Posted in: City, Funding, Startup, Ticker, Venture Capital
Charlotte Magazine writer Jeremy Markovich visits a sweepstakes parlor in the January issue. Many such businesses have opened on and around South Boulevard over the last year. In 2010, these types of businesses were ruled to be illegal, but they are now widely available in Charlotte because of software changes.
[Source: Charlotte Magazine]
TEDxCharlotte, the local affiliate to the TED Conference, has announced a short video contest. Some of the videos will be used to help promote the local conference. The top videos will be presented at the live conference on February 15th. Entries must be posted before January 22nd to a video website (YouTube or Vimeo), must be 30 seconds or less, must be rated PG, and must have TEDxCharlotte branding.
Read more about the rules of the contest on the TEDxCharlotte website.
Maybe DeAngelo Williams isn’t washed up after all. Williams rushed for 210 yards (a franchise record) against the Saints, as the Panthers toppled the Saints 44-38 to end the season on a four-game winning streak. Newton racked up 248 yards passing, breaking Peyton Manning’s record for most passing yards by a quarterback in his first two seasons. The status of Rivera and Williams for next season is still in question after they both ended the season on a high note.
[Source: The Charlotte Observer]
Dilworth installed a new art installation earlier this month. The neighborhood was the location of Charlotte’s first streetcar. The structure is made up of reclaimed streetcar line parts such as the tracks and named Time Line. Videos of the project are on Charlotte Viewpoint.
Last month there was a local food listening session at the Charlotte School of Law. The listening session was composed of three sections: Land Use & Zoning, Local Food Entrepreneurship, and Children Access to Local Food. Much was said at the Land Use & Zoning session, but a common thread was that North Carolina local food regulations are made for the rural parts of the state and less for urban areas such as Charlotte and the Triangle. These regulations would have to change in order for food systems to bloom.
In 2010, North Carolina was ranked the tenth most populous state and the eighth largest agricultural state. Even though that is a big opportunity for development, North Carolina regulators will continue to have a tough job ahead for making regulations for a local food system. The characteristics of such regulation will have to fit all geographical regions as well as strike a balance between urban and rural needs. Currently tax deferment laws are in favor of rural counties, but in order for cities to meet their local food system needs, these state laws will have to change. Continue Reading →
Earlier this year, Publix stated they would open their first Charlotte store in Ballantyne. Not long after they mentioned they will also open a store in South End. On Thursday, developers outlined the plan for their South End store that will be located across the street from Lowes on South Blvd. The 55,000 square foot supermarket will house 8,500 square feet for other businesses. Charlotte grocers are facing competition from all sides as Walmart will open a Neighborhood Market on Independence Blvd next year and Whole Foods opened their SouthPark store earlier this year.
According to the Brookings Institute, a non-profit public policy think tank in Washington, D.C., Charlotte’s economic recovery is 27th best among the top 100 metropolitan areas in the country. Charlotte is ranked 39th in housing prices, 21st in employment recovery, 28th in unemployment and 43rd in economic output.
[Source: Charlotte Business Journal]
There’s no doubt that social media significantly changed the world – especially in the way we communicate as individuals and as a society. Recently, Facebook grew to over a billion users. Millions of people use sites such as Linkedin, Foursquare, Pinterest and Twitter and Yelp on a daily basis.
While consumers have gotten the hang of social media, businesses are still working out the kinks. Until recently, big corporations didn’t really know how to utilize social media. I worked in the social media space for two years and saw this first-hand.
But things are changing.
“I think we are a million miles from where we were a year ago,” says Richard Brasser, CEO of Charlotte social media firm The Targeted Group, when I ask him if companies are starting to figure social media out. “We’re seeing – at bigger companies – very specific approaches, where maybe a year, year and a half ago, we were going in and really doing a lot of education about what were some very sophisticated ways to create social infrastructure, social strategy, social analytics.”
Brasser tells me that companies are doing more than just blogging or having a Facebook or Twitter account. Now, firms are using very advanced and specific ways to integrate social data into their entire approach. Continue Reading →
YouTube is the third most visited website on the web and users upload 72 hours of video every minute. Such activity resulted in more than 1 trillion views in 2011. Even though those statistics are striking, they do not include other top video sites such as MetaCafe, DailyMotion, or Hulu. Each video hosted on these websites must have video advertisements in order to monetize. Charlotte startup, Womadz, launched last week in order to keep pace with online video by providing the advertising from brands. Continue Reading →
Charlotte city officials plan to send out a request for proposal (RFP) to potential developers on January 4, in order to find suitable vendors for its plan to transform Eastland Mall into a movie studio hub. The city will take interested developers on a tour of the site on January 30 and narrow its list to a few companies by March 8. The city bought Eastland Mall for $13M on August 31, 2012.
