NWA Founders

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners Summary Alex and Lauren Blass are the husband-and-wife team behind the Blass family office in Northwest Arkansas — a fourth-generation operation that spans Blue Ribbon Industries, commercial real estate, and master-planned development. Alex grew up in Little Rock and came to NWA for college, eventually j...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What if a clothing company focused less on clothes and more on experiences? In this episode, Donny Hubbard shares the remarkable story of going from a self-described poor kid who struggled in school to becoming one of Northwest Arkansas’ most connected entrepreneurs and the founder of one of the region’s...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What would it look like for your company's message to actually connect with it's biggest stakeholder? The local public. AM Group founders Andrea Ritchie and Mary Mickel have built one of Northwest Arkansas’ most respected communications and public relations firms by helping organizations tell their stori...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What does it actually look like to scale a business through uncertainty without losing your people, your values, or your long-term vision? In this episode, Taylor Faught , CEO of TRS Healthcare , shares the story behind building and scaling a healthcare staffing company from a regional family business in...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What does it look like to build a software company in a highly regulated industry while remaining innovative? In this episode, Joe Ehrhardt , founder and CEO of Teslar Software , shares the story behind building one of the fastest-growing fintech companies serving community banks across the country. From...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What if one of the biggest business opportunities in the world was hiding inside a problem most people never think about? In this episode, Are Traasdahl , founder of Crisp and Arkade , shares the story behind building a company aimed at solving one of the most overlooked global challenges: food waste. Wi...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What if the real edge in your business is leaning into A.I.? In this episode, Eric Howerton , co-founder & CGO of AdFury.ai , pulls back the curtain on how AI is reshaping the future of retail, advertising, and entrepreneurship in Northwest Arkansas. This isn’t a hype conversation about AI; it’s a gr...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What would happen if more of the capital shaping your area actually came from the people who live there? In this episode, Brad Henry of Natural Capital shares a behind-the-scenes look at building a private investment firm designed to do exactly that: keep opportunity local, empower founders, and give fam...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What does it look like to take a small, family-run manufacturing shop and turn it into a diversified, innovation-driven company competing on a national level? In this episode, Chris Chandler of Chandler Capital Group shares the real story behind building, losing, rebuilding, and ultimately redefining wha...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What if one project completely changed the trajectory of your business? In this episode of NWA Founders, Jeremy Hudson , CEO of Specialized Real Estate Group , shares the story behind some of Northwest Arkansas’ most meaningful developments and the philosophy that drives them. From Eco Modern Flats to So...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What if your company made the Inc. 500 and then almost went out of business? In this episode of NWA Founders , we sit down with Thomas Addington and Allen Befort , co-founders of Givingtons , to unpack how they built a fast-growing book company and how it almost got away from them. Today, they've built a...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What does it take to lead a 70+ year old family-owned company into the future without losing sight of what made it successful in the first place? In this episode, we’re joined by Todd Simmons of Simmons Foods for an in-depth conversation on leadership, legacy, and building a company with a long-term visi...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What happens when you combine blue-collar grit with high-tech precision and build a company from the ground up without taking on a dime of debt? In this episode, we sit down with John Musser , president of Custom Electronics , to explore how a regional integrator went from a borrowed truck and a box of c...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What started as a side hustle is now a multi-employee business with customers across the country... In this episode, we sit down with Kendall and Bailey Beykirch , the married co-founders of KenzKustomz , to talk about how they built a thriving custom accessories brand rooted in hustle, resilience, and a...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What does it look like to step out of a successful brokerage career and build your own investment firm from scratch? In this episode, we sit down with TJ Lefler , founder of Lefler Capital , to talk about entrepreneurship, capital allocation, and what it really takes to build something sustainable in Nor...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What does it take to not only build a thriving company but to buy it back after it fails and make it stronger than ever? In this episode, we sit down with Mark Zweig , founder of Zweig Group , a nationally recognized consulting firm for architects and engineers. Mark opens up about his multi-decade entre...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners In a region growing as fast as Northwest Arkansas, who helps guide the pace of progress? In this episode, we sit down with Marshall Saviers , CEO & President of Cushman & Wakefield | Sage Partners , one of the most influential commercial real estate firms in the region. With nearly two decades of...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What happens when a broke college student trades potpourri for a secondhand stove and ends up running one of the most productive candle factories in the country?   In this episode, we sit down with Burt Hanna, founder of Hanna’s Candle Company, to talk about building a business brick by brick in Northwes...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What does it take to grow a local HVAC company into a multi-state home services powerhouse? In this episode of NWA Founders , we sit down with Charley Boyce , CEO of Paschal Air, Plumbing, & Electric , to talk about legacy, leadership, and how he’s scaled one of Northwest Arkansas’s most trusted bran...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What does it take to serve an entire area through good food and world-class experience? In this episode of NWA Founders , we sit down with Carl Garrett , founder of Table Mesa Restaurant Group, whose name has become synonymous with Bentonville’s food scene. From launching his first concept with a simple...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What makes Underwoods different from every other retail jewelry shop? In this episode of NWA Founders, we sit down with Troy Underwood , Vice President of Underwoods Fine Jewelers , to explore the legacy, craftsmanship, and entrepreneurial mindset behind one of Arkansas’ most respected jewelry businesses...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What does it take to build a Law Firm where people actually love and care about each other? Most people think of law firms as cutthroat, high-pressure places but Joseph Reece has built something different. As co-founder of RMP Attorneys at Law , Joe shares how faith, integrity, and a “no jerk” culture ha...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners Building Walkable Communities in Northwest Arkansas with High Street Real Estate & Development In this episode, we sit down with Ward Davis and Jason Keathley , the partners behind High Street Real Estate & Development , to talk about how they’re reshaping Northwest Arkansas through walkable, mix...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What does it take to run a multi-location car dealership while preserving a 75-year family legacy? In this episode, we sit down with Matt , Shelby , and Taylor Lewis, fourth-generation leaders of Lewis Automotive Group , to talk about what it’s really like to operate a large family business in one of the...

→ Learn more about Greenwood Gearhart → Learn more about Cushman & Wakefield Sage Partners What does it look like to lead one of Northwest Arkansas’s most trusted commercial real estate firms in the middle of a regional development boom? In this episode, we sit down with Clinton Bennett , co-founder of Focus Commercial Real Estate , to explore how he and his team are helping shape the future o...