In New Orleans we pride ourselves on our extensive array of live entertainment.

According to music media company, Off Beat, and tourist authority New Orleans & Company, on any given night we have, on average, 100 places to hear live music. If New York City had the same per capita number of live music venues, they’d have 800. In fact, they have 1,100.

Ok, so we’re not beating New York, but we’re in the same ballpark, and that’s impressive for a medium-size city.

How about live theater? If, per capita, we had as many options to go see a play in New Orleans as they do in New York, we’d have 142 live theater stages. In fact, we have fewer than 20.

So, what’s up with that? In a city whose Mardi Gras parades are among the biggest live street theater events in the world, why do we have so little traditional theater? Rob DeViney might be able to shed some light on that question. Rob is Executive Director of Jefferson Performing Arts.

In New Orleans there’s a long-running intersection of theater and business – in the person of larger-than-life characters who own or represent businesses. Folks like, Al Scramuzza from Seafood City. The Special Man from Frankie & Johnnie’s Furniture. Restaurateurs Paul Prudhomme and Emeril Lagasse. Ronnie Lamarque the crooning car salesman. Al Copeland. Chris Owens. Morris Bart.

The list goes on. The newest addition to it, is Bougie Man Bourgeois. The Bougie Man is an import from Cajun country where he developed his meat product, Bougie Bologna.

Unlike other bologna, which is apparently made from the cuts of meat discarded from traditional butchering, Bougie Bologna is made from 100% pork shoulder. The slogan summarizing this differentiation was originally, “Butthole free.” Apparently, the USDA frowned on that, so now Bougie Bologna is described somewhat more prosaically as, “no mystery meat or byproducts.”

The Bougie Man is the alter ego of Ross Brown, who is also the creator of Bougie Bologna.

In New Orleans business, like the rest of New Orleans, we’re no strangers to contradiction. The same local companies will sponsor the health-driven Crescent City Classic road race, and the Red Dress Run, an athletic event that’s also an alcohol-fueled celebration of cross-dressing.

We don’t think it’s unusual for a CEO of a serious business to also be an active member of a seriously fun-centric Mardi Gras krewe.

A great deal of our city’s revenue comes from tourists who come here to party. But we’re also on reputable entrepreneurial lists as one of the best cities to start a business.

In this New Orleans tradition of occupational antithesis, Rob and Ross are great representatives of both the business of theater, and the theater of business.

Out to Lunch was recorded live over lunch at Columns in Uptown New Orleans. You can find photos from this show by Jill Lafleur at itsneworleans.com.

In New Orleans we pride ourselves on our extensive array of live entertainment.
According to music media company, <a href="https://www.offbeat.com/">Off Beat</a>, and tourist authority <a href="https://www.neworleans.com/">New Orleans &amp; Company</a>, on any given night we have, on average, 100 places to hear live music. If New York City had the same per capita number of live music venues, they’d have 800. In fact, they have 1,100.
Ok, so we’re not beating New York, but we’re in the same ballpark, and that’s impressive for a medium-size city.
How about live theater? If, per capita, we had as many options to go see a play in New Orleans as they do in New York, we’d have 142 live theater stages. In fact, we have fewer than 20.
So, what’s up with that? In a city whose Mardi Gras parades are among the biggest live street theater events in the world, why do we have so little traditional theater? Rob DeViney might be able to shed some light on that question. Rob is Executive Director of <a href="https://www.jeffersonpac.com/">Jefferson Performing Arts</a>.
In New Orleans there’s a long-running intersection of theater and business – in the person of larger-than-life characters who own or represent businesses. Folks like, Al Scramuzza from Seafood City. The Special Man from Frankie &amp; Johnnie’s Furniture. Restaurateurs Paul Prudhomme and Emeril Lagasse. Ronnie Lamarque the crooning car salesman. Al Copeland. Chris Owens. Morris Bart.
The list goes on. The newest addition to it, is Bougie Man Bourgeois. The Bougie Man is an import from Cajun country where he developed his meat product, <a href="https://www.bougiebologna.com/">Bougie Bologna</a>.
Unlike other bologna, which is apparently made from the cuts of meat discarded from traditional butchering, Bougie Bologna is made from 100% pork shoulder. The slogan summarizing this differentiation was originally, “Butthole free.” Apparently, the USDA frowned on that, so now Bougie Bologna is described somewhat more prosaically as, “no mystery meat or byproducts.”
The Bougie Man is the alter ego of Ross Brown, who is also the creator of Bougie Bologna.
In New Orleans business, like the rest of New Orleans, we’re no strangers to contradiction. The same local companies will sponsor the health-driven Crescent City Classic road race, and the Red Dress Run, an athletic event that’s also an alcohol-fueled celebration of cross-dressing.
We don’t think it’s unusual for a CEO of a serious business to also be an active member of a seriously fun-centric Mardi Gras krewe.
A great deal of our city’s revenue comes from tourists who come here to party. But we’re also on reputable entrepreneurial lists as one of the best cities to start a business.
In this New Orleans tradition of occupational antithesis, Rob and Ross are great representatives of both the business of theater, and the theater of business.
Out to Lunch was recorded live over lunch at <a href="https://thecolumns.com/">Columns in Uptown New Orleans</a>. You can find photos from this show by <a href="https://www.lafleurphoto.com/">Jill Lafleur</a> at <a href="https://itsneworleans.com/2024/07/29/jefferson-bougie/">itsneworleans.com</a>.

