Lee Brice: Garth Brooks is my hero | Kurt's Country
Neil A. Carousso produces NewsNation original “Kurt’s Country” – a celebration of country music and a slice of Americana with host Kurt Bardella.
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Warning Signs of Neurologic Lyme Disease
By Carousso Enterprises, LLC. and 3 Moms Organics, LLC
Lyme disease can cause neurological complications, including numbness, pain, cognitive impairment, paralysis of the facial muscles, visual disturbances, and severe headaches.
3 Moms Organics founders Jennifer Decker and Lisa-Jae Eggert spoke to highly regarded New York-based neurologist and clinical neurophysiologist Dr. Elena Frid of LEDA Medical for the educational video above about Lyme disease and its potential long-term symptoms. LEDA Medical specializes in autoimmune, Lyme and other tick borne illnesses.
3 Moms Organics sells an EPA-approved tick and insect repellant called TickWise that prevents illnesses at the source. Their mission includes educating consumers about the dangers of tick borne illnesses and family preventative measures.
3 Moms Organics’ educational videos, content and digital marketing strategies are produced and executed by Carousso Enterprises.
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Top Business Leader Says Crime is Slowing NYC’s Recovery
By Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — New York City’s crime surge is threatening the economic recovery as many workers resist the return to offices.
“This is a setback,” said Partnership for New York City president and chief executive officer Kathryn S. Wylde on the WCBS Small Business Spotlight, sponsored by Dime Community Bank.
Office occupancy in the city is just 37.1 percent, according to security firm Kastle Systems which tracks building access activity among its partners in the top 10 U.S. markets.
“I think that for the time being, particularly with the subway shooting that was such a shock to New York City and to commuters but everybody, I do think that we’re going to see actually a slowdown in the return to office temporarily,” Wylde said.
“What we’ve got to think about is how we rebuild and restore confidence so that we can have a very robust return in the fall of 2022.”
A recent Morning Consult poll on behalf of the Partnership for New York City found concerns about public safety is the biggest deterrent for commuters. Ninety-four percent of those surveyed said not enough is being done to address homelessness and mental illness in the city, followed by gun violence, namely in the subway system. The poll was conducted online about a month before the April 12 shooting on the N-train in Sunset Park, Brooklyn that left 29 people injured.
But, Wylde notes most New Yorkers do want to participate in the city’s ongoing pandemic recovery, 70 percent, in fact, according to the group’s survey.
“New Yorkers are very resilient and very special,” she said. “Living in our city is not easy as you know, but for those who find it the best city in the world, they want to stay here, they want to help rebuild, and I’m confident we’re going to do that.”
The business leader predicts there will be fewer employees in Manhattan offices going forward, but not that many fewer because younger employees will realize the benefits of in-person work to advance their careers.
“We have about 60 percent of the office workers are young people who, you know, have gotten used to working from home and don’t appreciate the office culture, and how much you learn, and how you gain mentors, and how you advance is also through personal interactions in the office,” said Wylde.
Earlier this month, the city broke ground on a new office building in East New York, Brooklyn. It’s phase one of Mayor Eric Adams’ plan to open office buildings in residential neighborhoods outside Manhattan, which have been more populated since COVID hit.
“As people have worked from home, they’ve really partnered with their local restaurants and merchants and service providers to make sure that they survive. We want to see that in every neighborhood of the city, because we’ve got an infrastructure, we’ve got over 200,000 small businesses and they’re looking for foot traffic,” Wylde, who advises political leaders on business policies, said.
She told WCBS 880 it would only make sense if the city creates affordable housing in these neighborhoods and if the state, which operates the MTA, rethinks the transportation system to offer direct routes to the outer boroughs.
“The governor has proposed a Brooklyn to Queens express rail operation, which makes a lot of sense because (of) the people who were going to work both in the city buildings and the other activities that are going on,” said Wylde, adding, “We’re going to have to have a much more flexible and integrated transportation system. And that’s something we ought to be thinking about right now. We shouldn’t just continue with our current plans.”
The influential Partnership for New York City head said small businesses are the key to the Big Apple’s economic recovery and she confirmed talks with both Mayor Adams and Governor Kathy Hochul about ways to incentivize business development in the city.
“The first incentive is, do not continue to raise taxes and figure out how we can reduce taxes,” she said, mentioning the cap on state and local tax deductions as part of the 2017 tax reform law that was passed under former President Donald J. Trump.
“We had a big tax increase on high-earners two years ago that has really created migration out of New York City.”
Wylde also wants to streamline the city’s regulatory process to make it easier for businesses to open and grow in New York.
“I talk to small businesses all the time where it takes them three years from the time they find a space to the time they can open their doors. We can’t allow that to continue particularly since small businesses have lost over 200,000 jobs. We still have a restaurant industry that’s down 30 percent of its workers. We have a retail industry that’s down 15 percent of its workers. So, we’ve got a lot to make up for small business,” said Wylde.
See what it will take to get New York back on its feet on the WCBS Small Business Spotlight video above.
