Most business advice online comes from a guy who has never run anything.
This is not that.
I own a video company in Mooresville. I've built and sold two businesses. My wife and I own a law firm. So when I sit down with an owner, I'm not asking what it's like to be an entrepreneur. I'm asking what's working right now.
Every week it's somebody from around Lake Norman. Mooresville, Cornelius, Davidson, Huntersville, Denver. The coffee shop, the brewery, the furniture store, the steakhouse, the gym down the road.
We get into the stuff nobody puts on their website. What they're better at than anybody else, who they hired first, who they should have fired a year sooner, and why people keep coming back when the place across the street is cheaper.
Then I give it all away, because I'd rather every business around this lake win.
You'll leave every episode with something you can use this week. Worst case, you found somewhere new to eat.
New episode every week.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
If you've tried to grab a cookie at Crave in downtown Mooresville, you already know. The line's out the door.
I sat down with Nekolle Eddy, one of the owners, to figure out how they pulled that off so fast. Turns out she's not just a cookie shop owner. She's a serial entrepreneur, an investor, a nonprofit founder, and a mom who somehow does all of it at once.
We get into how they picked the location, why timing mattered, how they got traction out of the gate, and the one piece of advice she'd give any business owner trying to stand out. Plus a side conversation about using AI in business that I didn't see coming.
If you're a local business owner in the Lake Norman area, this one's for you.
Find Nekolle and Crave:
Crave Cookies Mooresville: @thecravecookies.mooresville
The Mr. Eddie Foundation: @mreddiefoundation
Chapters:
00:00 What AI can never replace
00:43 Everything Nekolle has going on
01:09 Where the Crave idea came from
02:25 How they got so much traction fast
03:10 The location play (and why it beats driving)
04:57 Her background as a serial entrepreneur
07:08 From Arizona to Lake Norman
08:32 Using AI to run a business
14:47 The nonprofit she started 10 years ago
16:43 An idea for training local athletes who can't afford it
22:23 What's next for Crave
24:24 Her best advice: your edge is your moat
This podcast is hosted by Ryan Webber. I talk to local business owners in the Lake Norman area to share their stories and what they've learned building something real.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
1 Jun 2026
The Coffee Purists Hate Her Drinks...Her Customers Can't Stop Ordering Them
MaryAshley didn't set out to start a business.
She went sugar free. Tried every syrup on the market. Hated all of them. So she started making her own at home — better flavor, less sugar, actually tasted like something.
Then people started asking about them.
Controlled Chaos Coffee was born out of a simple idea: coffee should be fun, it should taste good, and you shouldn't have to choose between flavor and quality. Mary Ashley brings that idea to a beverage cart that shows up wherever the people are — Walmart parking lots, elementary schools, fundraisers, corporate events, and everything in between.
The purists hate it. Her customers can't stop ordering it.
In this episode, Mary Ashley breaks down:
Why she calls it a beverage cart and not a coffee truck (and why that distinction matters)
How her bartending background changed the way she thinks about coffee
The fluffernutter latte — peanut butter, marshmallow, banana — and why it works
What a real day in the life of a mobile coffee cart owner actually looks like (spoiler: it's longer than the internet tells you)
How she markets a business with no fixed location using nothing but consistency and social media
Why she'll show up anywhere once — including your dog party
If you've ever thought about starting something but talked yourself out of it because you didn't know enough about the business side — this one's for you.
Find Controlled Chaos Coffee on Instagram: @controlled.chaos.coffee
Order online at controlledchaoscoffee.com
We Are Lake Norman is hosted by Ryan Webber of Webber Marketing. New episodes every week.
🎙️ Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
25 May 2026
The Woman Who Just Got Back From Milan Tells Us What Your House Is Missing
Anna Stowe just got back from Design Week in Milan.
Not a vacation. Research.
She goes every year to stay ahead of every trend, every material, every direction that interior design is heading — so her clients in Lake Norman don't have to guess what's next. They just get it.
Anna started Great Design 4 U in 2008. The worst possible time to start an interior design business. Nobody was buying houses. Nobody was renovating anything. The market was in freefall.
She survived anyway.
Then COVID hit. She survived that too.
In this episode, Anna breaks down:
What she saw at Milan Design Week 2026 and what's actually coming to homes near you
Why gray is out and what's replacing it (hint: think warm, golden undertones)
The retro trend making a comeback — and why it actually works with modern technology
Why she charges a flat rate instead of hourly (and why every client loves her for it)
How she "crawls inside your head" to design a space that actually feels like you
Why she fires clients — and why that makes her better at her job
Oh and she has her own furniture line. Performance fabric. Kid and pet resistant. Because she gets it.
If your house doesn't feel like you anymore — or maybe it never did — this one's for you.
Great Design 4 U is located in downtown Mooresville, right behind the ice cream shop.
Schedule a discovery call at greatdesign4u.com
Call: 704-305-0139
We Are Lake Norman is hosted by Ryan Webber of Webber Marketing. New episodes every week.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
Who has been a guest on We Are Lake Norman
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Karen Schmidt
Alan Schmidt
Terrell Chestnut
Cristina Grossu
Caleb Hannon
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Apple Podcasts (US)
4.9 / 5
13 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 28 / 100
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Quality
35
Social presence
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YouTube
0
Engagement
51
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