Jan. 11, 2013 UBJ

Business Upstate

JANUARY 11, 2013

J O U R N A L

what’s next for

THE UPSTATE Local experts peer into the crystal ball PAGE 14

back on the ranch with perry earle page 6

UCB enters the UPSTATE page 8

CRANKING EVENTS ‘UP TO ELEVEN’ page 12

UBJ 4

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Independence Bancshares raises $14.1 million

United Communty Bank expands in upstate

Decision to stay in SC easy for Hartons

Greenville Chamber starts year strong

By Dick Hughes senior business writer

By Dick Hughes senior business writer

By Jennifer Oladipo staff

By Dick Hughes senior business writer

Perry Earle traded a banking career for his 800-acre ranch.

See complete story on page 6

Photo by Greg Beckner

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Statehouse Report

Jump Start Events company cranks it up

Create. Innovate.

Celebrate.

Digital Maven

The myth of big government

By Andy Brack contributor

By Jennifer Oladipo contributor

2 Upstate business | JANUARY 11, 2013

Supporting high-growth small businesses startups

By Matt Dunbar contributor

Get your IT together: 3 steps closer to a paperless office

By Laura Haight contributor

UBJ

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Independence Bancshares raises $14.1 million in stock sale Baird named new CEO of holding company

By Dick Hughes | senior business writer

Independence Bancshares raised $14.1 million in a private sale of stock and named a new chief executive officer for the parent company to replace Lawrence R. Miller, who remains as president and CEO of Independence National Bank, the holding company’s sole operating unit.

In a news release Monday, the holding company said Gordon A. Baird, an experienced New York-area banking and financial executive, was appointed CEO and director as of Dec. 31, the day the stock offering closed.

The company said in the amendment to Miller’s contract, which was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, that the change in leadership of the holding company was in “conjunction with the launch of a new business model.”

In a statement, Miller said the $14.1 million would help improve the bank’s capital levels and “better position the bank to expand its business into higher growth opportunities that are designed to deliver more consistent earnings going forward.”

A spokesman, Reed Byrum of The Byrum Innovation Group, said, “As they pursue their options, there is going to be more news available. They are taking one step at time, and

864.233.5346 www.gos1.com 4 Upstate business | JANUARY 11, 2013

Lawrence R. Miller will remain as president and CEO of Independence National Bank.

then we will see what happens.”

Independence offered an indication of its new direction when it announced the private placement offering for stock in a regulatory filing with the SEC in November.

The company said it anticipated using proceeds from the stock sale to “modify our existing business plan to enhance our ability to generate additional interest and noninterest income through serving as a processing and servicing bank for mobile payments.”

Baird, the president and CEO of Baird Hageman & Co. in Darien, Conn., has had a varied career in banking and financial services and has been involved in building new financial services businesses.

He began his career at John Hancock Real Estate Finance in 1990, moving on to State Street Bank and Trust Co. and Citigroup Global Markets Inc. He was founder and CEO of Paramax Capital Partners and most recently was operating adviser to

Thomas H. Lee Partners, a private equity firm based in Boston. He has extensive experience in bank regulatory issues and payments, technology, consumer finance and capital market.

Baird “has extensive experience in bank regulatory issues and payments, technology, consumer finance and capital markets,” as well as building new financial services businesses, the company said.

Bringing Baird into Independence Bancshares “increased the leadership strength, which already is strong,” said Byrum.

H. Neel Hipp Jr., chairman of the board, said Miller “will continue to focus on strengthening a platform to provide full-service traditional banking services.”

Independence has branches in Greenville, Simpsonville and Taylors.

Miller had served as CEO and president of both the holding company and the operating bank since the bank’s opening in 2005.

The private offering fetched a price of 80 cents per share, a substantial premium over Independence’s closing price of 30 cents a share in the last week of December. The company issued 17.6 million additional shares.

The offering was purchased by a diverse group of participants, with no individual investor purchasing more than 9.9 percent. Independence paid Hovde Securities a 6 percent commission or $550,000 in cash for brokering the sale of stock.

The 17.6 million shares sold represent almost 90 percent of the bank’s outstanding shares.

Independence has total assets of $109 million.

Jenny Munro contributed to this report.

Contact Dick Hughes at dhughes@communityjournals.com.

Contact Jenny Munro at jmunro@communityjournals.com.

UBJ worth repeating

17.6 million Shares of stock sold privately by Independence Bancshares, raising $14.1 million.

< 1%

Eligible angel investors who are providing capital to scalable startups.

200

Head of Angus-cross animals on Perry Earle’s 800-acre cattle ranch along the Enoree River.

$425,000

Amount Up To Eleven Events has helped raise for charities in two years.

“Over the next few years we will see a trend of businesses spending dump trucks full of money on technology and still getting hacked.”

Adam Anderson, owner and CEO of Palmetto Software Group

“At the end of the day, I am a Southern boy.”

Lynn Harton, on leaving New Jersey to lead United Community Bank’s new loan office in Greenville.

“When I retired, I traded a 40-year career as a banker for a 30-year career as a rancher.”

Perry Earle, former chairman of the board of Greenville National Bank, now full-time cattle rancher.

“It is our challenge to reaffirm everyone’s belief in the fairness and hope inherent in our system, and then to deliver upon that promise.”

Bob Howard, executive director of the Greenville Tech Foundation

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JANUARY 11, 2013 | Upstate business 5

focus: where are they now UBJ

â&#x2013;˛

RANCH Perry Earle traded a banking career for 200 head of cattle

6 Upstate business | JANUARY 11, 2013

Photos by Greg Beckner

BACK AT THE

UBJ focus: where are they now

By Charles Sowell | staff

Perry Earle retired as chairman of the board of Greenville National Bank when it merged with Regions Bank in 1997 and went on to continue his second career as a cattle rancher.

“When I retired, I traded a 40year career as a banker for a 30-year career as a rancher,” Perry Earle said.

Earle was 57 when he stepped down.

Not a gentleman farmer, Earle is a cattle rancher who runs an 800-acre spread stocked with 200 head of Angus-cross animals all by himself.

Often working from can see to can’t see, Earle has spread his ranch over three counties in that knuckle of land along the Enoree River where Greenville, Laurens and Spartan-

burg counties come together.

Earle and his wife, Rebecca, both in their late 60s, bought the core of the property while they were quite young. He was working as an executive at a local bank and she was working as a teacher.

“We knew from the start that we had to make the cattle operation pay in order to afford this place,” Perry Earle said.

So he worked hard as the top man at Greenville National by day and slowly built up his herd and operation in his free time. Along the way, the couple raised four children. Their eldest is a pediatrician with a posse of young

Perry Earle and his wife, Rebecca, have operated the River Ridge Ranch, an 800-acre spread stocked with 200 head of Angus-cross animals, for the past 40 years.

ones of his own and is the only child who lives on the ranch.

The Earles have 18 grandchildren in all.

“They all seem to manage to get here for the holidays,” Rebecca Earle said. “The grandkids like to hunt and they like the feel of the place.”

The Earle ranch sits astride a ridge that parallels the Enoree River just east of the Laurens County line.

The views are stunning, with vast open pastures reminiscent of a high plains view in Montana. Lurking in the Northwest, Hogback Mountain and Glassy Mountain cast long blue shadows over the rolling Piedmont.

“We’ve been sweethearts since she was 14,” Perry Earle said. Both attended Greenville High. He was raised in the Parkins Mill area of Greenville and she was raised on Riverside Drive just off Augusta Road.

“The house was already here when we bought the first tract of land,” Rebecca Earle said while sitting in their spacious living room.

Memorabilia of their nearly halfcentury together line the walls in photos and paintings.

Perry Earle attended The Citadel and went on to get his MBA at the University of Virginia. Rebecca is a graduate of Coker College.

They are both from old Greenville families with a penchant for moving to the outlying regions of town.

The family “constantly questioned my father over moving to the Parkins Mill area,” Perry Earle said.

“They did the same thing when we first moved out here.”

When the couple first moved

to the ranch, “and for years afterward, Rebecca wouldn’t drive home if she was stuck in town after dark.

She’d spend the night at her mother’s house.

It was one long, dark drive out here and cell phones didn’t exist yet.”

The Earles built a life for themselves and their children on the ranch, something far different from a typical urban life. Somehow, Earle says, the dream took hold and made him willing to take on the hard work of a full-time rancher – even now, while most of his contemporaries are tooling around a golf course.

Contact Charles Sowell at csowell@ communityjournals.com.

the facts

HOMETOWN: Greenville

education: – Undergraduate degree in business administration from The Citadel, 1965 – MBA from University of Virginia, 1967

MILITARY SERVICE: Two years in the Army as a lieutenant

BANKING CAREER: – Worked for First Piedmont and First Citizen’s Bank – Founder, CEO and board chairman of Greenville National Bank in 1984 – Retired from Greenville National in 1997

PERSONAL LIFE: Married to Rebecca Earle; four children; 18 grandchildren

JANUARY 11, 2013 | Upstate business 7

Photos by Greg Beckner

UBJ

In 2010, Lynn Harton led The South Financial Group through its turbulent financial collapse, sale to The Toronto-Dominion Bank and transition from Carolina First to TD Bank.

United Community Bank expands in Upstate ▲

Lynn Harton at helm of new Greenville loan office

By Dick Hughes | senior business writer

United Community Bank opened a loan office in Greenville with plans for growth, including acquisitions, in the Upstate and South Carolina under the direction of a familiar banker, Lynn Harton.

Harton led The South Financial Group through its turbulent financial collapse, sale to The TorontoDominion Bank and transition from Carolina First to TD Bank.

He returns to banking in Greenville after leaving TD Bank’s U.S. headquarters in Cherry Hill, N.J., to become chief operating officer of the $6.7-billion United Community Bank based in Blairsville, Ga. Jimmy Tallent, CEO, said Harton “will play a very valued part in growing” United’s presence in South Carolina, a long-held goal “put on the back burner because of the severe recession.”

