Ground Up Growth

He went to law school on a whim, launched a beer festival business out of a meat trailer, and turned a liquidated vodka distillery into one of the largest bourbon barrel storage operations around. Then he got fired from the company he built. In Part 1 of our conversation with McCauley Williams, founder and CEO of Memphis-based Morningside Brands, we hear how he rebuilt from nothing. With a six-mon...

Kathy Hopper is back to show us how businesses actually get bought and sold. She explains how investment bankers bring companies to market, including the "speed dating" events where buyers and bankers meet. She also covers what Jones Capital looks for in the lower middle market, why they only invest in industries they understand, and why there's no such thing as a typical acquisition timeline. We...

In our first-ever remote episode, we sit down with Kathy Hopper, CMO of Jones Capital, a family-owned investment firm whose roots go back to a small lumber mill in Sandy Hook, Mississippi, in 1949. (And no, she and Paul aren't related.) Kathy grew up in Cut and Shoot, Texas. She went from community college and an accounting job she admits she was never cut out for to selling medical devices across...

In part two of our conversation with Ed Wall of Wall Media, we go deep into the gear, grit, and unforgettable moments behind a career built around outdoor photography and videography. Ed walks us through his camera protection system in the field (spoiler: zip ties are involved), the gear fails that taught him hard lessons, and why he's never once gotten a camera wet in 15 years of duck hunting — d...

In this episode of Ground Up Growth, hosts Paul Hopper and Hannah Pittman sit down with Ed Wall, owner of Wall Media, a standout outdoor photography and videography company. Ed shares how he picked up his first camera at 30 years old — with zero formal training — and turned a hobby born from deer hunting and dog photos into an award-winning career that's landed his work on magazine covers and even...

In part two with Jamey Nicholas, Market President at Southern AgCredit, we get into what it actually looks like to build a career and a culture over the long haul. Jamie started as a trainee in 2011 and never left, and he walks us through how staying patient, doing whatever role you're in well, and always being ready for the next step opened doors he never saw coming. We talk about leading people...

This week on Ground Up Growth, Hannah and Paul sit down with Jamie Nicholas, Market President for Southern AG Credit. Jamie grew up on a family farm in Sand Hill, Mississippi, drove into Jackson Prep every day as the only kid from his hometown, and landed at Mississippi State studying real estate and finance. He's one of the rare few who actually does what he majored in. Jamie walks us through how...

We're back with Rep. Jill Ford for part two of our conversation, and this one goes deep. If you missed part one, go back and start there for the story of how she got to the Mississippi House of Representatives. In this episode, Jill pulls back the curtain on what the job actually looks like day to day. She walks us through session, the committee process, and how a bill really becomes law (turns ou...

On this episode of Ground Up Growth, Hannah Pittman and Paul Hopper sit down with Mississippi House Representative Jill Ford for a conversation about faith, family, resilience, and finding your way into a life of service. Jill shares the story of growing up in Corinth with four brothers, building a career in real estate, and ultimately making the unexpected transition into the Mississippi House of...

We switched things up for this one. Instead of hosting a guest, it's just Hannah and Paul sitting down for a straight Q&A on the money mindset behind a 12 year real estate career. Paul gets into what actually builds wealth over time: watching every single dime, the difference between good debt and bad debt, why he still writes checks to dodge a 3% fee, and the "$54 a day" math behind getting m...

Taylor and Katie Summers pitched their board a coffee shop as a five year plan. The board brushed it off. Then COVID evacuated them out of Kenya on 12 hours notice, and they opened the first one seven months later anyway. In part two, they walk through how Zoe Ministries ended up in the coffee business. The 3 a.m. phone call from Nairobi to Kitale, the flight rerouted through Dubai to avoid Europe...

Taylor and Katie Summers built Zoe Ministries from a $350 bank account into twelve homes, a clean water program, and a pastoral training center in rural Kenya. Now they are opening a coffee shop in Livingston, Mississippi to help fund it. Taylor graduated from Delta State on a Saturday and moved to Kenya two days later, living in a 250 square foot house and getting around on a 125cc motorcycle. Ka...