OUT TO LUNCH finds economist and Tulane finance professor Peter Ricchiuti conducting business New Orleans style: over lunch at Columns in Uptown New Olreans. In his 14th year in the host seat, Ricchiuti’s learned but uniquely NOLA informal perspective has established Out to Lunch as the voice of Crescent City business. You can also hear the show on WWNO 89.9FM.

OUT TO LUNCH finds economist and Tulane finance professor Peter Ricchiuti conducting business New Orleans style: over lunch at Columns in Uptown New Olreans. In his 14th year in the host seat, Ricchiuti’s learned but uniquely NOLA informal perspective has established Out to Lunch as the voice of Crescent City business. You can also hear the show on WWNO 89.9FM.

Tulane finance professor Peter Ricchiuti conducting business New Orleans style: over lunch at Commander's Palace restaurant.

It's New Orleans: Out to Lunch

OUT TO LUNCH finds the country's most entertaining finance professor Peter Ricchiuti conducting business New Orleans style: over lunch. Each week Peter invites guests from the New Orleans business world to join him for a midday bite. CEO's, startups, managers, musicians, biomed needle-movers, tech success stories and entrepreneurs of all stripes put aside the elevator pitch and talking points and actually enjoy themselves. It's business, New Orleans style. 
You can also hear the show on WWNO 89.9FM.

OUT TO LUNCH finds the country's most entertaining finance professor <a href="https://freeman.tulane.edu/faculty-research/finance/peter-ricchiuti">Peter Ricchiuti </a>conducting business New Orleans style: over lunch. Each week Peter invites guests from the New Orleans business world to join him for a midday bite. CEO's, startups, managers, musicians, biomed needle-movers, tech success stories and entrepreneurs of all stripes put aside the elevator pitch and talking points and actually enjoy themselves. It's business, New Orleans style. You can also hear the show on <a href="https://www.wwno.org/show/out-to-lunch">WWNO 89.9FM</a>.

Jefferson Bougie

When you start a business that sells a product, the first thing you have to do is resolve a contradiction. On the one hand, you want to sell a product everybody needs. On the other hand, if it’s so vital that everybody needs it, they’ve probably already got it.

What you have to do is convince a consumer that when they need to replace whatever-it-is, they need to try your product. Because your product is different. This difference is what’s called “differentiation.” Pretty simple. And obvious. It’s what differentiates your hopefully ubiquitous product from everybody else’s.

When it came to Jacob Lawson’s flooring company, he decided that what makes his, mostly industrial, polished concrete flooring different from everybody else’s is, his floors are extraordinary.

That’s why he changed the name of his company from Big Jake Affordable Flooring, to Extraordinary Flooring.

That was in the early two-thousands. If I was to read the names of companies Extraordinary Flooring has made floors for, it would take up half of this show.

