐĞƐ ƚŽĚĂǇ͊

'ƌĂƉŚŝĐƐ Θ DĂŝůŝŶŐ ^ĞƌǀŝĐĞ͕ /ŶĐ͘ ϮϬϮϲ >ŽĐƵƐƚ ^ƚƌĞĞƚ DŽŶƚŐŽŵĞƌǇ͕ > ϯϲϭϬϳ

ŝƌĞĐƚ DĂƌŬĞƚŝŶŐ ^ƚƌĂƚĞŐŝĞƐ Θ ^ŽůƵƚŝŽŶƐ ϭ͘ϴϬϬ͘ϴϬϭ͘ϯϮϰϳ ǁǁǁ͘ŐƌĂƉŚŝĐƐĂŶĚŵĂŝůŝŶŐ͘ĐŽŵ

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

AIR FARES Roundtrip airfare comparisons from Montgomery, Birmingham and Atlanta airports to key destinations. DESTINATION

MGM

BHM

ATL

DESTINATION

MGM

BHM

ATL

Baltimore (BWI)

$330

$270

$214

Miami (MIA)

$291

$248

$118

Boston (BOS)

$283

$312

$252

Nashville (BNA)

$408

$376

$352

Charlotte, NC (CLT)

$178

$170

$291

New Orleans (MSY)

$409

$333

$138

Chicago (ORD)

$260

$243

$158

New York (JFK)

$323

$328

$273

Cincinnati (CVG)

$307

$308

$58

Orlando (MCO)

$315

$211

$87

Dallas/Ft Worth (DFW)

$252

$325

$139

Philadelphia (PHL)

$283

$300

$136

Denver (DEN)

$318

$337

$178

Pittsburgh (PIT)

$260

$288

$226

Detroit (DTW)

$330

$290

$213

St Louis (STL)

$256

$240

$188

Houston (HOU)

$260

$270

$196

Seattle (SEA)

$517

$384

$385

Indianapolis (IND)

$260

$317

$68

$1,788

$1,346

$1,222

Las Vegas (LAS)

$421

$398

$228

Tampa (TPA)

$241

$225

$188

Los Angeles (LAX)

$400

$334

$275

Washington DC (DCA)

$260

$246

$227

Memphis (MEM)

Montgomery Business Journal May 2015

$370

$376

$358

Seoul (SEL)

Date of travel: May 19-24, 2015. Date of pricing: April 12, 2015. Source: travelocity.com

MONTGOMERY REGIONAL AIRPORT STATS MARCH 2015

MARCH 2014

YEAR OVER YEAR % CHANGE

YTD 2015

YTD 2014

YEAR OVER YEAR % CHANGE

795

945

-16.0%

2,219

2,396

-7.4%

Total Operations

5,322

6,564

-19.0%

13,851

15,792

-12.3%

Enplanements

14,795

13,447

9.8%

40,265

35,145

14.6%

Deplanements

14,830

13,646

8.7%

39,322

36,157

8.7%

Total Passengers

29,625

27,103

9.3%

79,587

71,302

11.6%

Air Carrier Operations

Source: Montgomery Regional Airport (MGM) Dannelly Field

QUARTERLY REVENUES

NET INCOME

EARNINGS PER SHARE

EARNINGS ESTIMATE

YEAR-AGO REVENUES

YEAR-AGO NET INCOME

Abercrombie & Fitch

$1.1B

$44.4M

$0.63

$1.13

N/A

$66.1M

Profit fell by one-third

PetSmart

$1.9B

$132.1M

$1.43

$1.37

$1.8B

$131.5M

Sales rose 6%

Big Lots

$1.6B

$94.4M

$1.77

$1.75

$1.6B

$84.3M

Comparable store sales increased 2.9%

$178.7M

$15.6M

$0.87

$156.1M

$12.3M

Profit increased 26.2%

Dollar General

$4.9B

$355M

$1.17

$4.5B

$322M

Same-store sales up 4.9%

American Eagle Outfitters

$1.1B

$61.6M

$0.32

$0.34

$1B

$10.5M

Operating revenue soared 31% to $376M

Fresh Market

$480.5M

$20.2M

$0.42

$0.52

$425.8M

$2M

DSW

$640.2M

$30.8M

$0.34

$0.27

$572M

$28.1M

Comparable store sales rose 7.6%

Hibbett Sporting Goods

$239.2M

$19.9M

$0.79

$0.68

$217.8M

$16.9M

Sales increased 9.9%

Ann (Ann Taylor)

$647.4M

$262,000

$0.01

(-$0.03)

$623.3M

$4.7M

Opened 50 stores in fiscal 2014

Foot Locker

$1.9B

$146M

$1.01

$0.90

$1.8B

$121M

Same-store sales jumped 10.2%

Williams-Sonoma

$1.5B

$147M

$1.57

$1.51

$1.5B

$133.8M

Revenue increased 5.2%

Barnes & Noble

$2B

$72.2M

$0.93

$1.19

$2B

$63.2M

Profit rose 14%

Darden Restaurants

$1.7B

$133.8M

$0.99

$0.84

$1.6B

$109.7M

Sales at LongHorn Steakhouse up 5.4%

Costco Wholesale Corp.

$27.5B

$598M

$1.35

$1.17

N/A

$463M

Profit increased 29%

GameStop

$3.5B

$244.1M

$2.23

$2.17

$3.7B

$220.5M

Sales declined 5.6%

$504.4M

(-$8.2M)

(-$0.22)

$0.02

$495M

$4M

Gross profit fell 7%

Family Dollar

$2.8B

$76.7M

$0.74

$0.73

$2.7B

$90.9M

Sales increased 3%

Walgreens Boots Alliance

$26.6B

$2B

$1.93

$0.94

$19.6B

$730M

Plans to close 200 stores in U.S.

Rite Aid

$6.9B

$1.8B

$1.79

$0.07

$6.6B

$55.4M

Revenue rose 3.8%

Bed Bath & Beyond

$3.3B

$321.1M

$1.80

$1.81

$3.2B

$333.3M

Proft declined 4%

$285.9M

(-$769,000)

(-$0.01)

(-$0.04)

$295.6M

(-$7.4M)

Loss narrowed

QUARTERLY NAME

REPORTS

Kirkland’s

(Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse)

Fred’s

Ruby Tuesday

NOTABLE

Sales up 12.8%

May 2015 Montgomery Business Journal

BUILDING STARTS

Building Permits MARCH 2015

Building Valuations

FEBRUARY 2015

MARCH 2014

MARCH 2015

FEBRUARY 2015

MARCH 2014

New Construction

$14,894,000

$21,383,000

$3,909,400

Additions and AlterationsÂ

$5,167,649

$7,569,666

$4,653,700

Others

$1,888,080

$75,840

$112,000

199

115

138

$20,249,729

$29,028,506

$8,669,100

Total Source: City of Montgomery Building Department

MONTGOMERY METRO MARKET HOME SALES MARCH 2015

FEBRUARY 2015

MONTH/MONTH % CHANGE

MARCH 2014

YEAR/YEAR % CHANGE

STATEWIDE MARCH 2015

Median Price

$132,000

$126,600

4.27%

$131,000

0.76%

$130,363

Average Price

$145,246

$145,011

0.16%

$143,541

1.19%

$151,181

2,899

2,729

6.23%

2,901

-0.07%

32,225

Months of Supply

8.4

10.1

-16.83%

-6.67%

7.5

Total # Sales

346

269

28.62%

321

7.79%

4,289

Days on Market

133

131

1.53%

157

-15.29%

162

Units Listed

Source: Alabama Center for Real Estate (ACRE), The University of Alabama

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