Business Upstate
JANUARY 18, 2013
J O U R N A L
WMUU’s switch to conservative talk shocked some listeners – but for the new owners, it’s a return to basics
FRESH
AIR Ecoplosion celebrates entrepreneurship page 4
Hub City Press does it A growth spurt for for the community the Furman Co. page 6
page 10
UBJ 8
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The rise of retail clinics
Furman Co. acquires insurance lines from BSI
Statehouse Report
Tools of the Trade
Yes, Carolina, there is a lot of good
Carving his niche
By Dick Hughes senior business writer
By Andy Brack contributor
By Leigh Savage contributor
By Leigh Savage contributor
Conservative talk replaces music at WMUU See complete story on page 14
Photo by Greg Beckner
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Guest Column
Create. Innovate. Celebrate.
The Takeaway
Digital Maven
Step up, raise your hand – and don’t fear mistakes
Keeping it clean: 2 steps closer to a paperless office
By Karen Potter contributor
By Laura Haight contributor
What young professionals are doing in 2013 By John Boyanoski contributor
Sealed Air’s InnoVision innovations
2 Upstate business | JANUARY 18, 2013
By Michael Mino contributor
UBJ worth repeating & tba “It went from sanguine to tumultuous overnight.” Greg Anderson, president of Salem Communications, new owners of Bob Jones University’s radio station WMUU, on the station’s abrupt shift from a semi-classical “beautiful music” format to conservative news and talk.
“The books we publish have to have a strong sense of place. That doesn’t mean it has to be about cotton mills.” Betsy Teter, executive director of Spartanburg’s Hub City Writers Project.
“When I was a kid at Clemson, nobody talked about starting a business. Now it is one of the major efforts.” Leighton Cubbage of Serrus Capital Partners. Next week, Clemson will host the second annual Ecoplosion summit to celebrate and foster entrepreneurship in the Upstate.
“Moses got out of the desert after 40 years, but I’m still here in the woodpile, and I don’t know if I’ll ever get out.” Louie Inabinett, cabinetmaker and owner of Greenville Woodworking.
TBA
A major aviation company is reportedly considering relocating headquarters and operations to Greenville County, with “several hundred new jobs” expected to accompany the move. County economic development and industry officials have been working behind the scenes on negotiations… Look for some changes to the Thomas Creek Brewery marketing and logos in the coming weeks, including new tap handles for downtown bars… Word is Clemson University is busy with plans to further expand its presence in Greenville. The campaign is being dubbed “Orangeville”… A new venue space is reportedly heading to downtown Greenville in the coming months…
JANUARY 18, 2013 | Upstate business 3
UBJ
Ecoplosion celebrates entrepreneurial environment Second annual summit aims to link innovators to mentors By Dick Hughes | senior business writer
The second annual Ecoplosion summit, hosted by Clemson, is an opportunity to celebrate the growth of the entrepreneurial environment of the Upstate and link young innovators with successful mentors, sponsors say. “One of the reasons we are doing this is to help that next generation and follow up with opportunity to have access to thought leaders,” was how Greg Pickett, associate dean at Clemson at the Falls, put it. The inaugural event in 2012 drew more than 400 people, and sponsors say they have assembled a program for an even bigger and more successful event. Ecoplosion will be held Thursday, Jan. 24, from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. in the AT&T Auditorium of Clemson’s International Center for Automotive Research in Greenville. Admission is free, but participants are encouraged to donate money for programs to support Clemson graduate students in entrepreneurship and real estate development. Advance registration is required at www.clemson.edu/ethis/events/ exoplosion2013.php. Randy Dobbs, who spent 27 years at General Electric and led three companies valued at more than $1 billion after leaving GE, will deliver the keynote address. Dobbs, who has a consulting business in Greenville, is author of “Transformational
Randy Dobbs will be the keynote speaker at Clemson’s 2013 Ecoplosion event.
Leadership.” Steve Mudge, a principal of Serrus Capital, a sponsor of the event, said Dobbs believes in putting “relationships with the community first with everything he does. We want him to tell that story” at Ecoplosion. Mudge said Ecoplosion and the many programs held by Clemson throughout the year are “trying to fill a void” by exposing innovators with business ideas to successful people. Pickett said that mentorships, internships and networking events such as those that Ecoplosion provides bring experienced business
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leaders together as examples and mentors “to help students realize their dreams, create a business and then have a mentor network in place to help them grow that business here.” He said he expects “success stories” out of the first graduating class in the MBA entrepreneurial program at Clemson, “and we expect those students to run their businesses in South Carolina, specifically in Greenville.” Another goal of Ecoplosion is to build on the enthusiasm in the Upstate for encouraging small businesses focused on high technology, said Leighton Cubbage, a partner in Serrus. “When I was a kid at Clemson, nobody talked about starting a business,” and Clemson and other state universities didn’t put any effort into it, said Cubbage, a Clemson graduate and an entrepreneur in his own right. “Now it is one of
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the major efforts.” Bringing people together to talk about what is working and what is not can also encourage more support, most particularly in state government and in the Legislature, for a “greater appreciation for how we support entrepreneurial ventures in addition to the support that is often provided to the largest employers for moving a plant into our area,” Pickett said. “While you see substantial support for expansion at Michelin or BMW or Continental Tire or other large developments, there is recognition that we don’t do as much to facilitate the growth of smaller businesses.” Picket said there is much to celebrate in the development of innovative businesses in a growing knowledge economy. “We are seeing substantial movement. The ecosystem here in Greenville is amazing.” Contact Dick Hughes at dhughes@communityjournals.com.
UBJ Some banks may have more branches…
but, we have more roots. If your bank doesn’t work as hard for your money, as you worked to get it... you should think twice. Whether you are just getting started or already established in the Greenville community, we’re committed to helping your business grow. We’ll get to know you and your business before customizing banking solutions to suit your unique needs. Let’s
Real estate finishes 2012 strong By Dick Hughes | senior business writer
The housing market in the Upstate and statewide finished 2012 on an upbeat note, offering promise of continuing recovery after downbeat years in the recession and its dreary aftermath. “Momentum is on our side, though it won’t necessarily be fast, consistent or universal,” said South Carolina Realtors in its December market report. “But after five or six challenging years, it’s a welcome change of pace.”
“Momentum is on our side, though it won’t necessarily be fast, consistent or universal.” South Carolina Realtors in its December market report
In the metro areas of Greenville and Spartanburg, sales were up and sold at a higher price and faster clip. Sales in Greater Greenville were up 14.3 percent in 2012; sales in Spartanburg County were up 16.8
percent in Spartanburg County. Both markets did better than the state average of 12.5 percent. The average median price in Greenville was up 6.2 percent to $148,700 over 2011. It rose 4.3 percent to $120,000 in Spartanburg. For the year, the average days on the market declined 10.9 percent in Greenville to 101 and 2.5 percent to 155 days in Spartanburg. For December, there were better signs of improvement for the two markets in a year-over-year monthly comparison. The sale of 622 residential units was 23.4 percent better than December 2011. The sale of 212 in Spartanburg was up 22.5 percent. The average median price was $149,450 in Greenville last month, 10.7 percent higher than December 2011. The median price in Spartanburg rose 8.6 percent to $124,000. Days on the market, an important indicator of activity, declined 22.4 percent from 123 days to 95 in Greenville and 15.9 percent from 166 to 139 days in Spartanburg. SCR noted that statewide the price range with the strongest gain in sales in December was $200,000 - $300,000. The segment gained traction of 21.7 percent. Residences that sold the fastest were priced at $100,000 or below. Contact Dick Hughes at dhughes@communityjournals.com.
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JANUARY 18, 2013 | Upstate business 5
UBJ focus: company profile
Photos by Gerry Pate
Hub City puts Spartanburg voices between covers ▲
Publisher and bookstore are run ‘for the community, by the community’
6 Upstate business | JANUARY 18, 2013
When poet John Lane and journalists Betsy Teter and Gary Henderson gathered at a downtown Spartanburg coffee shop in 1995, the conversation turned to ways to preserve a sense of place By Cindy Landrum | staff in the rapidly changing Southern city. They decided to publish a book that would focus on what was worth preserving in a city that found its identity under assault by economic issues and
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Betsy Teter, executive director of the Hub City Writers Project, talks with Hub City Bookshop manager Erin Haire.
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the swelling up of Greenville. The Hub City Writers Project – named “Hub City” to honor Spartanburg’s role as a 19th-century railroad center and “Writers Project” to pay homage to the Depression-era Federal Writers’ Project that employed writers to compile local histories and other literary work – was born. What the trio of writers didn’t do on that morning in 1995 was set out to start a nonprofit organization that now has an annual budget of a half million dollars, has published more than 60 books through its own small press, helped renovate two historic downtown buildings and operates a successful nonprofit bookstore at a time when many brick-and-mortar bookstores are struggling financially. “We had no plan,” said Teter, who is executive director of the Hub City Writers Project. “It has grown completely organically.” Teter said she believes Hub City is the only organization in the country that operates a press and a nonprofit bookstore. Hub City opened its bookstore on Spartanburg’s Main Street about two and a half years ago not because it wanted to be the first, but out of necessity, Teter said.
Spartanburg’s Pic-A-Book, an independent bookstore which had carried Hub City Press’s books, closed, leaving Barnes & Noble as Spartanburg’s only bookstore. “We had to get into the book business because we had to find a place to sell our books,” Teter said. “It was out of necessity for us as a publisher.” Because it of its nonprofit status, the Hub City Writers Project was able to raise money to renovate the first floor of the Masonic Temple building on Main Street. The building had been dark for four years. The city chipped in some money, as did the Spartanburg Development Corp. Donors also helped fund the store’s initial outlay and inventory, Teter said. “We opened with no debt whatsoever,” she said. The Coffee Bar and Cakehead Bakery both opened up shop in the same building, bringing together businesses that were missing from downtown Spartanburg for years. “Part of the initiative in creating the bookstore was creating a gathering spot for Spartanburg,” Teter said. “We would not have gone
into this venture without them.” The project is also part of Hub City Writers Project’s larger vision of redeveloping downtown Spartanburg, Teter said. Hub City Bookshop hit its firstyear sales goal six months after it opened in July 2010. Now, about $250,000 in sales comes out of the bookstore. Between 10 percent and 15 percent of the books the store sells are Hub City Press books. “The success of the bookshop really has to do with the community having a sense of ownership in it. It was literally built with donor money,” said Erin Haire, bookshop manager. “They see it as ‘for the community, by the community.’” And because Hub City operates
the bookshop, if a book sells for $20, it gets the whole $20 as opposed to the $6 it would receive from a sale at a national chain. That’s important because the proceeds from book sales are used to fund the publishing of books, underwrite creative writing workshops and conferences, bring in a writer-in-residence to Spartanburg and help with a summer reading program in Spartanburg School District 7. Last year, Hub City Writers Project received funding from the National Endowment for the Arts for the first time, a longtime goal of the organization. The Hub City Press publishes about five books a year with a mix of literary (fiction, poetry and memoirs) and historical and cultural. Most of the writers published have been from the Carolinas. “The books we publish have to have a strong sense of place,” Teter said. “That doesn’t mean it has to be about cotton mills.” Hub City runs the South Carolina First Novel Competition and just started a poetry book prize. It will have an artist-in-residency program this summer after a year’s absence. The program brings artists to Spartanburg for 11 months. In the spring, Hub City Press will publish “In the Garden of Stone,” last year’s First Novel Competition winner by Spartanburg resident Susan Tekulve. It will also publish “Voodoo for the Other Woman,” poetry by Angela Kelly; the second edition of the Hub City Christmas anthology; and “Where Champions Play,” a book about Spartanburg football by Jason Gilmer. The Press already has signed contracts with three authors for books in 2014. “Spartanburg is a literary hotbed,” Haire said. “All of our efforts go back to enriching Spartanburg’s literary culture. It’s important that we make cultural accessible.” Contact Cindy Landrum at clandrum@ communityjournals.com.
