Curated Pt. 48

A roundup of my personal and professional life

WHAT’S UP,

Happy New Year!

2024 was wild…

I’ll explain why and also how 2025 will look over the next few posts as I test some new structures for Curated.

Before we jump in, I have a few things for you:

1. A thank you for being a part of my 2024. I’m beyond thankful and feel overwhelmingly loved. I can honestly say it was simultaneously the best and most difficult year of my life, and I’m glad to have shared it with you.

2. A list of questions I sent to friends. They enjoyed the exercise, so give it a go. I find it useful to do during a casual dinner.

3. A reading list I put together. Here are some books I recommend to kickstart or improve your year. I’d love to get your feedback/suggestions to continue building this list.

4. Special ParkSMB partner: Chad Bellin and his collective from Disca are offering complementary NextStep workshops (60-90 min) for any SMB owners. To book some time in their calendars, go here.

5. Greg Lunt is testing out a new product he’s built called Chance. It’s a voice-driven introductions app where you meet 4 new people on a series of timed, audio-only calls. Give it a “chance” and register for the next session here.

And finally, if you’re new here, I share BTS (behind-the-scenes) of everything I’m working on and provide a space to meet talented people through my community, ParkSMB.

I don’t run ads or sell anything, so I have one ask… please share this with one person.

ParkSMB Events

A list of my IRL and virtual events around the country

• Founder Co-Working (w/ Coffee & Bagels)
  Date: January 3
  Time: 9-12 PM MTN
  Location: Remix Coffee
  APPLY HERE

• 2025 Kickoff Business Mixer
  Date: January 22
  Time: 6:30-8:30 PM MTN
  Location: Phoenix, Arizona
  APPLY HERE

• Virtual Power Hour: Operations Mastery & Business Connections
  Date: February 4
  Time: 9-10 AM MTN
  Location: Virtual
  LINK COMING SOON

• Private Business Owner Dinner (Arizona business owners only)
  Date: Q1, 2024
  Time: 7-9 PM
  Location: Phoenix, Arizona
  APPLY HERE

If you’ve joined me at any of my events, make sure to add your details to this sheet so we can keep everyone in the community connected.

Stay tuned - there's a lot in store for this year:

• Private dinners

• Workouts

• Happy hours

• Virtual speaker series

Since August 2023, ParkSMB has hosted over 30 events across multiple states, bringing together thousands of people.

I’m genuinely proud of this.

It’s deeply rewarding to see what’s being built through these events.

As always, I want to spotlight 3 of my favorite people who are making a big impact in their fields:

Chad Bellin (Disca): Disca is a software development consultancy focused on helping small and medium-sized businesses that need expert-level technical expertise.
You can connect with Chad here.

Daniel Cheetham (Captains Club): Captains Club specializes in aligning Integrators, COOs, and Presidents, unleashing you from the business to deliver your highest value. Connect with Daniel here.

Kendi Brown (Coati Consulting) Coati’s goal is to enhance the connective tissue between people and processes so your company and team can reach the next level of growth through efficient operations. Connect with Kendi here.

For real-time updates and to stay in touch:

• Twitter/X: @shawnwallard

• Linkedin: Shawn Allard

• Instagram: @shawnallard

• Youtube: @shawnwallard

Projects

If you didn’t read the last one, go here first.

Curated won’t make sense without historical context.

NOVEL ICE CREAM

Over the past two weeks, I’ve spent more time working in the shops (Novel and Remix) than I have all year - and I’m so glad it happened now.

It forced me to reassess some in-shop operations I’ve been meaning to improve.

It also gave me a chance to connect with our newer team members and share a clear vision for where we’re headed in 2025.

Transparency at every level is the core of a strong company culture.

People want to feel valued through a clear direction and mission in the company.

As I reflect on the year, here are a few milestones:

• Opened 1 more retail shop, bringing us to 3

Here it is behind me:

• Built a mobile truck that will be semi-permanent that I’d consider a 4th shop (half retail/half mobile)

Here it is:

• Built our amazing team to 29

  • With that came 2 management changes and good and bad hires.

• Won best Ice Cream in Arizona AGAIN

• Featured in countless publications

• Built our social following to over 25k across Instagram and Facebook.

• Collabed with a handful of wonderful local brands

• Took on a few small wholesale accounts

• Dropped 2 solid merch collections (2025 merch drop is gonna be CRAZY)

I’m likely missing a few things, but I’ll leave the list at that.

In my next post, I’ll share our goals for 2025 and give you an idea of how we’re gonna crush them.

*If you’re not already, follow Novel’s journey on IG and the newsletter.*

REMIX COFFEE

Other than considering ways to sweeten our menu… maybe fresh pressed juices? I have no major updates.

It’s crazy to think Remix has been open for over 6 months now:

This has been one of the toughest projects I’ve ever taken on.

The biggest challenge? Starting with zero coffee or food experience.

It took several iterations to fine-tune the menu, but we finally nailed it.

Good thing is, the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.

As of November, we’re building a strong community around the brand.

I’m confident that 2025 will be the year we get all of Phoenix talking about it because, frankly, Remix is damn good.

None of this would be possible without our core team of 6.

I couldn’t be more thankful for their dedication.

I’m beyond excited to see where this journey takes us next year.

*Follow the Remix journey on IG and the newsletter.*

VEER CONCEPTS: Hospitality Group

I don’t talk much about Veer because it's such a long-term play, but here’s a quick snapshot:

Veer Concepts is a holding company designed to oversee and manage all the hospitality brands my partners and I start or acquire.

Each brand will operate independently, but they’ll fall under the umbrella of our “Hospitality Group.”

The mission? To create and grow a collection of local brands that deliver high-quality products and foster strong, engaged communities throughout Phoenix and surrounding areas.

I don’t have updates to share since I’m fully focused on Novel and Remix, but here’s what I’m looking at in 2025:

• Novel: Have 4 high-performing, profitable retail locations.

• Remix: Consistent monthly revenue of $15k

How will I make it happen? By building a marketing engine and going all-in on promoting the heck out of my brands.

I can’t wait to look back at the end of 2025 and see how far we’ve come.

Podcast

No pod this time, just a question:

Music

Threw this on Monday night while working:

And here are some Curated playlists for you:

• The Owner’s Circle

• Reggaeton

• Heat

• Heavy

These were built with love.

Health

Haven’t run more than 3 miles in a while but just hit a 6-piece like nothing with Mr. Curry.

Hyrox is a month out!

I’m going to get crushed, but I deserve it.

2025 is the year I get back into the best shape of my life.

After Hyrox, I’m jumping into bodybuilding prep for a show in the summer.

I know… I said I wouldn’t do it again, but I can’t help myself!

I like doing hard shit.

This guy also made me:

I Can Help

• Buy, rent, and/or lease property in Arizona. Email me; I have my license.

• Buy, sell, and/or invest in a business. Let’s find you some deals; I know folks.

• Need a backpack or wallet? Check out Bellroy; they’re the best.

Thanks for reading.

Means a lot to me.

Happy New Year,

Shawn