Feb. 10, 2017 UBJ

FEBRUARY 10, 2017 | VOL. 6 ISSUE 6

Natural the

Michelle Higdon went from the barn to the boardroom, helping companies nationwide get where they want to go

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2.10.2017

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TOP-OF-MIND AND IN THE MIX THIS WEEK

| THE RUNDOWN | 3

VOLUME 6, ISSUE 6 Featured this issue: Apparel makers put hometown pride on their sleeves..............................................4 BMW’s Knudt Flor is not afraid of tariffs.....................................................................6 What’s new from Detroit, innovation city....................................................................21

At the Greenville Chamber’s 128th Annual Meeting last week, President and CEO Carlos Phillips — who moved to Greenville from Louisville, Ky., last year — presented Louisville Slugger bats to outgoing Chamber board members Wil Brasington, Julie Godshall Brown, Frank Mobley, David Pereira, S.T. Peden, Matt Puckett, and Natalie Ruggiero. Michael Bolick and Chris Farinella, who weren’t at the meeting, will get their bats later.

For more photos, see page 24. Photo by Alaina Lutkitz.

WORTH REPEATING

VERBATIM

On a possible trade war with China “Slapping ‘GVL’ on everything, we’re not going to do that.”

Page 4

“It isn’t rocket science to build a car.”

Page 7

“We’re already smart, but we’re shifting to smarter.”

Page 21

“South Carolina is not going to be a winner in this. South Carolina should be concerned.”

Gerald McDermott, associate professor of international business at the University of South Carolina’s Darla Moore School of Business, on the possible ramifications for the state of President Donald J. Trump’s positions on global trade, quoted in the Greenville News.

4 | APPAREL |

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INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW

E D I R P H T I W T I R A E W arrived in Greenville as h l e r a p p a ic r t n e -c y Cit

The Landmark Project, which launched in 2013, sells T-shirts representing outdoor spots in the Upstate and beyond.

EMILY PIETRAS | ASSOCIATE EDITOR

epietras@communityjournals.com

THE LANDMARK PROJECT

T-shirts and other apparel have long been

The Landmark Project, a brand of screen printer Dapper Ink, was founded in 2013. Jen Moreau, account keeper, describes The Landmark Project as the business’ “retail endeavor.”

Jen’s husband, Matt, is the owner-operator of Dapper Ink, which launched in 2007. Jen says when she and her husband first moved to Greenville, they quickly connected with the city’s outdoor community. The couple frequented Jones Gap, Table Rock, and “anything in between here and Asheville.”

“We love these places, and a ton of people connect to them,” Moreau said. That love for the outdoors — and the knowledge that others shared it — inspired The Landmark Project. The brand sells T-shirts for local spots including Paris Mountain, Table Rock, Jones Gap, the Swamp Rabbit Trail, Falls Park, and Lake Jocassee.

The Landmark Project debuted at the 2013 Indie Craft Parade, where it was a fast hit. “We started doing wholesale orders almost immediately and started selling to outdoor shops and retailers locally,” Moreau said.

“It gives consumers the opportunity to tell their own story about their time outdoors,” she said of the brand’s popularity. “It’s a conversation starter and builds camaraderie among people who love

a medium used to display one’s personality, interests, and passions, but high-quality city-focused apparel is a niche that is just beginning to take off. And these designs go beyond just slapping a city name on any old T-shirt in a standard typeface and calling it a day. Instead, they’ve evolved into something resembling an art form, boasting high-quality fabrics and intricate, intentional graphics.

This emerging market isn’t just geared toward tourists that want to show other people they’ve visited a specific place. These brands are just as appealing to locals. For example, Flooded Streets — a T-shirt company based in Charleston that gives a nod to the adage that when it rains in the Holy City, it floods — has a design for the Cooper River Bridge Run and another that pays tribute to a Woolworth’s department store on King Street, which is no longer there.

And now that Greenville has become more widely known as a place to both visit and live, there is an opportunity within the market to capitalize on this trend. Within the past few years — months, even — new local brands have launched that give residents a chance to showcase their city pride through what they’re wearing.

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these places.” Moreau added that “pride of place, good artwork, and supporting local” have also helped The Landmark Project succeed.

Shortly after the launch, the brand expanded from solely “hyper-local landmarks” within the state. The Southeast line soon included destinations in North Carolina, like Dupont State Forest and Blue Ridge Parkway, and a Pacific Northwest line followed thereafter. In summer 2016, The Landmark Project launched a National Park series of T-shirts. This fall, another style of that series will be added to the lineup.

Currently, The Landmark Project sells to 75 retailers nationwide, with many concentrated in the Southeast.

“Expanding from a hyper-local market to a regional and now national market was a really big deal,” Moreau said. “We did our first buy-in with REI last summer, which was fantastic, because now we have products in stores in Washington, as well as in Asheville and Greenville.” She added that the Landmark Project has plans to double their retail suppliers by the end of the year.

GREENVILLE CLOTHING CO. Spouses Elizabeth and Mario Brown, along with their friend Willie Hunt, introduced Greenville Clothing Co. just a few months ago in November 2016. Mario and Willie, who worked together on a blog called BuildGreenville, noticed an absence of Greenville-centered apparel in the market. After discussing the idea with Elizabeth, who has a design background, the group came up with a few designs.

The brand has been featured on local TV programs, including “Studio 62 with Jamarcus Gaston” and “Scene on 7,” and most of the marketing has been through social media channels like Instagram and Facebook.

“People who are from Greenville and live in Greenville absolutely love [it], and they’re so prideful of where they live,” Elizabeth said. That idea inspired the brand’s #WearWeLive tagline.

Currently, the brand carries five designs, including a limited edition T-shirt commemorating Clemson football’s national championship victory. Greenville Clothing Co.’s products are currently sold online only.

As for the future, Elizabeth said new designs would be progressively rolled out each month, and she hopes to eventually sell through local retailers.

“One of my goals is to sell out one of our styles, and the 864 one is almost there. We’ve talked about continuing certain styles or colors. We’re still so new that we’re playing around with everything, seeing what works and what doesn’t,” she added.

THE GREENVILLE SHOP The Greenville Shop, started by friends Allison Domonoske and Carolyn Haas, launched last month after their logo was certified as a trademark, but the two had been sitting on the idea for a while.

“We’d put it on the back burner and then decided

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INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW

| APPAREL | 5

Adult T-shirts are currently on sale at The Pickwick Pharmacy on Augusta Road. The Greenville Shop’s website is forthcoming, but for now people can order over Instagram via @thegreenvilleshop.

Bulk corporate orders can be arranged through email. Over the summer, The Greenville Shop will have pop-ups at various retailers around town, and details will be announced on their Instagram page.

BILLIAM JEANS

Greenville Clothing Co. will progressively roll out new designs each month. to jump into it,” said Domonoske, an interior designer. The two were inspired to launch the brand in part because “we could never find a [Greenville] T-shirt we’d wear or give to friends from out of town.”

The brand’s logo, a “classic and simple” design, incorporates the iconic Liberty Bridge, as the two pillars suspending the bridge double as the two Ls in Greenville. And the decision not to put South Carolina in the logo design was deliberate. Although there are Greenvilles in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, and other states, “there’s really only one Greenville,” explained Haas, a local boutique owner.