JANUARY 18, 2013 | Upstate business 7
UBJ
The rise of retail clinics New health care model increases access, raises questions By Leigh Savage | contributor
In the past three years, MinuteClinics inside CVS stores have treated eight million patients in 25 states. As the leader in the retail health care industry, the no-appointment clinics are part of a trend transforming the medical landscape, and one that some say could bring improved access and more convenience to customers. Others caution that the new model could create problems in continuity and quality of care. Thomas Charland, CEO of Merchant Medicine, a retail clinic consultancy firm, said the growth of the retail clinic model will continue because “the economics of health care are changing from a system driven by procedure volume incentives to a system driven by cost-efficiency and outcomes.” While doctors were once threatened by the clinics because they reduced procedure volume, many now view the clinics as a partner that can increase efficiency, he said. According to a Merchant Medicine report, there are 1,355 retail clinics in the U.S., with MinuteClinics making up 620 of those. There are 11 MinuteClinics in the Greenville-Spartanburg market, with two more planned for the first quarter of 2013, according to MinuteClinic spokesman Bruce Burkhardt. MinuteClinic launched the first retail health care center in 2000. The idea was to create a health care delivery model that responds to consumer demand. Other clinics have followed suit, including Walgreen’s Take Care Clinics, with more than 350 locations, but none
in South Carolina. Brandy Dickson, state practice manager for MinuteClinic, said there are 29 locations statewide. “This state is very successful in patient growth,” she said. “Our biggest problem is not the patient population, but we need more practitioners.” Retail clinics are staffed by nurse practitioners who work alone. “The job is different, because there is no ancillary staff,” Dickson said. Bruce Snyder, a vascular surgeon with Greenville Hospital System and president-elect of the S.C. Medical Association, said he appreciates many aspects of the newer business model, but has a few concerns. “The plus is, we appreciate that everyone needs access in the community,” he said. “We’re pleased there are avenues where people can receive care. But one issue is the fragmentation of care.” He said when someone visits a primary care physician, the doctor has information about allergies, previous treatments and other details of the medical history. “I’m concerned that if a retail clinic provides treatment, is that recorded in a way that can be retrieved?”
“This state is very successful in patient growth. Our biggest problem is not the patient population, but we need more practitioners.” Brandy Dickson, state practice manager for MinuteClinic, said there are 29 locations statewide.
Snyder pointed out that MD360, which has four locations in Greenville County, is not a retail clinic but an urgent care clinic. Like Doctors Care clinics, they are staffed with doctors and have
8 Upstate business | JANUARY 18, 2013
Photo courtesy of CVS
In the past three years, MinuteClinics inside CVS stores have treated eight million patients in 25 states.
more on-site capabilities, including X-rays and lab work. As a part of the Greenville Hospital System, MD360 keeps updated records of care to send to primary care physicians, while also offering the later hours and no-appointment convenience people want. Dickson said most patients come to MinuteClinics because they can’t get a timely appointment with their health care providers. She said the clinics are not designed or intended as a replacement for the primary care physician, but can be a partner. “Every patient who comes in, we ask if we can send the information to their family doctor,” she said. “We’ll send it electronically or if the systems aren’t compatible, we can fax it. We want continuity of care.” In addition to relieving doctor’s office crowding and reducing wait times, she said the clinics can address topics primary care physicians don’t typically have time to cover, such as lifestyle counseling. “We want to fill in the gaps,” she said. For the many clinic patients who don’t have a primary care physician, her nurse practitioners are instructed to suggest a list of doctors. Snyder said it’s important for
people to have a medical home, “so someone coordinates care and understands what is going on.” He said some studies have shown that when people visit a clinic, they put off going to the doctor for well visits or consultations. They may visit a clinic to treat a cold or flu, but they don’t get their blood pressure checked or undergo other tests that occur when people keep regular appointments with a primary care physician. While Snyder understands that no one likes excessive waiting and people want office hours that fit their needs, “there is more than just time” when considering a health care provider, including thoroughness, continuity of care, and even location, since retail clinics tend to locate in more economically successful areas, he said. According to Charland, doctors are becoming increasingly comfortable collaborating with the two types of clinics – urgent care and retail. “More doctors are salaried and employers are often large health systems. This is all part of the changing economic landscape.” Contact Leigh Savage at lsavage@communityjournals.com.
UBJ
Cabela’s announces new Upstate location Major outdoor retailer will open first SC store in 2014 By Dick Hughes | senior business writer
Cabela’s, the outfitter for all manner of outdoor gear and clothing, will build a 100,000-squarefoot store in Magnolia Park off Woodruff Road. Cabela’s is popular with hunting, fishing, camping and other outdoor recreational enthusiasts, and serves as much as a shopping and tourist destination as a local outlet. The Greenville store will be Cabela’s first in South Carolina. The company said it would hire 235 full-time, part-time and seasonal employees, “and most will come from Greenville and the surrounding area.” It expects to open in spring 2014. Start of construction is uncertain, the company said. “South Carolinians are part of an exceptional outdoor tradition and share the Cabela’s lifestyle and values,” said CEO Tommy Millner. “We wanted to build a store in the Greenville area to recognize that.” The building exterior will reflect Cabela’s typical store model with log construction, stonework, wood siding and metal roofing, and a large glass storefront will provide a view much of the store’s interior, the company said. On the inside, the store will be designed “to surround customers
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in an outdoor experience, including museum-quality wildlife displays and trophy animal mounts this complex — Charlton Armstrong III, Financial Consultant displayed on a mountain-like financial world. structure.” Whether your investment goals include increasing your net worth, The store will have a gun library, With for so many optionsor creating a comprehensive financial saving retirement bargain cave, fudge shop and an inavailable, it's difficult planning strategy thatto includes insurance and estate planning door archery range. Most Cabela’s decide which way to go. locations also have restaurants. techniques, Charlton Armstrong can assist you in your journey. You That's where I can help. “Cabela’s unique retail experican count on him to to your financial goals and objectives and Call me for advice to listen set ence is a great fit for Greenville then turn them into actionable strategies. your financial plan on the and will complement other unique right course. “Arm”, as he is known to his friends and colleagues, completed retail offerings in Magnolia Park,” his undergraduate work at Duke University and received his MD said Greenville Mayor Knox With With With so many so options m s degree from the Medical University of South Carolina. He also White. “We welcome Cabela’s and Charlton Armstrong III, available, available, it'surology difficult it Financial Consultant completed specialty work inavailab general surgery and at theto look forward to their opening.” 630 East Washington Street | Suite A “We are pleased and proud that University of Cincinnati, resulting in Urologywhich board certification. decide decide decide way whi to go. Greenville SC, 29601 Cabela’s has chosen Magnolia Under the supervision 864-467-0007 | 877-467-0007 of his father, Arm began his parallel interest That's where can help. CArmstrong@ hilliard.com Park as their point of entry into in finance and investing byThat's tradingThat's stocks and bondsI whe while still www.hilliard.com the Southeast,” said Craig Menin, in high school. He took courses atCall Duke with for the thought Call Call me me adviceofto setm fo president of Menin Development, Securities offered through J.J.B.school, Hilliard, and while in medical school completed attending business W.L. Lyons, LLC Member NYSE, your your yourfinanc financial plan on thefi developer of the reinvigorated FINRA & SIPC 2007 course with Dun and Bradstreet. After completing an investment shopping park. right right right cours c his training, Arm then served in the US Aircourse. Force as Major, Chief It speaks well of the “quality of of Urology, S.W. March AFB in Riverside, California. Arm returned the market and our project” that home to Greenville, South Carolina where he became a partner Cabela’s choose Magnolia over with Greenville Urology. He also had staff appointments with and other available options, he said. C ha C r lt ha Charlton Armstrong on r lt III, A o served as Chairman of the Department of Urology at Greenville Magnolia Park is located at the F inancial F inancial Financial Consultant Cons junction of I-385 and I-85. The Hospital System and Saint Francis Community Hospital. He retired East 630 630 of East Washington East W |ash Suite A W center includes Costco, Regal 630 in August 2008 after three decades service. While it Street is evident Cinemas, Rooms to Go and sev- Greenville Greenville Greenville SC, that Arm put much thought, dedication and SC, care 29601 into his medical eral other retailers and restaurants. 864-467-0007 864-467864-467-0007 | 877-467-0007 practice, he also became a student of the financial markets. And Menin Development said it has C CArmstrong@ hilliard.com so, inArmstrong@ September of C 2008, ArmArmstro joined Hilliard Lyons to fulfill his plans for “additional expansion.” www .hilli furloughed career aswww a.hilliard.co financial www.hilliard.com professional. Cabela’s has 40 stores in the Call Charlton Armstrong today and see what he can do for you. United States and Canada. It curSecurities Securities Securities offered offered through J.J.B. Hilliard, o rently is on an expansion drive, SECURITIES OFFERED THROUGH J. Lyons, J. B. HILLIARD,.L. W. L. LYONS, LLCLLC MEMBER NYSE, FINRA & SIPC 2007 W .L. W W.L. Lyons, Member Lyon NYSE, L LC having earlier announced plans for FINRA FINRA FINRA & & SIPC 2007SIPC & 13 new stores. 201 West McBee Avenue | Suite 401 | Greenville SC, 29601 The company is based in Sidney, Phone: 864-467-0007 | Fax: 864-467-9113 Neb.
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Contact Dick Hughes at dhughes@communityjournals.com.
