Though Baton Rouge, in many ways, is slow to change, in recent years there has been a gradual shift in the balance of power. New, young firms and new, young business leaders are taking over from the Baby Boomer generation that preceded them. One such leader is Julie Laperouse. Julie is Director of Training at…

Few industries in our economy today are changing as rapidly and dramatically as health care. In Baton Rouge we are far from immune to these national changes.  Teri Fontenot is President and CEO of Woman’s Hospital, the only independent, community-owned women’s and children’s hospital in the country and the largest birthing and neonatal intensive care…

Ted Kergan is the largest franchisee of Sonic drive in restaurants in the state of Louisiana. Ted owns 58 Sonic locations in the central and southern part of the state. That sounds like a lot but it’s just a fraction of the more than 150 Sonic restaurants Ted has developed during his nearly 40-year career….

Nationwide, there’s a lot of talk these days about two major subjects: Infrastructure and health care. Specifically, how to improve and rebuild roads, bridges and other vital connections that we all depend on, and how to pay for the level of increasingly complex care that our aging population requires. Stephanie’s guests on Out to Lunch…

We’re serious about our food in south Louisiana, and food-related businesses are as interesting and varied as are our own family recipes for gumbo or oyster dressing. As the food industry becomes more complex and sophisticated there are ever more opportunities for entrepreneurs to craft new business models and come up with new ways of…

Local retailers give a city a sense of place, setting it apart from the next big exit off the interstate. In Baton Rouge, we’re fortunate to have several much-loved local retailers who, in some cases, have spent generations serving Baton Rouge shoppers with quality products.   Manuel Martinez is a well known fixture in Baton…

Teaching skills and imparting knowledge are perhaps the greatest gifts and tools we can give to the young, and the young at heart, hungry to learn. Local Baton Rouge entrepreneurs are coming up with creative ways to turn the act of teaching and educating into small businesses with limitless potential. Jacques Hopkins was an electrical…

In recent months, female empowerment has become an important topic dominating the media, and the issues raised by the #metoo movement have forced this country to have important discussions about how women are treated in the workplace and beyond. Here in Baton Rouge we have some incredibly strong, powerful women who have their own stories…

One of the biggest challenges in Louisiana is a lack of skilled workers in the technical trades. Companies complain about it all the time. And yet, many young people will tell you they can’t find a good paying job, which is a reason so many of them leave after high school. For the past several…

While New Orleans gets the lion’s share of attention for being Louisiana’s premier tourist destination, Baton Rouge has some offerings of its own.    Michael Day is General Manager of the Raising Cane’s River Center, Baton Rouge’s premier event facility. Built in 1977, the River Center has more than 14-thousand square meters of exhibition space,…