Ideas always sound good in theory. Especially business ideas. That’s the deception of entrepreneurship. Even the simple stuff gets complicated. Take my guests today. One started a business hauling junk. The other lends tools out for free. Simple, right? But as they’ll tell you, there’s a lot more to it once you pop the hood.

Anna Kojevnikov is co-founder of the Lafayette Tool Library, a nonprofit that lets members borrow tools for home, yard, or auto projects—at no cost. 

Anna moved to Lafayette in 2018 with her husband, a math professor at UL Lafayette. They bought a new home and realized they didn’t have enough tools for all that upkeep — or really enough space to keep them. Volunteering with disaster relief after Hurricane Laura showed her how widespread that need really was. Partnering with co-founder Alison Nederveld, she helped launch the Lafayette Tool Library to solve a community problem one tool at a time.

Anna is originally from Australia, where she worked in film and TV, but found her footing in Lafayette helping others create. She’s also the Community Engagement Director at the Acadiana Center for the Arts. 

Coty Bergeaux was working in law enforcement when he took a family vacation that changed his outlook. Watching people living the high life in vacation homes along the Florida coast, he realized he wanted to be his own boss. He looked into storage units and ran across another idea: junk removal. He filed for an LLC one month before his son was born and started small, hauling his first king-size mattress with a rented trailer.

Coty Bergeaux is now the owner and operator  of Acadian Haul Away & Junk Removal. 

Coty hauls everything from mattresses to hoarder houses—running lean with just his truck, his trailer, and a strong back. He does about 50 jobs a month. 

Out to Lunch Acadiana was recorded live over lunch at Tsunami Sushi in downtown Lafayette. You can find photos from this show by Alisha Zachery Lazard at itsacadiana.com.

Ideas always sound good in theory. Especially business ideas. That&rsquo;s the deception of entrepreneurship. Even the simple stuff gets complicated. Take my guests today. One started a business hauling junk. The other lends tools out for free. Simple, right? But as they&rsquo;ll tell you, there&rsquo;s a lot more to it once you pop the hood.
Anna Kojevnikov is co-founder of the<a href="https://www.lafayettetoollibrary.org/"> Lafayette Tool Library</a>, a nonprofit that lets members borrow tools for home, yard, or auto projects&mdash;at no cost.&nbsp;
Anna moved to Lafayette in 2018 with her husband, a math professor at UL Lafayette. They bought a new home and realized they didn&rsquo;t have enough tools for all that upkeep &mdash; or really enough space to keep them. Volunteering with disaster relief after Hurricane Laura showed her how widespread that need really was. Partnering with co-founder Alison Nederveld, she helped launch the Lafayette Tool Library to solve a community problem one tool at a time.
Anna is originally from Australia, where she worked in film and TV, but found her footing in Lafayette helping others create. She&rsquo;s also the Community Engagement Director at the <a href="https://acadianacenterforthearts.org/">Acadiana Center for the Arts</a>.&nbsp;
Coty Bergeaux was working in law enforcement when he took a family vacation that changed his outlook. Watching people living the high life in vacation homes along the Florida coast, he realized he wanted to be his own boss. He looked into storage units and ran across another idea: junk removal. He filed for an LLC one month before his son was born and started small, hauling his first king-size mattress with a rented trailer.
Coty Bergeaux is now the owner and operator&nbsp; of <a href="https://acadianhaulaway.com/">Acadian Haul Away &amp; Junk Removal</a>.&nbsp;
Coty hauls everything from mattresses to hoarder houses&mdash;running lean with just his truck, his trailer, and a strong back. He does about 50 jobs a month.&nbsp;
Out to Lunch Acadiana was recorded live over lunch at <a href="https://lafayette.servingsushi.com/">Tsunami Sushi</a> in downtown Lafayette. You can find photos from this show by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/alisha.zachery">Alisha Zachery Lazard</a> at <a href="https://itsacadiana.com/2025/06/22/fix-it-or-junk-it/">itsacadiana.com</a>.

OUT TO LUNCH Business over lunch. Each week Christiaan invites guests from Acadiana's business community to join him for sushi at Tsunami in downtown Lafayette. Beyond the foundations of the Acadiana economy - oil, cuisine, music - there is a vast network of entrepreneurs, small businesses, and even some of the country's largest companies who call Acadiana home. Out to Lunch is the cafeteria of the wider Acadiana business community. You can also hear the show on KRVS 88.7FM.