In separate interviews, Tallent, by phone from his office in Blairsville, and Harton, from United’s offices in the Main @ Broad building in Green-

ville, talked to the Upstate Business Journal about United’s plans.

“If you take our footprint and drop a pin in the physical middle of it, you are in Greenville,” said Harton.

“We are in North Georgia. We own that market. We are No. 1 or No. 2 in most of the northern North Carolina mountain markets up to Hendersonville and Asheville. We surround Atlanta down to Savannah.”

What’s missing is South Carolina, particularly the I-85 corridor from Charlotte to Greenville, to make “all that geography contiguous,” Tallent said.

What makes the expansion possible now “was being able to get Lynn as chief operating officer; certainly for his influence, his experience and understanding of the market,” he said. “If you hire good folks, their customers generally follow them.”

Tallent said United’s next steps – “and I am not talking long-term” – would be to establish full-service branches and “find potential banking partners

8 Upstate business | JANUARY 11, 2013

who would like to join up with this company” through acquisitions.

Harton said he expects to open the first branch “this time next year.”

United went through a difficult period during the recession, but Harton and Tallent believe the bank has worked through its credit issues and taken the necessary steps to resume the growth that made it Georgia’s third-largest bank from its founding in 1988.

Beset by a heavy load of bad real estate loans, United lost nearly $1 billion in 2009, 2010 and 2011 but had income of $28.6 million through September. Its provision for loan losses declined to $48 million from $237 million.

In March 2011, it raised $380 million in a private stock sale to Corsair Capital of New York and other institutional investors. The transaction gave Corsair 22.5 percent ownership and place on United’s board.

The bank received $180 million

in TARP assistance in 2008 and has yet to buy back the preferred shares sold to the U.S. Treasury.

United remains under an FDIC memorandum limiting its ability to pay dividends and requiring higher than normal capital ratios.

“They went through a lot of the same things we went through, but they were able to recapitalize and come through,” said Harton, referring to the difficulties of TSFG and Corsair’s investment.

In the post-recession environment, bank consolidation is inevitable, Harton said, setting off “a race of that group who can really be the winners, who will be the performers, who will be the acquirers, who will have the magic formula that works.”

He believes United is of the right size and culture to be customerdriven in a way major national banks cannot because of the bureaucracy that is “the nature of the beast.” At the same time, Harton said, United has sufficient size to offer the same service and products of a mega bank.

“If you look at the numbers, there are very few banks in the Southeast in that $5 billion to $15 billion size range. We are

>>

UBJ

Decision to stay in SC easy for Hartons

Lynn and Flavia Harton decided a corporate relocation to New Jersey was not for them. The couple credits the culture, international flavor, and her community involvement to their desire to put roots in Greenville.

>>

one of the few.”

Harton will split his time between Greenville and Blairsville to help get “ready to be one of those acquirers. Part of that is we’ve got to get profitability where it needs to be to have currency where it needs to be to do acquisitions. We have to have the riskmanagement systems in place so regulators will support us being an acquirer.”

Tallent and Harton believe United’s practice of seeking the best bankers in a market, giving them high-level authority and stressing customer service make it an attractive model.

“Right now we have 26 CEOs who run their banks over their entire geography,” said Tallent. “We’ve got one name, one brand, one product set. That drives a lot of entrepreneur-

ial spirit. It drives local ownership.”

The Greenville staff consists of four people in 3,500 square feet on the fifth floor of Main @ Broad. Harton said he will be running it initially, but “the next hire will be for a local CEO.” Lisa Shelnutt, who was commercial real estate relationship manger for Carolina First and then TD, was hired for the same position at United. Jennifer Abate is senior portfolio manger for commercial estate. She held a similar job at TD. Tim Schools, who joined United 18 months ago as chief strategy officer and regional president, runs operations and technology. He, too, was at TSFG at one time.

Contact Dick Hughes at dhughes@communityjournals.com.

Lynn Harton’s decision to return to banking in Greenville came down simply to Greenville.

Harton, who was transferred to TD Bank’s New Jersey headquarters in 2010 after TD acquired The South Financial Group, where he had been CEO, left TD for United Community Bank in September to become chief operating officer and lead its expansion into South Carolina.

After two years commuting from their home in Greenville to Cherry Hill, Harton and his wife Flavia decided a permanent move to New Jersey was not for them.

“We loved the company and were excited about it, but at the end of the day, I am a Southern boy, and it just didn’t work for them, and it didn’t work for us. We decided to stay here. That’s really the story there.”

Flavia puts their choice not to make a permanent move to New Jersey more emphatically: “I kept telling Lynn, ‘You know, I have too much love for Greenville. It is my home. I wanted to make a difference, and that’s what I am trying to do.’”

The Hartons came to Greenville in January 2007, when Lynn was hired as executive vice president at TSFG, months before the credit collapse and recession that brought down Carolina First and TSFG’s Florida bank, Mercantile.

During those troubled times, Harton replaced founder Mack Whittle as president and CEO in 2009, helped find TD as a last-chance buyer in May 2010 and managed the transition until reassignment at TD’s U.S. headquarters.

The idea of moving did not sit well with Flavia, who was involved in several nonprofit cultural and civic groups, including the Children’s Museum, the Greenville Symphony, Artisphere and United Way. She also was graduated from the Greenville Chamber’s 10-month leadership program.

Flavia, who grew up in Brazil of Italian parents, used her fluency in Portuguese to “work for Michelin in their language department. It was pretty amazing that I was living in Greenville and could use my Portuguese. I was teaching some executives who were moving to Brazil.”

“I love the culture, the international flavor that is in Greenville, and got really involved and wanting to put roots in Greenville, and I have done that. It became our home,” she said.

Because Lynn’s new job allows them to stay anchored in Greenville, she said, “I feel very blessed and good about the future.”

As her husband put it, “I don’t think you could blow my wife out of here.”

Contact Dick Hughes at dhughes@communityjournals.com.

JANUARY 11, 2013 | Upstate business 9

UBJ

Tailored

by the Purveyors of Classic American Style

The Greater Greenville Chamber of Commerce will enter its 125th year on a positive note after a strong membership drive last month.

MAKE YOUR CLOSET AS SUCCESSFUL AS YOUR BUSINESS—FOUR EASY STEPS Planning your business wardrobe is a very important decision in improving your business. Whether you dress in a suit every day or more casually, how you “package” yourself is part of your branding. Your wardrobe is part of your calling card—your brand. So when planning for the next year in your business, you should plan to go through your closet to reorganize it to work for you more efficiently in the coming year.

Start with four easy steps in reorganizing your closet: 1. Clean out the closet completely.

2. Take Inventory and inspect your clothes. Start with your business clothes, and move to your casuals. Try them all on to make sure they fit. Inspect for tears, split seams, broken buttons, and frayed edges. For simple repairs, alterations, and proper fit take them to a “trusted tailor.” If you haven’t worn it in years, donate it!

3. Evaluate your needs and invest. Maybe you need another suit, new shirts, dress or casual trousers. Don’t just add items, but plan your new purchases to work with your existing wardrobe. This is where an experienced clothing consultant may help.

4. Maintain your closet. Make sure your garments are properly pressed. Build a good relationship with a trusted cleaner. Your clothing may not always need to be dry cleaned. Ask your cleaner to “press only” your garments and you will extend the life of those items. Make sure your suit and sport coats are on wide wood hangers, not wire hangers. This will maintain the shape of the shoulders of the coats. Keep cedar shoe trees in your shoes and brush and polish your shoes regularly. Rotate your suits, business casual wear and shoes. Don’t wear the same items days in a row.

Give them a rest and they will wear and look newer longer.

A well planned and organized closet will make your life and business wardrobe more efficient, giving you more confidence in everything you do.

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10 Upstate business | JANUARY 11, 2013

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23 West North Street, Greenville, SC 29601 864.232.2761 | www.rushwilson.com

Greenville Chamber starts year strong

By Jennifer Oladipo | contributor

The Greater Greenville Chamber of Commerce will enter its 125th year on a positive note after a strong membership drive last month. All told, 135 members were added to the roster.

It was the second year of growth in a row, showing a strong rebound after a net loss of members during the recession, said Ben Haskew, president and CEO. Many members are small businesses who let their memberships lapse in order to cut costs during the economic tumult. Others went out of business or felt they did not have the time to participate.

Haskew credited more than 80 volunteers with the membership drive’s success. He said that, in addition, renewed attention to member retention helped bring total membership to its current 2,250 count. The chamber’s reten-

go figure

80% 125th 135 2,250 retention rate

year in business

new members

total members

tion rate is now up to 80 percent.

The Chamber will begin the official celebration of its membership and 125th anniversary at its annual meeting at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 21, at the TD Convention Center.

Contact Jennifer Oladipo at joladipo@communityjournals.com.

An article in the Jan. 4 Upstate Business Journal, “Upstate businesses top list of fastest-growing SC companies,” incorrectly listed the name and location of one of the companies. The No. 23 fastest-growing company in South Carolina is Keenan & Suggs, based in Columbia. We regret the error.

UBJ statehouse report

The myth of big government As South Carolina legislators prepares to return this week to the Statehouse to start a new session, they should clear from their minds any notions that the state has “big government.”

It doesn’t. To suggest the state’s departments and agencies are laden with pork, waste and abuse – and to govern based on that assumption – has as much validity as a kid believing the moon is made of cheese.

Just think about it: Sure, there may be some functions of state government today that some legislators might not like, such as providing a high-quality public education to all students or having an agency to look out for the state’s health and environment. But after 10 years of rhetoric about cuts by Gov. Mark Sanford and his successor, Gov. Nikki Haley, as well as a legislature obsessed with tax cuts fueled by a GOP lovefest with anti-tax think-tank guru Grover Norquist, the idea of a bloated government is nonsensical.

