Knockout & About

Jacob Power and Michelle Watson
Megan and Brian Cushing
Megan and Brian Cushing

After their wildly successful Black Tie Boxing charity event last year, restaurateur Ben Berg and former boxing champ Lou Savarese debuted a spinoff tournament called Knock Out Child Abuse. The event, chaired by Ursaline Hamilton and Jordan Seff and benefiting the Children’s Assessment Center, was hosted at The Revaire. Two-dozen amateur boxers, all of whom trained for months under Savarese himself, faced off in 12 three-round fights as fans enjoyed a three-course dinner by B&B Butchers & Restaurant (not to mention caramel-bacon popcorn) ringside. A check for $932K was presented to CAC at the end of the night — and an anonymous guest donated $68,000 to make it a cool $1 mil. Talk about a champion!


Megan and Brian Cushing
Party People

John Kuykendall, Showroom Manager, Sub-Zero, Wolf and Cove

How did you get to where you are today? Growing up I had envisioned myself as a news anchor, living in NY and enthusiastically saying into the camera “Good Morning America!”. To this day, I am still a news/political junkie. My mother owned fur salons so specialty retail, luxury retail was in my blood through the family business. Eventually, mom shuttered the stores and I was recruited to a large specialty retailer. Over the next 30 years, I was in commissioned sales on the sales floor, became a department manager, worked my way up to buyer and store manager. Although I never became a newscaster, I did live in NYC for a few years. But Texas is home and with aging grandparents, I felt the pull to come back to my roots. A headhunter approached me. I never envisioned myself in the high-end appliance market, but there are so many similarities. Clients want a memorable experience; whether shopping for diamonds and fur or remodeling their kitchen.

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How did you get to where you are today? My journey to where I am today is built on a foundation of hard work, dedication, and perseverance. Every step along the way, I faced obstacles, but I approached each one with determination and a “never give up” mindset. Instead of being discouraged by challenges, I used them as opportunities to grow and improve. Consistency was key—I committed to showing up and giving my best effort every day. I also learned not to take “no” as a final answer. Instead, I saw it as a chance to push harder, adapt, and find another way forward. It’s this combination of persistence, resilience, and unwavering focus that has brought me to where I am today.

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