This week on Ground Up Growth, we sit down with Jeff and Shelby Taylor of Two Men and a Truck in Ridgeland — a father-daughter duo running one of the most recognized service brands in the country. Jeff shares how a chance encounter behind a moving truck on the way to an Auburn game led him from engineering and NASA to franchise ownership in 1999, back when marketing meant a half-page ad in the pho...

In part two of our conversation with Emily Grohovsky of Cedar Hill Gardens, we shift from the origin story to the business behind the business. Emily walks us through the early days of hiring help straight off the floor at Home Depot, the gradual transition from nursing to running Cedar Hill full time, and the lessons that came from learning as she went rather than following a roadmap. We talk abo...

What started as a 30x40 plot of Mississippi clay during the loneliest season of the pandemic turned into a thriving business, a 100+ member community, and a third life entirely. Hosts Paul Hopper and Hannah Pittman sit down with Emily Grohovsky, founder of Cedar Hill Gardens, to talk about how a stay-at-home mom with two babies under two and a serious case of postpartum cabin fever became "the Gar...

The future is already here, and Jake Manning is installing it. In Part 2, hosts Paul Hopper and Hannah Pittman continue their conversation with Mississippi Smart Homes founder Jake Manning to go deeper on the technology trends reshaping everyday life, and what it means for homeowners, business owners, and entrepreneurs paying attention. Jake breaks down the real story on Starlink, why cybersecurit...

What happens when a biomedical engineering student gets a curveball from his dad junior year of college, graduates into a global pandemic, and decides to bet on himself anyway? You get Jake Manning and Mississippi Smart Homes. In Part 1, hosts Paul Hopper and Hannah Pittman sit down with Ridgeland entrepreneur Jake Manning to unpack the unconventional path that led him from double engineering degr...

The conversation continues. In Part 2, hosts Paul Hopper and Hannah Pittman pick back up with Madison, Mississippi entrepreneur and community leader Chaz Ramsey to go deeper on what it actually looks like to juggle the five pillars of health — spiritual, relational, mental, physical, and financial — in the real, messy middle of life and business. Chaz gets honest about the phone boundaries he stil...

What does it take to build something from nothing — and keep going when life knocks you down? Hosts Paul Hopper and Hannah Pittman sit down with Madison, Mississippi entrepreneur and community leader Chaz Ramsey for a conversation that is equal parts faith, hustle, and real talk. Chaz shares how a career-ending back injury at Auburn redirected his path from college football to the laundry industry...

In part two of our conversation with Leigh Bailey, founder of Salad Days Produce in Flora, Mississippi, we go deep on what it actually takes to build a hydroponic lettuce operation from the ground up — and keep it alive when everything falls apart. Leigh walks us through the early days of their 18,000 sq ft greenhouse, why they eventually walked away from tomatoes after harvesting 56,000 pounds in...

In this episode of Ground Up Growth, Paul Hopper and Hannah Pittman sit down with Leigh Bailey, founder of Salad Days, to hear the remarkable story of how a longtime real estate professional made the leap into agriculture and built one of Mississippi’s most innovative local food businesses. From growing up in a real estate development family to launching businesses in publishing, commercial real e...

In Part 2 of Ground Up Growth, Paul Hopper and Hannah Pittman continue their conversation with Webb Emerson, owner of Form Design Build. Webb shares how mentorship, leadership, and staying lean have helped grow his Jackson, Mississippi construction company in just three years. The episode covers hiring the right people, outsourcing weaknesses, building company culture, why in-person relationships...

In this episode of Ground Up Growth, Paul Hopper and Hannah Pittman sit down with Webb Emerson, owner of Form Design Build, to talk about building a modern construction company from the ground up. Webb shares his journey from growing up around job sites in Memphis to earning a construction degree from Mississippi State University, gaining experience in large-scale commercial construction, and even...

In Part 2 of this episode of Ground Up Growth, Cameron Hartley dives deeper into what it really takes to scale a business—and the risks that come with it. After building a successful equipment company, Cameron shares the high-stakes decision to invest everything into a new location in Gluckstadt, Mississippi—a move he knew would either make him or break him. From navigating drought seasons that cu...