Waitr delivers free Thanksgiving meals
Waitr is spreading Thanksgiving cheer this week by feeding 2,000 families in need with free hot Thanksgiving meals, including those in the Chattanooga area.
The meal delivery is the culmination of Waitr’s five-week “Share Thanksgiving” fundraiser where anyone using Waitr could make a donation to directly help feed a family in their own community during Thanksgiving. Waitr’s customers donated thousands of dollars via the food delivery app; and Waitr and its participating restaurant partners matched a portion of the donations.
All the money raised is being used to purchase hot meals from local restaurants, with Waitr delivering them to each family this week.
“It means so much to everyone involved with Waitr to help those who are struggling this holiday season,” said Chirs Meaux, CEO of Waitr, which operates in 235 cities and has more than 7,700 restaurant partners.
Caymas Boats opens plant in Ashland City
A new fiberglass boat manufacturer plans to build a $30.3 million plant in Ashland, Tennessee to bring boat manufacturing back to Cheatham County west of Nashville next year.
Earl Bentz, a member of the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame, founded Stratos Boats in 1983 and Triton Boats in 1996. Bentz’ newest venture will hire 280 workers over the next five years as the boat maker grows.
“All of us at Caymas Boats are thrilled to bring fiberglass boatbuilding back home to Ashland City,” Bentz said.
The new Caymas Boats plant will initially manufacture saltwater bay boats up to 27 feet in length, and fiberglass bass boats up to 21 feet long. The company will add additional models in the future.
Caymas Boats plans to renovate and upgrade two existing buildings on Highway 12 in Ashland City. The company anticipates that boat production will begin in February 2019. Caymas Boats’ models will be versatile for fishing and other recreational activities.
Regions to cut energy use 30%
Regional Financial Corp., the parent company of Regions Bank, has established Environmental Sustainability Goals to cut its own energy use and greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2023.
“Being good stewards of our resources, including natural resources, benefits the communities where we live and work and is simply good business,” said Brett Couch, head of Corporate Real Estate and Procurement for Regions, which operators the third biggest bank in Chattanooga. “Since 2008, we have reduced our electricity use across the company by 35 percent, and we are challenging ourselves to do more.”
Office Depot to buy back stock
Office Depot, which has been on a journey to reinvent itself as a business services company, announced Tuesday it will buy back $100 million of its stock beginning Jan. 1 and reduce debt – actions aimed at improving the company’s financial outlook and boosting its stock.
Office Depot also said in its news release that it would repay $200 million of a $500 million term loan due in 2022.
“Our continued business momentum and strong cash flow generation has enabled us to negotiate a significant reduction in annual interest expense,” said Gerry Smith, CEO of Office Depot, which has about 1,400 stores nationwide.
SmartBank buys back $10 million of stock
SmartFinancial, Inc., the Knoxville-based parent of SmartBank, said Tuesday it may repurchase up to $10 million of its outstanding shares of common stock.
SmartBank, which acquired the former Cornerstone Bank in 2015, closed Tuesday down 1.8 percent at $20.13 per share. Despite higher earnings in 2018, SmartFinancial shares are down 9.2 percent from a year ago.
“Our announcement today that we have initiated a stock buyback program reflects our confidence in SmartFinancial’s future,” said SmartFinancial Chairman Miller Welborn said. “The plan underscores our long-term goal of enhancing shareholder value.”