Currently, the brand sells T-shirts, mugs, and

wooden spoons. They’ll soon add kitchen towels and hats to their lineup.

Domonoske and Haas believe their products will appeal to both tourists and residents of Greenville.

“People want to represent where they are, where they’re going, and where they’re from,” said Domonoske. “It’s a way that people can take a piece of our city with them.”

A children’s logo on T-shirts will debut in the spring and be sold at children’s boutique Vann & Liv, located on North Main Street. The design is similar to the original logo, but Greenville is written in Haas’ oldest daughter’s handwriting.

The Greenville Shop will unveil a kids’ version of their T-shirts in the spring, which will be sold at Vann & Liv boutique.

Billiam Jeans is better known for their custom handcrafted denim products, but last summer they launched a GVL-branded sweatshirt and hat.

Bill Mitchell, owner, said the inspiration came from visiting other cities and seeing “really cool products” that were focused on location. “There’s a lot of screen-printed T-shirts … but I thought there was something we could do with our skillset at that high-quality $75 or $85 price point,” Mitchell said.

His mindset in designing the two products was to “treat [Greenville] like a big city and have a great high-quality product that people in Greenville can really enjoy.”

Mitchell said the international and national attention that the city has recently garnered from major publications has created a “souvenir movement,” and if a tourist doesn’t purchase a pair of Billiam jeans, they “could walk away with the hat or sweatshirt instead.”

As far as possibly expanding into other apparel, Mitchell won’t rush the process. “Slapping ‘GVL’ on everything, we’re not going to do that. We want to be selective and sell the products that are the highest end,” he said.

If and when Billiam does add to the concept, Mitchell says, “We’ll make sure that whatever it is, we’re putting our name behind it as a craftsman and maker.”

Billiam Jeans unveiled their GVL-branded sweatshirt and hat last summer.

6 | PROFILE |

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INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW

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‘It’s a Homecoming’ New CEO Knudt Flor sees BMW Manufacturing as a ‘local company’ with a worldwide reach TREVOR ANDERSON | STAFF

tanderson@communityjournals.com BMW Manufacturing Co.’s new President and CEO Knudt Flor knows about timing.

During his first employment stint at the Spartanburg County plant between 1996 and 2000, it was not the highest producing facility in the Germany-based luxury automaker’s global production network. And it was not the nation’s largest exporter in terms of value. Not by a long shot.

The plant’s physical footprint, workforce, and supplier base were about half the size they are today.

Roadsters still rolled off the plant’s assembly lines. E53 was a codename for the new sport utility vehicle that Flor and his colleagues were quietly working on putting into production to compete with the Mercedes-Benz ML320.

That model turned out to be the X5 Sports Activity Vehicle. Its success provided a launching pad for a whole fleet of X models, including the X3, X4, and X6, to be built in Spartanburg.

Combined with the Germany-made X1, SAV sales accounted for about one-third of BMW’s global business in 2016.

BMW Manufacturing Co. set an all-time production record of 411,171 vehicles this past

Photo by Will Crooks

year. It is nearing completion of a $1 billion expansion announced in 2014 to expand its annual production capacity to 450,000 vehicles and support production of the new full-size X7, which is set to start in 2018.

“I’m very happy to be back. For me, it’s a homecoming,” Flor said. “I left in the year 2000. You can see there has been tremendous development.

We are the biggest plant in the BMW network, not by size, but by volume.

But volume matters in the car industry. Nobody would have expected this in the year 2000.”

FLEXIBILITY AND EXPANSION Flor, 57, a native of Föhr, an island off the coast of northern Germany, assumed his new leadership role at the plant on Dec. 1, succeeding

“I’m not in fear of tariffs. I’m not even excited about it. Let’s see what happens.”

Manfred Erlacher.

The road that led him back to the Upstate included stops in South Africa, China, and Europe.

A true believer in BMW’s principle that “production follows the market,” Flor said he is excited about the Spartanburg plant’s future.

“The good part about this is we will continue to grow,” he said. “We are very flexible based on customer demand. We can produce more. We can produce less. This is one of the main unique points of BMW — that we are producing cars according to the customer demand. We will further expand. We’re getting a new model, the X7. It’s a very exciting car, a new level of luxury. We are proud to build it here. It will be a new segment for BMW. Will we expand? Yes, definitely. We need more capacity in the plant. We will have more jobs in the plant. It all depends on the demand of the customer.”

On Friday, Feb. 3, Flor took time to sit down with a group of Upstate reporters to answer questions and share insights about where t h e

plant could be headed during the next few years.

Flor said the plant could produce an autonomous, or self-driving, car by the year 2020. He said the technology is available and is being tested at BMW’s research center in Munich, Germany.

The cost of all of the systems, such as GPS, radar, and sensing equipment, that enable a driverless car to operate are expensive. There also needs to be infrastructure that helps autonomous cars navigate roadways, he said.

“Will we have a driverless car? Yes.” Flor said. “Not in the near future.

Probably by 2020, maybe later.”

Flor fielded several questions about President Donald J. Trump’s recent comments about imposing a 35 percent border tax on vehicles imported to the U.S. by BMW and other German automakers, including Daimler and Volkswagen.

“They are not reality as of today,” he said. “We deal with facts, not speculation.”

Flor reiterated that the Spartanburg plant is the largest BMW plant in the world in terms of volume. He said the plant exported about 70 percent, about 280,000 vehicles, to 140 countries around the world in 2016.

“We export much more than we import,” Flor said. “We’re a local company. More than 70,000 people in this country rely on BMW for their jobs.”

“Exporting creates jobs; it creates wealth,” he said. “I’m not in fear [of tariffs]. I’m not even excited about it.

Let’s see what happens.”

In June, BMW broke ground on its new plant in San Luis Potosí, Mexico.

EMPHASIS ON PRODUCTION

Flor said the plant will continue to ramp up the number of hybrid gasoline-electric vehicles it produces. He said about 50 are assembled every day in Spartanburg.

There could also be a fully electric vehicle model introduced in the near future, he said.

“Production itself is pretty easy,” Flor said. “It isn’t rocket science to build a car. The next challenge is precision.”

He appeared at ease about

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INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW

| PROFILE | 7

BMW's X model sales climb 35 percent in January BMW’s U.S. business declined slightly in January, but sales of its X models produced in Spartanburg County continued to rise.

BMW of North America LLC last Wednesday reported it sold 21,219 vehicles during the past month, a onehalf percent decrease compared with

21,230 in January 2016.

Sales of X models assembled in the Upstate, including the X3, X4, X5, and X6, increased more than 35 percent to 7,070 vehicles in January, compared with 5,233 during the same month of the prior year. — Trevor Anderson

BMW JANUARY 2017 SALES

Model

1/17

1/16

+/-

X3

3,154

2,002

+57.5%

X4

211

262

-19.5%

X5

3,276

2,584

+26.8%

X6

429

385

+11.4%

BMW light trucks

7,070

5,233

+35.1%

“Production itself is pretty easy. It isn’t rocket science to build a car. The next challenge is precision.”

the Spartanburg plant’s ability to improve BMW’s standing in the domestic luxury market, especially with the introduction of the new X7.

In 2016, BMW’s U.S. sales did not increase for the first time since 2013.

The numbers revealed that the automaker’s sales growth in the crossover market was smaller compared with the same growth among its competitors.