Suffice to say, if you live in New Orleans, or even visit here, you’ve almost certainly walked on an Extraordinary Floor. Here are just a few examples: The Superdome. The Convention Center. The World War II Museum. Hilton Hotels. Ochsner Hospital. Touro Hospital. Rouse’s Supermarkets. French Truck Coffee. New Orleans Original Daiquiris. Southern University. Lockheed Martin Stennis Space Center… You get the idea.

Jacob Lawson is also the author of the how-I-did-it book, “Make It Extraordinary: 27 Life Changing Lessons That Will Elevate You Beyond The Ordinary."

Now we’re going to apply this same differentiator principle to women’s underwear.

I’m not going to presume to be an authority on this statistic, but I’d hazard an educated guess that most women wear underwear. So, that seems like a good place to start if, like Mindy Christie, you’re going to start up a new lingerie business.

Mindy launched her lingerie business in New Orleans in 2020 under the brand name, Furious Viola. In 2023 she re-branded, as undergoodies. (The all-lower-case spelling is a marketing decision.)

The undergoodies differentiator is, these undergarments don’t look like anything you see at Victoria’s Secret. They’re not skimpy thongs - nor are they designed to necessarily disappear and be invisible under clothes. They’re not in traditional white, neutral or black - they’re brightly colored.

A generation-or-two ago these styles of lingerie were known as pettipants and pettislips. Undergoodies are retro, with updated designs that make them current fashion. People are buying them in stores in 11 states and online at the undergoodies website.

Mindy and Jacob are at very different points on the timelines of their businesses. Jacob is able to talk - and write - about the extraordinary successes he's had with Extraordinary Flooring. Mindy is in the building phase of undergoodies, but extraordinary success doesn’t seem to be too far away.

Out to Lunch was recorded live over lunch at Columns in Uptown New Orleans. You can find photos by Jill Lafleur at itsneworleans.com.

When you start a business that sells a product, the first thing you have to do is resolve a contradiction. On the one hand, you want to sell a product everybody needs. On the other hand, if it’s so vital that everybody needs it, they’ve probably already got it.
What you have to do is convince a consumer that when they need to replace whatever-it-is, they need to try your product. Because your product is different. This difference is what’s called “differentiation.” Pretty simple. And obvious. It’s what differentiates your hopefully ubiquitous product from everybody else’s.
When it came to Jacob Lawson’s flooring company, he decided that what makes his, mostly industrial, polished concrete flooring different from everybody else’s is, his floors are extraordinary.
That’s why he changed the name of his company from Big Jake Affordable Flooring, to<a href="https://www.extraordinaryflooring.com/"> Extraordinary Flooring</a>.
That was in the early two-thousands. If I was to read the names of companies Extraordinary Flooring has made floors for, it would take up half of this show.
Suffice to say, if you live in New Orleans, or even visit here, you’ve almost certainly walked on an Extraordinary Floor. Here are just a few examples: The Superdome. The Convention Center. The World War II Museum. Hilton Hotels. Ochsner Hospital. Touro Hospital. Rouse’s Supermarkets. French Truck Coffee. New Orleans Original Daiquiris. Southern University. Lockheed Martin Stennis Space Center… You get the idea.
Jacob Lawson is also the author of the how-I-did-it book, “<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Make-Extraordinary-Life-Changing-Lessons-Ordinary/dp/1962280152">Make It Extraordinary: 27 Life Changing Lessons That Will Elevate You Beyond The Ordinary</a>."
Now we’re going to apply this same differentiator principle to women’s underwear.
I’m not going to presume to be an authority on this statistic, but I’d hazard an educated guess that most women wear underwear. So, that seems like a good place to start if, like Mindy Christie, you’re going to start up a new lingerie business.
Mindy launched her lingerie business in New Orleans in 2020 under the brand name, Furious Viola. In 2023 she re-branded, as <a href="https://undergoodies.com/">undergoodies</a>. (The all-lower-case spelling is a marketing decision.)
The undergoodies differentiator is, these undergarments don’t look like anything you see at Victoria’s Secret. They’re not skimpy thongs - nor are they designed to necessarily disappear and be invisible under clothes. They’re not in traditional white, neutral or black - they’re brightly colored.
A generation-or-two ago these styles of lingerie were known as pettipants and pettislips. Undergoodies are retro, with updated designs that make them current fashion. People are buying them in stores in 11 states and online at the <a href="https://undergoodies.com/collections">undergoodies website</a>.
Mindy and Jacob are at very different points on the timelines of their businesses. Jacob is able to talk - and write - about the extraordinary successes he's had with Extraordinary Flooring. Mindy is in the building phase of undergoodies, but extraordinary success doesn’t seem to be too far away.
Out to Lunch was recorded live over lunch at <a href="https://thecolumns.com/">Columns in Uptown New Orleans</a>. You can find photos by <a href="https://www.lafleurphoto.com/">Jill Lafleur</a> at<a href="https://itsneworleans.com/2024/08/19/extraordinary-undergoodies/"> itsneworleans.com.</a>