[Source: Charlotte Business Journal]
Piedmont Natural Gas announced a 5.5 percent increase in earnings in 2012, reporting net income of $119.8M this year compared to $113.6M in 2011. The company’s president and CEO Tom Skains said PNG added 13,000 customers this year.
[Sources: Charlotte Business Journal, Piedmont Natural Gas]
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police pulled a body of a woman from Sugar Creek last night – she was dead on scene. The area of the discovery is near Carolinas Medical Center on East Morehead Street. Homicide detectives are currently investigating the death.
Winston-Salem bank BB&T continues to expand its presence in Charlotte. The bank announced that it opened a new location in the Blakeney neighborhood.
[Source: Charlotte Business Journal]
After closing in April because of a kitchen fire, 131 Main in Dilworth is open again after a remodeling.
[Source: Fox Charlotte]
Ultimately, we believe Charlotte residents need information before more business products and that is how we approached creating this company. We were not sure if Charlotte needed another news source so we focused on sharing great information to test that assumption. As Detailors, you responded by reading more and sharing our articles which means you like us. We are working hard behind the scenes providing the structure for a great company that will last longer than a few years and grow larger than the two of us.
Today, we launch our logo to support that long term goal of creating a lasting company. From day one, our mission has been to improve communication in communities and we believe our graphic represents that vision. Continue Reading →
Wednesday, The Charlotte Observer implemented its paywall. The landscape for how news sources make revenue has been changing for years. That change, unfortunately, is negative. This is a step for The Observer to slow that revenue decrease. Many newspapers already have a digital subscription plan in some form and The Charlotte Observer calls their paywall Charlotte Observer Plus. Pricing will be $99.95 per year or $9.95 per month. Readers who do not pay for Plus will be allowed a limited number of views each month.
[Source and FAQ: The Charlotte Observer]
Redevelopment of Carolina Theatre has gone through a long process. In the last three months, there has been progress to find a newer partner to finish the redevelopment. Yesterday, Charlotte City Council decided in a 6-5 vote Foundations for the Carolinas would be the developer for $1.
[Image: Charlotte Observer]
[Source: Charlotte Business Journal]
The Carolina Panthers have a big decision to make at the end of the season regarding second-year coach Ron Rivera. In his second season, Rivera holds a overall record of 11-19 with a 5-9 mark so far this year. With two straight wins against the Falcons and Chargers, should Rivera get another chance from owner Jerry Richardson to get the Panthers into the playoffs?
A frustrated group of PSL owners don’t think so. They took out a full-page ad in Monday’s Charlotte Observer sports section urging Richardson to make big changes this offseason – including replacing Rivera.
However with the Panthers playing well in the last two games, The Charlotte Observer’s Scott Fowler sees improvement and wants to keep Rivera around for another year.
[Photo Credit: Carolina Panthers]
This past weekend Charlotte Beer Blog teamed up with Historic South End to create the first Light Rail Beer Crawl. The event focused on four restaurants and breweries that support Charlotte craft beer. The event not only supported the local craft beer community, it also raised $500 for Friendship Trays. Beer was highlighted from Triple C Brewing Company, The Liberty with Olde Meck Brewery, as well as Four Friends Brewing Company. The crawl started at Triple C Brewing Company and included All American Pub and World of Beer while ending at Common Market.
The beer crawl drew many people from all over Charlotte. Rex Salisbury who lives and works uptown came to South End specifically to enjoy the craft beer. Ann Woo, a UNCC senior, has learned that Charlotte’s craft beer scene has grown in the past year and the beer crawl provided her the opportunity to learn more about the breweries’ beers. “I’ve wanted to try many of these beers and this is a good time. I want to be more knowledgeable in craft beer and this helps,” she said. Not only did the beer crawl allow for tasting many new beers, but it also allowed local residents to become acquainted with their local bars and restaurants. Continue Reading →
For many diabetes patients, especially those with Type-1 diabetes, life can be painful. Everyday and several times a day, they have to prick themselves with a needle. They need to do this in order to place a drop of blood on a strip, which measures their blood glucose levels. Then patients use that information to find out how much insulin they need to inject.