Look back at the state’s budget during the tenure of GOP Gov. Carroll Campbell, surely no fan of big government. Back in 1989-90, the state’s General Fund budget – the funds that come directly from state taxes – was $3.363 million. If that number were adjusted for inflation only, the equivalent number in 2012 dollars would be $5.924 billion. And the General Fund budget for the current year is almost the same at $6.088 billion. But remember, the current year’s taxes are supporting services to 4.6 million people, compared to the 3.5 million who lived here in 1990.

In other words, the state’s tax dollars have grown with inflation, but are serving 30 percent more people.

That doesn’t sound to me like a lot of bloating. It sounds like state government has gotten leaner and more efficient with the resources it has.

Another indicator that state government isn’t the huge slug that many lawmakers perpetuate with their rhetoric: In Carroll Campbell’s day, the

state employed more than 80,000 people.

Now, it employs fewer than 58,000, according to Carlton B. Washington, head of the S.C. State Employees Association.

But while the number of state employees has gone down significantly, taxpayers continued to demand services of those who remain.

“That need [for government services] exists because taxpayers are not interested in taking their families to eat at a restaurant that is not inspected by DHEC, nor are they interested in traveling on South Carolina’s roads and highways without the oversight and protection afforded by South Carolina troopers,” Washington said. “Taxpayers are not advocating closing the Department of Social Services and consequently the invaluable protection the agency provides, especially to abused and neglected children and seniors.”

If you want to really take a look at how the concept of bloated government is false, just look at how some agencies have fared over the last 23 years.

By Andy Brack

I OWE YOU

State Treasurer: The agency had 71 fulltime equivalent employees (FTEs) in 1990, compared to 40 today. Back then, the budget was $3.5 million, which would be $6.2 million in 2012 dollars.

Today’s actual budget: $1.5 million.

Attorney General:

Had 152 FTEs in 1990 paid for with General Fund dollars; has 107 FTEs today. The 1990 budget was $10.8 million, which would be worth $19 million now. Today’s actual state-funded budget: $7.4 million.

Health and Environmental Control: Had 2,236 FTEs in 1990;

has 1,165 FTEs today paid with state funds.

Its 1990 budget was $88.2 million, which

is worth $155 million now. Today’s actual budget: $93.6 million.

Insurance: Had 119 FTEs in 1990, compared to 37 today paid with state funds.

Its 1990 budget was $5.2 million, which is worth $9.2 million now. Today’s actual budget: $3.6 million.

The above agencies, like many across state government, have far less money and employees than they did in 1990. DHEC is half its size. The Attorney General’s office has one third of the state funding it once had. The Treasurer’s office is a quarter of its size in terms of dollars.

Sure, some agencies – the House, the Senate, Corrections, the Judiciary, PRT (Parks, Recreation and Tourism) – kept up with or exceeded inflation. But overall, state government is smaller, leaner and more efficient.

As lawmakers gear up for the session, they should make policy decisions based on fact, not myths of spin doctors trying to convince them of something that doesn’t exist.

Andy Brack is publisher of Statehouse Report, now in its 12th year of publication. He can be reached at brack@ statehousereport.com.

JANUARY 11, 2013 | Upstate business 11

entrepreneur UBJ

casey reid (left), president of up to eleven, and principal christy medford

Events company

cranks it up Photo by Greg Beckner

By Jennifer Oladipo | contributor

12 Upstate business | JANUARY 11, 2013

UBJ entrepreneur

Photos Provided.

Jump Start Entrepreneurship is everywhere The Upstate is no different from anyplace else when it comes to constant competition for people’s time, attention and money. If you’ve got something to say about a product or charity, best to say it loud; that’s the philosophy at Up To Eleven Events.

The company’s tongue-in-cheek name comes from the rock ’n’ roll comedy film “This Is Spinal Tap,” where the eponymous band brags that their amplifier turns “up to 11,” as opposed to a normal dial that only turns up to 10.

Founded in 2010 by Casey Reid, the company itself kicked it up a notch last month with the addition of Christy Medford. She adds a corporate events element to a company that had focused mostly on nonprofits.

Reid returned to Greenville after 15 years of producing large-scale music events in Colorado for outfits including VH-1, MTV Europe and MTV Asia. She parlayed that experience into creating signature events for nonprofits, including Senior Action’s Dancing with the Carolina Stars and the Humane Society’s Mutt Strut 5K. Reid said their efforts have raised more than $425,000 for local charities in two years. She also maintains clients in other parts of the country.

Medford brings nine years of experience as an event producer with Erwin Penland Advertising, where she worked after two years at the former Palmetto Expo Center. She and Reid plan to tap into the many corporations that have headquarters and major divisions in the area.

Medford and Reid had stayed in touch since high school and had talked in passing about working together since Reid started the company. Although Medford enjoyed her job at Erwin Penland, she was ready for a change.

“I’ve got two little kids. I was looking for an opportunity that was more flexible than what I currently had, though Erwin Penland has been supportive over the years,” Medford said. For Up To Eleven, she will continue to focus on services such as product launches, sales incentive trips, conferences and internal company events.

“I love sitting with the marketing teams of these corporations,

“They want to stay hip and relevant with their audience, and music usually ties it all together,” Reid said.

At the same time, she says it can take weeks to cultivate a client, convincing the organization to do things differently. “The first year is always the hardest as far as talking them into a new idea that no one’s ever done before.”

Yet as their contemporaries in their 30s and 40s move into leadership positions in the community, the idea of events being part of an active lifestyle is becoming more easily accepted. Reid said a general increase in entertainment, dining options and venues is more of an asset than competition for an events company.

“It cultivates kind of a metropolitan attitude, which I think gives you a little more freedom,” Reid said.

Reid was able to handle up to about eight clients at a time on her own, and expects to double that with Medford. Medford brought two new clients within her first three weeks.

They intend to grow and employ others, serving clients throughout the country and internationally. But they envision remaining a boutique company with a relatively small client list. Flexibility and quality of life are what drew them to entrepreneurship in the first place, and they would be loath to give that up.

Contact Jennifer Oladipo at joladipo@communityournals.com.

JANUARY 11, 2013 | Upstate business 13

learning products and needs, what existing events they have,” Medford said. “Maybe we have to go in and create a new event.” That is the kind of thing an administrative or other internal staffer often lacks the time or experience to handle effectively.

Reid said her music industry background is a valuable asset to the company as it grows to tackle corporate clients. Many companies want to connect their brands to live music experiences, which make a stronger impression and help people remember longer. Comprehensive events that engage participants’ five senses are what make people go the extra mile, give more, or remember the brand, Reid said.

UBJ cover story

What’s in the Upstate’s crystal ball?

Local leaders and thinkers share their predictions – and dreams – for 2013 and beyond Ask anybody who’s lived – or done business – in the Upstate over the past years and decades, and they’ll tell you: The only constant around here is change, and predicting future events will likely meet with as much success as predicting our vexingly changeable weather.

However, this area has always had its share of visionaries, and the Upstate Business Journal decided to ask a few of them how they see our future unfolding.

anticipated growth and infill. This is the less glamorous aspect of economic development, but one of the most crucial.

We have been fortunate to see growth and stability in our key economic clusters of advanced materials, biosciences and automotive; but in order to remain competitive, we must ensure that we have the requisite innovative environment.

One of Greenville’s greatest assets is its ability to collaborate, partner and support each for the good of the whole.

Nancy Whitworth, director of economic development for the City of Greenville

We will continue the momentum that we began in 2012 with further investments in downtown that will continue to position our downtown as the premier location for living, working and visiting.

I anticipate further strength in residential, offering an array of housing options at various price points. We will continue to see healthy renovation activity in our residential neighborhoods, signaling the value of city living.

We will see some exciting new retail entries into the market providing additional shopping variety.

Challenges for us in the future will be to keep pace with our physical infrastructure to support

14 Upstate business | JANUARY 11, 2013

DAVID BRITT, CHAIRMAN OF THE SPARTANBURG COUNTY economic DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE

We are coming off a very successful year in both jobs created and dollars invested in Spartanburg County, especially considering the condition of the overall global and national economy. We are extremely encouraged by the amount of interest shown towards Spartanburg County coming into 2013. This interest is from companies both outside the county and from our existing industry partners within the county. Our mission for this year is to get the deals done.

We have an excellent “A Team” when it comes to delivering this mission. First of all, the citizens of Spartanburg County send a strong message to the world that we know who the golden goose is: business and industry. Our business-minded Council and staff, working with both private and public entities focused on quality growth for the Spartanburg communities, will continue to work tirelessly for job opportunities and capital investment. For without these partnerships working in sync, Spartanburg does not succeed and prosper.

Joan Herlong,

owner/broker in charge of Augustaroad.com Realty

We’re going to continue to see a healthy real estate market in Greenville becoming even healthier and more robust, because we have very low interest rates and the market has already hit bottom.

Anybody who was waiting for the market to hit bottom and bounce back has already missed out.

I see more balance in the market, and balance is always a good thing. Sellers don’t like a buyer’s market and buyers don’t like a seller’s market.

A lot of people thought that the advent of the Internet would make real estate agents and real tours obsolete. Clearly that has not been the case and nothing is more constant than change. So realtors have to be proactive and creative and offer more service just to stay abreast of the game, not even ahead of the game. I think creativity and innovation regardless of what field you’re in is going be what fuels the economy. Plus basic old-fashioned things like showing up on time and returning phone calls – that’s what’s going to set leaders apart from followers.

STEVE SMITH, executive vice president and managing principal of CBRE/The Furman Co.

I think we’ll see positive trends in all commercial real estate sectors – the office, industrial, and retail markets. We’ll see vacancies decline and rents stabilize and even increase in some areas, which are good things.

