The Volunteer Roadmap

Ten years ago, Lawrence County was on Tennessee's distressed counties list. Today, they're one of the most exciting areas in the state. New investment coming in every month, 1,500 jobs added since 2020, and downtown is filled with restaurants, retailers, and Airbnbs. So… what changed? They started seeing their limitations as opportunities. Ryan Egly is the President & CEO of the Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce. Growing up he was told if he wanted to be successful, he'd have to leave Lawrenceburg. Instead of following that advice, he found a different solution. In this episode, we're discussing: How quantifying work ethic (not just credentials) became their secret weapon for recruiting businesses Why keeping everything under one roof lets a 50,000-person county compete with 100,000+ markets How to build education partnerships that actually serve your local workforce needs You already have what you need. You just have to see it differently. Have a Tennessee story worth mapping out? Reach out at archabouttn.com

Cleveland is thriving. New restaurants, full parking lots, major development happening everywhere. But six years ago, the city was operating with 65% variable debt - which meant they couldn't predict their budget, couldn't plan accurately, and couldn't attract the kind of investment they needed. The first thing Mayor Kevin Brooks did? The unsexy work. He got Cleveland's debt under control (from 65% variable to 97% fixed) and created the foundation for everything else. Kevin Brooks doesn't call himself a politician. He's a public servant who's been serving Cleveland since he was a college student giving downtown historical tours. In this episode, he shares: Why getting your financial house in order has to come first How fixing the debt allowed Cleveland to budget taxpayer money for real infrastructure improvements How regional collaboration drives growth, even across party lines When you fix the foundation first, it makes everything else a little bit easier. Have a Tennessee story worth mapping out? Reach out at archabouttn.com

If Knoxville only had football, they'd have 7 weekends of revenue per year. Instead, Visit Knoxville generated $2 billion in economic impact by building the infrastructure, bringing in events like the Bassmaster Classic and concerts at Neyland Stadium, and promoting the city's restaurants, arts scene, and outdoor spaces. In this episode, Kim Bumpas (President of Visit Knoxville) shares: Why being a standalone organization is key to staying nimble The infrastructure investments that turned Knoxville into a year-round destination What keeps tourists (and customers) coming back after their first visit Your main attraction might get people in the door, but what you build around it can keep them coming back. Have a Tennessee story worth mapping out? Reach out at archabouttn.com 00:00 - Why we're headed to Knoxville 02:33 - How Knoxville transformed from "college town" to premier destination 04:48 - The Sunsphere takeover: turning a 40-year-old icon into a revenue driver 06:43 - Creating the Visit Knoxville Film Office (and why focused ownership matters) 10:48 - Why being a standalone organization keeps you nimble 13:55 - The Bassmaster Classic: $35M in economic impact over 4 days 17:30 - How tourism creates infrastructure that serves locals year-round 22:41 - When Visit Knoxville and UT are partners 27:11 - Building community buy-in for events that cause inconvenience 29:36 - What's next: future plans and events coming to Knoxville 39:57 - Studio debrief

You don’t get better at sports by playing people you can already beat, and you don’t grow as a leader by staying in rooms where you’re always comfortable. Some of the most important turning points in my life came from being challenged by people who were smarter than me, realizing I still had blind spots, and hearing perspectives I didn’t expect. In fact, I spent most of my career telling people who worked for me that they didn’t need a college degree as long as they could sell. But my opinion changed once I went through Leadership Tennessee, and I ended up going back to college. In this episode, Dr. Alfred Degrafinreid of Leadership Tennessee and I explore: How the whole state improves when leaders stop trying to be the smartest person in the room Why Leadership Tennessee doesn’t actually teach leadership (because everyone who gets in already is one) How traveling across the state exposes blind spots that don’t show up in boardrooms What happens when growth gets concentrated in one place instead of spread across the state Have a Tennessee story worth mapping out? Reach out at archabouttn.com

When Tennessee started winning at football, hotels in Knoxville went from $150/night to $800/night on game weekends. The university got 800 new student applications after they beat Alabama. Downtown restaurants set sales records.  The Volunteer Club (Tennessee's NIL collective) was created when college athletes started getting paid - a change some people loved and others hated. But Hunter Baddour saw an opportunity to partner with the university in a way that helped everyone succeed. In this episode, Hunter Baddour of The Volunteer Club joins me to share how they built a product so good they barely had to sell it. Now, 3,000 people show up to their tailgates, members renew without being asked, VFLs get involved without prompting. Plus: Why they diversified their customer base instead of chasing big donors How they evolved their offerings based on member feedback Why business is transactional (yes, relationships open doors, but execution keeps them from closing) You might not have an SEC school in your backyard, but every community has something they can win at. Have a Tennessee story worth mapping out? Reach out at archabouttn.com