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JANUARY 18, 2013 | Upstate business 9
UBJ
Furman Co. acquires insurance lines from BSI The Furman Co. nearly doubled its insurance division with the acquisition of the property and casualty lines from Benefit Source Inc. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Like Furman, BSI is based in Greenville. Harrison Cline, vice president of Furman Insurance, said the acquisition added “about 2,800” customer accounts to Furman, bringing the division’s total to more than 6,000. The combined operation represents more than 100 carriers, he said. Six BSI account executives or account managers joined Furman, bringing the combined total to 12. “When we were looking for a partner to take over our property and casualty business, we wanted the same values and a local company that cares about our customers as we do. We found that partner in the Furman Co.,” said Robert Harling, president of BSI. Cline said in an interview that the acquisition advances
Furman’s goal “to be the leader in personal lines and with smalland middle-market commercial customers, accounts that have 500 employees or less, which is the majority of customers in our market area.” Cline said the two companies matched up well in culture and offered complementary insurance lines. “Several of the insurance companies we have, they did not have, and there were a few companies they had that we did not have contracts with. So for our customers, it brings new companies together for their insurance needs, and the same for BSI customers.” Furman is licensed as an insurance broker in 25 states but primarily is focused on South and North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and, to
a lesser degree, Florida. The “vast majority” of the business is in the Carolinas but Georgia “has picked up a lot,” Cline said. He said Furman’s “capital position puts us in a place where we can seek out similar acquisitions that fit our culture and match our goals.” Cline said a lot of small agencies are selling to large regional and national agencies whose focus on the “super large companies” creates opportunity for Furman’s concentration on companies with fewer than 500 employees. A lot of change is taking place in property casualty insurance because of the “storms that have occurred in the last couple of years,
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Sandy being the most recent,” prompting some companies to raise their deductibles while some have not, he said. “That is a benefit of the merger. It gives us that many more companies and that many more options for our customers.” The industry, Cline said, also is in flux with uncertainty about the impact on insurance when the Affordable Healthcare Act is fully implemented next year. “Until it rolls out, a lot of the questions won’t be answered.” The insurance division is one of five divisions of The Furman Co., real estate, development, property management and investment divisions being the other four. Cline said insurance is “one of the strong divisions of the five” and is the legacy business of the company, which is celebrating the 125th year since Furman “received its first insurance commission in Feburary 1888,” Cline said. There was a pause in that history when Furman sold its insurance business to Marsh Insurance in 1977. After a 20-year noncompete clause had expired, Furman reopened an insurance division in 1999. Contact Dick Hughes at dhughes@communityjournals.com.
UBJ statehouse report
Yes, Carolina, there is a lot of good Critics and columnists often see how things are and suggest how they can be better. But if they don’t step back every now and then, they may lose sight of a lot of good that is going on. Despite challenges with the education system, an antiquated tax structure and persistently poor health, more than a million new people moved into South Carolina over the last 20 years – a sign that we do a lot right. And the kinds of things we do right are more than beauty pageants, shrimp and grits, football (and tailgating), friendliness and a great quality of life for many. Here are some ways the Palmetto State excels – some examples you might want to provide naysayers when the next story comes about how backward things are in South Carolina:
Work: We build cars and planes – and were picked by major companies (BMW and Boeing) because our people know how to work. Dr. Charles Gould, president of FlorenceDarlington Technical College, said South Carolinians aren’t scared of hard work. “When we work, we really work. And when we are expected to work at something we don’t really understand, we will break down every barrier to learn that work. ... This is part of the answer to why companies come here and why they are extraordinarily satisfied with what they find.” Conservation: We do conservation right. Just look at the collaborative effort between governments, nonprofits and landowners in the ACE Basin area south of Charleston over the last two generations. They’ve protected more than 200,000 acres forever through public purchases
“South Carolina’s ACE Basin was a pioneer and arguably the first ‘landscape level’ conservation initiative in the country.” Head of the S.C. Coastal Conservation League Dana Beach
and donations of conservation easements. Not only did the effort lead to dedicated conservations on both sides of the political aisle, but it fostered cooperation and expanded along the coast so that about 2 million acres of land in the coastal plain are protected, said Dana Beach, head of the S.C. Coastal Conservation League. “Today, there is much discussion nationwide
Hospitality:
about how to protect large ecosystems and landscapes,” he said. “South Carolina’s ACE Basin was a pioneer and arguably the first ‘landscape level’ conservation initiative in the country.” Realtor and conservationist Charles Lane of Charleston points out another conservation model is the Mountain Bridge project in the Upstate. Across the state from 1989 to 2009, some 877,000 acres were protected in the state through easements, including 425,000 through easements. The State Conservation Bank protected 162,894 acres at a cost of just over $500 per acre.
Business climate: South Carolina lures major industries here successfully through its quality of life and investment in infrastructure improvements, like water and sewer service, bridges and roads. “Well-considered investments of tax dollars by governments at all levels are paying great positive dividends for citizens resulting, in part, in our attractive quality of life and a very positive business climate,” said former state Sen. Phil Leventis of Sumter.
By Andy Brack With Charleston being rated as the world’s No. 1 tourism destination by Conde Nast Traveller, it’s pretty clear that South Carolina does tourism right, too. Just look at Columbia’s great New Year’s Eve, great state parks, Freedom Weekend Aloft in the Upstate, Myrtle Beach’s attractions and more. “South Carolina has the human qualities of warmth and hospitality in abundance, coupled with industriousness and a ‘get it done’ attitude in business and research,” said USC President Harris Pastides.
Judicial system: Barbara Zia, co-president of the League of Women Voters of South Carolina, lauds the high quality of the state’s judiciary and merit selection system. “Our state judicial system operates effectively, despite gross underfunding and being under the General Assembly.” History and innovation: AT&T South Carolina President Pamela Lackey pointed to the state’s ability to remember and build on the past and embrace the future. “We build on the past to transform ourselves and our institutions for future successes,” she said. Technology: South Carolina is also getting pretty good at being a hub for technology with Charleston serving as a “Silicon Harbor,” according to PeopleMatter’s Nate DaPore. “South Carolina ranked second in high-tech employment growth at 8.6 percent from 2010 to 2011,” he said. Yes, we’ve got a long way still to go. But we’ve got a lot to be proud, of too. Andy Brack, publisher of Statehouse Report, can be reached at brack@statehousereport.com.
THE business news for the Upstate’s most powerful, influential, sophisticated & educated –
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entrepreneur UBJ louie inabinett, owner of greenville woodworking
Carving Inabinett creates one-of-a-kind pieces at Greenville Woodworking 12 Upstate business | JANUARY 18, 2013
Photos by Greg Beckner
his niche
UBJ entrepreneur
looking for custom work. “We can do curves and angles the factory people cannot, and with different woods like zebra wood, mahogany or cherry. Any kind imaginable.” Though the recession hit the company hard, Greenville Woodworking managed to keep going. “Some of our regular customers were no longer in business,” Inabinett said. “The pie just shrunk for everybody. But it does appear to be coming back.” He typically has three or four projects going at once, and has eight to 10 on the books right now.
Function first
TOOLS OF THE TRADE Entrepreneurship is everywhere By Leigh Savage | contributor Kathy Brown knew her plans for a kitchen island would require a skilled woodworker, but she had no idea she would spend three years searching for someone who was up to the task. During her search, she kept hearing one name: Louie Inabinett. She finally tracked him down and showed him the antique French serpentine dresser that was the inspiration for her kitchen plans. Some had found the work too laborious or difficult, while others told her she needed someone with a CNC (computerized numerical control) machine to create the intricate design. When Inabinett saw the piece, “I told her it was very doable,” he said. “They built these things 100 years ago and they didn’t have computers then, so I’m sure we can build it without one now.” Since opening Greenville Woodworking in 1978, Inabinett has earned a reputation for woodworking skill, a can-do attitude and a preference for the traditional way of doing things – to the point that he carries a stick ruler folded up in his back pocket instead of a tape measure. “I guess that’s my trademark in town,” he said. “I carry the stick ruler. Why change? It works for me.” The reliance on building by hand stems from his company’s focus on
each individual customer and project. “Sometimes the technology isn’t necessary,” he said. “It might be necessary for a factory building 100 kitchens in an apartment, repeat work. But our work is so customized, it’s one-of-a-kind.”
An auspicious start
Inabinett got his start as a student at Hillcrest High, when he joined a friend who was working in a cabinet shop. With minimal woodworking experience, he completed an entire project by himself in six weeks and realized he had a knack for it. He took mechanical engineering courses at Greenville Tech and installed industrial machinery for Daniel Construction for a few years, but kept coming back to woodwork. “Then I decided not to travel out of town and wear a hard hat, but to have my own shop,” he said. In the early years, he built cabinets and other pieces for spec houses and tract homes, but his business evolved into working for high-end residential customers as well as commercial and industrial clients. He’s built for hospitals, restaurants, car dealerships and banks, as well as crafting conference tables for businesses such as Kemet and Canal Insurance. High-end residential makes up the bulk of his client list, “but that
can be foreboding for some people,” he said. “We can hit some good price points on average-size houses. We do a very broad spectrum of cabinet work and woodworking.” Though kitchens are typically the focus, Greenville Woodworking takes on bathrooms, laundry rooms, bookcases and more. His team of seven can serve as the contractor on a project and bring in subcontractors, or they can be a subcontractor. Or, as with Kathy Brown, they can create one custom piece. The prefabricated market has made a big impact on the industry, he said, but there are always those
Though Inabinett has done plenty of building over the years, he now focuses on the design aspect of the job, looking through clients’ magazine clippings and photos to create and refine drawings. “I say, ‘Don’t worry about color and finish, let’s concentrate on how we’re going to make this kitchen flow and work,’” he said. “We have to get the geometry down before we can figure out what flavor it is.” Once the design is perfected and ready for production, it goes to the sprawling workshop where one employee will build the base, another will focus on drawers and still another will work on doors. “They are rather specialized in their avenue of production,” Inabinett said. Brown’s kitchen island is just days away from completion, and during a recent visit, she was so happy she was close to tears. “It’s one of the few businesses where you can see a customer’s reaction so clearly,” Inabinett said. “I had no idea of the amount of painstaking labor and patience that he and his team would provide,” Brown said. But as her dream kitchen takes shape, “I’m appreciative that there are still craftsmen who strive for excellence and take on a challenge.” After 40 years in woodworking, Inabinett finds his fondness for the job hasn’t diminished, but has grown. “I still get excited over a new project, which is either crazy or healthy,” he said, laughing. “Moses got out of the desert after 40 years, but I’m still here in the woodpile, and I don’t know if I’ll ever get out.” Contact Leigh Savage at lsavage@communityjournals.com.
JANUARY 18, 2013 | Upstate business 13
UBJ cover story
Conservative talk replaces music at BJU’s WMUU ▲
New owners take the reins – and lure hometown boy Mike Gallagher to a new spot on the dial
By Dick Hughes | senior business writer
As some old hands at radio transform Bob Jones University’s storied station from six decades of beautiful music to “tumultuous” talk radio, making the transition work comes down to simpatico conservative philosophies, market familiarity, and cheeseburgers and fries. Early Monday morning, Dec. 3, when loyal listeners of WMUUFM tuned in, the music was no more. Gone, too, were sermons and listener-requested prayers. “It was a shocking event … to go from a beautiful music, semiclassical format to Bill Bennett in the morning in argument, discussion and debate,” observed Greg Anderson, president of Salem Communications, which is buying the station. “It went from sanguine to tumultuous overnight.” The radio voice of the World’s Most Unusual University had come
to an end after 62 years of broadcasting at a powerful 100,000 watts at 94.5. However shocking, WMUU listeners knew it was coming.