There will be good activity in the multifamily sector – it continues to lead all the groups, and will continue to do so in 2013. In the industrial sector, the class-A product is leased, and there is very little space available.

What we’re hoping to see is either speculative construction going on or more build-to-suit activity. When you have little product, you don’t know what you are missing out on. As you absorb space in any market, that’s a challenge, having the right amount of product to lure tenants in-market but also out-of-market.

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Matt Carter,

broker-in-charge, Prudential Commercial Real Estate/C. Dan Joyner Co.

We are seeing some pretty good indicators of growth. I don’t know if I would call it slow growth or moderate. I’m not expecting now or in the future a “recovery,” but there is slow growth starting from where we were a few years ago.

Downtown Greenville continues to be the hub, but the county is seeing a lot of good trends.

Industrial buildings are full, and we will probably see some spec buildings, which is a good sign. We’re starting to see some types of retail developers tying up some property, so maybe we will have some bigger things to report, but nothing that’s knocking everybody’s socks off.

There are some high-level issues that need to be sorted out, and the government has not made corrective decisions about what got us here. The free market will lead us out.

Bill Barnett, Spartanburg businessman and former mayor

How Congress handles the nation’s many problems with budgeting and debt reduction is crucial in the coming year. Business doesn’t know how to plan with so many questions yet to be answered on things like health care and taxes. The last fight over raising the debt ceiling cost the nation its credit rating – not a thing we want to repeat again this year.

Adam Anderson, owner and CEO of Palmetto Software Group

When you look at some of the latest hacks and security breaches, you see a list of companies that were very well protected in one or more of the pillars but were exposed in others. My prediction: South Carolina companies will be motivated by the SCDOR hack and will use the

Security Intelligence approach when addressing cybersecurity risks in 2013.

When we say security intelligence, what we mean is that businesses are approaching cybersecurity from a holistic point of view.

This means establishing security systems and processes for people, data, applications and infrastructure.

Over the next few years we will see a trend of businesses spending dump trucks full of money on technology and still getting hacked. It turns out that a T-shirt I saw at a hacker conference is found to be true: “Social engineering, because you can’t patch stupid.” By 2017 companies will begin actively training security best practices such as “don’t click on URLs in emails from people you don’t know” and “don’t write your password down on a sticky note and put it under your keyboard.”

My wild prediction for 2013 is that someone will teach monkeys to use one of the many hacking software suites available and zoos will become the new national security threat.

Attempts to remove the Internet access from zoos will cause an outrage from animal-rights activists and the threat will continue with no resolution in the foreseeable future.

BOB Morris, president of the Greenville Community Foundation

When I look in my crystal ball I clearly see the successes outlined in Vision 2025. In addition, I feel the Anderson, Greenville and Spartanburg communities will establish a vibrant advanced manufacturing, chemical engineering and health sciences economy. I imagine an ethnically diverse population that will more closely resemble today’s major metropolitan areas than the Old South. Our businesses will be able to market and sell products and services worldwide.

My hope for the future is that the high school graduation rate will exceed 90 percent. I think all young adults will be able to earn a workforce credential or college degree that will lead to high-paying jobs. The Community Foundation, the Metropolitan Arts Council and the United Way will marshal social and financial capital to create the most attractive place to live and work on the entire East Coast. I think Greenville is great because of its tradition of generosity and that our future citizen-scholars will be even more generous.

Todd Horne, chairman of Spartanburg Young Professionals

The next few years are crucial for Spartanburg.

We have strengths: our universities, our entertainment venues, downtown corporate offices and the arts, culture, healthy living and heritage.

These strengths are the things we must begin to capitalize on.

It is important that we try to focus on what can make Spartanburg and downtown a cool place to visit. The key to this is foot traffic. This can include concerts at Barnet Park and Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium; new festivals downtown; and giving incentives to have restaurants and retail downtown.

We need to keep young professionals in our community after they graduate. There are seven colleges here and it is important to give those students a reason to stay here after they graduate.

We need an attitude adjustment. Too many people in Spartanburg have a negative outlook on our community. It is time we start to have a sense of pride about where we live.

And finally, we need a vision. Currently, Spartanburg has no long-term vision. We must remember, “If you don’t know where you are going, you will probably end up somewhere else.”

Dr. Keith Miller, president of Greenville Technical College

In 2013, manufacturing will continue to play an important role in economic growth here in the Upstate and across the country. Jobs created in this sector aren’t the same jobs people remember from years ago. So to help manufacturers grow, we need educational options that look different, too. That’s the only way we can close the gap that exists between the skills needed and the qualifications people currently have. I see Greenville Technical College as part of the solution to this problem. We want to support manufacturing with a new approach to education. Our proposed Carolinas Institute CRYSTAL BALL continued on page 16

JANUARY 11, 2013 | Upstate business 15

UBJ cover story

Feed Your Inner Food Enthusiast

UpstateFoodie.com

CRYSTAL BALL continued from page 15

for Training and Innovation will align industry needs with education, support entrepreneurs, allow business to develop prototypes for new products, and build the future workforce while growing the existing one.

Jeff Horton, chairman of Spartanburg County Council

I see the year ahead as one of steady, slow growth. Some time back, Council decided to become as independent as we can so far as outside revenue sources goes. Things have been tight for some time now and they will continue to be that way in the new year.

As much as we hate to do it, the answer to many requests for funding is going to be “no” this year.

What we have a real shortage of is warehouse and industrial space in the 50,000-square-foot range.

Ben Haskew, president and CEO of the Greenville Chamber of Commerce

The Chamber is coming off of two strong years of membership retention and growth, which says to us the broader business community is improving. We also continue to see growth in our NEXT program and that group of technology companies which typically pays wages at twice the county’s per capita income. Southwest Airline’s presence and the expansion of GSP International Airport, the continued construction of Project ONE and the Hyatt renovation downtown and strong manufacturing growth are all good indicators for the year ahead.

Jerry Howard, president and CEO of the Greenville Area Development Corporation

If you go back to 2012, it was not the best year in terms of capital investment, but it was very good. We had 25 wins, or announcements, which was more than we’ve ever had. So the higher number of wins but not the highest capital investment 16 Upstate business | JANUARY 11, 2013

shows we are working with smaller companies, smaller offices, and we expect that again in 2013.

But our core business is manufacturing, and I think we’re experiencing a renaissance in manufacturing.

The pipeline is healthy, and we need to make sure we’re prepared with sites, buildings, labor force, infrastructure. We are heading up strategic initiatives to address those. Workforce is probably the biggest challenge, but that’s true countrywide. We have demand for a high-skilled knowledge-based workforce and we have measures underway to address that.

Rick Erwin, owner of Rick Erwin Dining Group

2013 should be a very good year. I think one of the things that’s the biggest challenge to everybody has been what’s going on with taxes. Everybody knew that starting in 2013, everyone is going to be paying more.

Now, with what we’ve been through growth-wise, we can see how fortunate we are in the Upstate. There are a lot of things going on, not only in downtown, but throughout the county. We have a lot a lot of companies planning expansion, and with that, as far as my industry goes, a lot more mouths to feed.

So I’m very encouraged.

The biggest challenge for our industry continues to be commodity pricing. Grain, coffee, sugar – the commodities that are the fundamentals of food preparation have greatly increased in price, more in the last two years than in the last 40 years. No matter if you’re the largest fast-food company in the world or a small restaurant company, you have to make decisions about your prices based on your company and your concept and your business plan.

But we’re excited – it should be a fabulous year.

Bob Howard, executive director of the Greenville Tech Foundation

I believe we are in for some good years because we have the ingredients for renewed growth.

I think our greatest challenge will be building a stronger middle class in the Upstate. To do this, families already in the middle class need to be able to maintain or improve that status and families not there need the educational and employment opportunities to allow them to get there.

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UBJ cover story >>

This means creating more full-time jobs with benefits that pay wages sufficient to raise a family without each parent having to hold multiple jobs just to pay the bills. It means more training and educational opportunities to get those jobs. It means building a stronger governmental and nonprofit safety net of agencies offering assistance for the homeless, hungry, sick and addicted to give them the opportunity to improve their circumstances.

For most of our history, our country has had little social unrest. This is because most of our population regard the system as fair, and have hope that if they work and play by the rules t h a t they and their families can progress toward the American dream. For some, the deep recession has tested those beliefs. It is our challenge to reaffirm everyone’s belief in the fairness and hope inherent in our system, and then to deliver upon that promise.

For more prognostications, see this week’s Greenville and Spartanburg Journals.

Beginnings and Small Steps Many of us set resolutions over the New Year’s holiday in hopes of becoming thinner, richer, and better people in every way. Some of us are even taking some actions in moving towards our new goals.

Most of us understand what it takes to lose weight. We need less calorie input than calories burned. Most of us understand what it takes to develop wealth. We need to spend less than we make and prudently save the difference.

It’s really not education, intelligence or even understanding that determines if we will be well off financially. Lots of smart people make lots of money and spend it all. They have all the toys, take the trips, and eat well, but often end up with a drastic lifestyle adjustment when their income source changes.

Goals are usually defined as outcomes rather than specific actions we will take. Outcomes are determined by an enormous number of variables, and many times we have less control over the final product of our efforts than we would like to admit.

So if you are trying to get out of debt, a reasonable place to start might be to stop accumulating debt. Then you can determine how you might accelerate payments and pay the debt off a little sooner.

If you are trying to save money, you might try revisiting your options at work and making sure that you are taking full advantage of any matching and tax deferral options your employer is providing.

You might try setting aside a comfortable number towards your savings each paycheck. For some, this will look like as little as $100, and for others maybe a whole lot more.

Everything man-made begins with a thought. Thoughts derive at least, in some part, from intention. Goals are nice, but have you considered what actions are necessary to achieve your goals? Are you comfortable with what actions you need to take to do what you want?