OUT TO LUNCH Business over lunch. Each week Christiaan invites guests from Acadiana's business community to join him for sushi at Tsunami in downtown Lafayette. Beyond the foundations of the Acadiana economy - oil, cuisine, music - there is a vast network of entrepreneurs, small businesses, and even some of the country's largest companies who call Acadiana home. Out to Lunch is the cafeteria of the wider Acadiana business community. You can also hear the show on KRVS 88.7FM.

OUT TO LUNCH finds The Current Publisher and Editor Christiaan Mader conducting business Acadiana style: over lunch. Each week Aileen invites guests from Acadiana's  business community to join her. Beyond the foundations of the Acadiana economy - oil, cuisine, music - there is a vast network of entrepreneurs, small businesses, and even some of the country's largest companies who call Acadiana home. Out to Lunch is the cafeteria of the wider Acadiana business community. You can also hear the show on KRVS 88.7FM.

It's Acadiana: Out to Lunch

OUT TO LUNCH Business over lunch. Each week Christiaan Mader invites guests from Acadiana's business community to join him for sushi at Tsunami in downtown Lafayette. Beyond the foundations of the Acadiana economy - oil, cuisine, music - there is a vast network of entrepreneurs, small businesses, and even some of the country's largest companies who call Acadiana home. Out to Lunch is the cafeteria of the wider Acadiana business community. You can also hear the show on KRVS 88.7FM.

OUT TO LUNCH Business over lunch. Each week Christiaan Mader invites guests from Acadiana's business community to join him for sushi at Tsunami in downtown Lafayette. Beyond the foundations of the Acadiana economy - oil, cuisine, music - there is a vast network of entrepreneurs, small businesses, and even some of the country's largest companies who call Acadiana home. Out to Lunch is the cafeteria of the wider Acadiana business community. You can also hear the show on KRVS 88.7FM.

Fix It Or Junk It

There's a kind of person you've probably met before. Someone who, no matter what their job title says, is really just taking care of people.  That's what they do. That's what they've always done. That’s who they are. The title just took a while to catch up.

Susan Titus is a Lafayette-area entertainer, nonprofit founder, and — by her own description — a woman whose life has had more than a few unexpected turns. She grew up in Franklin, Louisiana, earned a theater degree and at one point had designs on medical school. Instead, she spent fifteen years in retail management and corporate America before walking away in 2015 to become a full-time face painter and balloon artist.

Under the name Susie Q, Susan performs at roughly a hundred events a year — from birthday parties to corporate fairs to weddings — across Louisiana and as far east as Florida.

But Susan's second act may be her most important one. Growing up in Franklin, she watched too many girls become mothers at too young an age. Her family even took in a pregnant teenager who had been kicked out of her house. That never left her. So in 2022 she founded The Confidence Campaign, a nonprofit that delivers hands-on hygiene education and self-advocacy workshops to young women. In 2025 alone, more than fifteen hundred girls attended a Confidence Campaign workshop.

Frankie Dabney's career started in health and led her to a different kind of care. Frankie is originally from Georgia, and she trained as a nurse. But once she got into the work, she found the clinical side wasn't the right fit. A friend told her she had a gift for marketing. She listened.

That pivot eventually led her to a niche: marketing for senior living communities. It turned out to be a perfect match. Frankie had watched her own mother suffer a stroke and saw firsthand how hard it is for families to navigate care. 

Frankie spent years traveling the country and internationally for a marketing firm based in England that served senior living communities. Then a project brought her to the Vincent Senior Living in Lafayette — just for a month, to create a brochure. She fell in love with the city and the Vincent.

So when the Vincent’s executive director offered her a job, she didn't hesitate. Today, as Community Relations Director, Frankie oversees all marketing and advertising for the Vincent — a resort-style senior living campus on twenty acres right here in Lafayette.

Out to Lunch Acadiana was recorded live over lunch at Tsunami Sushi in downtown Lafayette. You can find photos from this show by Astor Morgan at itsacadiana.com.

