Central BBQ to Open Fourth Memphis Store on Poplar

Central BBQ LLC announced Thursday, Dec. 14, it will open its fourth Memphis-area restaurant along the Poplar Avenue corridor.

The new restaurant at 6201 Poplar Ave. will occupy space that formerly housed LYFE Kitchen and is expected to open in late spring. The site is located between Poplar and Park avenues just east of Ridgeway Road in the heart of Memphis’ Class A office market.

Webb Wilson, president of Central BBQ LLC, said the company is pleased to continue growing in Memphis.

“After a metro-area search, we decided this space on Poplar would allow us to broaden the reach of Central into East Memphis and Germantown, while providing an opportunity to institute systems to expand our presence outside the Memphis market,” Webb said in a release.

Craig Blondis, co-founder of Central, said the new location will offer the same “award-winning barbecue served with a side of Southern hospitality that Memphians and out-of-towners deserve and have come to expect.”

Last May, Central BBQ entered into an agreement with Kemmons Wilson Cos. to expand its brand and begin opening its first stores outside the Memphis market.

Central has been in business for 15 years and is a perennial winner of barbecue contests.

– Daily News staff

Popular Dessert Shop Opening Second Location

La Michoacana Ice Cream & Paletas has announced it will be opening a second location in Cordova at 830 N. Germantown Parkway.

The popular dessert shop is currently building out 3,200 square feet in The Germantown Shops in Cordova, which is owned by Loeb Properties Inc.

Aaron Petree, Loeb’s vice president of brokerage, represented the landlord in the lease.

La Michoacana currently operates a location at 4091 Summer Ave. that serves a variety of handmade ice creams and South American dishes, including paletas, élote, Dorilocos, horchata and nachos.

The owners expect the second location to open in the early part of 2018.

Loeb Properties has two remaining 1,600-square-foot bays available for lease in The Germantown Shops.

– Patrick Lantrip

Dixon Hughes Goodman Taps New Managing Partner

Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP has appointed Buddy Dearman as managing partner of DHG Dealerships.

Dearman will develop and lead DHG Dealerships’ strategy, including overseeing services for more than 2,500 dealership clients in all 50 states.

With more than 30 years of experience working with dealerships and their owners, Dearman brings a wealth of knowledge in dealership tax and advisory services. Based in DHG’s Memphis office, Dearman will lead a 25-partner leadership team and more than 160 professionals focused on serving the dealership industry.

Dearman succeeds Tim York, who has served as managing partner of DHG Dealerships since 2012. York will continue to work closely with Dearman as he assumes the firm-wide leadership role of managing partner of Industries.

With more than 2,000 employees in 13 states, Dixon Hughes Goodman ranks among the nation’s top 20 public accounting firms.

– Andy Meek

Memphis Animal Services Nears 6,000 Placements

Memphis Animal Services is nearing its goal of 6,000 pet placements in new homes for the year 2017.

With a few weeks left in the year, MAS reports it has placed around 5,800 pets through private adoptions and rescue transfers. That comes with an 84 percent save rate for the year.

MAS, city government’s animal shelter, is now offering all pets for a special adoption fee of $17 each.

The fee includes spay/neuter, vaccinations, microchip, collar and leash as well as a customized ID tag. The $17 fee compares to a regular fee of $75 for dogs and $70 for cats.

MAS ran a similar adoption promotion in 2016 for its “Race to 5,500” adoptions and transfers, which the shelter surpassed by more than 100. This year, MAS is increasing that goal to 6,000.

The agency also reunited 532 pets with their owners in 2016 and has so far reunited 597 pets with their owners in 2017.

– Bill Dries

TruGreen Ranks Among ‘Happiest Companies’

A new list is out measuring the comparative strengths of a business against its peers on a scale of happiness, and Memphis’ TruGreen ranks very high on it.

The eighth annual CareerBliss 50 Happiest Companies in America places Memphis-based TruGreen at No. 10.

In addition to job listings, CareerBliss provides company reviews, salary information and career advice for those looking break into or advance in their careers.

The happiest companies around the nation are succeeding in building a happier culture and positive work environment for their employees, according to CareerBliss, which often translates into a happier life.

CareerBliss creates its list through an unbiased process that allows people to share what truly drives happiness at work, the company says.

It analyzes thousands of reviews to create the annual list, which assesses such factors as company culture, leadership, overall work atmosphere and one’s relationship with co-workers.

– Daily News staff

Comcast Awards 5 Nonprofits Grants Totaling $130,000

Five local nonprofit organizations received grants totaling $130,000 Wednesday, Dec. 13, from the Comcast Foundation at an event hosted by the local office of the telecom giant.

Latino Memphis, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Memphis, Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Mid-South, the Urban League of Memphis and the United Way of the Mid-South will use the grants to support technology initiatives designed to expand digital literacy and address the digital divide for Memphis-area youths.

“At the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Memphis the kids are engaged in new technology initiatives through the My.Future program that makes learning fun for them,” said Mandy Powell, vice president of development for the Boys & Girls Clubs.

Susan George, executive director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Mid-South, said her organization is working every day “to bridge the gap between the social inequalities and shortfalls that are experienced by the families and children in our program.”

– Bill Dries

Jury Convicts Temp Labor Firm Operator on Fraud, Tax Charges

The operator of a Memphis temporary staffing company is awaiting sentencing on federal fraud and tax charges after being convicted by a jury Dec. 8 in Memphis Federal Court.

Mark Stinson and his wife, Jatyon Stinson, operated a temporary staffing company that went under different names as each accumulated employment tax liabilities.

The common word in all of the company names was Connexx.

Mark Stinson was convicted of failing to pay more than $2.8 million in withholdings and other employment taxes due to the Internal Revenue Service, failing to timely file employment tax returns and filing false employment tax returns.

The Stinsons also conspired to impede efforts by the IRS to collect on the employment tax liabilities owed by their companies.

They made false representations to the IRS about their control of the staffing company and their knowledge of their responsibility to truthfully account for and pay the employment taxes; placed the staffing company in the names of nominees who did not have control over the business operations; and established payment arrangements intended to impede an IRS levy placed on their customer payments.

Jayton Stinson pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges in connection with this case and is scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 31 by U.S. District Judge John T. Fowlkes Jr.

Mark Stinson is scheduled for a March 1 sentencing by Fowlkes and faces a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison for each count of conspiracy, theft of government funds and failing to pay employment taxes; three years in prison for each count of filing a false tax return; and a mandatory two years in prison for aggravated identity theft.

Mark Stinson also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.

– Bill Dries