Easy actions, repeated over a long period of time, bring amazing results. Focusing on an outcome will work for some, but not for others. It may work better to give up desserts and bread than to say you want to lose a few pounds.

So what sort of New Year’s actions could you take: easy, simple, no-worry kinds of actions that will add up and do some good for you and those around you? If you plan on taking some actions this year, you may like them better if you take a little time to intend.

Christopher A. Brown, CPA, PFS has been helping people plan and save money since 1995. Visit our website at www.falegacy.com for more information or call 864-233-0808 to schedule a free consultation.

JANUARY 11, 2013 | Upstate business 17

UBJ create, innovate, celebrate

Supporting high-growth small businesses startups A startup is not a startup is not a startup. In fact, to borrow a taxonomy from well-known entrepreneur, author and educator Steve Blank, there are six distinct types of startup organizations: lifestyle startups, small business startups, scalable startups, buyable startups, large company startups and social startups.

Lifestyle businesses allow owners to pursue their passions. Small businesses, which represent 99 percent of all startups in the U.S., are those in which the entrepre-

neurs work to feed their families and create local jobs.

Scalable startups are designed to grow well beyond the local economy – impacting markets across the country and across the globe.

Buyable startups are scalable businesses that are designed to be sold to a larger company that can more easily take the product or service to market with existing distribution networks.

Large companies may launch “internal startups” in an attempt

to create or manage disruptive innovation. And finally, social startups are pursued by entrepreneurs who are driven more by making the world a better place than by focusing on profits.

Removing barriers to success Each one of these business types plays an important role in a healthy, diverse, robust economy, but each of them faces different barriers to success, and each one requires a different ecosystem to

By Matt Dunbar

sustain them. As the state Legislature reconvenes this week in Columbia, lawmakers will have opportunities to help remove some of those barriers and support those various ecosystems.

One particular piece of legislation that will be introduced – the High Growth Small Business Act – could have a significant positive impact on the ecosystem for startups of the scalable type.

High-growth small businesses, what Blank refers to as scalable or buyable startups, are

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South Carolina Entrepreneurs Face Competitive Disadvantage for Capital State Angel Tax Credit Programs

Active Proposed Expired No Income Tax 18 Upstate business | JANUARY 11, 2013

UBJ create, innovate, celebrate Wisconsin example demonstrates job creation impact of angel tax credits

Source: Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation: Act 255 Interim Report, February 2012

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disproportionately important when it comes to job growth in our economy. Over the last 30 years, high-growth startups (less than five years old) have accounted for all net new-job growth in the United States. In South Carolina, more than two-thirds of all job growth 2004-2008 came from high growth firms, according to a study recently conducted by the University of South Carolina.

Access to capital remains a challenge However, these high-growth firms in South Carolina â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and those with the potential to scale into high-growth firms â&#x20AC;&#x201C; face a daunting challenge when it comes to securing capital to grow their businesses. A Capital Markets Study to be released this month

by New Carolina reveals that executives of these high-growth firms cite access to capital as a primary challenge to their growth.

Since most startups rely more on intellectual property than hard assets, they are not usually strong candidates for traditional bank loans, so they are left to maximize credit cards, lean on friends and family, or seek out extremely scarce sources of private capital. With no resident venture

capital firms in the state, their primary recourse for private capital is to search for willing angel investors. Yet it is estimated that fewer than 1 percent of the eligible angel investors in South Carolina are providing capital to scalable startups. (Currently, the Securities and Exchange Commission limits angel investing to accredited investors, although there is hope that those rules will be somewhat relaxed later this year with implementation of the rules for crowdfunding mandated by the JOBS Act of 2012).

In light of that capital gap, the first recommendation in the Capital Markets Study is the passage of legislation to create a tax credit that will encourage potential angel investors to invest in scalable South Carolina startups. There are currently 25 other states with similar programs, including North Carolina and Georgia, and many of these programs have proven highly effective in attracting capital and supporting job growth.

An incentive for investors A provision in the bill would allow the state to recover the value of the credit through the capital gains tax if the investment pays off, thus providing a near-term incentive for investors while allowing the state to reap both a direct and indirect return on its investment.

Additionally, the tax credit mechanism allows the market of private investors to select the strongest candidate startups rather than asking a government agency

to directly invest taxpayer dollars.

Finally, and importantly, the legislation includes built-in metrics so policymakers can determine its effectiveness before deciding whether to continue or strengthen the measure in the future.

With passage of the High Growth Small Business Act, we can help fill the capital gap for entrepreneurs in South Carolina, which will in turn help grow jobs and our economy.

The capital generated from those startups can then be recycled back into the entrepreneurial ecosystem, building momentum in a virtuous flywheel, ultimately helping us create a self-sustaining ecosystem that will benefit South Carolinians and their startups for generations to come.

Please encourage your legislators to support the High Growth Small Business Act, and thank those who use measures like this one to remove barriers and support ecosystems for entrepreneurs.

Matt Dunbar is managing director of the Upstate Carolina Angel Network.

To learn more about becoming an angel investor, visit www.upstateangels.org, or send an email to matt@ upstateangels.org.

JANUARY 11, 2013 | Upstate business 19

UBJ the fine print Equity player buys power plant Energy Capital Partners, a private equity firm, has acquired the Broad River power plant in Gaffney, from Calpine Corp. for $427 million.

The 847-megawatt natural gas-fired plant went online in June 2000 and has two long-term contracts to supply power to Carolina Power & Light, a subsidiary of Duke Energy Corp.

The planned sale was announced by Calpine in November and approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Dec. 18.

Calpine said the purchase price includes a five-year consulting contract. Calpine claims to be the U.S.’s largest independent wholesale producer of power by megawatts.

The acquisition, which was made under the name Broad River Power LLC, brings to 19 Energy Capital’s energy-related companies across the country.

Energy Capital has headquarters in Short Hills, N.J., and in San Diego.

IT cloud expands in Florida Green Cloud Technologies has expanded its marketing reach for its cloud-based IT services and disaster-recovery with an office in Tampa for the Florida market.

The company previously opened regional sales and service offices beyond Greenville, where it is headquartered, to Charleston and Nashville, Tenn., in growth funded by an investment commitment of $2.75-million for expansion.

Green Cloud’s niche is marketing to small and medium businesses through local IT dealers.

“Every business needs a business continuity plan during a natural or manmade disaster, and it’s even more critical for those with coastal markets like Florida,” said Charles Houser, Green Cloud vice president.

In addition to his Journal position, Moore is contributing editor for The National Review. He is past president of The Club for Growth.

Jim Yarbrough, vice president of the Yarbrough Group, said “the event Moore provides a unique opportunity to engage a national thought leader in a dialogue centered on our nation’s most pressing issue.”

The presentation begins at 6 p.m. It is free, but pre-registration is required. To register, call 864-241-6343 or email yarbroughgroup@ ubs.com.

Realtor: Housing market picks up Following a turnaround year in 2012, the housing market in the Carolinas will be “steady and healthy,” predicts Pat Riley, chief operating officer of Allen Tate Realtors.

“In 2013, we can expect home prices to rise, about 3 percent on average, with interest rates expected to hold for at least six months,” Riley said in the real estate firm’s Carolinas Market Update.

“New construction will be big, with lots of options, and rents will remain high. Steady and healthy will be good words to describe what to expect from the market.”

He expects the next decade will be a “good time to invest, rent and sell property.”

Allen Tate, which has its home office in Charlotte, has agent offices in the Upstate.

20 Upstate business | JANUARY 11, 2013

Home builders’ forecast upcoming The Home Builders Association of Greenville will present its annual housing market forecast Jan. 30 at the TD Convention Center in Greenville.

The program will feature David Crowe, chief economist of the National Association of Home Builders, and Dale Akins, president of The Market Edge, an information service for the residential and commercial construction industry.

“The information provided by Dr. Crowe and Dale Akins is valuable not only for those of us in the housing industry but for anyone who is interested in how housing trends affect our overall economic health,” said Rick Quinn, president of Greenville HBA. The Jan. 30 housing forecast program begins at the TD center at 11 a.m. For more information on attending, call 864-254-0133.

Tech firm opens in Columbia

WSJ economics writer scheduled UBS Financial Service’s’ Yarbrough Group will host Stephen Moore, Wall Street Journal senior economics writer, for a presentation titled “Keys to Prosperity” Thursday, Jan. 17, at the Poinsett Club in Greenville.

Group, which is already the dominant moviehouse chain in Greenville, Spartanburg and Anderson.

The Simpsonville cinema was one of 25 theaters acquired from Great Escape Theatres

by Regal for $91 million, according to Regal.

The Simpsonville cinema with 14 screens and an IMAX was opened in the spring of 2010. It was the only theater owned by Great Escape in South Carolina.

Regal, which is based in Knoxville, Tenn., owns Regal Hollywood and Regal Cherrydale Stadium in Greenville, Regal Spartan Stadium and Regal Westgate Mall Cinema in Spartanburg and Regal Starlight in Anderson.

Regal is one of the nation’s largest theater chains with 6,607 screens in 521 locations in 37 states and the District of Columbia.

Great Escape Theatres, which was based in New Albany, Ind., was a family-owned chain with 301 screens in 25 theaters in 11 states.

Take 2 for Great Escape The Great Escape Theatre in Simpsonville has been sold to the Regal Entertainment

EDTS, a full-service technology consulting company, has opened an office in Columbia to expand beyond Greenville and Augusta, Ga. It is the latest step in EDTS’ “planned expansion throughout the Southeast,” the company said.

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“EDTS has served clients in Columbia since 1999, and our new office gives us the opportunity to expand our local support staff and to support a growing Midlands client base,” said CEO Charles Johnson.

The company said it would be adding 15-20 network engineers and sales professionals to its existing staff of 50.

EDTS is listed among Inc. magazine’s 5,000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies, advancing 883 positions in 2012 to 2,562nd place.