Closing awaits license
Bob Jones III, president of Gospel Fellowship Association, the missionary arm of BJU, announced the sale Aug. 23, saying that maintaining the station was “very expensive” and proceeds would enhance BJU’s mission of spreading the gospel. Salem, which has deep roots in Greenville as a Christian and politically conservative broadcaster and syndicator, paid $3 million in cash, plus $3 million in national advertising. The legal owner will be Caron Broadcasting, “just one of the many, many corporations within” Salem, said Anderson. The advertising barter gives BJU promotional access to one-third of the U.S. population covered by Salem’s 100 stations, 65 of them in the top 25 markets. While the sale, which was approved by the FCC three weeks ago, will not be complete until the FCC transfers the license around Feb. 1, Salem took over management and programming in early December under a marketing agreement. Enter the veterans who cut their teeth in broadcasting in the UpThe Mike Gallagher Special was created back in the state, went on to national early 1990s, when Gallagher worked in Greenville prominence in radio and and was a regular customer to Bee Bee’s. 14 Upstate business | JANUARY 18, 2013
Talk radio host Mike Gallagher, left, and Greg Anderson, president of the Salem Radio Network, in on (Right) Bee Bee’s general manager George Melanis puts the last letter onto the restaurant’s sign to w
TV and are pitching in during the transition. Not least of these is national talk host Mike Gallagher, whose Salem-syndicated show was moved from News Radio WORD on the very first day of the format change.
Burger, fries and onion rings
“We decided to have some fun and do a test” of listener reaction to the change, said Gallagher, who took an idea to Bee Bee’s, a burger joint on Laurens Road that
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Photos by Greg Beckner
fries, onion rings and a drink. They have never taken it down.” Bee Bee’s rolled back the price of the special from $5.99 to its 1990 price of $2.99 and promoted it on the first two days of the WMUU format change. “You had to say ‘Conservative Talk 94.5’ to get the special,” Gallagher said. On the evening of the second night of the promotion, Gallagher got a call on his cell phone from George Melanis, co-owner of Bee Bee’s. Over commotion in the background Melanis shouted, ‘Mike, pull the ad, pull the ad, stop! I’ve had a line out in the parking lot for two solid days.’” In those two days, Bee Bee’s sold 896 specials and had Gallagher “bouncing off the walls. That’s what I mean by missing that kind of fun,” he said. “I haven’t done local radio in years. I am in a studio in Dallas or New York doing broadcasting without any connection to a burger place. I am having the time of my life getting to do that. When that guy told me 896 Gallagher specials were sold, I knew in my heart we have something special here.”
‘Deja vu all over again’
ne of the studios at WMUU. welcome back Mike Gallagher.
>> was his first advertiser
when he first started in talk radio at WORD. “Twenty plus years ago, they christened a meal ‘The Mike Gallagher Special’ – cheeseburger,
Gallagher is not the only one experiencing what he called “the proverbial ‘deja vu all over again.’” Anderson and others Anderson enlisted to help with the transition are having just as much fun. “What I meant by having fun is that is truly basic radio again. It has been years since I have gotten to do this,” Anderson said. A nderson was among the first to see the potential in conservative talk radio. He created
WORD as part of Greenville-based Multimedia by buying the original Spartanburg-based license and combining it with Greenville’s WFBO. He brought Gallagher to the station in 1988. “This really is home,” said Anderson, whose job as Salem president bases him in Dallas. “My kids graduated from school here. I own three houses in town. I would not want to do what I am doing here in another market, and I don’t think we would have the chance of success that the radio station has if I had a disconnect with the market.” Also involved in the transition at WMUU from that era are Peggy Hudson of Greer, who was in sales at WORD and today is vice president of national sales for Salem. She is out making local calls. Her husband, Joey, who became Gallagher’s friend and agent, is also selling and coordinating promotion.
Station has ‘flamethrower’ signal And this week, Jane Robelot joined to do morning news shows. Robelot’s first jobs in radio and TV were at WCCP-AM in Clemson, while she was in college there, and WSPA-TV in Spartanburg, after graduating. She grew to prominence as co-anchor of the CBS Morning Show from 1996-1999. Even so, Salem’s decision to buy the station “was by no means an emotional decision. The business reality is significant,” Anderson said. The major attraction is the station’s 100,000-watt signal, the max allowed by the FCC. “There is nobody stronger,” he said. “You can hear this thing from Commerce, Ga., to Charlotte, Asheville, well past Greensboro and all places in between. Nobody comes close to that. It’s a flamethrower, as we say in the business.” Salem sees advantage, too, in being FM instead of the more typical AM frequency for talk because “this is an FM world, particularly for people under 35,” a demographic advertisers find attractive. Anderson said WMUU’s long-
time employees had an “option to stay or go on” and most choose to stay, making it “the most tenured radio station in the state, if not the country, as far as employees.” Paul Wright, who is staying on as station manager, has been with WMUU for 46 years. He first went to work in 1966 when both he and Anderson were students at BJU. The most junior employee has been there for 17 years. “I would be less than candid if I didn’t think there was a stylistic difference between the way we do what do,” said Anderson. “They are getting used to us as we get used to them. We think the world of them and hope we can marry the old with the new.”
more information • A Brief History of WMUU – Page 16 • Jones sought divine guidance in WMUU sale –Page 16
Promotion to be ‘unleashed’ The only other station with a news talk format is WORD, “and that doesn’t get to all areas of the marketplace. It doesn’t get to Anderson, for instance.” Regarding competing with a station he “helped design,” Anderson said, “there is plenty of room for both of us.” All that is combined with the “simpatico” of a conservative and Christian-focused company doing programing for listeners “in a conservative state,” he said. Anderson declined to provide any futuristic projections on market share or revenue but said, “I will tell you this: We don’t expect to lose money in year one, and we expect to grow the business aggressively.” Once the FCC transfers the license to Salem on or about Feb. 1 so the sale can close, Salem will announce new call letters and “unleash a significant degree of marketing throughout the Upstate,” he said. Contact Dick Hughes at dhughes@communityjournals.com.
JANUARY 18, 2013 | Upstate business 15
UBJ
Jones sought divine guidance in WMUU sale Deal called a ‘win-win’ for the university and new owners By Dick Hughes | senior business writer
Bob Jones III and some trustees of the Gospel Federation Association, the technical owner of Bob Jones University’s WMUU radio station, began thinking and praying about selling the storied station three or four years ago. “Some of the board had discussed the possibility of selling it while it still had value, but I had no leading from the Lord about it,” Jones said in an August 23 memorandum explaining the decision to sell to Salem Communications. “I did start praying three years ago that if the Lord wanted it to sell that someone would walk in who wanted to buy it.” That happened “a couple of months ago” when an offer
was made and taken to the executive committee. However, Jones said, that party, who has not been identified, discussed it with Stuart Epperson, chairman of Salem, a BJU graduate in the 1950s and a close associate of the trustees. The board accepted Salem’s “better offer.” Greg Anderson, president of Salem, who is leading the transition of the station from BJU to Salem ownership, said Epperson heard of the first offer while doing some consulting with BJU and said, “We would be interested in looking at it.” Up until that time, Anderson said, “We thought this station would always be associated with Bob Jones University.” Once talks began, the deal moved quickly. “Because we are very different organizations, to be sure, but be-
cause we have that commonality, the university was very interested. It happened extremely quickly, in the course of a couple of weeks.” Anderson, who also is a BJU graduate, said mutual trust enabled the two parties to reach agreement. “We said, ‘We trust you, let’s get this deal done. Let’s come to an agreement and work out the details afterward.’” They agreed on a price of $3 million, plus $3 million in promotional time on Salem’s 100 radio stations across the country. Under a management agreement, Salem took over Dec. 3, when the format was changed from semi-classical music to conservative news talk. The sale closing will come when the FCC transfers ownership of the license around Feb. 1, Anderson said. Salem also agreed to provide Internet streaming of the traditional “beautiful music” and religious programming WMUU had provided without interruption since it went on the air in 1947.
BOB JONES III
Jones, in his memorandum, said, “The radio station was a very expensive local manifestation of our mission. We believe the proceeds from this sale will enable GFA to better accomplish its objectives for spreading the Gospel.” Anderson said Salem shares BJU’s Christian and conservative values and offers “simpatico” news talk programming. “It ended up a win-win for both of us,” he said. Contact Dick Hughes at dhughes@communityjournals.com.
A brief history of WMUU 1940s
Aug. 15, 1960
2000
Dec. 3, 2012
While Bob Jones University was located in Cleveland, Tenn., school founder Bob Jones Sr. performed daily broadcasts on a local radio station and, “realizing the potential for reaching great numbers of people,” added radio to the college’s curriculum.
WMUU-FM went on the air at 94.5 megahertz from a transmission tower on Paris Mountain.
To meet new FCC requirements for tower height, a new tower was built at a height of 490 feet, “well within FCC requirements.” The AM station was sold to fund “this very expensive project.”
Salem assumed management under an agreement pending closing of the sale expected on or about Feb. 1. The format was changed from semi-classical music and religious programming to conservative news talk.
Aug. 2012
The station’s traditional programming continued to be offered through the Internet, a Web innovation begun before the sale and which Salem will continue.
1949
After moving to Greenville, BJU went on the air with WMUU-AM with a daytime license and 1,000 watts, offering “the best in classical and sacred music and drama (and) above all to give out the Gospel message.” The WMUU call letters stood for the “World’s Most Unusual University.”
1963 WMUU-FM increased its power to 100,000 watts and doubled its radius coverage to 100 miles. It became South Carolina’s most powerful station. By then, the AM station had increased its power from 1,000 to 5,000 watts.
16 Upstate business | JANUARY 18, 2013
Bob Jones III, president of the Gospel Fellowship Association, the mission arm of BJU, said WMUU-FM would be sold to Salem Communications for $3 million. In addition, Salem is giving BJU $3 million worth of promotional time on its 100 stations.
Source: “Greenville’s Unique Radio” by Barbara Rumminger, a WMUU staff member from the station’s beginning until her retirement in 2001.
UBJ guest column
What young professionals are doing in 2013 PULSE was created as a way to get more young professionals to take part in Greenville’s growth. Eight years later, this Greenville Chamber LEAD Initiative has made great strides in being a voice and a force for the next generation of Greenville leaders, but there are many more things the organization needs to accomplish. Despite growing close to 900 members and holding more than 70 events in 2012, PULSE is leaving a lot on the table. Our members, who are mainly young professionals between ages 22 and 39, need to become more active in helping shape Greenville’s future. In order to do so, PULSE will focus on three key areas in 2013:
• Quality. We have finished the past two years with roughly 900 members each year. However, they were two radically different rosters of people. We realize we are getting young professionals to join our group, but that is only half the mission. We need to engage them more. We need to be turning our members into leaders in the community. We will focus more than ever in 2013 to get members seeking leadership roles. One of those endeavors is an event aimed specifically at taking action in the nonprofit sector. Young professionals need to be giving back to Greenville and PULSE is going to make sure that happens. • Capacity. This is the Greenville Chamber’s program to promote more diversity in the community. PULSE has the unique opportunity to embrace this initiative more than anyone else in the area. Our membership is diverse when it comes to background, race, gender, culture and careers, but we are going to do better. In order for Greenville to make a dramatic leap forward when it comes to economic development, a diverse set of ideas and thinkers is needed. PULSE will be creating that group of new leaders to serve in the next few years.
• Attention.