BMW officials attributed the trend to its lack of a full-size crossover, as well as increased global demand for its existing crop of X models that created allocation problems for the U.S. market.

“What keeps you up at night?

Competition,” Flor said. “We highly appreciate this competition. … It

drives perfection, especially in the premium market. It forces more energy into turning that back. It will fuel products and processes. I have a good feeling about the future.”

Flor said manufacturing processes in the plant have become more advanced throughout the years and will continue to become more technical in the years ahead, but he doesn’t believe robots will replace humans any time soon.

He said the company would need employees with digital knowledge and experience who have the ability to program and problem-solve.

“Working in the car manufacturing industry is much different than it was years ago,” Flor said. “The work is not as physically demanding, not as dirty.

Plants are much cleaner. You could eat off the floor of our plant.”

With the General Assembly mulling solutions to fix crumbling roads and bridges across the state, Flor said those decisions could have an impact on BMW’s operations.

“General infrastructure is extremely important,” Flor said. “We have a lot of parts coming in. Our just-insequence model means that [parts] must come in exactly in the sequence that we need them. Infrastructure is vital.”

“I’m not aware of any losses that we’ve suffered so far,” Flor added. “A continuous flow of material is a dream for someone in charge of a plant.”

䴀䈀䄀攀

8 | CHAMBER |

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INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW

the passing of the gavel from 2016 Board of Directors Chair David Lominack to 2017 Chair Brenda Thames.

The meeting featured the presentation of the following annual awards:

The ATHENA Leadership Award

Greenville Chamber President and CEO Carlos Phillips addresses the crowd at the Chamber’s annual meeting last week. Photo by Alaina Lutkitz.

Greenville Chamber honors leaders at annual meeting

Presented to Pamela Evette, founder of Quality Business Solutions, for serving as a leader for women and the community as a whole throughout her career. The award, sponsored by the Hughes Agency, honors individuals who assist women in reaching their full leadership potential; demonstrate excellence, creativity, and initiative in their business or profession; and provide valuable service by devoting time and energy to improve the quality of life for others in the community.

The Buck Mickel Leadership Award

Awarded to former U.S. Secretary of Education and former South Carolina Gov. Dick Riley for his passionate leadership, vision, and service. The award, sponsored by Clemson University, honors those who have had a dramatic impact on the community by playing a leadership role in solving critical community issues, strengthening the community, or providing visionary leadership to a major community development project.

& PH STAFF REPORT

The Greenville Chamber held its

128th Annual Meeting, presented by TD Bank, on Tuesday, Jan. 31, at the

TD Convention Center. The event, emceed by Merl Code, featured the presentation of the Chamber’s annual awards, remarks from new Chamber President and CEO Carlos Phillips, and

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The Max Heller Neighborhood Improvement Award

Presented to Genesis Homes, noting especially their revitalization efforts in low-to–moderate income areas in the Upstate through the development of affordable housing for homeownership or home rental. Executive Director Jim Childress accepted the award. The award, sponsored by BlueCross BlueShield, is given annually to an organization that has shown exemplary efforts toward neighborhood improvement and empowerment. The award is named in honor of former Greenville Mayor Max Heller, who spearheaded numerous efforts over the years to improve the quality of life for all citizens of Greenville County.

The Minority Business of the Year Award

Presented to IG Global Sourcing LLC, which “offers outsourcing solutions for those seeking offshore contract manufacturing, global sourcing, quality inspections, logistics, sales representation, and consulting,” according to the company’s website. Sponsored by Bank of America, the award is presented to a local, independently, and minority-owned company that has been in business for a minimum of

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three years. President Robert Chandler accepted the award.

The Small Business of the Year Award

Sponsored by Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP, the award was presented to Intellectual Capitol (ICAP).

ICAP provides a full range of critical information technology staffing services and solutions to organizations throughout the Southeast. ICAP is a certified, woman-owned business with more than 30 employees. Owners Traci and Barry Newkirk accepted the award.

The Chairman’s Award

Sponsored by Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart, the award was presented to Wil Brasington, executive director of the Clemson Alumni Association.

The Leadership Greenville Distinguished Alumni Award

Presented to Bob Howard, a graduate of Leadership Greenville Class 3.

Howard became president of the Greenville Tech Foundation in January 2008 and retired at the end of 2016.

The award, sponsored by GSP Airport District, recognizes a Leadership Greenville alum who has made outstanding civic and community contributions.

INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW

The Young Professional of the Year Award

Presented to Kimberly Witherspoon, a shareholder in Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd’s Greenville office, where she practices in the public finance area.

The award, sponsored by BB&T, is designed to recognize an individual between the ages of 22 and 39 for his or her involvement in the community.

| CHAMBER / TECHNOLOGY | 9

The Blue Ridge Advantage Where Innovation Meets Commitment

The F. Ben Haskew Collaboration Award

Sponsored by Furman University, the award, first presented to former Chamber CEO Ben Haskew in 2016, was presented for its second time to recognize Upstate leaders who display progressive visions and a partnership approach to responsible growth in the Upstate. Hollingsworth Funds’ President and CEO Jim Terry and Senior Vice President Gage Weeks accepted the award.

For more photos of the event, see page 24.

Green Cloud Technologies acquires cloud services provider Cirrity DAVID DYKES | STAFF

ddykes@communityjournals.com Greenville-based Green Cloud Technologies, a channel-only, Cisco-powered cloud provider, said it has closed on the acquisition of Atlanta-based Cirrity, a channel-only cloud solutions provider. Terms weren’t disclosed.

Debt and equity financing were provided by Green Cloud’s existing investors, and the transaction is immediately accretive for the company, giving its partner network more capacity, security, and redundancy for cloud solutions, company officials said.

Green Cloud provides custom wholesale and white-label cloud solutions to a network of 400 reseller partners, and the acquisition expands Green Cloud’s capacity and data center presence, particularly on

the West Coast, while adding core expertise around security and compliance services, the company said.

In addition to the expanded security and compliance portfolio, Green Cloud partners will benefit directly from the addition of Cirrity’s data centers in Atlanta and Phoenix, which meet top industry security standards and certifications, including PCI and ISO 27001, the officials said.

“This important acquisition creates new opportunities for security and compliance solutions that complement our products in the health care and financial vertical markets,” said Shay Houser, Green Cloud’s founder and CEO. Houser added that Cirrity’s “channel-only” strategy fits “lockstep with our go-to-market strategy.”

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10 | INFRASTRUCTURE |

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Dismantling and removing a chain-link fence alongside the I-85 Business Loop is step one in beautifying a Spartanburg County thoroughfare.

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Gateway enhancement project underway along Business 85 TREVOR ANDERSON | STAFF

tanderson@communityjournals.com A barrier to economic development and community pride will be removed from a prominent thoroughfare in Spartanburg County.

Several local public and private entities have teamed up with the S.C. Department of Transportation (DOT) and raised $500,000 to beautify the Interstate 85 Business Loop.

The project will involve the demolition of a 6-foot-tall chain-link fence on both sides of the corridor between its southern interchange with I-85 near the Adidas distribution center about 6 miles to the Highway 9 exit at Boiling Springs.

This week, a construction crew equipped with an excavator and a dump truck began dismantling the fence, which was placed when the road was upgraded to a four-lane freeway in 1959. Two decades of neglect have left the fence rusted, mangled in spots, and tangled with vegetation and trash in others.

