Keith Twitchell spent 16 years running his own business before becoming president of the Committee for a Better New Orleans. He has observed, supported and participated in entrepreneurial ventures at the street, neighborhood, nonprofit, micro- and macro-business levels.
Anyone who has lived in New Orleans for more than three days knows that compass directions aren’t much use around here. We go south to the Westbank and take the interstate east to the Northshore. Conversely, folks in Slidell go west to the Southshore. Even Google Maps gets confused sometimes.
While inventing a Southeast Louisiana-centric compass might be an unrealized entrepreneurial opportunity, these geographic anomalies have not prevented the region from enjoying a long history of business interaction and success. Northshore and Southshore economies are more interwoven than many may realize. Some of our best-known regional brands were established in St. Tammany Parish.
St. Tammany was established as a Louisiana parish in 1810, though Europeans had joined indigenous people in living there well before then. It was originally much larger, incorporating what are today Tangipahoa and Washington parishes. The first official town was called Wharton, founded in 1813; the name was changed to Covington in 1816, and it became the seat of the parish government in 1829.
And where there are people and governments, there are businesses.
Records indicate that the first Northshore hotel opened in 1834, but by then many small businesses existed to serve the local populace, including general stores, blacksmiths, tailors and other typical foundational enterprises. Steamboat service from the Southshore began in 1837, bringing New Orleanians over Lake Pontchartrain to relax, enjoy cooler temperatures and make local purchases.
The oldest local business still operating is the St. Tammany Farmer, a newspaper that began publishing in 1874. Other enterprises from that era still around today include H.J. Smith and Sons Hardware in Covington, founded in 1876. The store now includes a fascinating small museum detailing local history; be sure to pick up a bear trap on your way out.
Interparish commerce was further expanded by completion in 1887 of the (here we go again) East Louisiana Railroad to connect the Northshore to the Southshore. By this time towns including Slidell, Lacombe and Mandeville had been established.
The area continued to grow and prosper, but as the United States turned increasingly to cars as the primary means of transportation, the lack of a vehicular connection became (couldn’t resist) a roadblock to further progress. The problem was initially addressed in 1928 by construction of the first bridge across Lake Pontchartrain, linking New Orleans East to Slidell, known today as the Highway 11 Bridge.
The real connection, however, came with the opening of the Causeway in 1956. This coincided perfectly with the rise of suburban America, and Northshore population numbers increased considerably in the following years. The Causeway is itself an amazing entrepreneurial feat; at nearly 24 miles, it is the world’s longest bridge across open water.
Today the Northshore is thoroughly developed, with every imaginable residential amenity and a thriving commercial sector. Rail and interstate connectivity — and from there to the ports of New Orleans and Baton Rouge — have enabled many area businesses to develop into national brands.
To cite just a few examples, Abita Brewing was the first major local craft brewer; its distinctive beers are now found all across the country. Ampirical helps public and private sector power companies across a wide region operate safely and efficiently. Ballard Brands is a food and beverage firm that encompasses a variety of restaurants and products and locations in 28 states and three countries. Netchex, which provides payroll and other personnel services, is one of the country’s fastest-growing businesses in its sector.
A recent addition to this impressive lineup is Better Bedder, whose innovative bed “headband” is designed to facilitate making your bed and keeping it neat. After a successful appearance on the TV show “Shark Tank” earlier this year, nationwide demand for the product has been so great that the company can barely keep up.
Distinct yet regionally connected, community-based yet with an expanding national impact, Northshore entrepreneurism is a significant driver of the Southeast Louisiana economy, regardless of the compass points.
