Meet Flynn Foster
Occupation: President
Organization: Guaranty Corporation
BRAC Involvement: Executive Committee Member, Board Member, and Investor Relations Committee Member
What does your organization do?
Guaranty Corporation has been in business for 91 years, and the company is now growing well into the future with an expansion into digital media. Today, Guaranty Corporation conducts business in radio broadcasting, digital marketing, digital advertising and branding, the senior living facility market and commercial real estate. Guaranty Media Ventures owns five radio stations: Eagle 98.1, 100.7 The Tiger, Talk 107.3 and 104.5/104.9 ESPN. Guaranty Media also has the radio flagship rights to LSU sports. The company recently expanded into digital media with the purchase of Gatorworks, a full-service digital media agency. We also just completed our state-of-the-art 104.5 ESPN TV Studio. Wherever you have an internet connection, you can now watch our seven hours of daily live and local radio shows.
What are some advantages of being located/doing business in the Capital Region?
We’ve been here for 91 years, so we must like it. LSU, Southern University, the Capital City, the chemical industry and, of course, the people are just a few of the reasons we love Baton Rouge. Our city has made great progress in recent years but has many challenges we must address and solve.
Why did you decide to invest in BRAC?
A healthy, thriving business community is paramount to every citizen in the Baton Rouge Metro. Without jobs, we cannot fix any of our social issues.
What would you say to companies contemplating joining BRAC?
Simply, BRAC addresses and attacks virtually every issue that our region is faced with from business development, to education, to crime control, to quality of life and place. Most importantly, BRAC is here to help grow our economy. An incredible amount of social issues can be cured if the jobs, training and resources are available to its citizens. BRAC has taken on the boldest of initiatives and worked tirelessly with community leaders, elected officials, business owners, workers and the general population to make a difference.
What do you anticipate for your company in the next five years? For the Capital Region?
Gatorworks brings a level of expertise in the digital media space we did not have. Not every business in Baton Rouge advertises on the radio, but nearly 100 percent have a digital media presence.
With the new TV/radio studio for 104.5 ESPN, our plans are similar to the national ESPN TV broadcast of its morning radio show, Mike & Mike. We will produce a daily TV show of our local radio shows—Off The Bench with Jordy Culotta and T-Bob Hebert, Sports Today with Charles Hanagriff and Jimmy Ott, and After Further Review with Matt Moscona. A few ESPN radio affiliates across the country have successfully copied the Mike & Mike model. Our success in doing live and local sports gives us confidence it will be a home run for our listeners, viewers and clients. Also, our 91-year history of taking calculated risks remains strong, and we have our eyes on several opportunities we anticipate pursuing over the next few years.
I’m hopeful the Capital Region will continue to make strides on education and will reverse the alarming rise in violent crime. A rebirth of north Baton Rouge would be positive for our residents and no doubt be beneficial to everyone in Baton Rouge. BRAC is an investor-driven organization leading economic development in the nine-parish Baton Rouge Area. BRAC’s investor base includes small businesses, midsize firms, large industry and entrepreneurial startups, as well as other individuals and organizations.
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