It will be replaced in the coming months with a new 4-foot-tall chain-

link fence dipped in black vinyl along with attractive shrubbery and signage.

“We want to create an attractive gateway to our community,” said John Montgomery, principal of Spartanburg-based Montgomery Development, who is assisting with the effort. “This is a positive project for beautification and economic development in Spartanburg County.”

Montgomery said the projects draw inspiration from the late textile magnate Roger Milliken’s decision to plant rows of oak trees along the Business 85 near Milliken & Co.’s corporate office.

Local entities involved in the project include Spartanburg County, Spartanburg Community College (SCC), Pacolet Milliken Enterprises, Montgomery Development, Spartanburg landscape architect Stewart Winslow, and several private donors.

Montgomery said the current project was inspired by a cleanup effort conducted this past year by SCC near its campus along Business 85 and New Cut Road.

“Over a year ago, we received permission from the state to remove

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INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW

Public and private entities have raised $500,000 to beautify the Interstate 85 Business Loop.

of the project is planned, which will clean up the remaining stretch of Business 85 from Highway 9 to its northern interchange at Highway 221 and I-85. He said he would begin soliciting donations for those improvements soon.

“I think it will give it a nice, consistent look,” said Pete Weisman, owner and architect of Corporate Center, a 193-acre business park near the intersection of Business 85 and Bryant Road. “It will be a big upgrade.”

Business 85 was a magnet for commercial and industrial activity before it was bypassed in 1995 by a new section of I-85 a little further north.

The number of companies located there has dwindled a little throughout the years, but several businesses and institutions, including Milliken & Co., Adidas, Highland Baking Co., SCC, and the University of South Carolina Upstate are still on the corridor.

It also has access to other important transportation channels, including Interstate 585, Highway 9, Bryant Road, New Cut Road, Asheville Highway, and Fairforest Road.

the fence in front of our campus and clean up part of the intersection at New Cut Road and Business 85 in partnership with Spartanburg Water System,” said Henry Giles, president of SCC. “I think people have been very pleased with the way it looks and the positive image it has made for the college.”

Giles said the joint public-private partnership is funded by $200,000 in private donations. DOT has com-

mitted $300,000 to the project during the next two fiscal years. The funds will be managed by SCC’s foundation.

The foundation will also manage the contract for the work, and the college has volunteered its maintenance department to help with the project, Giles said. SCC plans to place a new sign at New Cut Road and Business 85.

Montgomery said a second phase

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The average daily traffic count on Business 85 ranges from about 24,000 to 35,000 vehicles per day, Montgomery said.

The project will complement other recent gateway beautification projects, such as the new welcome sign bearing the county seal at I-85 and Highway 14, landscaping at I-85 and I-585, a new bridge at California Avenue and I-585, a cleanup at the Roger Milliken Interchange at I-585 and Business 85, and landscaping at Highway 29 and I-26.

He also credited the Spot of Pride program, which was a vision of the late Hans Balmer to beautify Spartanburg through median and roadside enhancements.

“It makes a big difference. It’s important to make a good first impression, and this project will greatly enhance the appearance of that corridor,” said Carter Smith, executive vice president of the Economic Futures Group. “We just launched our One Spartanburg vision plan, and these projects go a long way in helping us firmly establish our quality of place initiatives that are part of the plan.”

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UBJ

INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW

|

2.10.2017

Spartanburg County business leaders told to expect growth in 2017 TREVOR ANDERSON | STAFF

Don’t Miss Out!

To feature your own business or to suggest a busin ess you would like to se e in Behind The Counter, call today 864-679-1 205.

Coming April ’17 View the 2016 book at: bit.ly/2016BTC

tanderson@communityjournals.com

BY THE NUMBERS:

Spartanburg County business

$3.2 billion invested in Spartanburg County since 2014 $16 million invested in the county per week since 2011 $102 million invested in downtown Spartanburg since 2013 29 jobs on average created per week since 2011 70 new businesses downtown since 2013 185 new residential units downtown since 2013 $555 million in new investment announced in 2016 1,300 new jobs announced in 2016

leaders were told Friday, Feb. 3, the local economy will continue to grow in 2017 despite a few challenges at the national level.

Tim Quinlan, senior economist with Wells Fargo Bank, spoke at the Spartanburg Area Chamber’s annual Economic Forecast Breakfast hosted by the University of South Carolina Upstate.

Quinlan said the county continues to attract international companies, and single-family home building is near an all-time high, driven by strong job growth.

“Most of South Carolina’s larger metro areas are seeing a pickup in growth,” he said. “Spartanburg is expanding.”

Energy has been a significant drag on business investment since oil prices collapsed, Quinlan said. Capital spending has slowed more broadly during the current fiscal year, and oil prices are expected to trend higher toward about $60 per barrel.

Quinlan said the national labor market is firming and the unemployment rate is in line with the Federal Open Market Committee’s central tendency target.

The national budget deficit was $587 billion during the 2016 fiscal year due to lower revenue growth that was impacted by volatile tax sources, such as corporate income taxes and non-withholding income tax receipts, he said.

South Carolina has outpaced the national average for job growth, Quinlan said. And the growth is shifting toward higher-paying industries. The largest growth is anticipated to occur in the construction and professional services sectors, with manufacturing not far behind.

Todd Horne, chairman of the Spartanburg Chamber, said since the start of 2014, $3.2 billion has been invested in the county, which is more than one-third of the total amount invested in the state during that period.

Horne said since 2011, an average of 29 jobs have been created and more than $16 million invested in the county per week.

Since 2013, downtown Spartanburg has attracted $102 million in investment, 70 new businesses, and 185 residential units, he said.

Carter Smith, vice president of the Economic Futures Group, said 13 projects worth more than $555 million in new investment and about 1,300 new jobs were announced in 2016. He said 83 percent of those projects were new, while 17 percent were expansions.

Smith expects more positive developments to be announced during the coming year.

Chris Jennings, executive vice president of the Spartanburg Convention and Visitors Bureau, said 2016 was a banner year for tourism in the county. He expects activity to continue to be steady in 2017.

The Spartanburg Chamber introduced Meagan Rethmeier as executive vice president of its One Spartanburg group, which was formed to help implement the community's new vision plan. Rethmeier previously served as director of entrepreneurial development for the Economic Futures Group.

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INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW

CAB reports earnings increase for 2016 Spartanburg-based Carolina Alliance Bank said last week its earnings increased nearly threefold in 2016.

The bank reported its net income for the year was $4.1 million, a more than 127 percent increase compared with $1.8 million in 2015.

Kevin Coonce, Shannon Mercado-Coonce, Robert Caldwell III, and Maddie Settlemyre

FOOD

Spartanburg entrepreneur finalizes purchase of Greenville's Circa Doughnut Circa Doughnut, started in 2014 by Shannon Mercado-Coonce, has been purchased by one of Spartanburg’s rising young entrepreneurs, Robert Caldwell III. Caldwell, 20, founder of the faith-based thrift store Brown Roof, said he and his fiancé, Maddie Settlemyre, hope to continue to grow Circa’s customer base in the Upstate and possibly beyond.

