b"SMALL BUSINESSJoe Kems BBQ & CateringA popular choice for weddings, corporate events, and family A Father & Son Tradition gatherings, Joe Kems Catering specializes in smoked meats andProtecting homestyle sides.Wanting to expand the business, J had his sights on opening a throughout South Georgia. The award- neighborhood grocery store and meat market.Your Past, winning trio of sauces and a dry rub haveOn January 14, 2020, just days after returning from their been featured in national publications,honeymoon in Italy, J and his wife, Bethany, purchased a building including Southern Living, and in 2016conveniently located near Moultries busy downtown district. received the Grand Prize (sauces category)After a few months of clean-up and minor renovations, Joe KemsPresentin the Flavor of Georgia competition. Market officially opened on March 16, 2020, just as the COVID-19Its even good on your finger, Lacey sayscrisis shut down schools and businesses across Georgia.about the sauces. And if you dont believeWith COVID, our catering business came to a complete stop,and Futureme, it says it right on the bottle. J says. But because the market was considered an essential Over the years, his passion for grillingbusiness, we were able to stay open and stayed very busy.evolved, and Lacey found himself cooking for family and friends for the holidays andThankful for the business, Bethany says, When COVID-19 first other eventsall while his son, Joe Kemhit, people didnt want to go to a big grocery store, and we Lacey, Jr.who goes by J to keep thewere small enough they felt comfortable coming inside. Some distinction simplewas right by his side.customers called in their order and just backed up their car, and then we put the food in their trunk. Lacey started entering regional barbeque cook-offs, and it wasnt long until J was partJoe Kems Market stocks grocery items like milk, bread, and eggs; Pitmasters: Joe Kem Lacey and his son, Joe Kem J Lacey, Jr., at the new Joeof the competitions and bringing home tophas a full-service meat market; and offers a wide selection of Kems Market in Moultrie, Georgia awards. At 12-years-old, J placed secondgrab-and-go barbecue choices for lunch and dinner. in the ribs category at the Big Pig Jig inIt may be the smell of barbecue wafting through the air that Vienna, Georgiaone of the top barbecue brings you to Joe Kems Market, where you will find J standing W hen Joe Kem Lacey was given a friends barbecue recipe, heevents in the Southeast. at a decade-old smoker turning pork ribs and whole chickensProtect your family and businessdidnt know it would be the start of a family business. The father and son duo are now co-owners(available daily from 3:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.) and briskets of Joe Kems BBQ & Catering, a successful(available Friday from 3:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.). with Paul Hamilton, South Georgia'sAs the story goes, it was sauce for sauce,recipe when his friend died. I made some says Lacey, who recalls that he would giveadjustmentsIll admit it was a little toobusiness that includes the retail sale of theA popular lunch spot, Bethany says the pork sandwiches aretrusted estate planning attorneya friend a bottle of Black Velvet whiskey inhot for me, and that was the beginning ofbarbecue sauces and dry rub and a busythe most popular. We also keep homemade items like smoked catering operation.with nearly two decades of experience.exchange for some homemade barbecueJoe Kems BBQ Sauce.chicken salad, pimento cheese, coleslaw, and baked beans.sauce. Some 20 plus years later, Joe Kems BBQBethany, who handles the stores marketing, says for the early It was some of the best barbecue sauce ISauce is now available in sweet, mild,morning crowd, the favorites include breakfast cups and sausage ever tasted, says Lacey, who received theand hot flavors at regional retail shopsdogs, along with homemade cinnamon rolls on Friday and Saturday.The market also features a large selection of Georgia GrownWills, Trusts, Probate,products, including Joe Kems BBQ Sauce and Joe Kems Rub.Business Succession & Elder LawThe Georgia Grown products give the marketThe Georgia Grown products give the market a modern twist, Bethany says. Were part of the Georgia Grown family and try toHamiltonEstatePlanning.coma modern twist. Were part of the Georgiahelp each other out.2918 N. Oak StreetGrown family and try to help each other out. Located at the corner of Main Street and Tallokas Road inValdosta, GA 31602Moultrie, Joe Kems Market is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on229-207-0850- BETHANY LACEY Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday. 12 SG MAGAZINE | FALL 2020 BUSINESS + CULTURE 13"