New Business Article

Meet the new owners of Oakland IGA and Moondogs Sports Bar and Country Kitchen

By Mollie Beth Johnson

Six months ago, brothers Alex Rana and Sayed Choudhary took over the Oakland IGA. Before owning the IGA, the two brothers excelled in business, each owning their own businesses.

 Before the first outbreak of Covid-19, Alex Rana owned a 10-vehicle limousine business in New Jersey. He spent two years unemployed after he lost the company due to Covid. When his brother purchased the IGA, he moved to manage the store. He currently lives in Fortson, Georgia, with his family.  

His brother, Sayed Choudhary, has lots of retail experience. He has been in the industry for 22 years. When he was sixteen, he worked in his friend's family's convenience store in downtown Atlanta. When his friend inherited the store, he ran it down. Mr. Choudhary saw an opportunity, so he purchased it with another friend from New York. This was his start in entrepreneurship. Currently, he lives in Sandy Springs, Georgia, and visits three to four times a week. 

After purchasing the Oakland IGA, they had a 3-phase project in mind. The project's first phase was to improve the basics of the IGA. They brought up inventory, improved the upkeep of the store, which led to the elimination of a smell, improved the store's structure with management (Alex), and hired a butcher, James Flake. They are currently on Phase Two of the project, filling vacant buildings. The final phase will be remodeling the IGA with new flooring, paint jobs, and rebranding. 

Since they have Finished Phase one of their project, they want the community to know they appreciate all the support. Sayed Choudhary explained, "The people at IGA have been some of the most welcoming people I have worked with in my career." They want everyone to know that they practice good business. "Just because we are in a small town doesn’t mean we should be lacking anything,” he said. Mr. Choudhary has enjoyed the community the most about owning the store. He explained how the country's southern hospitality is different from the city. "It's a breath of fresh air," he said. 

They recently completed Phase Two of the project with the opening of Moondogs Sports Bar and Country Kitchen. Mr. Choudhary explained that he wanted to open the restaurant simply because “there’s nothing else around.” He says that his goal in the restaurant is to cater to the community instead of just opening a random restaurant. They asked customers in the IGA what kind of food and at what price point customers would buy. 

The head chef of the restaurant is David Williams. He is originally from Columbus, Georgia, but he lives in Talbot County now. He lived in Marion County for almost 22 years. Before Moondogs, he was a kitchen manager and head chef at several restaurants, including Mr. Wing in Columbus, The Crab Shack on Tybee Island, and Justin’s Place in Butler. He started his cooking career in the same building as Moondogs when it was Sandy's Café in 1986. He has worked several other jobs but has always returned to cooking. 

The restaurant’s soft opening took place recently, and they plan on a grand opening soon. They have good food, great staff, and a friendly family atmosphere to dine in!