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Small Business Comeback Tour: In-Home Personal Training, LLC
By Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso
NEW JERSEY (WCBS 880) — Talk about being flexible, this fitness business grew into several adjacent services when their back was against the wall at the height of COVID.
As the company name suggests, In-Home Personal Training, LLC of New Jersey started with fitness training at clients’ homes. This model forced their business to shut down during the pandemic. In-home services have since struggled to rebound.
“When COVID started, and like a lot of small businesses, I had no idea how I was going to be able to survive,” said owner Matthew Locascio on the WCBS Small Business Comeback Tour, sponsored by PSE&G.
Naturally, In-Home Personal Training pivoted to virtual training sessions on Zoom, Skype and FaceTime. But, it was the addition of online nutrition classes and yoga instruction that helped the fitness business expand beyond New Jersey.
“They watch my nutritionist prepare healthy meals and learn how to do it with them, the yoga and Pilates, the same,” said Locascio. “They actually work up to 30 people in a class at a time. It’s quite awesome. And, they’re working with people all over the country, which is something I never imagined for my business.”
He told WCBS 880 he now has clients throughout the Tri-State and as far as North Carolina.
In-Home Personal Training now also offers in-home massage therapy and a popular “bridal bootcamp” service.
“You will never work with a more motivated client than a bribe to be,” Locascio said. “The whole service is kind of adjusted around a game-plan that’s customized completely to their timeline.”
One bride, he said, lost 75 pounds within a year ahead of her big day.
See this incredible comeback story on the video above.
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Smorgasburg returns to WTC at full capacity, expands internationally during COVID
By Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Despite large-scale festivals and events being limited the past two years, Smorgasburg has expanded its widely popular open-air food market across the country and around the world.
It has operated in Williamsburg, Prospect Park and the World Trade Center since before the pandemic. This month, Smorgasburg opened a new location in Jersey City following openings in Los Angeles and Miami and pop-ups in Osaka, Japan and Sao Paulo, Brazil.
“We always have great launches at these things,” said Smorgasburg co-founder Eric Demby on the WCBS Small Business Spotlight, sponsored by Dime Community Bank.
Sustaining initial success in a market is the biggest challenge for the weekly open-air food market. Locations in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. were not as successful as New York City because there are fewer visitors.
“If you’re not a mega city like New York or L.A. or Miami with a lot of tourists, it’s really hard to sustain a weekly market with at least 40 vendors on a weekly basis throughout the year,” he said.
Smorgasburg made its debut at the World Trade Center in 2019, attracting tens of thousands of visitors every day. It reopened at full capacity this month after being takeout only in 2020 and limited last year.
It has given numerous local chefs their start through market exposure and direct feedback from customers, which has led to dozens of new food businesses.
“It’s not the kind of thing where you can just open a restaurant in New York unless you have access to the high six figures, even for a small space to fit it out, and pay the rent, and pay the minimum wage and all these things,” said Demby.
Smorgasburg charges low rent and vendors are responsible for their own equipment, but they’re guaranteed customers.
“You’re making money immediately.”
Smorgasburg grew out of the famous Brooklyn Flea market, but their accession did not happen overnight. Demby told WCBS 880 the business grew “gradually” driven by the success of the small food vendors they host.
“Every vendor has a little story. Sometimes there’s a big story and they want to share it with the world. They want to connect with people through food. And that’s a guiding light,” he said.
Watch the WCBS Small Business Spotlight video above.
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Small Business Comeback Tour: Green Life Market
By Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso
NEW JERSEY (WCBS 880) — It’s a family affair.
Green Life Market is a growing family-owned health and wellness business with deli products, groceries, beauty products, pet food and more.
“We really strive to be a one-stop-shop for truly healthy living where we don’t compromise on ingredients to make sure that what we’re putting on our shelves, we would use ourselves or feed our children,” said owner Ramez Yassin on the WCBS Small Business Comeback Tour, sponsored by PSE&G.
Green Life Market only carries organic, non-GMO food products.
“Our kitchen makes everything from scratch using products from our store,” said Yassin of its deli and juice bar.
Green Life Market also has its own line of vitamins and supplements sold in each of its three locations across New Jersey, including Butler, Andover and Wayne, which opened its doors in February.
The business started when Yassin’s father took over the lease in Butler with his children in mind.
“Me and my brother were into working out and we thought we knew everything,” he said. “When we opened the store, we stepped in and we realized we weren’t very knowledgeable in the health food industry. We just knew how to workout and eat protein.”
Yassin told WCBS 880 he learned the most from Green Life Market’s vendors who taught them about their products. Now, Yassin and his relatives are the ones educating their employees so they can teach customers about nutrition and leading a healthy lifestyle.
“We can train our staff all we want, but if we don’t educate our customers on why they’re shopping this way, they may come in and out here and there. But, the more we educate them, the more they’re knowledgeable to make the decisions on their own,” said Yassin.
See Green Life Market’s comeback story on the video above.
