What does it actually take to build community in a city as big and fast-changing as Austin?

In this episode of Austin Eras, Adam Flagg sits down with Chloe Chiang at Château Chloé, the East Austin home she designed not just as a place to live, but as a place to bring people together.

Chloe came to Austin for UT, built a successful real estate career through relentless relationship-building, and eventually expanded that work into something much bigger. Through Château Chloé and No Bad Company, she has created a world centered on hospitality, intentional gatherings, community, and the belief that life is better in good company.

Adam and Chloe talk about building a circle of champions, creating spaces where people feel comfortable enough to be themselves, and why she describes her role as “curating serendipity.” They also explore her journey from Division I gymnastics to real estate, why she still believes deeply in Austin, and how repeated interactions can turn strangers into real friends.

Key takeaways:

• Build a circle of people who genuinely champion you.
• Real community grows through consistency, not one-time interactions.
• Great hospitality starts with making people feel seen and comfortable.
• Strong communities are intentional, not accidental.
• Austin still stands out for its culture of generosity and connection.
• Human connection becomes more valuable as more of life gets automated.
• Austin’s magic depends on people continuing to create places to belong.

At its core, this episode is about how we intentionally build the life and community we want around us, and why Austin’s magic may depend on people continuing to create those spaces for one another.

Get in touch with Austin Eras

Email: info@austineras.com

Website: https://www.austineras.com/

Call: 512-387-2333

Watch the show on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-bTMj5WY-4LduZI50w8bvQ/?sub_confirmation=1

What if some of the biggest business opportunities in Austin aren’t in startups, venture capital, or the next big app — but in the companies quietly keeping the city running?

In this episode of Austin Eras, Adam Flagg sits down with Kade Thomas, founder and CEO of Emory Oak Partners and Cerv Property Solutions, to explore the overlooked service economy underneath Austin’s explosive growth. Kade started his first landscaping company at just 13 years old, sold it while attending the University of Texas, and has spent the years since building, buying, scaling, and selling service businesses across the Southeast.

His philosophy is simple: “Sophisticate the unsophisticated.”

But this conversation isn’t really just about landscaping, janitorial services, pest control, or private equity.

It’s about where opportunity still exists in a city where many people feel like they already missed the boat.

Kade explains why the businesses maintaining Austin’s buildings, pools, landscaping, and infrastructure may offer some of the most durable entrepreneurial opportunities in the region — and why building a great company often has less to do with inventing something revolutionary than with assembling the right people, processes, culture, and technology.

Together, they explore:

• Why service businesses remain one of Austin’s most overlooked economic engines
• Why people and process matter more than having a groundbreaking idea
• How AI is transforming traditional service businesses
• Why Austin’s growth continues to create opportunities beyond tech
• How rising housing costs, wages, and traffic could reshape the city’s workforce
• What Austin needs to protect as it becomes wealthier, larger, and more technology-driven

The conversation also explores Kade’s relationship with the University of Texas, his work mentoring students and student-athletes, Austin’s hospitality scene, comparisons between Austin and other fast-growing Southern cities, and why entrepreneurship doesn’t require creating the next unicorn.

For anyone who has wondered whether Austin’s biggest opportunities are already gone, Kade offers a different perspective: the city is still being built, and many of the best opportunities may be hiding in plain sight.

Get in touch with Austin Eras

Email: info@austineras.com

Website: https://www.austineras.com/

Call: 512-387-2333

Watch the show on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-bTMj5WY-4LduZI50w8bvQ/?sub_confirmation=1

What if Austin’s next great social club isn’t a country club, a gym, or a bar…but a sport most Americans are only just beginning to discover?

In this episode of Austin Eras, Adam Flagg sits down with Will Boyce, founder of PADEL39, to explore why one of the world’s fastest-growing sports may have found its perfect American home in Austin.

But this conversation isn’t really just about padel.

It’s about how people build community. Why making friends as an adult can be surprisingly difficult. And how sports, hospitality, and wellness can come together to create places where people genuinely want to stay.

Will shares his journey from growing up outside Paris and coming to the United States through tennis to attending the University of Texas, building a successful digital marketing company, earning an MBA from INSEAD, and working in investment banking in New York City.

After watching padel explode across Europe and Latin America, Will left Wall Street, researched more than 20 American cities, and returned to Austin to build PADEL39.

Together, they explore:

• Why padel is growing so quickly around the world
• What makes the sport easy to learn, social, and addictive
• Why Austin was the right city to launch PADEL39
• How PADEL39 combines sport, wellness, hospitality, and community
• Why many people struggle to make friends after moving to Austin
• How to build a lifestyle brand that is bigger than its founder

The conversation also dives into entrepreneurship, career uncertainty, Austin’s international population, the importance of third places, and the mentor who changed Will’s life by helping him attend the University of Texas.

Whether you care about sports, entrepreneurship, community, wellness, or Austin’s future, this episode offers a fascinating look at how a global sport could help create a new kind of gathering place in the city.

Get in touch with Austin Eras

Email: info@austineras.com

Website: https://www.austineras.com/

Call: 512-387-2333

Watch the show on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-bTMj5WY-4LduZI50w8bvQ/?sub_confirmation=1