PULSE is widely known by Greenville Chamber By John Boyanoski leadership, but we still struggle with recognition in the community as a whole. An example of this was our Annual Report in December. Former Governor Richard Riley, Greenville Health System president Mike Riordan, Greenville Chamber president Ben Haskew and Greenville Forward executive director Russell Stall were the speakers, but we had very few community leaders there despite inviting more than 300 people outside of PULSE. Why? Because we are still seen as a social group for young people. That is disturbing because social activity is just one part of what PULSE aims to do. We hold leadership luncheons, arts appreciation events, volunteering projects and sports programming as well. That perception is going to change in 2013 as we plan to bring the PULSE story to everyone in the Upstate. In addition to these three focus areas, PULSE has expanded to include Greer Chamber young professionals. That creates a larger footprint for young professionals to lead. What this means for business, political and community leaders who are not young professionals needs to be clear. PULSE members are here to serve and take part. This is a group whose members are ready and willing to take charge on events. PULSE is a positive for Greenville – so use it. And for young professionals, heed this call. Greenville is growing, but it can grow better. Young professionals are needed to provide new opinions and new insights. Young professionals need to be speaking up. PULSE offers the opportunity to do so. Take the opportunity.
John Boyanoski is the 2013 PULSE Advisory Council Chair and president of Complete Public Relations. Learn more about at PULSE at www.greenvillepulse.com.
Professional Speak Out By Anna T. Locke
If you think that your CPA is digging deep into your financials, looking for issues that you should be concerned about, think again. Most CPAs focus on compliance obligations – taxes, financial statement compilation, perhaps an audit – and not on coaching you on how to improve your business. In fairness, your CPA probably can’t serve you as a CFO might. Because you don’t immerse him in your business, include him in strategy sessions, or debate staff changes, he’s not equipped to monitor your performance – much less plan and forecast the future accurately. His perspective is limited largely to past performance, not future opportunity. CPAs differ greatly from CFOs. CPAs use historical data that you provide to compile financial statements based on generally accepted principles after your accounting period ends. These are acceptable to third parties like banks, and it is assumed that you read and understand them. A CFO focuses on the goals and strategies of your business, establishes and monitors key performance indicators that signal opportunities – or warnings – to management, works to maximize the value of your business, and coaches you on your financials, including the issues they unveil and trends they indicate. Some CPA firms can perform both functions. Many cannot. If you seek a partner to improve the performance of your business going forward, consider adding a CFO, even in an outsourced capacity. Your organizational performance, your bottom line, and your peace of mind will be better for it.
864.908.3062 • atlocke.com
C82R
JANUARY 18, 2013 | Upstate business 17
UBJ create. innovate. celebrate.
Sealed Air’s InnoVision innovations If you bought a frozen turkey for your holiday dinner, it is likely that the bird was vacuum-packaged in a Cryovac shrink bag. Moreover, chances are it was made in Simpsonville. The Simpsonville plant, one of three Upstate locations, produces more than one billion heat-shrinkable bags each year, some of which are used for frozen poultry. Most of us pay little attention to the engineering that goes into packaging. But, whether a frozen turkey bag, a sliced bacon package, a bowl of chili from a fast food restaurant, or microwave meal, the scientists and engineers at Cryovac are continually advancing technologies that protect quality and freshness for your eating experience. Cryovac Inc, headquartered in Duncan, is a global innovator and leader in fresh-food packaging, shrink packaging, and medical packaging technologies. Since 1998, Cryovac has been a division of Sealed Air Corporation, better known by its Bubble Wrap brand of protective packaging films. Sealed Air has been duly recognized four times by the InnoVision Awards Program. Most recently, judges recognized
AWARD RECIPIENT BASICS INNOVISION AWARD: Technology Application Award sponsored by Immedion LLC Technology Development Award sponsored by St. Jude Medical RECIPIENT: Sealed Air Corporation LOCATION: 100 Rogers Bridge Rd., Duncan, SC 29334 EMPLOYEES IN UPSTATE: 2,600 WEBSITE: www.sealedair.com
Sealed Air as a finalist in two categories at the November 2012 InnoVision Technology Awards banquet. In the 2012 Technology Application category, Sealed Air Multi-Seal FoldLOK was selected for its use of precision laser scoring and unique adhesive to create an easy-open and reclose feature that replaces zipperstyle closures. This improvement over the Ziploc approach requires only one step to open and close, and requires no careful alignment in order to
close the package. In the 2012 Technology Development category, Sealed Air was selected for its Inkless Medical Film. This advance combines high speed, precision laser technology with a novel multilayer polymer film to produce a “print-on-demand” lid film. The package becomes the label with the “printing ink” embedded into a layer of the packaging material. Sealed Air has won two previous InnoVision Awards. In 2008, the Duncan research team developed a custom-designed radio-frequency identification tag to monitor temperature within shipping containers transporting foods, medicines and other heat-sensitive goods. The tag accompanies goods throughout its journey, thereby ensuring safety and freshness has
not been compromised by By Michael Mino high temperature exposure during the shipment. In 2004, Cryovac developed a coextruded film laminate package for DVDs that reacts with oxygen to maintain an extremely low oxygen level within a sealed film envelope. When opened, the disc begins reacting with oxygen to develop color and eventually render the DVD unreadable. This innovation enabled a business model that did not require the rental DVD to be returned. As you can see, there is quite a lot of research and development conducted within the four buildings that comprise the Duncan campus. The site also develops and provides non-PVC IV bags that supply an ever-growing Asian medical market. I recall having an inside view of their R&D center during an Innovision Technology Forum. They showcased a number of their laboratories, including a gourmet test kitchen and package evaluation lab. These monthly forums are open to the public and focus on specific areas of innovation. Sealed Air sponsors the InnoVision Sustainability Award and serves as a member of the InnoVision Advisory Board. George Wofford, vice president of strategic technology, remarked, “Sealed Air is proud to sponsor the InnoVision Awards, and pleased to be the Sustainability Award Sponsor. It is indeed an honor to have our name appear among those of other South Carolina innovators, especially to be honored with an InnoVision award.” Michael Mino is a longtime member of the InnoVision Advisory Board. He also is CEO of PropertyBoss and teaches innovation management and entrepreneurship in the Clemson MBA program. To learn more about the InnoVision program and submitting an innovative project, visit InnoVisionAwards.org.
18 Upstate business | JANUARY 18, 2013
UBJ the takeaway
Step up, raise your hand – and don’t fear mistakes EVENT: A Conversation
did so not to advance her career but because she wanted to serve the public. “I just wanted to be helpful,” she said.
with Susan Sher
WHO WAS THERE: Members
of the South Carolina Public Relations Society of America (SCPRSA) and employees of Greenville Hospital System (GHS)
3. Mentors make the difference. Sher has had many
SPEAKER: Susan Sher, executive
mentors over the years and said that it doesn’t make a difference if your mentor is male or female, young or old. Having someone in your life who feels a joint responsibility for your career is what really matters.
When SCPRSA learned that Susan Sher would be making a stop in the Upstate to speak at GHS’ quarterly leadership development retreat, the chapter jumped at the chance to partner with GHS to host an event for its members and GHS employees. The interview-style event was moderated by local veteran political affairs strategist Chip Felkel and focused on Sher’s experience in the White House, as well as her distinguished legal career and work in health care. Here are five key takeaways from the event:
4. Take time to stop and smell the roses. While
1. It’s important to know your strengths. Sher said she
5. Be willing to take risks.
vice president for corporate strategy and public affairs at the University of Chicago Medical Center and former chief of staff to first lady Michelle Obama
working in Washington, Sher developed a habit of looking at her Blackberry the minute she woke up. And because she was expected to be available 24/7, she found it hard to put it down at night. For this reason, she made a point of taking a “smell the flowers” moment a couple of times a week in which she stopped by the White House Rose Garden to reflect on her career and appreciate the privilege it was to work there.
Sher said she would not be where she is today if she hadn’t taken some risks along the way. Her advice to those in attendance was to step up, raise your hand and volunteer for things. And lastly, don’t be afraid to make mistakes.
learned early on that she is not a scholar – she’s a problem solver. This realization came after her first semester in graduate school and is what ultimately led her to pursue a career in law versus one in art history.
Karen Potter is a public relations coordinator at Greenville Hospital System and serves on the board of the South Carolina Public Relations Society of America.
2. Sometimes it’s good not to be locked into a plan. Sher admitted that she’s not a detailed planner when it comes to her career, so working at the White House was not part of her master plan. In fact, she turned down the position the first time it was offered to her. When she finally did accept the job, she
keynote speaker susan sher, former chief of staff to first lady michelle obama
About SCPRSA: South Carolina PRSA was founded in 1967 and is one of more than 200 chapters of the Public Relations Society of America, the world’s largest professional association for public relations practitioners. For more information, visit www.SCPRSA.org.
JANUARY 18, 2013 | Upstate business 19
UBJ the fine print
Bottle cap maker expands Bericap North America, a maker of bottle caps and other plastic closures, is doubling its existing plant in Cherokee in a $29-million investment that will create 50 new jobs over the next five years The company said it is adding 90,000 square feet to its plant in the Upstate Corporate Park and equipping it with “state-of-the-art” machinery to meet growing demand in the Southeast. Work on the expansion will begin later this year with completion in early 2014, the company said. “The site and building will allow room for future expansions when necessary.” “Our economic development teams in Cherokee and Spartanburg counties provided assistance to the company to make this expansion and creation of new jobs a reality,” said State Sen. Harvey Peeler. Anthony Scire, vice president of operations, said Bericap appreciates “all the support we’ve received from state and local officials.” The state granted Bericap job credits that lower the company’s income taxes once employment targets are met. Bericap is a German company with 21 factories in 19 countries. It started in the 1920s making metal caps; today it sells only plastic ones, many of which are used by globally recognized beverage companies.
Selah acquires biotech firm Selah Genomics, a Greenville startup in DNA diagnostics, has acquired EnGenCore, a Columbia biotech firm providing DNA sequencing for academic and commercial research. EnGenCore – “environmental genomics core” in its long form – was the first private company to move to the University of South Carolina’s 500-acre Innovista campus, which is designed to attract entrepreneurs in hightech innovation. “This transaction provides Selah an important initial footprint at the University of South Carolina,” said Michael Bolick, Selah 20 Upstate business | JANUARY 18, 2013
CEO. “We see great potential for growth in Columbia.” Bolick said the connection enhances Selah’s connection to the recently opened USC Medical School in Greenville. Selah’s first clinical genomics center is located at Greenville Hospital System’s Institute for Translational Oncology Research. “This acquisition helps us assist in development of molecular and genomic technology at USC with an eye towards helping translate this impactful technology to the clinic,” Bolick said. Nexus Medical Partners of Boston, SCRA Ventures of South Carolina Launch and the USC office of foundations supported the acquisition financially. John Bush, founder of EnGenCore, said he is “thrilled” to join forces with Selah Genomics. “Today, South Carolina’s biotechnology sector is emerging as a hotbed of exciting developments in life sciences generally and personalized medicine in particular,” he said. Selah announced earlier this month that it had completed a management buyout of Lab21, the U.S. subsidiary of Lab21 of Great Britain. Nexus Medical and SCRA Ventures also supported that transaction. “Selah is leveraging the latest in molecular and genomic technologies to develop a companion diagnostics test that can tell doctors when a specific patient has a DNA mutation that can be targeted by a drug,” said John Rousseau, co-founder of Nexus Medical.
