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The Best of LKN

The Best of LKN

Hosted by Epic Journey Media

BusinessEntrepreneurshipMarketingSocietyCultureInterviews guests
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Episodes

414

Latest episode

Aug 2026

Language

EN-US

About the show

Welcome to The Best of LKN podcast! Here you’ll find a collection of interviews with the owners of Lake Norman’s favorite businesses. Small business is the heart and soul of a community, and The Best of LKN is here to shine a spotlight on the small businesses that are making the biggest impact here in the Lake Norman region of North Carolina.In addition to featuring exceptional small business owners, we’ll also be interviewing the most influential professionals that serve the LKN community. From bankers and realtors, to teachers and coaches, we look forward to introducing you to the best Lake Norman has to offer!We hope you enjoy these episodes. Thank you for following The Best of LKN!

Listen to episodes

60 recent
August 10, 202637 min

416: Dustin Johnson - Club Pups Lake Norman

Dustin Johnson walked away from a career at Hendrick Automotive Group, bought a piece of land in Mooresville, permitted it himself, and spent 22 months building a dog boarding and daycare. Eight years later, Club Pups Lake Norman is a multi-time Normies winner - and Dustin is opening three more locations and franchising the whole thing.Dustin walks Jeff through what makes the Club Pups model different (every dog gets its own suite, temperament evaluations for every new client, ten dogs max per staff member, play-rest-play), the new locations coming to North Mooresville, Huntersville, and South End, and the first franchise opening near Hilton Head this fall. He also gets candid about the years it took to figure the business out, why commercial real estate humbled him, and a shout-out to the Town of Mooresville you don't hear often enough.https://clubpups.com/Subscribe to Lake Norman's Best Email Newsletter:https://thebestoflkn.com/Hosted by:Jeff HammTop Lake Norman Real Estate Brokerhttps://lknreal.com/Support the show

August 5, 202641 min

415: How AI Search Is Changing Local Business, with TJ Todd

For twenty-five years, getting found online meant chasing blue links on Google. That era is ending fast - and TJ Todd of Studio 490 is back on the show to explain what's replacing it. Jeff opens with a telling stat from his own experience: at a broker luncheon, five or six hands went up when he asked who'd gotten a lead from AI search in 2025. Zero went up for 2024.TJ breaks down what actually earns you a citation in an AI answer, from answer engine optimization and directory consistency to why Reddit threads and Google reviews now carry real weight. He also makes the case for where to start if you're behind - your own website first, then local SEO and social - and offers a line worth sitting with: hesitation is costing you more than you think.Studio490Support the show

July 27, 202634 min

414: Elevate Strategy and Consulting - Lynn Bowser & Drew Webster

Most small business owners don't realize they've built a job instead of a business – and they find out the hard way when it's time to sell. Lynn Bowser and Drew Webster of Elevate Strategy and Consulting join Jeff to explain why a company doing $10 million in revenue can be worth $1.5 million, while a $1.5 million company can be worth far more.Lynn and Drew get into what they call the "accidental CEO" problem – the attorney, dentist, or med spa owner who suddenly has 20 employees and never went to business school – plus where profit quietly bleeds out, why handing the business to your kid or your employees is riskier than it sounds, and Drew's rule for the whole thing: build a business you could sell tomorrow, but don't want to.Learn more:https://www.elevatescgroup.com/Hosted by:Jeff HammBest Lake Norman NC Realtorhttps://lknreal.com/Support the show

July 23, 202640 min

413: Drew Chalfant - Hiking Adventures With Kids (Lake Norman)

Drew Chalfant and his wife brought HAWKs – Hiking Adventures With Kids – to Lake Norman, planting the national brand's first East Coast flag right here in our backyard. A recovering franchise attorney (and former emo-band touring musician) turned hands-on owner-operator, Drew makes a compelling case that the "kick out the front door, come home when the streetlights come on" childhood isn't gone for good – it just needs a van, a trail, and a few naturalist educators to bring it back.Jeff and Drew get into why "60 minutes a day" outside is the bare-minimum floor, not the goal; how HAWKs uses after-school programs, summer day camps, and school-closure coverage as a genuine childcare resource for working parents across Huntersville, Cornelius, Davidson, and Mooresville; and the surprising magic of letting kids get bored on the trail – like the day a group spontaneously invented their own little society and begged to come back to finish the story. It's a warm, funny conversation about screens, stewardship, and why our kids come alive outdoors.Hawks Kids Lake NormanSupport the show

July 21, 202631 min

412: Brian Park - Park Place Entertainment

For twenty-plus years, Brian Park worked title abstracting in law firms – tattoos, white glasses, and all – while a lifelong love of music sat on the back burner. He started DJing on the side in 2016, booked his first wedding in November 2019 (yes, right before COVID), and finally walked away from the corporate world this past February to run Park Place Entertainment full time.Brian and Jeff get into the long game of building a business on nights and weekends, why he reinvested every dollar he earned instead of going into debt, and how an all-white, furniture-style DJ booth gets venues asking for his card before he plays a single note. He also shares how a bride in Virginia found him through an AI search that called him "a hidden gem," why he's one of the DJs who will actually MC your wedding, and the one reception involving a groomsman, acid, and a very long night for every vendor in the building.Park Place EntertainmentThe Best of LKNhttps://thebestoflkn.com/Hosted by:Jeff Hammhttps://lknreal.com/Support the show