The thrift store founder said he plans to relaunch Circa in early February. He has already begun meeting with other business owners in the Greenville and Spartanburg areas about carrying the brand.

His target audience for Circa’s wholesale side will include businesses like coffee shops, local restaurants, and breweries. For the pop-up side of the business, Caldwell said he hopes to sell doughnuts at three or four farmers markets each weekend.

Caldwell and Settlemyre will initially bake out of the Cribb’s Catering kitchen off St. John St. near downtown Spartanburg.

Caldwell said he would run free deliveries three times per week to wholesale customers in Greenville or Spartanburg. He plans to have a list of locations where customers can purchase Circa’s doughnuts on the company’s website. For more information, visit circadoughnut.com. — Trevor Anderson

MANUFACTURING

Chemicals manufacturer PIDC will invest $13 million in new Spartanburg County plant Michigan-based Pacific Industrial Development Corp. (PIDC) announced last week it will invest $13 million to set up shop in two buildings totaling 110,000 square feet at 5396 N. Blackstock Road and create 53 jobs during the next five years.

PIDC did not say when it will begin operating out of the facility, but it plans to begin hiring during the first quarter.

"We couldn't be happier that we have de-

cided to expand our company to Spartanburg County in South Carolina,” said Wei Wu, CEO of PIDC, in a statement. “From our first visit there last July, the community has opened their arms to welcome us. We are excited to bring jobs and manufacturing to South Carolina."

The S.C. Department of Commerce said the state’s Coordinating Council for Economic Development has approved job credits for the project.

PIDC has manufacturing sites in China and Michigan, as well as sales offices in Michigan, Louisiana, China, Germany, and India.

The company specializes in the research and development of advanced materials, including specialty alumina materials, rare earth powders, aqueous solutions, and a variety of proprietary, formulated powders. — Trevor Anderson

EARNINGS

Kemet reports 3Q profits Simpsonville-based KEMET Corp., a global supplier of passive electronic components, said it turned a third-quarter profit compared with a year earlier.

KEMET said U.S. GAAP net income was $12.3 million, or 22 cents per diluted share, for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2016. The company reported a net loss of $8.6 million, or 19 cents per basic and diluted share, for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2015.

Net sales of $188 million for the quarter ended Dec. 31 increased 6.1 percent from net sales of $177.2 million for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2015.

“This quarter is the fourth quarter of sequential growth and the highest revenue since our first quarter in fiscal 2016,” said Per Loof, KEMET’s chief executive officer.

“Global initiatives in the sales development process that targeted specific segments and product technologies supported this growth. These initiatives, coupled with a defined strategy and a target market that was shared across sales, business groups, and technical marketing, boosted the overall quarter performance.”

Carolina Alliance attributed the increase to net interest income on increased earning assets from its merger with PBSC Financial Corp. and Pinnacle Bank of South Carolina, which closed in October 2015.

| NEWS IN BRIEF | 13

Carolina Alliance said it remained “well capitalized,” the highest of the five regulatory standards used to define an institution’s capital strength.

Ingles reports higher 1Q sales, net income Asheville-based Ingles Markets, which has stores throughout the Upstate, reported higher sales and net income for the three months ended Dec. 24, 2016.

The company said net income totaled $13.8 million, compared with $13 million for the quarter ended Dec. 26, 2015. Total sales rose 3.3 percent.

The bank said its gross loans increased by about 4.5 percent to $495.2 million for the year, compared with $473.9 million during the previous year.

Net sales totaled $982.8 million for the quarter ended Dec. 24, 2016. That compared with $951.1 million for the quarter ended Dec. 26, 2015.

Its total assets grew 5.5 percent to $642 million in 2016, compared with $608.3 million during 2015.

Comparable store sales, excluding gasoline, increased 1.8 percent.

Total deposits were $527.6 million for the year, about a 6.4 percent increase compared with $495.8 million during the prior year.

Carolina Alliance said its nonperforming assets decreased almost 63 percent to $2.1 million during the past year, compared with $5.6 million in 2015.

Its allowance for loan losses was $5 million in 2016, and recoveries of loans charged off exceeded charge-offs by $66,0000, the bank said.

Basic and diluted earnings per share for Class A common stock were 70 cents and 68 cents, respectively, for the quarter ended Dec. 24. That compared with 66 cents and 64 cents per share, respectively, for the quarter ended Dec. 26, 2015.

Basic and diluted earnings per share for Class B common stock were each 64 cents for the quarter ended Dec. 24. That compared with 60 cents and diluted Class B share for the quarter ended Dec. 26, 2015 — David Dykes

Attention: Sidewall Pizza Is Offering This “Buy 1 Pizza, Get 1 Free” Voucher For All Hungry UBJ Readers.

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14 | COVER |

MICHELLE HIGDON

Pet Projects With a mind for entrepreneurship and a passion for animals, Michelle Higdon has found a natural niche Words by Laura Haight Photos by Will Crooks

MICHELLE HIGDON

| COVER | 15

American poet Robert Browning wrote, “A man’s reach should exceed his grasp.” But what happens when you finally find that gold ring in your hand?

Good news, right?

Yes, but for businesses that have grown beyond the expectation or the expertise of their founders, great success or opportunity can be stressful as well. Who you gonna call?

You call Michelle Higdon, who has made a career of being the bridge to get businesses from where they are to where they could be.

Her work with founders began with A&M Cleaning Products in Central, S.C. Since then, she has helped the founders of Ultra Pet, Waggin’ Train LLC, Solid Gold Pet, and Jones Naturals take their companies to the next level.

It’s a niche that she neither studied for, planned to move into, nor ever really thought about.

Higdon is a down-to-earth Southerner who is passionate about farming, cattle, dogs, horses, and open spaces. Born in Mississippi, raised in Florida, educated in Georgia (associate’s degree from Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College) and Florida (University of Florida, bachelor of science in food and resource economics), Higdon came to the Upstate in 1995, trailing her late husband, Lee, a researcher in reproductive endocrinology.

“The plan was to stay here for three years while he completed his Ph.D. at Clemson and then move back to Texas,” Higdon recalls.

Like so many plans, it didn’t quite work out that way.

But the story of her own journey from where she was to where she didn’t know she could get to is also a master class in entrepreneurism, business acumen, and bald-faced guts. And it’s all part of the advice she offers the students she mentors through her role on the advisory board of Clemson University’s Arthur M. Spiro Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership.

Go Greased Lightning In 1995, Higdon fell into a job as horse barn manager for the Alexander family, who owned A&M and Greased Lightning cleaning products, based in Central. “I didn’t know what Greased Lightning was. I just needed a job for a couple of years,” she says.

And she knew she would enjoy working with horses a lot more than working in the dark and cramped basement offices of the company.

Although she didn’t have any marketing training, she was not shy about making suggestions. “Everything was about promoting Greased Lightning,” she notes. “The horses were a means to advertise their products, so I started creating collateral and advertising HIGDON continued on PAGE 16

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MICHELLE HIGDON

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HIGDON continued from PAGE 16

LESSONS LEARNED No. 1: Just try. And if you’re going to fail, “fail quickly,” so you can dust yourself off and start over again.

No. 2: Find a great mentor and take advantage of the opportunity.

No. 3: “No matter where you are working, there’s always more you can do.

Your company has goals and aspirations. If you see an opportunity, don’t just do your job. Go beyond your job.”