Concierge doctor’s office opens PartnerMD, a medical practice in which patients pay an annual fee, opened its first office outside of Virginia in Greenville.

Dr. Jack C. Durham, a family practice physician who had been in traditional family practice for 30 years, opened the office at 12 Maple Tree Court. Prior to joining PartnerMD, he was with Holly Tree Family Practice, Simpsonville.

He is the 13th doctor to join PartnerMD’s concierge business.

Under the plan, patients have 24/7 access to a physician with “on-time, no-rush appointments, detailing results of their annual physical and many other amenities not offered by traditional primary care practices,” the company said.

The company said PartnerMDs see 85 percent fewer patients than a typical primary physician, allowing them to spend more time with each patient in a holistic approach to health care. The minimum appointment time is 30 minutes “More time with the patient means we have the resources to prevent diseases, not simply treat them,” Durham said.

Linda Nash, founder and CEO, said PartnerMD plans “to branch out to other nearby cities in the future.”

PartnerMD is not the fist concierge medical company to establish practices in the Upstate.

MDVIP, which is owned by Proctor & Gamble, has at least three physicians in its practice here.

Ave., Greenville, and said it plans to expand this year by hiring additional residential and commercial agents.

Griffin, a licensed real estate broker and certified business broker, said GPS’ integration of the various services “is key to maximizing both client relations and business efficiency.”

Auto lending spurs growth Regional Management Corp. has opened auto loan offices in Atlanta and in Austin, Texas.

The Greenville company, which provides consumer credit in the subprime sector, said its two new AutoCredit Source offices follow the creation of branches in Charlotte, DallasFort Worth, Houston and San Antonio.

“The AutoCredit Source brand and unit has been a successful extension of our business since we opened the first branch in early 2011,” said CEO Thomas Fortin. The company focuses on major metro markets, he added.

Auto lending represents approximately 42 percent of Regional’s “overall lending dollar asset base, and indirect auto lending currently encompasses approximately 15 percent of Regional’s total auto lending asset base,” the company said.

The auto lending store in Atlanta is Regional’s first offering in Georgia and provides “a beachhead to establish additional de novo branches” for other Regional lending services, Fortin said.

Building supplier gets partner Stock Building Supply, which has a building materials supply operation in Greenville, has acquired Atlanta-based Total Building Services Group, a supplier of structural components and architectural millwork.

The Gores Group, the Los Angeles private equity company that owns Stock Building Supply, also owns, as a totally unrelated business, Sage Automotive Interiors of Greenville.

Wellness gets film screening

Firm integrates real estate services Mark Griffin has opened Griffin Property Solutions as an integrated “commercial, residential, business brokerage and consulting firm.”

The company opened an office at 420 Park

A special screening of HBO’s short film “Weight of the Nation: How Wellness Programs Can Help the Workforce” will be held Wednesday, Jan. 16, at Bon Secours Millennium Campus, 2 Innovation Drive, Greenville.

The short film focuses “specifically on the impact obesity has on employees and employers, as well as realistic steps to address this national issue,” according to HBO. Lunch is served at 11:45 a.m. The film begins at 12 and is followed by a Q&A. A catered lunch will be served for $10. Attendees can bring their own lunches.

Seating is limited to 40. Register at http:// weightofthenationworksite.eventbrite.com JANUARY 11, 2013 | Upstate business 21

UBJ on the move

elected

elected

hired

honored

honored

Ana Davis

Rick Quinn

Chris Campbell

Steve Hoffman

Michael Walter

Elected chairman of the Loaves and Fishes of Greenville board for 2013. Davis, business manager at Godshall Professional Recruiting & Staffing, has been involved with Loaves and Fishes, an organization dedicated to providing a solution to hunger and waste in the community, for the past six years.

Her community involvement also includes the Greer Relief Agency, the Greer Chamber of Commerce and the Spartanburg Human Resources Association.

Elected 2013 president of the Home Builders Association of Greenville, a local trade organization. Quinn established Quinn Company in 1992, and in 1996 partnered with local builder Joe Satterfield to form Quinn Satterfield Inc. In 2007 and again in 2008, Inc. magazine recognized Quinn Satterfield as one of the fastest-growing companies in the nation. Rick also was HBA of Greenville’s Builder of the Year in 2008.

Hired as the safety director at O’Neal Inc., a Greenville-based integrated design and construction firm. Campbell has more than 15 years of safety experience and is a certified OSHA 500 outreach instructor. He comes to O’Neal from Sunbelt Industrial Co Inc., where he served as the corporate environmental health and safety director.

Will be recognized for the prestigious Certified Trade Show Marketer designation in March.

Awarded by Exhibitor magazine in affiliation with Northern Illinois University Outreach, and reflects adherence to the highest standards of trade show and event marketing. Hoffman, president of Skyline Exhibits & Design, began working with Skyline’s Carolina distributor, The Holt Group, in 1995, eventually purchasing the territory in 2006.

Recently inducted into the franchise Hall of Fame for Subway Development Corporation of South Carolina Inc. As vice president of operations, the Simpsonville resident oversees the 400 Subway locally-owned franchise restaurants throughout South Carolina. The award recognizes his dedication and contributions to the success of Subway restaurants. He has held positions at Subway restaurants as a field consultant and operations specialist.

BANKING/FINANCIAL • BB&T–CIC Insurance Services Inc. recently announced that William C. Stewart, an employee business agent, has earned his Registered Health Underwriter (RHU) designation from The American College. The National Association of Health Underwriters

(NAHU) views this designation as the highest recognition in the health insurance industry, demonstrating Stewart’s commitment to educational leadership within the insurance profession.

of Greenville recently announced that the following were elected to serve as officers in 2013: Rick Quinn of Quinn-Satterfield Inc., president; Mike Freeman of ACA/ Freewood Contracting, presidentelect; Alan Boone of Advanced Renovations, vice-president; Bob Barreto of GBS Building Supply;

associates’ vice president; Susan Vernon of Dillard-Jones Builders LLC, secretary; Chuck Childress of BB&T, treasurer; Tom Dillard of Dillard-Jones Builders LLC, president’s appointee; and Robert Markel of Hadrian Construction, immediate past president. The following were also elected to

OLD SCHOOL MEETS NEW SCHOOL

OLD SCHOOL MEETS NEW SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE

• The Home Builders Association

OLD SCHOOLMEETS MEETS NEW SCHOOL OLD SCHOOL NEW SCHOOL

Check us out, we’ve gone digital.

Check us out, we’ve gone digital. www.GreenvilleJournal.com www.GreenvilleJournal.com

Check us out, we’ve gone digital.

22 Upstate business | JANUARY 11, 2013

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UBJ on the move

EDUCATION • Furman University recently selected the 2013 class for Connections: Women Leaders of the Upstate, the university’s premier leadership development program.

Since its inception in 1997, the program brings women together to connect, take control of their careers, become stronger leaders and make significant contributions to their communities. Class members are: Carol C. Perrin Cobb, Betty Cox, Ashley Cuttino, Pam Davis, Ann Driscoll, Natalie Dunham, Joy Grayson, Euleta Hagins, Stephanie Haltiwanger, Denice Harris, Berri Hicks, April Huttunen, Kacie Jackson, Anna Joiner, Brooke Jones, Keri Macaulay, Barbara Martin, Betsy McMillan, Sara Montero-Buria, Tammy Moore, Emily Muserallo, Lindsey Myers, Amanda Perkins, Rhiannon Poore, Carrie Priddy, Tamara Robertson, Deidre Sandrock, Lauren Scoggins, Melissa Seely, Michelle Walley, Tracy Waters, Heather Witt and Nicole Wood.

LEGAL • Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd P.A. recently announced that Joshua D. (Josh) Spencer has been elected shareholder in the firm. Spencer practices in the fields of construc-

tion, utility and business/commercial litigation in federal and state courts, as well as in arbitration and administrative hearings.

MARKETING • Jackson Marketing Group, South Carolina’s largest businessto-business integrated marketing communications agency, recently hired Laveda Miles as traffic supervisor and Emily Abraham as media coordinator. Miles brings more than 25 years of experience in traffic management in a number of agencies. Abraham comes to JMG from WJHG-TV in Panama City Beach, Fla., where she served as the morning news producer.

REAL ESTATE • Keller Williams Realty, Greenville, recently introduced Michael Brown as CEO/team leader of this rapidly growing office of real estate professionals.

• Colonial Commercial, a commercial real estate company based in Greenville, recently announced the addition of Amy Wood, CPM, as vice president of its Property Management Division. Wood has an expansive 15 years of comprehensive management experience in commercial property and asset management, having developed long and successful relationships with national tenants such as BILO, Hobby Lobby, Walgreens, Stein Mart, Academy Sports & Outdoors, Office Depot and others throughout the Southeast.

• Prudential C. Dan Joyner Co., Realtors, recently announced that Ryan Carlson has joined the company and serves as a sales associate at the Garlington Road office. Prior to joining C. Dan Joyner Company, Carlson served as construction manager for Fluor Corporation.

Prepare Yourself for Health Care Reform Health Care Reform may be the biggest challenge that we have faced in some time. As employers, you must decide how you are going to view this challenge.

Some businesses are avoiding it by sticking their heads in the sand. But, wise employers are already evaluating how this law affects them and planning accordingly.

LEE YARBOROUGH

2013 is the time to set the stage for compliance. The majority of the reform begins in 2014, but employers need to begin now. Remember, Health Care Reform does not require you to provide healthcare to full-time employees; however it will impose a potential penalty on employers, with at least 50 full-time employees, who fail to do so.

The first thing a business needs to do is evaluate whether they are considered a “large” employer (more than 50 fulltime employees or the equivalent). All employees who work an average of 30 or more hours per week (or 130 hours per month) in an evaluation period should be counted as full time employees. Employers need to determine a “look-back period” of 3 to 12 months in which to evaluate the average hours of employees.