July 16, 202626 min

411: Laughing Through Charlotte – The Story of Funny Bus

Lake Norman residents Lisa Schnurr and Kevin Anderson took one bright red school bus, a live comedian, and a whole lot of "well, crap, I guess we're doing this," and turned it into Funny Bus – a 90-minute BYOB comedy tour of Charlotte that's now carried more than 260,000 riders across three cities. This week, Jeff reconnects with the husband-and-wife team to hear how a converted school bus became a decade-long adventure.Lisa and Kevin share how they pivoted from a food-tour company to betting everything on Funny Bus, what a tour actually feels like as a comedian riffs on Charlotte's history from uptown to NoDa, and why it's become a favorite for bachelorette parties, out-of-town guests, and even realtor housewarming gifts – plus where they might roll next.Funny Bus Charlotte(704) 659-3186Support the show

July 13, 202632 min

410: Jaime Lane on Building Community with Link Lake Norman

Jaime Lane is Lake Norman through and through — she's been coming to the lake since 1983 and has called Huntersville home for more than two decades. On this episode, she sits down with Jeff to trace her path from interior designer and nonprofit founder to workforce and cultural strategist, including her formative years at the Lake Norman Economic Development Corporation. When the EDC closed its doors, Jaime didn't wait around for the perfect job to appear — she built it herself, launching Link Lake Norman that very day.The conversation digs into what Link Lake Norman actually does: connecting local businesses to a vetted vendor network, championing student internships, and rethinking how companies invest in their teams and their community. Jaime makes a passionate case for keeping talent, volunteering, and dollars local instead of exporting them to Charlotte — building an intergenerational ecosystem where nonprofits, industries, and workers all lift each other up. If you're a business owner curious about workforce retention, culture-building, or making a real community impact, this one's for you. Reach Jaime at jaime@linklakenorman.com or book a free 30-minute discovery call at linklakenorman.com.The Best of LKNhttps://thebestoflkn.com/Hosted by Lake Norman's best real estate agent:Jeff HammElevate Land & RealtyLake Norman, NChttps://lknreal.com/Support the show

July 10, 202631 min

409: Krystal Bajkor - Bee Organized Lake Norman

In this episode, Jeff sits down with Krystal Bajkor, founder of Bee Organized Lake Norman, a professional organizing service that helps busy families and professionals reclaim their homes. Krystal shares her path from a career in corporate banking at Citibank to an eight-month, 17-country "mini retirement" that ended with her family settling in the Lake Norman area. She explains why motherhood sparked her passion for organizing, and why she chose the Bee Organized franchise model, drawn to its 2015 roots, 50+ locations, and core values of compassion, confidentiality, and judgment-free service.Krystal walks through what makes her team's approach different: coming in with a larger crew to deliver a full "fresh reset" in a day or less, then leaving clients with sustainable, customized systems built around how each household actually lives. She shares memorable transformations, including an 1,100-square-foot closet project that took nearly eight days and 244 team hours, plus tips for anyone feeling frozen by clutter and unsure where to start.Learn more:https://beeorganized.com/pages/lake-norman-ncThe Best of LKNhttps://thebestoflkn.com/Hosted by:Jeff Hammhttps://lknreal.com/Support the show

July 6, 202631 min

408: Andrea Sharp - Building Good Gaines Fitness

Andrea Sharp returns for her fourth appearance to talk about a dream years in the making: her own brick-and-mortar gym. She walks Jeff through the Good Gaines Fitness journey – from training clients in her garage, to renting space at a baseball facility, to finally opening a place that's all her own on the corner of Bailey and Old Statesville. Along the way she gets honest about the entrepreneur's tug-of-war between working in your business and on it, and why saying the right "no" is just as important as saying yes.The conversation then digs into what strength really means. For Andrea, it's less about aesthetics and more about capability – being strong enough to show up for the people you love, a point she brings home with a moving story about her son Richie. She breaks down what Good Gaines offers (daily classes for every level, personal training, Whole30 rounds, her Unstoppable Midlife course, and a summer camp for kids that blends fitness, reading, and community service) and shares the mantra behind it all: strong looks good on you.Good Gaines Fitness18515 Old Statesville Rd Unit CCornelius, NC 28031https://goodgaines.com/The Best of LKNhttps://thebestoflkn.com/Hosted by:Jeff Hammhttps://lknreal.com/Support the show

July 2, 202640 min

407: Wes Priddy - Higher Ground Outdoor Living

If you've ever stepped into a backyard and thought, this is the best room in the house, you already understand what Wes Priddy is going for. Wes is the owner of Higher Ground Outdoor Living and a founding member of our Best of LKN Business Network, and he took a winding road to get here – from a plumbing, heating, and electrical background up in Boone, to HVAC and interior remodeling around Charlotte, to a stint as a Mecklenburg County building inspector, before landing on the thing he loves most: building backyards. He started the company during the height of the pandemic with just himself and a helper, and four years later he's grown a crew he trusts to turn a plain concrete pad into a place people never want to leave.In this episode we get into what actually makes an outdoor space work around here – why turf keeps winning out over red-clay sod, how premium composite and PVC decks are framed completely differently than a house floor, and why outdoor kitchens, motorized louvered pergolas, and a good fire pit can add serious value (and square footage you don't have to build). Wes also shares the story behind his backyard tailgate tradition, the case for a solid sound system, and a little hard-won humility about letting clients' design ideas surprise him. Stick around for a plug for his own podcast, Outdoor Living Lounge, and the best ways to get in touch.https://lakenorman.highergroundoutdoorliving.com/Join The Best of LKN Business Network:https://thebestoflkn.com/lake-norman-business-network/The Best of LKNhttps://thebestoflkn.com/Hosted by:Jeff Hammhttps://lknreal.com/Support the show

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