NuVox alumni reunite at Green Cloud Dan Sterling, an executive at Windstream and before that at NuVox C om mu n ic ations, has been named president of Green Cloud Technologies. Sterling “will oversee and manage the company’s sales, marketing and field support operations,” Green Cloud said. The appointment reunites Sterling with the Houser family that founded NuVox in Greenville and sold the company in February 2010 to Windstream, which is based in Little Rock and has a large regional staff in Greenville. “Getting to work with Dan again is truly a privilege,” said Charles Houser, Green Cloud’s executive vice president of sales and marketing. Sterling is just one of several NuVox veterans who have joined Green Cloud, a company started by Shay and Charles Houser to provide
cloud-based disaster recovery services for small and medium businesses.
Regulator lifts restrictions at Southern First The Office of Comptroller of the Currency has lifted memorandum requirements for higher than normal capital ratios that had been enforced on Southern First Bancshares since June 2010. A memorandum of agreement is a low-level regulatory restriction. Lifting it means the OCC is satisfied with the capital Southern holds relative to loan risk. Southern First is the holding company of Greenville First in Greenville and Southern First Bank in Columbia and Charleston.
Realtor creates new services Prudential C. Dan Joyner announced creation of two new divisions. John Moore, who had been broker in Joyner’s Pelham Road office, is heading up a senior services division to counsel seniors as they decide to stay in their homes and renovate to or relocate “to accommodate their changing needs.” The company said it has partnered with Interim Healthcare for expanded services to help seniors to make their homes safe if they choose to remain, or assist them with making a move “successful and stress-free.” Teresa Cox, who has been a broker in the Pleasantburg office, is heading up a business development and career advancement division. She said the program will focus not only on development of brokers and agents but would offer coaching and training to “those new to the business” and to those aspiring to “take their business to another level.
Manufacturers finalists for excellence The Silver Crescent Foundation has announced finalists for the 2013 Silver Crescent Awards for Manufacturing Excellence. In the category of 500 or more employees, the finalists are BMW Manufacturing in Spartanburg, Boeing in North Charleston and Itron in West Union. The finalists in the mid-sized category
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UBJ >>
Lighting up with awards
IT firm earns ‘A’ from Microsoft
The Building Operating Management Magazine has recognized Hubbell Lighting with two top products of the year awards. One is Hubbell’s Zone 5 Daylight Harvesting Control System that provides users with one to four rows of daylight dimming, switching or step-dimming control. The other is for Hubbell’s Dual-Lite series that utilizes two high-powered LEDs to produce up to 27 feet of emergency lighting using fewer than two watts of power. A patent is pending on this system. “Innovation is our heritage,” said Scott Muse, president of Hubbell. “In 1888, Harvey Hubbell invented what can arguably be called the world’s first lighting control device, the pull-chain socket. Today, in the 21st century, Hubbell Lighting’s brands continue that tradition of industry leadership by introducing innovative products year after year.”
of 200-499 employees are Aaron Industries in Clinton, Shaw Industries-Plant 8T in Clinton and Southern Weaving in Greenville. In the small category of 199 or fewer employees, the finalists are Cytec Industries in North Augusta, Holcim (US) in Holly Hill, PropertyBoss Solutions in Greenville and Spartanburg Meat Processing in Spartanburg. A national panel of expert judges reviews applications of the finalists and determines winners. The winners will be announced at a Salute to Manufacturing luncheon at the TD Convention Center, Greenville, March 21. For more information, visit www.SaluteToManufacturing.org or contact Sharon Halsey at 803-657-6183.
The Palmetto Technology Group in Greenville said it is one of 50 companies in the Southeast and of 350 in the nation awarded Microsoft SMB Club Champions Club designation. “This places PTG in the top 10 percent of all Microsoft partners,” the company said. Reed Wilson, president, said PTG’s support team has worked closely with Microsoft, “learning the ins and outs of Office 365, receiving specialized cloud training and taking advantage of Microsoft support and resources.” Office 365 is designed for small businesses as an “easy-to-use set of Web-enabled tools that let users access email, important documents, contacts and calendar from almost anywhere and by any device,” PTG said.
New Realtor in land Steven Smith has opened Cross Creek Realty in Greenville as a sister company to Cross Creek Timber. “The company will represent both buyers and sellers of timber tracts, farms, recreational and commercial properties,” said Smith, who serves as president, broker and sales agent. Smith is a licensed forester in South and North Carolina and Georgia.
Making the case for organic Nell Newman, founder and president of
ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT
ONE HAS EVER THOUGHT OF THIS BEFORE REMEMBER THAT NO I SHOULD REALLY WRITE THIS DOWN
Nell Newman
Newman’s Own Organics, will be keynote speaker at Upstate Forever’s annual ForeverGreen awards luncheon next month. Newman will discuss the importance of organic foods and why living a more environmentally conscious life helps everyone. Newman convinced her father, actor Paul Newman, to establish an organic division of Newman’s Own in 1993. Her mother, actress Joanne Woodward, graduated from Greenville High School and began her career at Greenville Little Theatre. The luncheon will be held at Embassy Suites, 670 Verdae Blvd., Greenville, Thursday, Feb. 21, starting at 11:30 a.m. For more information, contact Billie Young at 864-232-2302 or at billie@crawfordstrategy.com.
Young pros unite The Simpsonville Chamber of Commerce has started a young professionals group. The chamber said the group “will gather for monthly outings, professional development sessions and community outreach projects.” The chamber held an informational meeting Tuesday and said it would later announce monthly events, including breakfasts, lunches and socials.
DUST IT OFF. IT’S TIME.
ONE-IN-A-MILLION BUSINESS IDEA?
Clemson MBA in Entrepreneurship & Innovation ∙ Info session 1/24 ∙ Jan24info.eventbrite.com JANUARY 18, 2013 | Upstate business 21
UBJ on the move
elected
elected
hired
hired
honored
Luanne Runge
Brad B. Easterling
Tim Nolan
Mary Wray Conner
Dr. Bruce Lessey
Recently began her term as chairwoman of the board of directors for the Greenville Chamber of Commerce. Runge, a shareholder at Gallivan, White & Boyd P.A., follows former Chamber Chairman Mike Riordan, president of Greenville Hospital System. She has served as chairwoman of Leadership Greenville, vice-chair of Education & Workforce, four years as the Chamber’s general counsel, and vice-chair of Organization Excellence in 2011.
Elected as a shareholder for Turner Padget law firm. Easterling practices in the area of workers’ compensation law and began his career as a judicial law clerk to former Circuit Court Judge James E. Brogdon Jr. of Marion, S.C. Prior to joining Turner Padget in 2005, he practiced with two wellrespected defense firms in South Carolina.
Hired as marketing product manager for T&S Brass and Bronze Works, a leading manufacturer of plumbing and foodservice equipment. Nolan has more than twenty years’ experience in product design and marketing, most recently at Elkay Manufacturing in Oak Brook, Ill. He also worked with Chicago Wilcox Manufacturing, where he led the customer service team and directed all marketing activities for institutional and commercial plumbing products.
Joined Godshall Professional Recruiting and Staffing as director of talent assessment resources. Conner, who was recruited by Godshall to lead the new team, has more than 30 years’ experience working with a variety of businesses, nonprofits and ministries. She is a certified Dominance, Inducement, Submission and Compliance Assessment Consultant & Trainer. Conner offers expertise on improving employee performance and productivity.
A reproductive endocrinology and infertility specialist with Greenville Hospital System’s Fertility Center of the Carolinas; recently received the American Society of Reproductive Medicine’s 2012 Star Award. This award is presented to reproductive health professionals who have presented at the society’s annual meeting at least nine of the last 10 years.
ACCOUNTING
EDUCATION
• Scott and Company LLC recently announced that Charlie Wooten, CPA, has joined their staff as an associate accountant for assurance and advisory services.
• Spartanburg Community College recently welcomed Richard Blanton as a campus police officer at SCC’s Tyger River Campus; Reynalda Christopher as an administra-
tive specialist for SCC’s Health and Human Services Division; Sarah McDowell as an administrative specialist for SCC’s bookstore, the Book Inn; Brandi Morrow as a library support specialist for SCC’s
library; April Nichols as a financial aid counselor; Douglas Paris as the Paramedic Program director and instructor; Sabrina Sims as an admissions counselor for SCC’s central campus; Margaret “Dianne”
>>
BEHIND THE COUNTER 2013 F
The Drive Team
rom the moment the first pitch crossed home plate, the Greenville Drive has felt the overwhelming support of Upstate baseball fans.
for the greater good. When attendance at Fluor Field hits 350,000 during the 2012 season, the payoff for the community will be big. The team will partner with local businesses throughout the year to donate goods and services, and donate its own time and resources to make the Upstate an even better place to live.
G
H
Bill Bishop and Joel Hogg
ood character sets the stage at emediagroup. Top billing goes to integrity, respect and dedication, with a balance of humor waiting in the wings. Creativity shares the spotlight, too, ensuring this print media provider turns every job into a successful run.
materials, signage and more, even T-shirts and competition/race numbers. No job is too large—or too small—to get the star treatment that makes every client’s brand a success.
While Jimenez feels the weight of history, he also sees an exciting opportunity to preserve the congregation’s mission and message while adapting its methodology to today’s culture. To that end, the church offers traditional, contemporary and modern worship services,
Who? What? Where? Why? “We feel like not only are we a part of the Upstate community, but the community has really become a part of us,” says Mike DeMaine, the team’s general manager. “This year we are looking forward to joining with our fans to give back on a grand scale.” The Drive is introducing its “Let’s Hit 350” campaign this season, designed to harness the Upstate’s generous spirit and love of the game
Keep your eye on the ball to see how the Greenville Drive plans to make a difference in the community that has welcomed it with open arms.
emedia’s role is more than merely putting ink on Its repertoire includes savvy consultation 945 S.paper. Main Street Greenville services—advice, tips, thoughts, tactics—providing 864.240.4500 media solutions to each client’s unique challenges. www.greenvilledrive.com What’s more, emedia is South Carolina’s only printer with conventional, digital, wide format AND screen Baseball Stadium printing capabilities behind one corporate curtain. This one-stop shop offers print products, collateral
Headliners Bill Bishop and Joel Hogg met in a long-ago sideshow and joined forces in 2004 to form a company joyfully described as “full of characters…who have all the right character.” Indeed, emediagroup earns consistently rave reviews.
As a philanthropic encore, emedia supports a long list nonprofit efforts. Bill and Joel donated signage for the SCCT Character Breakfast, for example, providing the South Carolina Children’s Theater with a lion, a witch, a wardrobe AND a generous printer.
Papa Murphy’s Pizza
S
Monday-Thursday 10am-6pm Friday-Saturday 10am-9pm Sunday Noon-6pm www.maststoregreenville.com General Store
Photograph by: Carol Stewart
Taylors First Baptist Church
Feather Your Nest Photograph by: Carol Stewart
W M REDESIGNED & EXPANDED FOR 2013
ome merchants might be mortified to find their shop full of mice, but not the folks at Mast General Store! Indeed, they’re delighted to display T-shirts, books and games that complement Greenville’s iconic “Mice on Main,” nine storied little characters who—just like Mast Store—have found their perfect places on Main Street. Famed for its friendly atmosphere, Mast General Store is downtown’s favorite retail destination. This must-stop shop carries a bit of everything: old-time mercantile goods, toys, casual clothing, comfortable footwear, travel accessories, outdoor gear…the list goes on. And did we mention candy? More than 500 varieties—barrels full of classic
confections—send a sweet siren song to people walking along Main Street who suddenly think “Oh, we simply MUST stop by Mast for some candy!”