Extraordinary Undergoodies

There are a number of ways of becoming a New Orleanian. You can be born here. You can marry someone from here. You can go to high school here – that’s a uniquely New Orleans badge of belonging - and then there’s a phenomenon called Magnetic Migration. That’s a term I coined to describe how certain people are inexplicably drawn here.

You know these folks when you meet them. They’re so obviously New Orleanian, you can’t imagine them living anywhere else. Like Brent Houzenga and Jensen Reyes.

Pop Art

Brent moved here from Des Moines, Iowa. He was such a larger-than-life character there, they made a documentary about him. Although to be fair to Des Moines, he’d make a good subject for a documentary anywhere, even here.

Brent is best described as a pop artist. You may have seen his work driving around. And by that, I don’t mean his murals or street art – although you can see those too - I mean you’ll see his art, literally, driving around. On cars. All kinds of cars. Painted with layers of colored squiggles, straight lines, polka dots, and stenciled faces.

At first glance these cars look like they’ve been randomly graffiti-ed. But when you look more closely, you see there’s definitely an artist’s hand at work. It's this kind of sly intelligence hiding in a punk rock aesthetic that runs through a lot of Brent Houzenga’s work.

Yarn

Jensen Reyes was living in Seattle. She worked as a hair colorist. And took up knitting as a hobby. When she moved to New Orleans in 2020, Jensen was able to combine both those skills. She started a business called Sugarplum Circus.

Jensen called it that so it would be a vague enough umbrella to cover any kind of creative output. Sugarplum Circus has turned out to be a micro-dyer. The company makes dyed-to-order fine yarns. You can buy their hand-dyed yarn at their website, and exclusively at a store in the French Quarter called The Quarter Stitch.

The Quarter Stitch is a destination for people from across the country looking for fashion yarn. And online there’s a population of millions of yarn users – many of them are young women who make their own clothes and congregate around #MeMade. In this universe, Jensen and Sugarplum Circus are stars.

You might remember, back in 2015 there was an online viral phenomenon called “The Dress.”

It was an image of a dress, and there was a massive debate as to whether this dress was white and gold, or blue and black.

What we learned from that was – if you’ll pardon the expression – color is not black and white. It’s not objective. It’s subjective. And can be uniquely personal.

Whether it’s the color of a piece of clothing made from yarn Jensen has dyed, or the colors of a painted car or piece of artwork Brent created, our responses to color, and to works of art, can shape our day, our mood, and even our sense of well-being. And they and their businesses certainly brighten up our city. 

Out to Lunch was recorded live over lunch at Columns in Uptown New Orleans. You can find photos from this show by Jill Lafleur at itsneworleans.com.

