Category: business
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Mobile Device dependency
My smartphone is a curse and I know I’m not the only one who feels this way. Take the test to see if you have a problem relationship with your mobile device: What’s your score? Swap out “Mobile Device” with “Alcohol” and that’s the same test medical professionals use to screen for alcoholism. And look…
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Networking isn’t Sales
The goal of networking is to build relationships and facilitate connections between others. It is not to sell products or services. Too often in my formal and informal networks, a coffee meetup suddenly turns into a sales pitch, a loose circle folks of is pushed into a sales funnel, or an online group is bombarded…
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No More Amazon.
My 2018 Resolution is NO AMAZON. To all the “urbanists” who think an Amazon HQ2 would be awesome for their city — you’re wrong. The richest man in the world is treats his employees like garbage, manipulates cities into giving away a much-needed tax base, and is waging a scorched price war. It’s terrible for…
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Disaster Capitalism and Gentrification
Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Jose will forever change the trajectory of Houston, Key West, and other coastal towns. Disaster paves the way for radical capitalist economic policy, from development to war to charter schools. Don’t you know what happened in New Orleans after Katrina? As you think about the cost of recovery, policy implementation, and…
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The Case Against Major-League Sport Stadiums in Urban Areas
Before leaving Raleigh, a conversation emerged around bringing a major-league sports team to the capitol city. Several people–all men–thought a football or basketball stadium near the amphitheater would be THE BEST THING EVER. Let me tell you why it’s not: 1. Stadiums are dead zones. The NBA plays 41 home games per year, the MLB has…
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Uber Can Do Anything As Long As We Buy What They Sell
Uber is a private company. They set pricing, company values, and customer service. If a company run by a pretty awful bro turns a blind eye to assaults, has no respect for consumer privacy, and touts a price-gouging (dynamic) business model, then make the decision to not support them. Like every other private company, they will only be around as long…
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Food Truck Proposal for Raleigh’s Moore Square
The City of Raleigh is spending $12 million to revamp Moore Square, one of two downtown green spaces. While the space needs an upfit to reflect the world-class status Raleigh is working towards, I believe there are smaller steps the city could take to attract crowds and increase revenue. Restaurants, shops, and a children’s museum…
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Activate14: Architecture + Design Event Series
What started as intra-office conversation on hosting architecture and design events quickly turned to reality when Frank Harmon Architect decided to sponsor the inaugural summer event series at the AIANC Center for Architecture and Design (CfAD) in Raleigh, NC. Planning quickly commenced with the AIANC Program Committee. We decided to bridge the events by focusing on…
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My NYE Wishes for Raleigh: A List
I think about Raleigh all the time. I want to make it better, I want to contribute, I want to provide services to encourage a thriving urban center. Here are some of my wishes for the New Year. I wish for increased ridership on public transportation; dedicated bike lanes; attainable rents for startup businesses or…
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Custom Textiles: Print All Over Me + Spoonflower (Durham!)
While doing some research today I ran across another custom fabric company called Print All Over Me that lets me pick an object to digitally print whatever pattern I want or pick from another’s uploaded design (that user receives 20% of the sale). I can’t speak to the cut or fabric but the print is as…
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Why I wanted to be a RDU Baton holder
I am the RDU Baton holder on instagram today (@rdubaton) and I plan to use it as a soapbox for multimodal transportation, sustainability, utilizing urban space better, the need for public art, and so on. The mission of the RDU Baton is to showcase Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, and the surrounding communities. We’re supposed to “show off…
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Thoughts on Books and Bookstores
I’m researching book mobiles and book bikes and such to figure out ways to increase literacy and the love of reading. I’m tired of blogs foretelling the death of books as a physical entity. At some point they will meet their end but we are not there yet. At the very least, rich book collectors will…
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be an enthusiast
“I began to realize how important it was to be an enthusiast in life. He taught me that if you are interested in something, no matter what it is, go at it at full speed ahead. Embrace it with both arms, hug it, love it and above all become passionate about it. Lukewarm is no…
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to those interested: Norfolk Bike Share RFI
The City of Norfolk, VA is looking for RFI’s from industry providers and vendors about Public Bike Share systems, vendors, and operators. The RFI is below in its entirety. RFI4256-Bike Share (2)
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Expansion in Downtown Raleigh
I didn’t like downtown Raleigh when I moved here in 2009–I was working two jobs, the scene was small and close knit, and, being a government center, was dead past 5:30pm. After Raleigh Denim moved downtown in 2010 (I was working there at the time), I noticed that many storefronts were going under renovations and…
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Vintage Motivational Posters
These motivational posters are from the English firm, Parker-Holladay. Source: AoM
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Food Truck Site Plans Before and After
For the food truck application I had to make a site plan, or hire someone else to do it. It was the best part of the application process, by far. Check out Spaceship Quesadilla if you get the chance. Here is the layout of the truck, first, the original with all the measurements, then, the…
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Startups Are Enjoyable Work and Pain
Startups are not fun, they are stressful and quick-moving but they come about from a necessity to DO MORE and that is what makes them so enjoyable. A successful startup is building on an amazing number of failures, of dumb ideas and fitful nights obsessing over tiny details. Learning to manage time and duties, finding out…
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My Food Truck Startup
My friend Tom approached me a few months ago about a joining his new food truck venture. He thought I would be a good fit given our personal history and my previous work with startups. Well, that talk at Surf Club led to bringing our dream food truck to life. We bought the truck bus and…
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An Exercise in Gender Awareness
I read a few articles in the New York Times using a Chrome extension called Jailbreak the Patriarchy and found it empowering and revealing. It functions to swaps gender-specific words on any webpage to it’s opposite. For example, “he used his sister’s computer” is switched to “she used her brother’s computer”. From a gender-swapped perspective, never have so…
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Mc SuperSized – McDonald’s Commentary
This debuted back in ’09 but seeing how McDonalds sales are increasing it is (sadly) still relevant. Ron English (the artist) is a subversive genius and his commentary on consumerist culture is spot-on. It’s creepier in color and the extended right pinky is a great touch. Let’s see Wendy and Colonel Sanders next… The OG – Ron…
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Alternatives to Plastic Water Bottles
This illustration has been making the rounds on the internet and I thought it was a great informative illustration for those that don’t realize how wasteful and harmful plastic bottles are for our resources, including financial. Here are some alternatives: The Muji keeps a liquid hot for 7+ hours and cold for 12+ hours –…
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Organizational Development
While donig some research I came across a the term “Organizational Development”, which immediately intrigued me. Organizing is second nature to me, it is embedded in my thoughts and actions and is acted upon unconsciously. The field itself is multi-disciplinary, viewing the organization holistically instead of in segments. An organization is more than a business plan,…
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Pink Slime: Using Waste and Chemicals in Food
Watch the video to see how food processors and manufacturers can lower their cost of meat for a larger profit margin. Waste products from the cows, which can be made into dog food, is separated from fat, cleaned with ammonia, turned into a pink slime and put back into ground beef. The USDA allows companies…
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Open Doors
I didn’t get the job with the SBTDC but during the process I met a really great guy, Mike B., who has been more than supportive and wants to help me in any way possible. He and Dave P. (both in divisions at the Small Business Association) are great guys and I will definitely be…
Catherine R. Hofmann 