There's a kind of person you've probably met before. Someone who, no matter what their job title says, is really just taking care of people.&nbsp; That's what they do. That's what they've always done. That&rsquo;s who they are. The title just took a while to catch up.
Susan Titus is a Lafayette-area entertainer, nonprofit founder, and &mdash; by her own description &mdash; a woman whose life has had more than a few unexpected turns. She grew up in Franklin, Louisiana, earned a theater degree and at one point had designs on medical school. Instead, she spent fifteen years in retail management and corporate America before walking away in 2015 to become a full-time face painter and balloon artist.
Under the name <a href="https://mlrmagic.com/susie-q-face-painting-1">Susie Q, Susan performs at roughly a hundred events a year </a>&mdash; from birthday parties to corporate fairs to weddings &mdash; across Louisiana and as far east as Florida.
But Susan's second act may be her most important one. Growing up in Franklin, she watched too many girls become mothers at too young an age. Her family even took in a pregnant teenager who had been kicked out of her house. That never left her. So in 2022 she founded <a href="https://theconfidencecampaign.org/">The Confidence Campaign, a nonprofit that delivers hands-on hygiene education and self-advocacy workshops to young women</a>. In 2025 alone, more than fifteen hundred girls attended a Confidence Campaign workshop.
Frankie Dabney's career started in health and led her to a different kind of care. Frankie is originally from Georgia, and she trained as a nurse. But once she got into the work, she found the clinical side wasn't the right fit. A friend told her she had a gift for marketing. She listened.
That pivot eventually led her to a niche: marketing for senior living communities. It turned out to be a perfect match. Frankie had watched her own mother suffer a stroke and saw firsthand how hard it is for families to navigate care.&nbsp;
Frankie spent years traveling the country and internationally for a marketing firm based in England that served senior living communities. Then a project brought her to the <a href="https://vincentseniorliving.com/">Vincent Senior Living in Lafayette</a> &mdash; just for a month, to create a brochure. She fell in love with the city and the Vincent.
So when the Vincent&rsquo;s executive director offered her a job, she didn't hesitate. Today, as Community Relations Director, Frankie oversees all marketing and advertising for the Vincent &mdash; a resort-style senior living campus on twenty acres right here in Lafayette.
Out to Lunch Acadiana was recorded live over lunch at <a href="https://lafayette.servingsushi.com/">Tsunami Sushi</a> in downtown Lafayette. You can find photos from this show by <a href="https://www.astormorgan.com">Astor Morgan</a> at <a href="https://itsacadiana.com/2026/03/21/selfless-help/">itsacadiana.com</a>.

Selfless Help

Here's a question every small business owner loses sleep over: how do people find out you exist? Word of mouth still works. Always will. But today you need more than that. The challenge is that most small business owners are already doing three jobs at once. Marketing is the thing that slides. The thing you mean to get to. 

You need a presence — online, in print, somewhere people are actually looking. Figuring out where to start is daunting. What’s worth the investment? How do I know it’ll work? What’s the best media to buy for my business? Two decades into the social media era, getting noticed on platforms can still be a mystery. 

Ashlynn Gary has built a business around solving exactly that problem.

Ashlynn grew up in Lake Charles and came to Lafayette for college, graduating from UL in 2020 with a degree in arts and humanities. She's always been creative — painting, choir, theatre — and she still acts with the local theatre community today.

In 2020 she started a t-shirt company called Leading Color, mostly to scratch an entrepreneurial itch. What she discovered was that she loved the marketing and branding side of it more than the shirts themselves. So she pivoted.

In 2021 Ashlynn founded Ash Creative Collective, a social media management company that handles content planning, content creation, scheduling, and customer engagement — so her clients don't have to.  She also serves as media manager for Leadership Lafayette. 

Don’t listen to haters. Print isn’t dead. With apologies to Mark Twain, rumors of its demise have been, well, somewhat exaggerated. In Lafayette, hundreds of businesses still rely on good old fashioned print products to sell their brands. 

And they're not limited to flyers and newspapers. As Jennifer Brewer found out on a visit to Baton Rouge. 

Jennifer was born in Lafayette, raised in Baton Rouge, and returned to Acadiana about ten years ago after marrying a local. She’s a real estate broker by day. But a few years ago, she and her friend and business partner, Krysten Ledet, spotted something on a visit to Baton Rouge — a beautifully produced print publication called The Scout Guide, displayed in a local shop. 

Krysten and Jennifer were immediately drawn to it. When they looked into it and found the Lafayette market was still open, they bought in.

The Scout Guide is a 100% woman-founded franchise now operating in over a hundred cities across the country. It launched in 2010 in Charlottesville, Virginia, and has grown to support more than three thousand small businesses nationwide. Each edition is a premium print guide — and a community in its own right.

Jennifer and Krysten launched the Lafayette Scout Guide in 2023. This year, they printed 20,000. 

Out to Lunch Acadiana was recorded live over lunch at Tsunami Sushi in downtown Lafayette. You can find photos from this show by Astor Morgan at itsacadiana.com.