There are a number of ways of becoming a New Orleanian. You can be born here. You can marry someone from here. You can go to high school here – that’s a uniquely New Orleans badge of belonging - and then there’s a phenomenon called Magnetic Migration. That’s a term I coined to describe how certain people are inexplicably drawn here.
You know these folks when you meet them. They’re so obviously New Orleanian, you can’t imagine them living anywhere else. Like <a href="https://www.houzenga.com/">Brent Houzenga</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/sugarplumcircus/">Jensen Reyes</a>.
Pop Art
Brent moved here from Des Moines, Iowa. He was such a larger-than-life character there, they <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Brent-Houzenga-Pioneer-Kristian-Day/dp/B006JIUKAW">made a documentary about him</a>. Although to be fair to Des Moines, he’d make a good subject for a documentary anywhere, even here.
Brent is best described as a pop artist. You may have seen his work driving around. And by that, I don’t mean his murals or street art – although you can see those too - I mean you’ll see his art, literally, driving around. <a href="https://www.houzenga.com/commissions#/vehicles/">On cars. All kinds of cars. Painted with layers of colored squiggles, straight lines, polka dots, and stenciled faces.</a>
At first glance these cars look like they’ve been randomly graffiti-ed. But when you look more closely, you see there’s definitely an artist’s hand at work. It's this kind of sly intelligence hiding in a punk rock aesthetic that runs through a lot of Brent Houzenga’s work.
Yarn
Jensen Reyes was living in Seattle. She worked as a hair colorist. And took up knitting as a hobby. When she moved to New Orleans in 2020, Jensen was able to combine both those skills. She started a business called <a href="https://sugarplumcircus.com/">Sugarplum Circus</a>.
Jensen called it that so it would be a vague enough umbrella to cover any kind of creative output. Sugarplum Circus has turned out to be a micro-dyer. The company makes dyed-to-order fine yarns. You can buy their hand-dyed yarn at their website, and exclusively at a store in the French Quarter called <a href="https://www.quarterstitch.com/">The Quarter Stitch</a>.
The Quarter Stitch is a destination for people from across the country looking for fashion yarn. And online there’s a population of millions of yarn users – many of them are young women who make their own clothes and congregate around #MeMade. In this universe, Jensen and Sugarplum Circus are stars.
You might remember, back in 2015 there was an online viral phenomenon called “The Dress.”
It was an image of a dress, and there was a massive debate as to whether this dress was white and gold, or blue and black.
What we learned from that was – if you’ll pardon the expression – color is not black and white. It’s not objective. It’s subjective. And can be uniquely personal.
Whether it’s the color of a piece of clothing made from yarn Jensen has dyed, or the colors of a painted car or piece of artwork Brent created, our responses to color, and to works of art, can shape our day, our mood, and even our sense of well-being. And they and their businesses certainly brighten up our city. 
Out to Lunch was recorded live over lunch at <a href="https://thecolumns.com/">Columns in Uptown New Orleans</a>. You can find photos from this show by <a href="https://www.lafleurphoto.com/">Jill Lafleur</a> at itsneworleans.com.

Pop Art Yarn

When Drew Brees was The Saints’ quarterback he was regularly out and about in New Orleans. If you ran into him, you couldn’t help noticing that for a guy who had such a dominating presence on a football field, there didn’t seem to be anything physically exceptional about him. But when he played the game, Drew had an ability to size up what was happening, and he could see opportunities that other players couldn’t. 

There are similar types of people in business. Seemingly regular guys who are looking at the same business landscape we’re all looking at, but somehow, they see multiple opportunities most of us don’t. And they create multiple successful businesses in a way most business-people can’t.

For example, Jayson Seidman and Alex Pomes. 

Jayson Seidman is founder and Principal Managing Partner of a company called Sandstone. With offices in the Texas hill country and New Orleans, Sandstone principally develops boutique hotels and commercial mixed-use properties. They have hotels in Texas, New York, New Orleans, Costa Rica, and Australia.

Here in New Orleans, their properties include The Drifter, The Hotel Saint Vincent, The Frenchmen, and Columns – till recently known as The Columns Hotel – which is where Peter, Alex, and Jayson had lunch while recording this podcast. 

Jayson’s mother is from New Orleans. His dad went to Tulane. Jayson grew up in Houston, where he was a child actor at Theater Under The Stars, which calls itself “Houston’s home for musical theater.”

Alex Pomes is also a one-time musical theater actor turned entrepreneur. Alex is a New Orleans native who graduated from NOCCA in musical theater.

His first taste of business was cinnamon. In 2010, Alex was hired as website manager, social media point person and Brand Ambassador for a then small whisky company, called Fireball. 

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll know that the marketing of Fireball Whisky is one of the most successful alcohol marketing campaigns, ever. In 2011 Fireball had under $2m in sales. By 2014, sales were $800m.

That experience gave Alex the confidence to launch his own alcohol label, Ghost Tequila. It’s tequila that’s actually made in Tequila Mexico, infused with Ghost Peppers.

Alex is also the founder of a local marketing company, RAPJAB, that specializes in creative campaigns for breweries, bars and events.