No. 4: Know what you really like doing.

to tie the horses to the brand.”

Next, she saw opportunities with the motorsports team led by Ken Alexander, a driver himself. Because of her success in branding through the show horses, the company asked her to get involved on the motorsports side. “I was not a race fan,” Higdon notes. “I didn’t know anything, but I was very opportunistic.”

“I didn’t know I couldn’t do 1 anything, so I would just try to go and do it,” she says.

By the end of the 1990s, Higdon had left the barn and was building a marketing department — developing messaging, cutting deals with sponsors and retailers, getting the Greased Lightning product on TV and radio. By 2000, she had broken into a big partnership with Nashville’s annual CMA Music Festival — the Bonnaroo for country music fans — and created a big-budget deal with Rush Limbaugh.

“I had not prepared for any of 2 this. I just kept trying to find smart people to learn from,” Higdon says.

In 2000, the Alexanders brought in American Capital Strategies as an investment partner and Higdon stayed on as the vice president of marketing through 2003.

A&M was eventually sold to BioLab, a cleaning company giant.

From the barn to the boardroom in less

than a decade may seem like an incredible journey to many, but not to Higdon. “The Alexanders gave me a great opportunity,” she credits. “I saw 3 things and I wasn’t afraid of failing.”

Finding the Founder Niche BioLab, based in Atlanta, was doing about $1.6 billion in sales in 2003, when it purchased Greased Lightning. “I thought ‘Hallelujah, I’m going to have all kinds of resources now,’” says Higdon, who was brought on as president of the division.

But the vast resources turned out to have limitations as well.

With her business career less than a decade old, Higdon learned a very important lesson about herself: “I had a singular focus of ‘Let’s all work together toward a goal.’” This philosophy was anathema to the corporate world, where everything divided into silos. She adds, “R&D was disconnected from marketing and sales. Marketing became disconnected from operations.”

“I found out in that first four months that 4 I really enjoyed being that bridge, taking a business to the next level but not operating in a big corporate environment,” Higdon says.

That lesson became very important in 2007, when she joined Waggin’ Train, a manufacturer of real meat pet foods and treats, as president. Higdon transitioned Waggin’ Train from a founder-owned company to acquisition by a giant multinational brand. When Purina acquired the company, Higdon

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HER PATH 1986: Associate degree, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College 1988: BS, food and resource economics, University of Florida 1995: Vice President of Marketing, A&M Cleaning Products Inc. 2003: President, UltraPet Company Inc. 2007: President, Waggin’ Train LLC 2013: President/CEO, Solid Gold Pet 2013: Advisory board of Clemson University Spiro Institute 2016: Executive Chairman, Jones Naturals LLC

was asked to move to St. Louis and run it.

Her response? “I will give you a great transition, I will help it fit into your bigger organization, but I learned a long time ago that is not what I enjoy, nor am I particularly good at it,” she says. She left Purina 14 months later.

Pet Projects Higdon’s life has always included animals. Her dad was a livestock extension agent, and her early career involved several jobs on cattle ranches, from herd management to exploring data on cloning research.

Today Higdon divides her personal time between Central and the family ranch in Okeechobee, Fla., where they raise exotic deer and keep the cattle part of the year. The family homestead in Central, with an expansive view of meandering fields and mountains, is shared with four dogs, a couple of horses, and some cattle.

“My interests have evolved in the last eight years into the better-for-you categories, regardless of whether it is human food or pet food,” she explains. “It’s less about the pet industry. That just makes HIGDON continued on PAGE 18

MICHELLE HIGDON

| COVER | 17

“Founders grow up in a business and they have worked very hard to get it to where it is. But they don’t always have a vision of what else is possible.”

Michelle Higdon

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HIGDON continued from PAGE 17

IT’S PLANE SIMPLE MORE NONSTOPS • CONVENIENT PARKING LESS HASSLE • LOW FARES

OVER

95

TOTAL D NONST AILY OPS

it more enjoyable for me.”

Still, the pet industry has been the niche-within-a-niche for Higdon. She invested both time and money in Waggin’ Train, Solid Gold Pet, and Jones Naturals.

Under Higdon’s leadership, Solid Gold Pet, a maker of all-natural pet food, moved its corporate headquarters from San Diego, Calif., to the Innovate building in downtown Greenville in 2014. The company is now headquartered in Chesterfield, Mo. At Jones, a healthy pet treat provider based in Rockford, Ill., she is currently the executive chairman of the board. She is “developing short- and long-term strategies, mentoring the founders who are staying active in management roles. They are hungry to learn how to take this business to the next level.”

Higdon describes herself as “achievement-driven.” Working with founders, Higdon can fulfill two of her drives: having an impact and mentoring.

“Founders grow up in a business and they have worked very hard to get it to where it is. But they don’t always have a vision of what else is possible,” she says.

“When founders get to the point that they want investment or need a vision of what else is possible ... that’s where I’ve been fortunate enough to work with them.”

THE HIGDON FILE

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Greatest achievement: Her children. Guy, 24, just graduated Clemson with a civil engineering degree, and Gail, 23, is a senior business major at Furman. “I am fantastically proud of them, their character, and who they are becoming as adults.”

Reading recs: “Integrity” by Henry Cloud. “I almost blew it off, because I know what integrity is. But what it really gets into is not only knowing yourself objectively, but knowing what you’re dealing with and understanding it. Not taking things at face value. Understanding the true reality means you don’t just assume what the reality is. You go out and do the research, do the work, and find out what it really is.”

Her somebody’s-got-to-do-it job: Collecting bull semen for cloning research for a Houston biosciences firm, one of three post-college jobs she held before moving to the Upstate in 1995.

Best mentoring experience: Jennifer LaPointe, a University of Arkansas grad, came to Ultra Pet to work in her chosen profession of human resources. “I

thought she had a knack for understanding consumers and would do well in marketing.

Turned out she loved marketing and has been very successful in growing her knowledge and responsibilities over the years.

She is very talented and I’m so proud of her accomplishments.”

LaPointe, who lives in Greenville, is now brand manager at Solid Gold Pet. The do-dogs-have-taste-buds question resolved: “You can open a can of green cow tripe” — that’s stomach lining to you and me — “and the gag reflex kicks in. It is awful. But dogs will come from half a mile way.

They love it.”

Giving back: As a board member of the Spiro Institute, she works with two to three students in Clemson’s MBAe program each semester.

Additionally, she and her late husband, Dr. Lee Higdon, started a program to mentor Clemson agriculture students in the Block & Bridle Club, where Lee had been an advisor. Students in the club are hosted annually for a “Week on the Ranch” where they learn firsthand by working on the family’s ranch in Okeechobee.

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DAVID DYKES | STAFF

REAL ESTATE DEALS AND DEVELOPMENTS ACROSS THE REGION

| SQUARE FEET | 19

ddykes@communityjournals.com |

@daviddykes

Design Review Board approves changes to Fluor Field

There will be new signs at the entrance gates of Fluor Field.

An LED board will be added at Main Street Plaza.

A City of Greenville panel has approved a channel letter roof sign with a shade canopy and new signs above the entrance gates to Fluor Field, the home of the Greenville Drive.

The urban design panel of the Design Review Board approved applications for certificates of appropriateness that are part of the Fluor Field enhancement project leading to the 2017 baseball season.