Here's a question every small business owner loses sleep over: how do people find out you exist? Word of mouth still works. Always will. But today you need more than that. The challenge is that most small business owners are already doing three jobs at once. Marketing is the thing that slides. The thing you mean to get to.&nbsp;
You need a presence &mdash; online, in print, somewhere people are actually looking. Figuring out where to start is daunting. What&rsquo;s worth the investment? How do I know it&rsquo;ll work? What&rsquo;s the best media to buy for my business? Two decades into the social media era, getting noticed on platforms can still be a mystery.&nbsp;
Ashlynn Gary has built a business around solving exactly that problem.
Ashlynn grew up in Lake Charles and came to Lafayette for college, graduating from UL in 2020 with a degree in arts and humanities. She's always been creative &mdash; painting, choir, theatre &mdash; and she still acts with the local theatre community today.
In 2020 she started a t-shirt company called Leading Color, mostly to scratch an entrepreneurial itch. What she discovered was that she loved the marketing and branding side of it more than the shirts themselves. So she pivoted.
In 2021 Ashlynn founded <a href="https://www.ashlynnthecreative.com/">Ash Creative Collective</a>, a social media management company that handles content planning, content creation, scheduling, and customer engagement &mdash; so her clients don't have to.&nbsp; She also serves as media manager for <a href="https://leadershiplafayette.org/">Leadership Lafayette</a>.&nbsp;
Don&rsquo;t listen to haters. Print isn&rsquo;t dead. With apologies to Mark Twain, rumors of its demise have been, well, somewhat exaggerated. In Lafayette, hundreds of businesses still rely on good old fashioned print products to sell their brands.&nbsp;
And they're not limited to flyers and newspapers. As Jennifer Brewer found out on a visit to Baton Rouge.&nbsp;
Jennifer was born in Lafayette, raised in Baton Rouge, and returned to Acadiana about ten years ago after marrying a local. She&rsquo;s a real estate broker by day. But a few years ago, she and her friend and business partner, Krysten Ledet, spotted something on a visit to Baton Rouge &mdash; a beautifully produced print publication called<a href="https://thescoutguide.com/"> The Scout Guide</a>, displayed in a local shop.&nbsp;
Krysten and Jennifer were immediately drawn to it. When they looked into it and found the Lafayette market was still open, they bought in.
The Scout Guide is a 100% woman-founded franchise now operating in over a hundred cities across the country. It launched in 2010 in Charlottesville, Virginia, and has grown to support more than three thousand small businesses nationwide. Each edition is a premium print guide &mdash; and a community in its own right.
Jennifer and Krysten launched the <a href="https://thescoutguide.com/lafayette/">Lafayette Scout Guide</a> in 2023. This year, they printed 20,000.&nbsp;
Out to Lunch Acadiana was recorded live over lunch at&nbsp;<a href="https://lafayette.servingsushi.com/">Tsunami Sushi</a> in downtown Lafayette. You can find photos from this show by <a href="https://www.astormorgan.com">Astor Morgan</a> at <a href="https://itsacadiana.com/2026/03/14/social-scout/">itsacadiana.com</a>.

Social Scout

Hi, it's Christiaan Mader, host of Out to Lunch Acadiana. I love a dive bar.  And I know I’m not alone. They attract a certain cult-like following among people looking for an unpretentious place to share a reasonably priced drink with an old friend or a new one. The appeal is fundamentally American.  The drinks are cold, the music is loud, the bathrooms might be suspect — but you can be you and everyone's welcome. 

In Acadiana, a great dive bar can be a cultural center of gravity. Especially if it’s got a stage and a spunky PA. 

However adored, dive bars carry a janky reputation. And the people who love them, love them because of that jank. It’s hard to precisely define a great dive bar. But my guest Justin Bennet saw one in the making when he moved to Lafayette and bought Artmosphere, the Downtown Lafayette bar and music venue. 

Justin Bennett grew up in New York and was literally raised in dive bars, sitting on a barstool drinking cherry cokes from the age of five while his musician father played gigs. He went on to earn a bachelor's in journalism from the University of Washington, spent five years with New York City's Department of Management rising from Press Assistant to Public Information Officer, and later served as Press Secretary for the Louisiana Workforce Commission. But it was Lafayette, Louisiana — a city he and his wife Marcela kept passing through on the way to Lake Charles — that eventually called them back.