And Alex is the co-founder of NOLA Underground Pickleball, the no-frills community-driven pickleball league whose sponsors range from White Claw to Walmart.

If there’s one thing we’re not short of in New Orleans, it’s people with a story to tell. Whether you’re at a music festival, waiting for a parade to roll by, or just in line at the supermarket, the New Orleanian next to you is happy to talk to you. And - often without much encouragement - they’ll more-than-likely tell you something fascinating. But, even in this city of storytellers and stories, it’s hard to beat the variety of tales and business ventures from Jayson and Alex. 

Out to Lunch was recorded live over lunch at Columns in Uptown New Orleans. You can find photos from this show by Jill Lafleur at itsneworleans.com

When Drew Brees was The Saints’ quarterback he was regularly out and about in New Orleans. If you ran into him, you couldn’t help noticing that for a guy who had such a dominating presence on a football field, there didn’t seem to be anything physically exceptional about him. But when he played the game, Drew had an ability to size up what was happening, and he could see opportunities that other players couldn’t. 
There are similar types of people in business. Seemingly regular guys who are looking at the same business landscape we’re all looking at, but somehow, they see multiple opportunities most of us don’t. And they create multiple successful businesses in a way most business-people can’t.
For example, Jayson Seidman and Alex Pomes. 
Jayson Seidman is founder and Principal Managing Partner of a company called <a href="https://www.sandstone.ltd/">Sandstone</a>. With offices in the Texas hill country and New Orleans, Sandstone principally develops boutique hotels and commercial mixed-use properties. They have hotels in Texas, New York, New Orleans, Costa Rica, and Australia.
Here in New Orleans, their properties include <a href="https://thedrifterhotel.com/">The Drifter</a>,<a href="https://saintvincentnola.com/"> The Hotel Saint Vincent</a>, <a href="https://www.thefrenchmenhotel.com/">The Frenchmen</a>, and<a href="https://thecolumns.com/"> Columns</a> – till recently known as The Columns Hotel – which is where Peter, Alex, and Jayson had lunch while recording this podcast. 
Jayson’s mother is from New Orleans. His dad went to Tulane. Jayson grew up in Houston, where he was a child actor at <a href="https://www.tuts.com/">Theater Under The Stars</a>, which calls itself “Houston’s home for musical theater.”
Alex Pomes is also a one-time musical theater actor turned entrepreneur. Alex is a New Orleans native who graduated from NOCCA in musical theater.
His first taste of business was cinnamon. In 2010, Alex was hired as website manager, social media point person and Brand Ambassador for a then small whisky company, called <a href="https://www.fireballwhisky.com/">Fireball</a>. 
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll know that the marketing of Fireball Whisky is one of the most successful alcohol marketing campaigns, ever. In 2011 Fireball had under $2m in sales. By 2014, sales were $800m.
That experience gave Alex the confidence to launch his own alcohol label, <a href="https://www.ghosttequila.com/">Ghost Tequila</a>. It’s tequila that’s actually made in Tequila Mexico, infused with Ghost Peppers.
Alex is also the founder of a local marketing company, <a href="https://rapjab.com/">RAPJAB</a>, that specializes in creative campaigns for breweries, bars and events.
And Alex is the co-founder of <a href="https://www.nolaundergroundpickleball.com/">NOLA Underground Pickleball</a>, the no-frills community-driven pickleball league whose sponsors range from White Claw to Walmart.
If there’s one thing we’re not short of in New Orleans, it’s people with a story to tell. Whether you’re at a music festival, waiting for a parade to roll by, or just in line at the supermarket, the New Orleanian next to you is happy to talk to you. And - often without much encouragement - they’ll more-than-likely tell you something fascinating. But, even in this city of storytellers and stories, it’s hard to beat the variety of tales and business ventures from Jayson and Alex. 
Out to Lunch was recorded live over lunch at <a href="https://thecolumns.com/">Columns in Uptown New Orleans</a>. You can find photos from this show by <a href="https://www.lafleurphoto.com/">Jill Lafleur</a> at <a href="https://itsneworleans.com/2024/06/24/opportunity-knocks/">itsneworleans.com</a>

Jefferson Bougie

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