New bars and restaurants might be sexy, but what's really sexy are the businesses that hold history within their walls. Gary Meadows is the 4th owner of Wally's, which opened in 1937 and is now the oldest restaurant in Chattanooga. It's a meat-and-three where people from all walks of life come together, business deals happen over cobbler, and they know you by your face even if they don't know your name. It just so happens to be my favorite restaurant, but that's not why we're visiting it today. Wally's has a story to tell - something that others can learn from. In this episode, I head to Wally's to find out: What it takes to survive 89 years in the restaurant business How it's possible to pride yourself on affordability, even when costs keep rising Why closing one location actually strengthened the other With places like Nikki's, Town & Country, and Zarzours closing, it's more important than ever to support local institutions like Wally's. And just to be clear: Gary has no plans of closing Wally's any time soon. It's survived two fires, multiple transitions, and the great lemon debacle, so it'll take a lot more than that to shut it down. Have a Tennessee story worth mapping out? Reach out at archabouttn.com   00:00 - Why We’re Heading to Wally’s 01:10 - The History of Wally’s 11:30 - How They Maintain Affordability Despite Rising Costs 21:35 - Passing It Down: Training the Next Generation 25:00 - When Gary's Brother Closed the East Ridge Location 35:34 - The 1998 Fire: When the Community Rallied for the Staff 41:23 - Tony's Advice & The Lemon Debacle 48:36 - The Staff Who Show Up at 2:45 AM ("We Got You, Boss") 54:25 - Locally Owned AND Operated vs. Corporate Chains 1:01:35 - Studio Debrief: Takeaways

Rural counties across Tennessee look at the big cities and ask: "Why can't we have that?" Alex Green from Rhea County Economic Development used to ask the same thing.  He was jealous of West Tennessee's Blue Oval plant, but then he realized he was chasing the wrong opportunity. Rural counties can't win by copying urban playbooks. They can't compete on scale. But Rhea County has something other places don't:  Established businesses that are invested in expanding locally  A tourism economy that brings 40,000 visitors in one week to a county of 35,000 Residents so passionate about education they voted to raise their own taxes In this episode, I visit Dayton to see what happens when a county stops trying to be something it's not and starts leveraging what it actually is. Then I break down the framework so you can apply it to your county or business.   00:00 - Why Rural Counties Are Beating Urban Cities 01:30 - Meet Alex Green: Executive Director of Rhea County ECD 05:40 - Living Between Two Nuclear Plants (And Why That's Good) 11:31 - Why Dayton is Called Monkey Town: The Real Story 15:48 - The Bootstrap Mentality & Looking Ahead 17:13 - Manufacturing’s Misconception 18:58 - Why are young men not working? 24:52 - NIMBYism is Costing You Growth 32:40 - Chasing Every Deal Is Killing Your Town 39:36 - Tourism & The Infrastructure Investment That Paid Off 42:50 - Stackable Credentials: The Future of Workforce Development 48:15 - What La-Z-Boy's Expansion Really Means 56:36 - The Studio Debrief: Is Your Town Competing With the Wrong Places?   Have a Tennessee story worth mapping out? Reach out at archabouttn.com

The downtown square is packed on First Friday. The annual festival brought in a record number of tourists. New businesses keep opening.  By every metric, downtown is thriving. But somehow... half of the businesses close within 18 months? Most small Tennessee towns are focused on getting people downtown, but Fayetteville Main Street stopped asking "How do we get more people downtown?" and started asking "How do we help the businesses that are here actually survive?" The answer wasn't more festivals. It was controversial sidewalks, AI-powered foot traffic data, and creating a physical space for businesses to get the support they need. In this episode, I visit Fayetteville to see what they're doing differently, then break down the framework so you can apply it to your town or business.   (00:00) - Why We're Heading to Fayetteville First (02:33) - Meet Aimee Byrd - the Executive Director of Fayetteville Main Street (05:25) - The Tourism Tax Strategy Nobody Talks About (06:58) - Anyone Can Open a Business. That's Actually the Problem. (08:23) - From 650 Square Feet to a Small Business Farm System (11:47) - The Data That Changed Everything (16:33) - "We're Not Going After Chain Restaurants Anymore" (22:47) - Why Local Dollars Keep Your Property Taxes Down (29:40) - The Sidewalk Fight That Proved 46% Growth (33:00) - The Four Pillars Every Downtown Needs (40:48) - $330 Million Leaving Lincoln County Every Year (43:12) - The Real Reason Your Taxes Keep Going Up (47:18) - Where Tennessee's Next 20 Years of Growth Is Coming From (52:30) - What Actually Replaced the Anchor Store Everyone Misses (54:55) - Building a Town Your Kids Come Back To (57:33) - The Studio Debrief: What Makes Fayetteville's Approach Different   Have a Tennessee story worth mapping out? Reach out at archabouttn.com

Most business advice assumes you're operating in a market of millions. But when your entire customer base is 15,000 people, that advice falls flat. What works in Nashville won't work in Elizabethton. What works in Memphis won't work in Cookeville. So where do you find strategies that actually work for your Tennessee community? From the leaders who've already cracked the code. In each episode, I visit one Tennessee town and talk to the business owner or community leader who's figured it out. Then I break down the real pattern behind their success, so you can see what's holding YOU back. New episodes every other Monday. Subscribe now and let's hit the road.