For as long as I can remember, this process has been the norm for diabetes patients. But UNC-Charlotte graduate students Arnab Pal and Nicole Laville want to make life better for them.
Last Thursday evening, the two students pitched an idea for an non-invasive glucose sensor at the first annual Charlotte Venture Challenge Pitch Day.
Window and door manufacturing firm Jeld-Wen will choose Charlotte for its new North American headquarters. The company plans to create at least 142 jobs and invest $2M over the next two years. The state of North Carolina lured Jeld-Wen by providing a $2.5M Job Development Investment Grant. The company plans to keep its global oregons in Klamath Falls, Oregon.
[Source: Charlotte Business Journal]
Duke Energy acquired Gato Montes Solar Power Project from AstroSol Inc. – the company’s fifth solar project in Arizona within the last two years. The solar technology is expected to be in commercial use within the next week and is located within University of Arizona’s Science and Technology Park.
[Source: Duke Energy]
Monday, 12.10.12
After hours of searching Monday, dive teams failed to find a missing teen in a Mint Hill pond. Rescuers were searching for Kayla Campbell, an Independence High School student, who was reported missing Sunday evening. They did find her bike and cell phone in the pond. At this point, officials do not believe Campbell was abducted. She is described as 5-foot-6, weighing 115 pounds, with long brown hair and blue eyes.
[Source: The Charlotte Observer, WCNC]
UPDATE: Thursday, 12.13.12
After draining the pond overnight, Mint Hill police found the body of Kayla Campbell. The investigation will now shift to finding the cause and circumstances surrounding her death.
City and federal officials broke ground this morning on a new streetcar, which will run from Presbyterian Hospital in Elizabeth to the Charlotte Transportation Center in uptown. The initial 1.5 miles of the streetcar route will cost $37M, $15M coming from the city and $25M from the federal government. However, any future expansion of the streetcar to east and west Charlotte is in doubt as city leaders debate budget plans. Officials expect the first passengers to start riding the streetcar in 2015.
[Source: WCNC]
If you go to a bank, gas station or mall in Mecklenburg County, you may soon be recorded on camera – by Charlotte-Mecklenburg police. The police department announced Monday that it intends to pursue partnerships with private businesses, linking their cameras to the police department’s surveillance network. Police say that more cameras will deter crime and catch criminals but privacy advocates believe that Charlotte residents should have more say in the CMPD’s surveillance policy.
[Source: The Charlotte Observer]
In the last several years, the Atlanta Falcons have gotten the best of the Carolina Panthers, winning five straight games in the I-85 rivalry – including a 30-28 win earlier this year. However, the Panthers looked like the better team yesterday, dominating the first two and a half quarters against Atlanta, en route to a 30-20 win. Cam Newton rushed for 116 yards, including a 72-yard touchdown run while the Panthers defense limited the Falcons to 35 total yards in the first half.
If you’ve ever tried to start a business, you know that it’s an uphill climb at first. Not only do you need a good idea and product, but you also need to build a scalable business model, find the right employees, develop a marketing strategy and plan for the future. Achieving all this is usually overwhelming at first.
Now put yourself in the shoes of an entrepreneur who wants to build a food-related business. Not only do you have to handle everything mentioned above, but you also have to deal with local and state food regulations. These regulations tend to be confusing and burdensome for the average person who wants to start a food business. Continue Reading →
Developers invested more than $200M into the South End neighborhood this year as they rush to capitalize on demand for rents in the area. 60 percent of the new apartment units announced are within 15 minutes walking distance of the light rail line. More young professionals have moved into the neighborhood, creating density and raising property values.
[Source: The Charlotte Observer]
Hi Detailors,
The last 4 months have changed Detailed Block dramatically. Early in the year, this blog had a different name and a narrow vision. However, we have worked hard in transforming the blog and ourselves in order to provide you with useful information. Here is a quick progress report.
In August, Steve Kwon started writing for Detailed Block which has been great in transforming the vision and direction of the blog. Then September arrived and the DNC rolled through Charlotte. We made more changes which included changing the name from Detailed Culture and updating the website with functionality. This new functionality included a new theme, new events calendar, and new distribution tools. October was internally called “research month” because we tested many ideas to find out what you would respond to and what we could scale as a two-man team. You will see and hopefully enjoy the results over the next few weeks and months. Finally, this past month has been more strategic with planning and meetings, but no less important in providing you a great informative tool to use in Charlotte.
