Owen Cyclery was founded in November 1973 by Tom Owen, who had an interest in bicycles and motorcycles.

Marcus Shaw came to Chattanooga from Baltimore, Maryland, in 2017 to lead CO.LAB, a local nonprofit that nurtures startups and empowers entrepreneurs.

Wolfgang Maluche came to Volkswagen's Chattanooga operations from Germany a little more than two years ago to gain more international experience.

Habitat for Humanity of Greater Chattanooga hosted its fifth annual Women Build "Jazz" Breakfast in March at the Chattanoogan.

Who is on the move?

As the 2020 president of the Greater Chattanooga Realtors association, Brandi Pearl Thompson foresees continued growth this year in the local $2.5 billion real estate market.

Bilda Acuña Small, the chief enrollment and communications officer at Girls Preparatory School, has been with the school since 2014.

Established by Monica Smiley in 1975, Monica's Bridal was originally a resort and ready-to-wear shop in Atlanta.

ChattaNewbies, a networking group for people who are new to the Chattanooga area, gathered in January at Beast+Barrel.

Christian Davis is named Vice President of Accounting for Vision Hospitality Group, Inc.

Hailing from Jerusalem, Bassam Issa came to Chattanooga in 1973 for college. He stayed in the Scenic City and today is a well-known office and shopping center developer who lauds Chattanooga for its size and flavor.

Local designers Gil Cartwright and Curt Hodge have worked in the flower industry for decades, lending their talents to a local florist before launching a business of their own in 1990.

Robert Dooley, the dean of the Gary W. Rollins College of Business at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga since 2011, heads a program of approximately 2,400 students.

Meghan Greene joins A Step Ahead Chattanooga as Director of Development and Marketing. Drawing on previous experience as Executive Director of a local nonprofit, Greene will oversee resource development and public relations, helping A Step Ahead Chattanooga to provide education and access to free longterm birth control.

The Chattery featured a class in concocting mocktails, hosted by Bitter Bottle owner Kaleena Goldsworthy.

Sybil Topel, marketing communications vice president for the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, has contributed to an international career blog, earned a Master of Fine Arts in writing, and led a Chattanooga Chamber team that garnered national and local awards with its tongue-in-cheek "Literally Perfect" video as the centerpiece of a recruitment campaign. She serves on a number of boards including ArtsBuild, Girls Scouts of Southern Appalachians and the Pop-Up-Project, a start-up arts organization.

Martha Leiper says she starts each work day catching up on the news on the CNBC morning program "Squawk Box" before heading into Unum where she's the insurer's chief investment officer.

Chattanooga Small Business Networking at The Chattanooga Event Center

Lauri Moyle joins Family Promise of Greater Chattanooga in its fight against family homelessness as director of development. Moyle will lead the work of fundraising and grant writing, as well as manage public relations efforts. Moyle comes from a rich background of nonprofit work, which includes serving on the boards of directors for Love's Arm, City of Chattanooga: Multicultural Affairs and Dynamo Studios. Before moving to Chattanooga, Moyle spent seven years as a political staffer in the United Kingdom, working on the policy side of nonprofits.

* Founded: Aug. 1, 2018, in the former East Ridge Flea Market building at 6725 Ringgold Road.

Dalya Qualls is a health care industry veteran who also has a keen interest in sports.

About one in four households have a smart speaker hanging out in the background, ready and waiting to do our bidding if we'll just say the word.

Scott Davis