While the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) does not require employers to offer health insurance to part-time employees, it does count part-time employees as fractional employees. Be careful when counting to include the fractional employees as well.

It is not as simple as saying 2 part-time employees equal 1 full-time; there is a specific formula used to produce the actual full-time equivalent. Count the total hours of service (up to 120 hours per employee) for all non-full-time employees in a month and divide by 120. The result is the number of fulltime equivalents for the month. There are special rules for counting seasonal employees (IRS Notice 2011-36).

In 2013, this analysis needs to begin. Meet with your benefit advisors and human resources team to fully understand the many aspects of the Act and to help you plan for 2014.

Whether we like it or not, PPACA is the law of the land.

Are you ready?

movers and shakers New hires, promotions, award-winners, or stand-out employees can be featured in On The Move... send information & a photo. onthemove@upstatebusinessjournal.com

669 N. Academy Street, Greenville, SC 864.679.6055 | 800.446.6567 | www.propelhr.com M13A

>>

serve on the 2013 HBA board of directors: Scott Presley of Greer State Bank; Jon Statom of Palmetto Exterminators; Wayne Moore of Harold Moore Builder Inc.; Gus Rubio of Gabriel Builders; Matt Vaughn of Brand Mortgage; John Colacioppo of The Cook’s Station; Deana Long of GBS Building Supply; Chris Bailey of Stoneledge Properties; Seabrook Marchant of The Marchant Company; and Joe Hoover of Hoover Custom Construction. The Home Builders Association of Greenville includes local and national builders, remodelers, specialty contractors, manufacturers, financial and insurance professionals, realtors, and many others who offer products and services for homeowners and first-time homebuyers.

JANUARY 11, 2013 | Upstate business 23

PLANNER Monday January

14 UBJ social

GCS Roundtable: Clemson Small Business Development Center The Office Center at the Point, 33 Market Point Drive, Greenville; 8:30-9:30 a.m.

Speakers: Scott Whelchel and Renn Mills.

Call Golden Career Strategies at 864-527-0425 to request an invitation.

Tuesday January

15

Simpsonville Young Professionals Simpsonville Chamber of Commerce, 211 N. Main St., Simpsonville; 5-6 p.m. This is an informational meeting for young professionals in Simpsonville and surrounding areas. Contact: Allison McGarity at amcgarity@ simpsonvillechamber.com to register.

Business Before Hours Hyatt Regency Greenville, 220 N Main St., Greenville; 5:30-7:30 p.m. No cost to attend.

Contact: Lorraine Woodward at 864-239-3742.

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Wednesday January

Handshakes and Hashbrowns at Chef 360 Chef 360, 130 Johns Road, Suite C, Greer; 8-9 a.m. Hosted by Chef 360 Catering and free for members. Register at www.greerchamber.com or call 864-242-5578 for more information.

Tech After Five – Greenville Carolina Ale House, 113 South Main St., Greenville; 5:30-7:30 p.m. Free to GSA Technology Council members. Register at www.techafterfive.com.

Thursday January

17

Small Business Start-Up Tri-County Technical College - Pendleton Campus, 7900 Highway 76, Pendleton; 5:308:30 p.m. Cost: $199 plus $99 for books and software. Register online at www.piedmontscore. org. Call 864-271-3638 for more information.

75th Annual Celebration Embassy Suites Hotel, 670 Verdae Blvd., Greenville; Reception at 5:30 p.m., Program at 7 p.m. Speaker: Craig Dietz, ESPN featured athlete and motivational speaker. Cost: $65 for Greer Chamber members, $75 for nonmembers. For more information call 864-8773131 or visit www.greerchamber.com.

Greer Chamber of Commerce’s First Friday Luncheon (Countercloclwise from above)

• A large crowd was on hand for the year’s first First Friday luncheon held at Greer City Hall.

• Allen Smith with the Greer Chamber of Commerce welcomes everyone to the luncheon, themed “What’s Happening in Columbia in 2013?” All six elected officials representing Greer were in attendance; all spoke and answered questions during the question-and-answer portion of the event.

• John Mansure, president of Greer Memorial Hospital, addressed the lncheon guests.

Greer Memorial Hospital is the presenting sponsor of the year.

• Attendees check in upon arrival at Greer City Hall and then mingle during the networking session.

Upstate Alumni-Economic Outlook for the Upstate with Dr. Doug Woodward Presentation: Michelin, 1 Parkway S.; Greenville; 6-7 p.m. Networking: Giatu, Greenville Marriott, 1 Parkway E., Greenville; 7-9 p.m. Speaker: Noted economist Dr. Doug Woodword will present the Economic Outlook for 2013 and beyond on a local, state and national level, with special attention to the Upstate. Admission: $10 per person. Contact: Office of Alumni Relations, Darla Moore School of Business at 803-777-7602 or alumni@moore.sc.edu

21

Monday January

GCS Roundtable: Staying Abreast of Technology in Your Career Transition The Office Center at the Point, 33 Market Point Drive, Greenville; 8:30-9:30 a.m.

Speaker: Marguerite Gabriele, Carolina Computer Training. Call Golden Career Strategies at 864-527-0425 to request an invitation.

22

Women Managing Women Greenville Chamber of Commerce, 24 Cleveland St., Greenville; 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Cost: $10. Attendees are invited to bring lunch, dessert will be provided. Register at http://scwbc.net/events/greenvillespartanburg/.

Submit your event: events@upstatebusinessjournal.com

Photos by Greg Beckner

Tuesday January

UBJ digital maven

Get your IT together: 3 steps closer to a paperless office First of a 3 - part series

As an editor, it used to drive me crazy to walk around the newsroom and see reporters’ desks overflowing with piles of paper – documents, reports, and scribbles on scraps of notebook paper. They accused me of wanting the newsroom to look like an insurance office. Not true.

But periodic challenges to find a specific report or notebook among the rubble proved my true point: If you can’t find things, there is no point in saving them.

Decades after the phrase was first coined, we are still struggling to have a paperless office (or lifestyle), and we are drowning in the information we generate. Born of our fear of losing something, we have doubled the junk we keep and halved our ability to find anything.

We need three things to change that: • A major clean-up to get things to a baseline level.

• A workflow and the digital structure to move forward.

• A backup plan for emergencies great and small.

Cleaning up files can be a huge challenge. If your business has a shared server – whether it is local or cloudbased – you probably have a directory structure you think people are using.

But most likely you have employees who have decided the server’s not safe enough or not convenient enough for their files and they have created and updated copies that reside on their computer hard drive only.

Identify your critical business files – client reports, contracts, research, white papers, or proposals – wherever they may be, and make sure you have the one most current copy. Separate them into current and historic/archive. Include paper files in this process. If you have the time and the horsepower, create PDFs of as many files as possible.

Divide things into active (files you need regular access to within the next 12 months, like quarterly reports, annual reviews, etc.), archive (files you rarely – if ever – need, but that contain reference or historical information that is part of your business evolution), and trash (anything that isn’t in these two categories belongs there).

I could write a book about ways to manage your email. But it has to start with getting down to a manageable inbox and folder system. I know this sounds like one of those

things consultants tell you that sounds great, but then they go away and never have to prove it can actually be done. It can. And you can do it. Imagine how much better you would feel at the start of each day if firing up your computer didn’t bring up an Inbox of 2,367 unread items.

But what you need to start with is a hard-nosed approach. Start by making one archived backup of everything in your mail. You can view a screencast of how to do this in Outlook, Apple Mail or Gmail by going here: http://goo.gl/ol41d. Once you have a restorable backup, you can feel comfortable in going through these steps to do a dig-deep cleanup.

Extricating yourself from these common email traps will help clear out a big percentage of your inbox: • Deleted items. Most people never actually empty the deleted items folder. This is silly. It’s like throwing food in the trash but then refusing to take it outside to the curb because you never know when you might want those chicken wings. You deleted the email once and chances are you have not been digging in your trash looking for things. Cut the cord.

• Large files with attachments.

A lot of email is used to share files.

Email is not the best way to do this, but we’ll put that aside for now.

By Laura Haight

Outlook has several functions to help you clean up your inbox and find large attachments. Use the same criteria as for your other files – active, archive or trash.

• Delete your sent mail. If you are like most users, you are saving a copy of every message you send.

Also most people never delete those messages.

• Unneeded and unwanted messages. Newsletters, daily briefings, email you have read and responded to, but didn’t delete. Sort your inbox by subject and make it easier to identify files to delete. For 2013, set up rules to file these kinds of files into a READ LATER folder with an automatic deletion schedule set up.

And check out a pretty cool Outlook feature called Reply and Delete.

• If you have an Exchange server for your business or utilize a hosted Exchange service online, set up mailbox quotas. Make them high enough to be reasonable, but not unlimited.

Most of us do not clean out the closet until we truly run out of space.

Next week: Setting up a digital workflow to reduce paper, minimize wasted and duplicative effort and cut unnecessary expense. All that means more time doing what your business does.

Laura Haight is the president of Portfolio (www.portfoliosc.com), a communications company based in Greenville. She is a former IT executive, journalist and newspaper editor. Connect with the Digital Maven on Facebook/theDigitalMaven and share ideas, comments, suggestions and your input on the weekly question.

JANUARY 11, 2013 | Upstate business 25

UBJ snapshot FROM Duke’s Mayonnaise factory to The Wyche PavilioN The Wyche Pavilion is one of Greenville’s oldest commercial buildings. Once it was the Duke’s Mayonnaise factory, but as time has gone on, it has evolved. Now owned and managed by The Peace Center, this unique open-air brick structure is used for weddings, receptions, cocktail and dinner parties, and large social gatherings.

how it was

how it is

Photos by Greg Beckner

Photo Provided

Got an old photo you’d like featured here? Send an image file to snapshot@upstatebusiness.com with a description of the photo and do your darnedest to identify any people in it.