At the meeting, no one spoke in opposition to the sign proposals. Plans include a new monument sign and LED board at the Main Street Plaza.

The $10 million renovation project is adding to the downtown ballpark as the Drive, a Class A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, continues its investment and engagement with the community, Greenville Drive owner Craig Brown said.

Seats will be added to the Green Monster in left field.

“The whole design was really intended to ensure that Fluor Field stays a catalyst for economic growth and, really, prosperity for all the Upstate for the next 10 years to come,” Brown told the DRB panel at its meeting Feb. 2. “That was essentially one of the main drivers behind it.”

The city has committed $5 million to the renovations and is using money from hospitality taxes and fees from Sunday alcohol sales permits. The team paid for stadium construction, and the city bought the land and built infrastructure needed for the facility.

As part of the facelift, seats will be added to the top of the Green Monster in left field. The wall is a replica of the one in Boston’s Fenway Park. The Greenville seats will be accessible via a bridge connecting the Field House and the Green Monster.

Other additions include an upper deck lounge on the stadium’s third-base side, a 3,700 square-foot-space accommodating 200 people.

The Field House is located directly behind Fluor Field’s Green Monster. The building has residential condos, retail and office space, and several restaurants.

The building has two roof-mounted channel letter signs that are visible from the ballpark. Masstar Signs proposes adding a third sign containing the Greenville Drive team name and logo.

The DRB reviewed and approved conceptual plans for the ballpark renovations at its July 7, 2016, meeting.

The proposed sign will sit atop a shade canopy structure. The channel letters, as proposed, are 4 feet, 6 inches in height, according to a city staff analysis.

The letters and logo will be 70 feet wide.

Colliers: Upstate industrial property market is one to watch RUDOLPH BELL | STAFF

rbell@communityjournals.com Colliers International, the global real estate services company, has picked the Upstate as one of 10 U.S. industrial property markets to watch in 2017.

Colliers says in a new report that plentiful land for development and proximity to the ports of Charleston and Savannah has some calling the Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson market the “Inland Empire of the East Coast,” a comparison to Southern California.

The report says Inland Port Greer, a freight-handling facility in Greer operated by the State Ports Authority, has been “attracting a diverse group of tenants to the area.”

Robust demand from the distribution, automotive, and manufacturing industries has led to a record 8.5

million square feet of new industrial property construction in Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson last year, Colliers reports.

The company said industrial tenants absorbed more than 7.7 million square feet of space along the Interstate 85 corridor last year, more than double the previous record in 2007.

The other industrial property markets Colliers says are worth watching this year are Columbus, Ohio; Denver; greater Phoenix; Indianapolis; Kansas City, Mo.; Memphis, Tenn.; Nashville, Tenn.; Tampa Bay, Fla.; and Shenandoah Valley, Va. “While core industrial markets in New Jersey/ Pennsylvania, the Inland Empire, Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, and Dallas will continue to thrive, we believe these 10 emerging U.S. industrial markets are posi-

The Inland Port Greer has helped attract industrial tenants, says a recent report. tioned to experience the most robust increases in demand from both occupiers and owners,” Colliers says. “Each of these markets is unique, but they share advantages such as nearby logistics hubs, attractive rental rates, land available for development, large nearby populations, pro-business atmospheres, and skilled workforces.”

Read the full report at colliers-emergingindustrial. brandcast.com.

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REAL ESTATE DEALS AND DEVELOPMENTS ACROSS THE REGION

DAVID DYKES | STAFF ddykes@communityjournals.com |

2.10.2017

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Industrial/office flex project under construction near Haywood Road The project manager behind a Class A industrial/office flex project under construction near Haywood Road called Haywood Ridge says the site should help meet Greenville’s need for light manufacturing, delivery services, warehousing, or office space.

Haywood Ridge, a 45,824-square-foot building at 510 Airport Road, is being leased by NAI Earle Furman, whose brokers Alex Campbell and Hunter Garrett represent Central Realty Holdings in Greenville.

Central owns 50 percent of the property in partnership with the Goldsmith family of Greenville, said Tori Wallace, senior analyst, development coordinator, and project manager for Central Realty.

The first of two planned buildings and all of the site work should be finished in early April at an estimated cost of about $7.3 million, Wallace said.

The second building will be the same size and, once leasing on the first building is further along, it should be finished “pretty quickly,” Wallace said. The project cost for both buildings will total about $9.5 million. The project initially was expected to total 94,146 square feet, but current estimates are closer to 91,648.

The first building likely will hold five to 10 tenants. Because it is being built as flex space, the building could accommodate a number of uses such as delivery firms, offices, light manufacturing, or warehouse operations, Wallace said.

Wallace said two leases are being negotiated for about half the space, although she declined to name them at this time.

“Obviously, this wasn’t going to be a site for any heavy manufacturing by any means, but there is definitely that need in the Greenville market right now,” Wallace said.

The site, close to the Downtown Greenville Airport, is near both Laurens Road and Interstate 385. The property, zoned S-1 for services firms, is in the city of Greenville.

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WHAT ’S NEXT FOR THE UPSTATE, AND HOW WE’LL GET THERE

| FORWARD | 21

One word for the Upstate: Plastics Top takeaways from the 2017 Plastics in Automotive Conference

By DANIELLE BESSER Public Relations Coordinator, Upstate SC Alliance

How do you begin your typical workday? Coffee, catching up on the news, and reading emails?

Now imagine accomplishing those tasks while en route to work, traveling 75 mph along Interstate 85, or while navigating the stop-and-go of city driving. All within a safely controlled vehicle — and without the expense of a chauffeur.

While the visual may seem like something from a Jetsons-era fantasy, it’s closer on the horizon than you’d think, and it’s one of the ideas explored in depth earlier this month at the Plastics in Automotive Conference in Detroit.

The event was a precursor to the North American International Auto Show, with a focus on plastics materials in automotive production. Industry leaders (including representatives from businesses with Upstate operations) shared their take on shifts in the automotive industry. The gist: Buckle up; it’s bound to be a (pleasantly) disruptive ride.

AUTONOMY, SMART MOBILITY, AND RIDESHARING Our scenario above is inspired by a presentation from Renae Pippel, director of strategic research for Yanfeng Automotive Interiors. Yanfeng, a leading supplier of interior features,

components, and systems, is headquartered in Shanghai and last summer acquired a Faurecia manufacturing plant in Fountain Inn, announcing $71 million in capital investment.

In her presentation, Pippel presented autonomy, smart mobility, and ridesharing as consumer-led changes that open the door for interiors to be overhauled completely. Picture this: The comforts of home that enable napping or watching videos, or bringing in filing cabinets and tables into the vehicle to provide a mobile office.

It’s worth noting that while autonomous vehicles (capable of guiding themselves without human conduction) are further on the horizon, self-driving technology is increasingly available on car lots today.

“We’re already smart, but we’re shifting to smarter,” Pippel said. Features currently on the road are an indicator, automatic lights and windshield wipers, proximity keys that detect driver-seat position preferences, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist, parking assistance technology, and collision-avoiding safety brakes.

That sentiment was echoed by Ian Simmons, vice president of business development and R&D with Magna International Inc. Magna International broke ground in December 2016 on a $29 million manufacturing plant in Spartanburg County, with 480 new jobs projected over five years.