Mikella, Neil and Gail Avery
Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake Pizza
Mast General Store
6015 Wade Hampton Blvd.
General Manager Mary Nase, her management Taylors team—Tim Dorsey, Bryan Howell and Eddie 864.848.0006 Poore—and several staffers have been with the 3935 Pelham Road store since the doors opened in Spring ’03. Mary Greenville attributes this longevity to a warm-hearted work 864.288.4441 atmosphere and old-fashioned corporate ethics.
www.Papamurphys.com
aria Ahn-Wilson fed her family more than a few take-out pizzas. A busy entrepreneur with plenty of volunteer commitments, she always appreciated the convenience—but found the quality lacking. Sometimes cold, often less-than-fresh; somebody, Maria thought, should do it better. So, that’s what the Wilsons are doing. With their son Austin as Director of Operations, Maria and her husband Phil have brought Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake Pizza to the Upstate.
e LOVE what we do.
With stuffed pizzas weighing in around 5 pounds, deLite pizzas with fewer calories and carbs, signature pizzas, even build-your-own options, Papa Murphy’s has something for everyone.
With 1,300 stores in 37 states and Canada, Papa Murphy’s has earned accolades from sources such as Zagat, Consumer Reports and JD Power & Associates, just to name a few.
Maria’s other current venture is Greenville’s Comfort Keepers. Phil is the founder of RealtyLink, a southeastern commercial real estate development company; Austin is a recent USCUpstate grad. Together at Papa Murphy’s, the Wilsons are committed to providing families with high-quality meals at an affordable price.
2854 Wade Hampton Blvd., Suite E Taylors 864.244.6471
At Feather Your Nest, you’ll find gorgeous furnishings and accessories, but you’ll also find something you don’t find in all consignment shops – laughter. “So many of our customers have become part of the family,” says owner Gail Avery. “People come in every week to see our selection, which is always changing.”
Gail has always loved working with people – in a pottery studio, a dental office, and another consignment shop. It was there that she discovered her calling: combining great customer service with her passion for furnishings, accessories and interior design. Soon, Feather Your Nest was hatched.
Four years later, she is still passionate about helping people express their personalities in their homes. “We create vignettes to show people how to make a really attractive setting,” she says. The “Nest” accepts medium-priced to upper-end pieces, though some need upholstery or a fresh coat of paint. Daughter Mikella and son Neil both work in the shop, making it truly a family business. The entire staff has been “adopted” into the family and love design and people as much as Gail does. Budget-conscious and style-conscious customers keep flocking to Feather Your Nest to buy, sell and browse. “You’ll find pieces that don’t look like everyone else’s,” she says. “We spend time with you so that your home reflects who you are.”
Behind The Counter has been the most popular business publication in the Upstate for the past 10 years. This year, readers will learn even more about the businesses that make the Upstate great through an exciting new Q & A format. Featuring large, full bleed photos and interesting insights, the 2013 Behind The Counter promises to be the best yet. Reserve your space today! For more information, call 864.679.1235 Headquartered in Valle Crucis, NC, where the www.facebook.com/ Original Store opened nearly 129 years ago, PapaMurphysUpstate Mast General Store is employee-owned so everyone on staff is truly vested in ensuring theMonday-Sunday 11am-9pm company’s success. Take and Bake Pizza
Rated the best pizza chain in America for seven consecutive years, Papa Murphy’s makes fresh pizza right in front of you—then you take it home to bake in your own oven and serve piping hot.
www.featheryournestconsignments.com Monday-Friday 10am-5:30pm Saturday 10am-4pm Furniture Consignment
www.BehindTheCounterONLINE.com 22 Upstate business | JANUARY 18, 2013
www.taylorsfbc.org Church
Photograph by: Carol Stewart
Printing and Media Products
emediagroup
200 West Main Street Taylors 864.244.3535
“If you comb through Greenville’s history,” Jimenez says, “you probably won’t find many 150-year-old churches with the sense of mission and vibrancy we have here.”
www.emediagrp.com
Photograph by: Carol Stewart
Photograph by: Carol Stewart
111 N. Main Street Greenville 864.235.1883
Greenville Drive
an unexpected mix for an historic Southern Baptist institution. Jimenez is particularly proud of the church’s local mission work, including the quarterly Single Moms Oil Change that touches hundreds of mothers and children in their own communities and neighborhoods. He also desires to see the church make a global impact, with planned trips to Prague, Brazil, the Middle East and beyond.
615 Worley Road Greenville 864.232.4604 877.866.RACE
Photograph by: Darrell Snow
Mast General Store
Taylors First Baptist Church
ow does a 42-year-old pastor lead a 146-year-old church? With gusto, if Paul Jimenez is any example. Jimenez took the helm at Taylors First Baptist Church in December 2010, bringing Cheri, his wife of 15 years, back to her hometown, and the couple’s two children closer to their grandparents.
UBJ on the move >>
Smith as a program manager for health related occupations in SCC’s Corporate & Community Education Division; Ricky Turner as a grounds specialist for SCC’s Campus Operations; and Loretta Warr as an administrative specialist for SCC Student Records. Blanton was previously employed by the Chesnee Police Department for four years, where he was named “Officer of the Year.” Christopher previously worked in customer relations at Suburban Propane and in customer service, data entry and imaging at Iron Mountain. McDowell was previously employed as a customer service representative at JCPenny’s and a daycare worker at Jack Bee’s. Morrow was previously employed at SCC as helpdesk support in the information technology department. Nichols was previously employed as the assistant director of Financial Aid at USC Upstate, where she was named “Employee of the Year” in 2011, and received the 2009 USC Upstate Enrollment Services Morrell Service Award and the 2003 USC Upstate Student Affairs Diversity Award. Paris was previously employed as an adjunct instructor and program director for SCC’s Emergency Medical Technology (EMT) Program. Sims previously worked at SCC’s Cherokee County Campus as a student services program coordinator and also served as an adjunct faculty member for transitional studies. Smith was previously employed as a program manager for regional surgical weight loss at Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System and a clinical outcomes specialist for Spartanburg Hospital for restorative care. Turner previously worked for Carolina Farm & Wildlife Supply and as a groundsman for Spartanburg County District 6. Warr previously worked as a production planner for Renfro Corporation.
ENGINEERING/CONSTRUCTION • O’Neal Inc., a Greenville-based integrated design and construction firm, recently added Curtis Showvaker as structural design specialist and Kevin Blanton as safety technician. Showvaker has more than 20 years of 2-D and 3-D design experience. He comes to O’Neal from Mustang Engineering, where he served as senior structural designer. Blanton has more than seven years of field experience
interning with the 13th Circuit Solicitors Office.
NONPROFIT
hired Alex Crigler Alex Crigler was recently welcomed as property manager-in-charge at Prudential C. Dan Joyner Co., Realtors, overseeing the day-to-day operations of the property management division. This division of the company manages rental properties and homeowners associations across the Upstate. Crigler served as a sales representative for Prudential C. Dan Joyner Co., Realtors, for a year after graduating from the University of South Carolina in 2006. He then decided to pursue other opportunities, with positions in both sales and management, but has returned to help expand this division. Crigler is also a graduate of the John O. Moseley Leadership School.
with Archer Western Contractors in Atlanta, where he served as civil foreman in heavy civil and infrastructure construction. He received Foreman of the Year in 2009 for his work on the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport project.
INSURANCE
• Rosenfeld Einstein recently added Wynn Damone as account manager for personal insurance specializing in home, automobile and related personal risk management programs and services. Damone joins Rosenfeld Einstein after more than twenty years of professional service with several regional risk management providers, and holds the professional designation of Certified Insurance Service Representative (CISR).
• Hatcher Garden & Woodland Preserve and the organization’s executive director Robin Vollmer were recently recognized with an Award of Appreciation from Wildlife Action’s Upstate Chapter. The award recognizes the partnership between the two nonprofit organizations to promote the education of local children in wildlife preservation and conservation. Partnerships include Birdhouse Building Birthday Parties at Hatcher Garden, volunteering at Lost Acres, Wildlife Action’s wildlife habitat, and donation of plant materials.
OFFICE SUPPLIES • Greenville Office Supply (GOS) recently announced the company has named Charles Scales IV as sales manager. Prior to being named to this new position, Scales has worked for over two years as an account manager at GOS.
REAL ESTATE • Keller Williams Realty, Greenville, recently introduced Michael Brown as CEO/Team Leader of this rapidly growing office of real estate professionals. • Prudential C. Dan Joyner Co., Realtors, recently announced that Rex Galloway has joined the company and serves as a sales associate with The Greenville Team at the Pelham Road office.
RESTAURANTS • High Cotton recently welcomed Greg McPhee as their new executive sous chef. McPhee brings to High Cotton his culinary talents developed in two exceptional venues: in Coastal Georgia at the legendary Five-Star luxury resort, The Cloister; and in Charleston at Husk.
LEGAL
• The Leinster Law Firm recently hired William L. Glenn as an associate attorney. Glenn’s experience includes interning with a national full-service commercial real estate firm, clerking for the Honorable Charles B. Simmons Jr., Master in Equity for Greenville County, and
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
JANUARY 18, 2013 | Upstate business 23
PLANNER
21 UBJ social
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
Tuesday January
Fountain Inn Chamber Lunch & Learn The History Center, 102 Depot St., Fountain Inn, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Speaker: Elizabeth Garrison-Rasor, ecopreneur and president of Ever-Green Recycling. Topic: The State of Recycling in South Carolina. Lunch will be provided. To register for the Lunch & Learn, contact: Yancey Epps at the Fountain Inn Chamber, yepps@fountaininnchamber.org by Jan. 18.
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Wednesday January
Upstate Chamber Coalition CHAMBER BREAKFAST
4
Women’s Business Network Southern Galleries, 108 E. Curtis St., Simpsonville; 6-8 p.m. Cost: $25. Painting class with Corks & Colors with a professional artist who will instruct the group. Attendees are invited to bring a favorite hors d’oeuvres and beverage to share. Contact: Allison McGarity at amcgarity@simpsonvillechamber.com.
26
Saturday January
Comprehensive Small Business Start-Up Greenville County Library, Hughes Main Branch, 25 Heritage Green Place, Greenville; 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Cost: $59, includes lunch and materials. Register online at www. piedmontscore.org. Call 864-271-3638 for more information.
The Kickstarter Economy Seminar The Phoenix Inn, 246 N. Pleasantburg Drive, Greenville; 9 a.m. Speaker: Richard Bliss, host of the popular crowdfunding podcast “Funding the Dream.” Panel: Fredrick Pfeiffer of Marshall Fredrick & Company, Business Advisors and Brokers; Joshua Githens of HASBRO, part owner of Boardwalk and a veteran game developer; and Ralph Gleaton of Gleaton Wyatt Hewitt business attorneys. Cost: $25, includes breakfast and admission to the Boardwalk Game Day. Tickets may be purchased at Boardwalk Game Store, 1175 Woods Crossing Road #2, Greenville, or by calling 864-297-6924.