In February of 2025, Justin purchased Artmosphere, a bar and music venue on Johnston Street that's been a Lafayette landmark for years.

He didn't just buy a bar. He bought a vibe, a history, and a whole lot of deferred maintenance. Now he's fixing the bathrooms, booking the bands, and making his grandmother's meatballs.

Barbecue

There’s maybe no better example of something great out of something humble than American BBQ.

We’re not necessarily known for BBQ here in Acadiana, but Shane Wiggins is doing his part to change that. 

Shane was born and raised in Flynn, Texas. He came up through electronics repair school, then spent years in the oilfield — onshore, offshore, and eventually running a business with his father in Pennsylvania. When that chapter closed, he ended up back in the Lafayette area.

Shane had been making brisket for years. His Texas Twister BBQ sauce became so popular with friends and family that by 2020 he was bottling it commercially. He and his wife Allyson had long talked about a food truck. He told her: if that spot on East Main in Broussard ever comes available, that's the sign.

It did. He had to keep his word.

In early 2022, Deuces Taste of the South opened as a part-time venture — a Texas-style BBQ joint with Cajun influences, built around a forty-two-foot custom trailer that Shane built himself. It didn't stay part-time for long.

Out to Lunch Acadiana was recorded live over lunch at Tsunami Sushi in downtown Lafayette. You can find photos from this show by Astor Morgan at itsacadiana.com.

Hi, it's Christiaan Mader, host of Out to Lunch Acadiana. I love a dive bar.&nbsp; And I know I&rsquo;m not alone. They attract a certain cult-like following among people looking for an unpretentious place to share a reasonably priced drink with an old friend or a new one. The appeal is fundamentally American.&nbsp; The drinks are cold, the music is loud, the bathrooms might be suspect &mdash; but you can be you and everyone's welcome.&nbsp;
In Acadiana, a great dive bar can be a cultural center of gravity. Especially if it&rsquo;s got a stage and a spunky PA.&nbsp;
However adored, dive bars carry a janky reputation. And the people who love them, love them because of that jank. It&rsquo;s hard to precisely define a great dive bar. But my guest Justin Bennet saw one in the making when he moved to Lafayette and bought <a href="https://www.artmospherelafayette.com/">Artmosphere, the Downtown Lafayette bar and music venue.&nbsp;</a>
Justin Bennett grew up in New York and was literally raised in dive bars, sitting on a barstool drinking cherry cokes from the age of five while his musician father played gigs. He went on to earn a bachelor's in journalism from the University of Washington, spent five years with New York City's Department of Management rising from Press Assistant to Public Information Officer, and later served as Press Secretary for the Louisiana Workforce Commission. But it was Lafayette, Louisiana &mdash; a city he and his wife Marcela kept passing through on the way to Lake Charles &mdash; that eventually called them back.
In February of 2025, Justin purchased Artmosphere, a bar and music venue on Johnston Street that's been a Lafayette landmark for years.
He didn't just buy a bar. He bought a vibe, a history, and a whole lot of deferred maintenance. Now he's fixing the bathrooms, booking the bands, and making his grandmother's meatballs.
Barbecue
There&rsquo;s maybe no better example of something great out of something humble than American BBQ.
We&rsquo;re not necessarily known for BBQ here in Acadiana, but Shane Wiggins is doing his part to change that.&nbsp;
Shane was born and raised in Flynn, Texas. He came up through electronics repair school, then spent years in the oilfield &mdash; onshore, offshore, and eventually running a business with his father in Pennsylvania. When that chapter closed, he ended up back in the Lafayette area.
Shane had been making brisket for years. His Texas Twister BBQ sauce became so popular with friends and family that by 2020 he was bottling it commercially. He and his wife Allyson had long talked about a food truck. He told her: if that spot on East Main in Broussard ever comes available, that's the sign.
It did. He had to keep his word.
In early 2022, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/deucestasteofthesouth/">Deuces Taste of the South</a> opened as a part-time venture &mdash; a Texas-style BBQ joint with Cajun influences, built around a forty-two-foot custom trailer that Shane built himself. It didn't stay part-time for long. Out to Lunch Acadiana was recorded live over lunch at&nbsp;<a href="https://lafayette.servingsushi.com/">Tsunami Sushi</a> in downtown Lafayette. You can find photos from this show by <a href="https://www.astormorgan.com">Astor Morgan</a> at<a href="https://itsacadiana.com/2026/03/07/dive-bars-barbecue/"> itsacadiana.com</a>.

Fix It Or Junk It

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