Upstate

Business J O U R N A L

HOW TO REACH US 148 River Street., Suite 120 Greenville, SC 29601, 864.679.1200 Copyright @2013 BY COMMUNITY JOURNALS LLC. All rights reserved. Upstate Business Journal (Vol. 2, No. 2) is published weekly by Community Journals LLC. 148 River Street, Suite 120, Greenville, South Carolina, 29601. Upstate Business Journal is a free publication. Annual subscriptions (52 issues) can be purchased for $65. Visit www.UpstateBusinessJournal.com. Postmaster: Send address changes to Upstate Business, 148 River St., Ste 120, Greenville, SC 29601. Printed in the USA.

26 Upstate business | JANUARY 11, 2013

PRESIDENT/Publisher Mark B. Johnston mjohnston@communityjournals.com Senior Vice President Alan P. Martin amartin@communityjournals.com UBJ Associate Publisher Ryan L. Johnston rjohnston@communityjournals.com eXECUTIVE Editor Susan Clary Simmons ssimmons@communityjournals.com Assistant editor Jerry Salley jsalley@communityjournals.com

Marketing Representatives Lori Burney | Mary Beth Culbertson Kristi Jennings | Donna Johnston Pam Putman staff writers Cindy Landrum | April A. Morris Charles Sowell SENIOR BUSINESS writer Dick Hughes contributing writerS Jenny Munro | Jennifer Oladipo Jeanne Putnam | Leigh Savage EDITORIAL INTERN Shelby Livingston Design LEAD Kristy M. Adair GRAPHIC Design Whitney Fincannon

photographer Greg Beckner CONTRIBUTING photo EDITOR Gerry Pate MarketinG Katherine Elrod Marketing & EVENTS Kate Banner Billing Shannon Rochester PrODUCTION Holly Hardin Client Services ManagerS Anita Harley | Jane Rogers ADVERTISING DESIGN Michael Allen BUSINESS STORY IDEAS ideas@upstatebusinessjournal.com IDEAS, FEEDBACK, OPINIONS opinions@upstatebusinessjournal.com

UBJ new to the street & dealmakers

ROLLING GREEN VILLAGE HEALTH CENTER

SW FeeSAVER SW FeeSaver, a green, environmental consulting company, which provides application for Stormwater Utility Fee Credits from governmental entities collected for real property, recently opened. Other services provided are: new pond and retrofit design, permitting and construction management; stormwater master plans and stormwater compliance; geese deterrent systems; aeration systems; and pond algae control. The company is located at 803 Roper Creek Road in Greenville.

Rolling Green Village recently completed an extensive renovation to its Health Center. The improvements are part of Rolling Green’s continuing care approach, which assures residents they will be able to move from Independent Living to Assisted Living and the skilled nursing care of their Health Center, should services be needed. The renovation added short-term rehabilitation services for those who want to recover and return home after an illness or surgery. They also offer support for advanced dementia by highly trained professionals. Rolling Green is located at 1 Hoke Road in Greenville.

dealmakers Langston-Black Real Estate, Inc. announced:

NAI Earle Furman announced:

• Chuck Langston represented Over the Top Endeavors LLC in the sale of three convenience stores in upstate South Carolina to JCAN Properties LLC. Two of the stores are located in Greer and one in Duncan.

• Grice Hunt and Ford Borders represented the landlord of 5670 N. Blackstock Road, Spartanburg, in leasing a 180,700-squarefoot industrial space to Smith & McBride LLC.

• Chuck Langston represented Hunter Development LLC in the leasing of 11,000 square feet to Kingdom Assembly Outreach Center.

Lee & Associates announced: • Randall Bentley represented the owner of 1 Brozzini Court, Suite A, Greenville, in leasing a 72,000-square-foot production facility to Hartness International.

• Deanna Hemberger represented Nanette Holloway State Farm Agency in leasing 1704 Highway 86, Piedmont.

• Stuart Wyeth, Peter Couchell and David Feild represented the landlord of 2000 Wade Hampton Blvd., Greenville, in leasing a 7,524-square-foot office space to Bruce Henry Properties Greenville LLC. • Towers Rice represented the landlord of 16 Red Fox Blvd., Williamston in leasing a 20,000-square-foot industrial property to Blue Ridge Security Inc. • Ted Lyerly and Jimmy Wright represented the landlord of 1011 S. Pendleton St., Easley, in leasing a 6,000-square-foot retail space to R3 Motorcar LLC.

• Jon Good, Earle Furman, and Alexi Papapieris represented Wells Fargo Bank in selling an 8,650-square-foot office property located at 127 W. Antrim Drive, Greenville, to JME Holdings Inc. • John Baldwin and Mike Greer represented Trinity Investments & Development LLC in selling a 10,000-square-foot industrial property at 104 Twenty Nine Court, Williamston, to Ensaavi Properties LLC. • Hunter Garrett and John Staunton represented The Palmetto Bank in selling a 2,419-squarefoot office property at 7721 Clemson Blvd., Pendleton, to Richard Henry and Sons LLC. • Tony Bonitati and Kay Hill represented Pope Field Terrace SC LLC in purchasing a 9-acre land property located on Pearson Road, Easley. The property is a Low-Income Housing Tax Credit purchase and will be developed into 55 affordable housing units.

• John Gray represented Chudrow Empire LLC in purchasing a 3,294-squarefoot office property at 706 E. Washington St., Greenville.

• Jimmy Wright and Ted Lyerly represented the seller of Crosspointe Plaza on Woods Crossing Road, Greenville, in selling the 72,978-square-foot shopping center. The plaza, adjacent to the Haywood Mall, formerly housed Circuit City.

• Dan Dunn represented Flint Lake Inc. in selling a 64,636-square-foot industrial property located at 230 New Hope Road, Spartanburg.

Ford Borders and Grice Hunt represented the purchaser.

• John Powell represented GrandSouth Bank in selling 18 residential lots totaling 5.42 acres in the Winding Stream subdivision on Streams Way, Anderson, to Unique Logic LLC.

JANUARY 11, 2013 | Upstate business 27

UBJ

UBJ THANKS THESE NEW GREENVILLE CHAMBER MEMBERS FOR THEIR INVESTMENT IN OUR UPSTATE BUSINESS COMMUNITY! 4 You Custom Gifts and Awards Acadia Development Agency Advisors, Inc Alfred L. Smith Company Allcon Roofing Allstate Insurance-Brad A. Hughes Ameri-Trans, Inc Anderson University MBA at the University Center Arcpoint Labs Artisan Traders At Home Abroad, LLC Augustaroad.com Realty, LLC B & C Custom Cleaners Ballentine Capital Advisors Black & Black, LLC Bohemian Restaurant Britt Peters & Associates, Inc. Business & Professional Women Greenville Campbell CPA Firm, LLC Capital Advisors, Inc. Capital Bank Carolina Dental Group Carolina Triathlon CB Events CBI Insurance Chiefs Wings & Firewater Civil Consulting and Design (CCAD) Classic Carpets & Interiors Clemson University-College of Health Education & Human Development Coldwell Banker CaineDavid Seaver Colonial Commercial Group, LLC Community Options Corporate Energy, LLC Covenant Dove CPR-Cell Phone Repair

CreatiVasc Daniels Scientific Dealer Ignition LLC Digital Office Solutions Inc. Dining For Women Duncan’s Hardware Ecowaste Services Eleos Technologies Emerald Benefit Services Enclave Paris Mountain Energy Control & Services Exceptional Catering Fant Law, P.A. Five Star Construction Francis Produce Freeland & Associates, Inc. Frontier Label Galley & Nami Restaurants at Portman Marina Garrison Opticians Gilbarco Greenwise Design & Construction Group 1.6, LLC Horton Drawdy Law Firm Industrial Safety Coatings Instel Power Service Intelli-Net Investi-Net Iron Yard J & J Catering Jack Runnion, Ltd Jenks Realty-John Stillwell JL Corporation Kiefer Corporation Kitchens Endodontics Lander Foundation Leonardi Bracken Real Estate Lima One Capital

Love, Bailey & Associates, LLC Lowder Group (LSTI) LS Technical Institute, Inc. M33 Integrated Majestic Builders Marchant CompanyValerie Miller Masstar Signs McAlister Square McKibbon Law Firm Modern Material Handling Company Montgomery Law Firm N & H Enterprises National Service Center Net Zero Oxford Capital Partners Oxner Landscape Maintenance, Inc. Palmetto Boat Center Palmetto Technology Group Paradise Massage & More Patrick M. Erwin & Associates, PA Pelham Road Party Shop Pencil Portraits By Ashley Perks Cafe, Catering & Coffee PIP Printing & Marketing Services Pleasantburg Veterinary Clinic PNC Bank Postcard from Paris Preferred Financial Services, Inc. Puro Clean Restoration PuroClean Disaster Restoration

Rainbow Restoration Rapptor Studios Reel Video & Stills Returnable Packaging Resources RJA Entertainment Mgmt Co./ RJA Commercial Investments Saad and Manios, LLC Safeco Insurance Sandler Training - SC SC Army National Guard Sealevel System SensorTech, Inc. Shed Labs, LLC South Carolina State University StarkRFID State Farm Agency - Greg Heintz STEELENG Golf Cart Accessories Stone Properties, Inc Stonebridge Wealth Management Summit Janitorial Services Synchronicity Well Life Center THUMB FRIENDLY TL Norris Gallery Wagner Wealth Management Wendell L. Hawkins, P.A. Whitaker Group | A Digital Marketing Firm Wilbert Vault Co., Inc. Willis Window & Door Solutions Yeargin-Potter-Shackelford Construction Your Chamber Connection YouthBASE, Inc.

The Greenville Chamber’s vision is to build one of the premier business communities in the world.

Call 864-242-1050 or visit www.greenvillechamber.org to invest today!