Entrepreneurial Insights Jay Healy and Pearson Crutcher

SweetBio is a great entrepreneurial story. Let’s meet Kayla Rodriguez Graff and Isaac Rodriguez, Co-Founders of SweetBio, who are revolutionizing wound care with collagen + honey products, starting in dermatology with skin cancer removal recovery. Kayla Rodriguez Graff, MBA, CEO, is a dynamic leader in healthcare and wound care industries, driving fundraising and advocating for women, diversity, and life sciences. She has been featured in Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and national TV commercials. Isaac Rodriguez, PhD, Chief Science Officer, brings 15 years of expertise in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. He has been recognized as Memphis' Top 40 Under 40 and a Top 10 Alumni by his alma mater.

The Society of Entrepreneurs and Epicenter recently launched What’s Next, a series of lunches featuring new and exciting businesses in the Memphis area. This podcast was recorded during the founder of Avadain Brad Larschan’s, recent What’s Next presentation.
Josh Poag serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer at Poag, a position he has held since its formation in 2014. He was previously President and CEO of Poag & McEwen Shopping Center from 2009 until 2014.
With over 20 years of experience in the lifestyle center industry, Josh has worked on all facets of the business. Josh has previously served as Executive Vice President- Chief Operating Officer, Executive Vice President- Chief Financial Officer, Vice President- Development, Development Manager, Project Manager, and Leasing Manager. Before joining Poag’s predecessor, Josh was a financial analyst and engineer.
In his role as President and CEO, Josh manages the executive team, oversees key partnerships and runs the day-to-day operations of the company. Josh’s strengths lie in generating new business and establishing corporate vision and direction for the company. Josh is focused on creating unique projects that provide an experiential environment for customers to shop, eat and be entertained. Josh is attuned to the future of the lifestyle center industry and how it is adapting to the rapidly changing world. He ensures that Poag is creating multidimensional properties that function as the core of the community in which they are located.
Josh is a member is ICSC, serves on the Platinum Commercial and Retail Development Council of ULI, and is Chairman of the Board of Community LIFT, a non-profit organization that strives to accelerate revitalization in neighborhoods across Memphis. Josh was named one of the 40 under 40 by the Memphis Business Journal. Josh earned his Bachelor of Science in Engineering from Princeton University in Chemical Engineering.

The Society of Entrepreneurs and Epicenter recently launched What’s Next, a series of lunches featuring new and exciting businesses in the Memphis area. This podcast was recorded during the founder of Avadain Brad Larschan’s, recent What’s Next presentation.
Avadain is at the forefront of nanotech, with the only known technology capable of manufacturing the world’s most highly sought-after advanced material – large, thin, and nearly defect-free (LTDF) graphene flakes. LTDF graphene flakes are the strongest, lightest, most electrically and thermally conductive material ever discovered. It is an additive material; adding a tiny amount can transform hundreds of billions of dollars of high-value products.
 
The Wall Street Journal calls graphene “An impending turning point in high tech as important as silicon….” 
 
The New Yorker says “Graphene may be the most remarkable substance ever discovered.” 
We hope that you will enjoy this episode with Brad Larschan, as he shares how this atomic scale material that won the 2010 Nobel Prize for Physics will soon touch the lives of almost every person, every day.

Robert G. McEniry is retired Chairman of nexAir, an 83-year multi-generational company with headquarters in Memphis, TN.
nexAir, founded in 1940 as Standard Welders Supply, was purchased by his father in 1950. Bob worked summers at the company during high school and college. Graduating from Vanderbilt University, Bob formally joined the company in 1963. He became President of the company in July 1971 and Chairman/CEO in 1996. Under his leadership, Bob guided the company and growth, which included acquisitions, mergers, start-ups, and joint ventures. During his 60 years with the company, revenues and geographical reach grew substantially. Bob’s son Kevin took over the company as CEO in 2007 developing the company to an industry powerhouse. When sold in 2023, the company had over 75 locations and 725 employees, one of the largest in the industry.

Meet the founder of Nutt Bio, a devoted dog mom and seasoned biomedical scientist with 25 years of expertise in unraveling the intricacies of cancer cell demise. She's on a mission to revolutionize the approach to addressing boar taint in piglets by replacing cumbersome procedures with a user-friendly single-injection sterilant. Drawing from her cancer cell research, she identified a delicate balance in metabolite concentrations influencing cell fate and strategically leveraged the external location of the testis for precise drug targeting. The drug she developed permanently eliminates boar taint, and when administered through a purpose-designed medical device, not only minimizes exposure risks but also signifies a significant leap forward in improving the welfare of piglets.

Are you in the top 20% or the top 2%? Lipscomb & Pitts Insurance Managing Partner Johnny Pitts, a Higginbotham Partner and founder of CityCURRENT, explores how you can rise into the top 2% in all of your endeavors. As a born and raised Memphian, Johnny is very passionate about enriching, engaging, and impacting the community. We hope that you enjoy this conversation about Johnny’s entrepreneurial journey and passion for “powering the good”.