We recently connected with Bay Ragni and have shared our conversation below.

Bay, appreciate you joining us today. Let’s start with important influences in our lives. Is there a historical figure you look up to?

One of my all time biggest heroes, from honestly I think 3 years old was and still is, Evel Knievel. Evel was an interesting person and has a bad reputation on some levels, BUT, he was the greatest Daredevil and a living breathing super hero who always stuck to his word and tried to deliver a positive message to his fans.

Evel taught me to take those chances, even if you think you are going to fail, take that shot, you might surprise yourself, and succeed, because if you didn’t take that shot, you will always wonder WHAT IF???

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I have had a roller coaster ride of life with so many ups and downs, twists and turns to would make most give up, but I have learned the blows in life, I have been given, I can handle and will find a way.

My father passed away when I was 4 years old, and my mother when I was 18, as my mother was dying, I was working at a pizza shop, which had gone up for sale, so in joking I said hey mom, let’s buy a pizza shop……….. She decided along with my sister who was 15 years older than me, that would be a great idea, to give me a career, because she knew she was on borrowed time.

I am 18 years old, and own a pizza shop, and 9 months later my mom passes away and my life goes into a tailspin, in which the pizza shop goes out of business and I also end up losing my parents house that was left to me.

The road to rebuilding life started here

Which a couple years later, I went into the world of Professional Wrestling, and by the mid 90’s was on TV and magazines as part of the Dudley Brothers in ECW, known as Chubby Dudley.

I ended up leaving ECW feeling I wasn’t not be treated correctly, and leave wrestling to start a family, and go back into the world of pizza, as a manager of multiple shops for the next decade.

Eventually ending up in the car business for 13 years, until after 22 years, I ended up divorced and relocating to Nashville, TN to again, restart my life from ground zero.

After 3 years in Nashville, making it through a pandemic, and starting an online reselling business and passion project with my fiancé Coco, but after almost 3 years of trying to make that our full-time life, we were offered the chance of a lifetime to become the General Manager of a small restaurant here in Nashville, Cole’s Kitchen, to take compete control and work with the new owner in building the most amazing family restaurant and carry own with the history of this Nashville Hidden Gem of food that will truly BLOW YOU AWAY!!!

I also have been doing a celebrity interview show for 10 years, The Bay Ragni Show (Formerly Totally Driven Radio), as well as a new YouTube Reaction Channel “React & Chill with Chubby Dudley”, where I am watching the history of ECW match by match and giving my thoughts, knowledge & reactions whether it’s Good, Bad or Ugly!!!

Plus on top of this, I am managing a few careers of musical artists to help them grow and expand across the globe and universe!!!

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

I think I am right this second going through this experience, at the restaurant (Cole’s Kitchen), I run a local Nashville Foodie Group on social media as well, called “The Nashville Restaurant Review” and a local food truck, “Nash Kebab” posted that they lined up a Guinness Book of World Record Eater, Joel Hansen to eat their food in a food challenge but needed a place to host.

So I always, looking to support both small business, especially local business offered our restaurant to host their food truck and Joel Hansen and also help to spread the word, of both in a weird, fun and interesting marketing event.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

Having been in management since a young age, whether it was owning a pizza shop, or managing pizza shops, then managing a newspaper delivery depot with 60 carriers, who needed to deliver newspapers 365 days a year by 6 am, or bands or entertainment artist, number one rule to remember is we are all human and equal!!!

Then the most important thing, I learned in my time in pro wrestling was RESPECT, and I treat everyone with such high regard and respect, plus I will also give encouragement and positive reinforcement.

Especially in this day and age, any person can get a job anywhere, but they cannot go to any job and get treated with positivity, respect and encouragement but they ALWAYS will from me.

Work is Work, and in reality, no one wants to work, we need to to survive and live, but I try to create an environment where you are happy and excited to work, and can’t wait to come to work!!!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/bayragni
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colesnashville
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/colesnashville/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bay-ragni/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/BayRagni
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@chubbydudleyofficial/videos