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By Ted Williams |
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Hello Thursday. Last fall, I covered the story of Bryce Rech, a crazy dude who left a cushy law firm job to launch Gleezy Dog. In a kinda creepy move, he dropped off 18 premium hot dogs on my side porch for a taste test.
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His story went viral, generating nearly 1M views. Bryce kept hustling. Then he got a call from Harris Teeter with a massive purchase order. He cried like a baby.
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Fast-forward to last week, Gleezy Dog debuted in over 230 stores. Fans went nuts. Stores sold out. Harris Teeter told Bryce, “It was the best launch of a new meat product in the last 15 years.” Anyways.
đź’ĽÂ Hot Job:Â Chief Marketing Officer at Atlantic Coast Conference. Set strategic direction and lead execution on all ACC marketing efforts.
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💰 Price Check: $8. Cost of an Old Fashioned on Monday night at Dot Dot Dot to celebrate the speakeasy’s 8th birthday. Congrats to owner Stefan Huebner!
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đź‘©Â Shout-out: Erin McDermott, award-winning jewelry designer, for generating $100K for Texas flood victims in 48 hours through customers purchasing $25 beaded necklaces.
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MARKETS: YEAR-TO-DATE
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S&P 500 |
6,263 |
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Nasdaq |
20,607 |
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BULLISH
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49-year-old communications exec buys “6-figure” Cornelius newspaper
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Jon Show doing his best to look like Mark Twain
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My friend Jon Show purchased his hometown newspaper Cornelius Today.
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Purchase price: "I'm bound to secrecy, so let's say I paid as much as my wife said I could without blowing our kids' college funds or taking out a second mortgage."
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Audience: 34,000 Cornelius residents receive the free print newspaper by mail each month.
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Website attracts about 45,000 monthly visitors, and digital newsletter subs are 7,000.
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Monthly networking breakfast event has over 1,000 annual attendees.
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Revenue: Cornelius Today is profitable and does “6-figures” in annual revenue.
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Tiny take: As you'd imagine from my public attempt to purchase The Charlotte Observer for $5M, I absolutely love this move by Jon.
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After modernizing its digital presence, I’d expand into Huntersville, Davidson, and spin up a Lake Norman magazine. There’s a clear path for a $2M business that's super rewarding to operate IMO.
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PRESENTED BY MOOD HOUSE
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Mood House hits 1,800 member milestone — but you don't need to be a member to book
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Palm Springs vibes at Mood House Oakhurst
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Awards: Congrats to Mood House for making it on Yelp's 2025 Top Local Businesses List 🏆!! Only 3 North Carolina businesses made the list.
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Voted "No. 1 Best Massage" in Charlotte in back-to-back years.
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Recently hit 1,800 massage members ($92/mo) across their Dilworth and Oakhurst locations — but you don’t need to be a member to book.
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Promo code: Use code “TINY20” at checkout for 20% off services or gift cards (valid only for 24 hours). Book an award-winning massage!
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GROWTH MODE
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Move over Dave Ramsey, personal finance coach on pace for $500K in revenue
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Personal finance coach Andy Hoffman lunching at Optimist Hall
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Andy Hoffman, a 41-year-old former financial advisor, could never find the right system to automate his personal finances — so he created his own.
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Problem: "48% of 6-figure earners are paycheck to paycheck," Andy shared with me over lunch.
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Solution: Andy offers these 6-figure earners a 90-day coaching program that includes implementing his financial automation systems.
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"I'm incredibly humbled with how this thing is growing," says Andy, who's now coached over 200 students.
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Cost is $3,500 to $5,000, depending on how much 1:1 coaching a student wants.
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Client growth comes from word of mouth and Facebook ads.
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"I'm really excited to keep growing and buying my time back to be able to write a book describing my method, getting on the podcast tour, and likely doing some speaking."
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MONEY TALKS
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36-year-old Marine Veteran uses GI Bill for UNC Chapel Hill and lands $195K job at Big 4 firm
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The Cellar at Duckworth’s, this millionaire’s No. 1 spot
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Money Talks is a weekly series showcasing how real people in Charlotte approach money. Participate.
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Living situation: “We own a house in an up and coming neighborhood near Uptown. Very fortunate to buy in 2017 when rates were low with a VA loan — no down payment, low transaction costs, and locked in a mortgage rate under 3%.”
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Salary journey: “I started out in the Marines making dog shit from E-1 through E-5 and got out as a Sergeant. I then attended Chapel Hill on the GI Bill. First job out of school paid $40K before job hopping and getting my MBA.”
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Portfolio breakdown: “I've set up an ultra low-volatility investment portfolio. It’s split between low volatility stocks (my largest position is Hershey), crypto, gold, and bonds. I get annual returns of 15% and enjoy volatility lower than beta 1. Net worth around $1.2M.”
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Financial goals: “Buy a beach house, pay off my mortgage, and fully fund 529 plans for the boys’ college. My plan to achieve all 3 goals is to simply keep climbing the corporate ladder and not die.”
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Best decision: “Serving in the Marine Corps and earning the GI Bill. If you want to instantly go from low income to middle class in this country, raise your right hand and serve.”
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Full story: Marine Veteran opens up on salary journey from $40K to $195K
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MONEY SNACKS
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5 other financial headlines I’m snacking on…
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Spaghett opens Friday in Uptown's Fourth Ward. $20 pastas. Reservations sold out in 3 hours. Next drop is Sunday at 10am.
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Escape room for sale asking $135K. Revenue $142K. Income $27K. 2,000-square-foot space with $2,777/mo rent. 1,000 reviews.
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Leon Levine Foundation will triple its annual giving to $100M. CEO Tom Lawrence is going to have a lot of new best friends.
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Tyber Creek Pub opens new $750K campus in South End. Big debut crowds. Owners bought the 1.59-acre parcel last year for $5.1M.
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American Airlines adds daily nonstop flights to Vail. December 18 through January 5. Round-trip tickets start at $464.
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HOUSEKEEPING
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This cozy Irish pub booth debuts in a few weeks
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Off the charts cozy vibes at McHale’s Pub
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Bullish:Â McHale's Pub is opening in about two weeks next door to Haberdish in NoDa.
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Best seats: Inside the Irish Pub, you'll find two semi-private booths. Perfect spot for a cozy date night, pints with old friends, or intimate business deal.
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– Ted
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ON MY MIND
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Heartbreaking: Normally, I end this newsletter with an upbeat “Happy Thursday” and fun money poll, but instead I’m asking you for prayers for my college friend and his family.
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Next week, I’m flying to Dallas to attend the funeral of my friend’s 9-year-old daughter who passed away at Camp Mystic. Can’t wait to give him a hug.
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