Bryan Young has a vision for Memphis; one befitting the diversity, culture, warmth, and charm of the city. He is working towards bringing that vision to life through Smooches-a blend of entertainment, dining, and community that is poised to become an area institution once it finds its permanent home.
Bryan was kind enough to speak with What Now Memphis about this bright and ambitious new project and what it will bring to the city. Smooches, he explains, is a true passion project he’s been cultivating for quite some time, however it took an unexpected cosmic u-turn to reach the next step. He says: “Smooches has been living in my head and heart for a while. I could picture the food, the cocktails, the shows, the music, the people laughing at the bar — the whole experience. But one of the biggest things that pushed me to finally say, ‘Okay, it’s time to really do this,’ was actually a major change in my own life. I was laid off from my longtime job, and after working for the same company for years, that really made me think about what I wanted the next chapter of my life to look like.”
Young chose to turn a potential setback into an opportunity. “Instead of only looking at it as something that happened to me, I started asking myself what I could build from it. And that brought me right back to Smooches.”…