Submit your event: events@upstatebusinessjournal.com
3
2
Photos by Greg Beckner
January Coffee and Conversation Upstate SC Alliance, 124 Verdae Blvd., Suite 202 ,Greenville; 8-9 a.m. Investors only. Includes a presentation about Healthcare Reform Readiness. If interested in becoming an investor, call Clay Andrews 864-283-2300. RSVP at RSVP@upstatealliance.com.
PULSE January Luncheon Embassy Suites, 670 Verdae Blvd., Greenville; 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Topic: Perspectives on Building Capacity in the Workplace, PULSE, and the Community. Speakers: Nika White, vice president of diversity and inclusion; Jo Hackl, attorney at Wyche, P.A.; Sandra Yudice, assistant to the Greenville County administrator; and Dr. Vaughan Crowe Tipton, Furman University chaplain and associate professor of religion. Event is open to PULSE members. Register by phone at 864-239-3743.
1
1) A large crowd was in attendance at the Kroc Center as members of the Upstate Chamber Coalition welcomed newly appointed United States Sen. Tim Scott to the Upstate at a breakfast event. 2) Tim Hargett stands to participate during the event’s question-and-answer session. 3) Luanne Runge, chairwoman of the Greenville Chamber of Commerce board of directors, introduces Sen. Scott. 4) U.S Sen. Tim Scott, from Charleston, is a former U.S. Representative for South Carolina’s 1st congressional district. He was sworn in on Thursday, Jan. 3 after being appointed by Governor Nikki Haley to replace former Sen. Jim DeMint.
2013 Spartanburg Visitors Guide RELEASE Travelers seeking vacation ideas have a new resource available to them: the 2013 edition of the Spartanburg Visitors Guide. Produced by the Spartanburg Convention and Visitors Bureau (SCVB), the official Spartanburg Visitor’s Guide features more than 120 pages of shopping, dining, accommodations and attractions in Spartanburg County.
Photos provided
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/.
UBJ digital maven
Keeping it clean: 2 steps closer to a paperless office SECOND of a 3 - part series
A digital workflow reduces expense (like printing costs) and increases collaboration, saving time and streamlining operations. Here are three steps to get you there.
Minimize printing. Eliminate
desktop printing – the printer on everyone’s desktop that is directly connected to their computers. It is not only expensive but it is the enemy of your digital workflow. Total cost of ownership (TCO) of a desktop printer is deceiving because the printers themselves are so cheap. But factor in the paper and the ink, not to mention the maintenance time, and multiply that by all the printers you see on desks, and you have quite a little expense line going. Replace desktop printers with multifunction, networked devices that can print, scan, email and fax. Look for features like: • Security features. One of the biggest reasons employees demand their own printers is security. They don’t want reviews, budget reports and other sensitive information lying around on the printer for anyone to see. Look for a centralized device with features like passcodes for documents, so that sensitive files can be printed to a shared device, but don’t have to lie around in the print tray all day. The user can send it to the printer and then plug in a passcode on the printer to print it out while they are standing at the device to collect it.
reinforce your digital workflow plans.
Eliminate local copies of documents. Most businesses
have set up some form of centralized storage, whether it’s through cloud services, like Dropbox or Google Apps for Business, or an internal server. But still employees pull down copies of files and keep them on their own hard drives – or worse, print out dozens of copies and keep them in their own hardcopy filing systems. Why is that a problem? • Security. Your laptop is stolen from the back of your car while you’re at the mall. And your company’s credit report on a customer is sitting on the desktop. We have a lot of sensitive information we don’t even think about and we need to protect it to the best of our ability. • Efficiency. Your report on new product development is sent to five other people for review. Each one downloads a copy to their desktops and makes changes. Each one sends the file to the four other people to review their changes and each of those four people make different comments in the copy they reviewed. Whew, I’m already confused. How many different versions was that already? I think you take my point.
pricing, product sizes, distribution or any other information and – logically – update the flyers in your library. But your sales staff are still handing out the old ones that are on their laptops... problem.
Email is a transfer station, not a hotel. Email is an action
item: read this, sign that, meet this client. We need to convert it into actionable tasks, appointments or documents and file it appropriately in our workflow. Not the inbox. Here are a few steps to start with: • Don’t be an email slave. Set up a couple of times each day to review and prioritize your email. Your goal should be an inbox of no more than 20 items at the end of each day. I’d say none, but no one would believe me. • Get email out of the inbox and into appropriate tasks and appointments. Use Quick Steps in Outlook to turn an email into a task or appointment with one click. See a screencast of how to create custom actions: http://goo.gl/g3cDX. • Set up a folder system that mirrors your digital workflow
By Laura Haight
and a set of status folders – read later, future projects, follow up, etc. Use rules and categories to help you stay on track. Rules can put non-critical information in deferred folders, and using categories you can color code current projects for easy tracking and searching. Learn to love rules; they are your best friends in email. The two major reasons for resistance to changes like these are fear of losing something (because they lost something once!), and the perceived complication of layers of security. To answer the “it’seasier-for-me-to-do-it-my-way” argument? “Get over it.” As to the real concern about data loss or inaccessibility of shared resources due to power or service outages? Next week, part three: Planning for emergencies – great and small. Laura Haight is the president of Portfolio (www.portfoliosc.com). 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 for future columns.
• Accuracy. You keep a central library of sales flyers. Your sales staff copy them onto their laptops so they “always have them with them.” You change schedules,
• Networked and bidirectional so user setup and job management or troubleshooting can be done by an administrator, authorized users or IT staffer remotely. Permissions can be assigned based on the user’s job and needs. • Training. The vast majority of users use these devices just as big shared printers. Invest in training them how to use them properly to JANUARY 18, 2013 | Upstate business 25
Photo by Greg Beckner
UBJ snapshot
EAST COURT STREET – Then and NOW This photograph of East Court Street (at right) was taken from directly behind the second courthouse/records building in 1922. The multi-story building on the left is the cigar factory. On the south side of Court Street is the Balentine Packing Company and, above it, The John Wesley Memorial Methodist Church. In the center of the street, farmers sell fresh produce from their new motorcars. Before the automobile, farmers sold produce on the streets of Greenville from horse-drawn wagons. By the 1920s, the center of East Court Street was designated as a curb market. Eventually
covered stalls were built down the center of the street. The City Curb Market moved to Elford Street in 1950. Today (shown above), East Court Street is used for parking. The former cigar factory on the left was renovated and is now home to Devereaux’s Restaurant. East Court Street ends at Spring Street with the Church Street overpass seen in the background above the parking lot where East Court Street used to continue. The John Wesley Memorial Methodist Church is still in use and the Balentine Packing Company has been replaced by shops and retail businesses.
From “Rememberin
g Greenville: Pho
tographs from the
Coxe Collection,”
by Jef frey R. Willis
Got an old photo you’d like featured here? Send an image file to snapshot@upstatebusinessjournal.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. 3) 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 18, 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 Associate Family Health Center BMW Manufacturing recently opened its new Associate Family Health Center at its South Carolina plant. The Center is a first-class facility, employing highly-trained professionals and offering the latest in healthcare technology. Use of the facility is available to all BMW Associates, eligible retirees and their dependents. BMW’s existing onsite family pharmacy was relocated to the new facility and joined by occupational and primary care services, as well as vision, dental and physical therapy. The Center will be independently managed by Walgreens Take Care Health Systems and is among just a few health centers across the U.S. that offers such an array of services under one roof exclusively for on-site corporate use.
Griffin Property Solutions LLC
Griffin Property Solutions LLC (GPS), a fully integrated commercial, residential, business brokerage and consulting firm, recently opened for business. GPS is located at 420 Park Avenue in Greenville. GPS plans to expand in 2013 by hiring additional residential and commercial agents. Find them online at www. griffinpropertysolutions.com.
Pro crafters
The Makers Summit to help launch handcraft entrepreneurs By April A. Morris | staff
For the past three years, the Indie Craft Parade has attracted hundreds of shoppers seeking the handmade and unique wares of regional exhibitors, from jewelry and knit items to pottery and paper craft. Exhibitors included full-time, professional artisans and hobby crafters, said Erin Godbey, one of the event’s organizers. In February, Indie Craft Parade is hosting a conference to help those who are interested in growing their crafting business: The Makers Summit. The one-day event is designed to offer fundamental business advice for creatives and “jumpstart them wherever they are,” Godbey said. Artisans of handmade wares needed an easily accessible, affordable and
local event to offer business advice, but none existed – so they created one, she said. Godbey, who is married to an illustrator, said the summit fills a real need, as “most people in arts school don’t graduate with a lot of business background.” Offering this sort of event was part of the plan from the founding of the Indie Craft Parade several years ago, she said. Speakers at The Makers Summit include Stephen Fraser, founder of custom fabric printer Spoonflower; Grace Kang, retailer and founder of Pink Olive and Retail Recipes; and Kimm Alfonso, community outreach representative with handmade online marketplace powerhouse Etsy. There will also be panel discussions along with one-on-one sessions on branding, marketing, legal issues, accounting and public
Mark Griffin, CBB
relations with local businesspeople, said Godbey. Many people who create handmade items may only create to exhibit at events like the Indie Craft Parade, but others could be ready to quit their jobs and sell their items full time, Godbey said. The Makers Summit will give them the tools and information needed to take that next step. After the day-long session, attendees are invited to The Best Craft Party Ever, said organizer Jen Moreau, where they can mingle with fellow crafters and experts while trying out different creations. “This part of the event is great for people who are interested in the craft movement,” said Moreau. There will be four craft stations where guests can create. “People can try something new and take home a kit or make it there. It’s a chance to dip your toes into crafting,” Godbey said. The evening event will feature food and drink along with a screenprinting station, letterpress demonstration and 3-D printing demo. Godbey and Moreau, who organized the event with Elizabeth Ramos, expect to sell out the confer-
PartnerMD
PartnerMD, a membership medical practice based in Richmond, Virginia, recently opened its first South Carolina practice in Greenville. This practice is the organization’s first office outside of Virginia. PartnerMD provides its members with a practice focused on prevention and whole-person care. Patients receive 24/7 access to a PartnerMD physician; on-time, norush appointments; a personalized Personal Health Portfolio detailing results of their annual physical and many other amenities not offered by traditional primary care practices. The family practice physician is Jack C. Durham Jr., MD. The office is located at 12 Maple Tree Court, Suite 103.
Saturday, Feb. 2, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. $100, includes two meals and one-on-one sessions with experts
The Best Craft Party Ever Feb. 2, 7 p.m. $50, includes meal and craft www.themakerssummit.com ence at about 100 people, and look for nearly that many to attend The Best Craft Party Ever. Depending on response and success, they expect to continue The Makers Summit as an annual or bi-annual event. “Our goal is to help get these artists doing their craft full time or at a level that is worth it to them,” said Godbey. Contact April A. Morris at amorris@communityjournals.com.
JANUARY 18, 2013 | Upstate business 27
UBJ
OLD SCHOOL MEETS NEW SCHOOL OLD SCHOOL MEETS NEW SCHOOL
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