“Fifty-four million self-driving cars will be on the road by 2035,” Simmons told the crowd.

Amod Ogale inspects carbon fiber with his team in their Clemson lab. made with plastic.

Plastic and advanced materials are a huge growth opportunity for the Upstate, and it takes a variety of composite materials to meet the production needs of a vehicle.

Clemson University researchers have adapted their work to meet the surge in composite usage within our state, according to university officials.

Srikanth Pilla, an assistant professor in Clemson’s Automotive Engineering school, is working to create an automobile door that is 42.5 percent lighter than a conventional one but still meets or exceeds fit, finish, and functional requirements. He works at the Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research in Greenville, where he is pioneering “a new cross-functional focus area” in composites that he terms the “intelligent revi-

talization of composites design and manufacturing.” His door project, funded through a $5.81 million grant from the Department of Energy, is a prime example.

Amod Ogale, director of the Center for Advanced Engineering Fibers and Films and Dow Chemical Professor of Chemical Engineering, is part of a nationwide team working to make composite materials less expensive so that they can be used more widely. Ogale’s objective is to make a low-cost feedstock — which is the raw material that goes into composite materials — and a manufacturing process. Researchers hope to create a new type of composite material they will call TuFF, which stands for tailorable universal feedstock for forming, said Ogale.

LIGHT-WEIGHTING: HERE TO STAY, THANKS TO PLASTICS

Srikanth Pilla, an assistant professor in Clemson’s Automotive Engineering school, is working to create an automobile door that is 42.5 percent lighter.

Another key takeaway from the conference: Regardless of federal policies on fuel economy standards, many industry leaders will continue seeking lightweight materials. And that’s where plastics come in.

Plastics make up 50 percent of a vehicle’s volume, but only 10 percent of the weight, according to Autodesk Inc. presenter Jeff Higgins. Fenders, windows, trunk lids, hoods, fascias and bumpers, interior components, doors, under-hood components — all can be

Unveiled at the 2017 North American International Auto Show, the XiM17 by Yanfeng Automotive Interiors helps answer the question, "What will people do in their vehicle if they no longer have to drive?" It is designed to enable the use of several modes — lounge, meeting, family, and driving — allowing the autonomous vehicle to be used in various ways by multiple people.

22 | DIGITAL MAVEN |

UBJ

THE TECHNICAL SIDE OF BUSINESS

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2.10.2017

Whaling and other phish tales Businesses must teach their employees how to stop scams

By LAURA HAIGHT president, portfoliosc.com

There are always bigger phish in the sea.

And after a really successful 2016, this could be the year they will be circling our boats.

We’re talking about whaling, also known as CEO fraud, a new and very successful high-stakes cyberscam that preys on a vulnerability every business has, regardless of IT acumen or budget — human nature.

There are many variations of whaling, but here’s a common scenario: Jane, a mid-level staffer in accounting, receives an email from the company CFO — her boss’s boss. He directs her to provide him with a list of the Top 25 clients, including amount billed, name, address, phone number, and email address. It’s urgent, as an unplanned partner’s meeting has been hastily scheduled.

What does Jane do? Whalers know that most of the time, Jane will be pleased that the CFO asked her to do this (or in a larger company, that he even knew her name). Jane will most likely not want to appear confrontational or difficult, so it’s unlikely she’ll go to her boss to check. And even less likely to

The FBI reported in April 2016 that U.S. companies lost $2.3 BILLION from October 2013 through February 2016.

During that time, there were 17,642 VICTIMS.

reach out to the CFO to confirm.

Jane does it. And, of course, the email is a scam: The email address, while it appears real, is actually being redirected. And sensitive company and client data is lost.

Another common technique is to set up an email domain that is similar to the company you’re scamming. So if the CEO’s email is laura@mycompany. com, the scammer would create an account for laura@mycornpany.com. The substitution of two letters is likely to go unnoticed and appear real.

How big a bite is whaling taking? The FBI reported in April 2016 that U.S. companies lost $2.3 billion from October 2013 through February 2016. During that time, there were 17,642 information, call 987-4612 victims. In one year, the FBI reported a 270 percent increase in whaling reports.

There are several reasons why whaling works: It’s personal in nature, the requests are often normal business functions such as processing an invoice, making a wire transfer, or producing a client report, and the language is customized to the receiver and the message.

There is no boilerplate: “Hi. I thought you’d find this interesting” that we have been trained to be suspicious of.

The whaler’s emails may even ask how your

Some things just get better with age.

RollingGreenVillage.com For

weekend was or if you enjoyed the holiday. And they will always be personalized to the receiver.

Software developers and cybersecurity specialists are working on tools to help harpoon whaling efforts before they reach Jane, but there’s a problem.

Quarantining emails that use terms like W-2, or wire transfer, will trap a lot of minnows in very large net.

As with most cybersecurity, a three-pronged defense is required. Hardware and software working together to screen email for common risk elements and quarantine those with a high number are two important elements, but they will fail ultimately without the third: humanware.

Here are three things employees should be trained to know and to do. The most vulnerable to whaling are those in accounting and finance departments, but phishing attacks, which often end with ransomware demands, can start with any chink in the armor, at any level of your company.

1

Identify where an email really comes from.

Whaling emails are successful because people really overlook the header. A quick glance at the “To” field shows the name Laura Haight, which they know, so they continue on. Employees need to know how to identify the actual email address, and be trained to really look at it. Our minds often see what they expect to see, which is why a simple substitution of a letter or two will go unnoticed in a false-flag email address (also why we can’t catch typos).

2

Be skeptical, get confirmation.

Whalers know that we avoid personal contact, preferring a quick email to a phone call. We are also most likely to email the sender back by hitting “Reply.” That email will go directly back to the whaler. Instead, employees should be trained to ask for confirmation by creating a new email and using the executive’s email in the company email address book.

3

Follow procedures.

Internal controls exist to protect you from yourself, as well as from an embezzler or scammer.

If a transfer over a certain amount requires another signature, or a form, insist on getting it. If you get in trouble for following a business rule, you need a new job.

Employees are every company’s most important line of defense. Few probably feel that way. But when an employee does the right thing, companies need a mechanism to thank or reward them. That will help build a culture that encourages everyone to do the right thing.

Technology tools are definitely an asset. But no system will detect every bad email. Eventually one will get through — and one is all it takes. Only an empowered and trained employee can protect you from that.

2.10.2017

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upstatebusinessjournal.com

HIRED

PLAY-BY-PLAY OF UPSTATE CAREERS

PROMOTED

HIRED

HIRED

| ON THE MOVE | 23

HIRED

DAVID DIXON

MEREDITH PIPER

MIKE DONLEAVY

SEAN KURTZ

EMILY MCLAUGHLIN

Joined O’Neal Inc. as food and beverage strategic business unit leader. His role will specialize in delivering integrated planning, design, and construction services for complex food and beverage projects. With a bachelor’s degree from University of Kansas and more than 25 years of professional experience in the food, beverage, and consumer packaged goods industries, Dixon is recognized as a specialist in food safety and sanitary design of processes and facilities for the food industry.

Promoted to senior manager in the assurance and advisory services department at Scott and Company LLC. In her new role, Piper will continue to be responsible for leading all aspects of audit, attestation, and consulting engagements; training and developing associates and managing client relations; and ensuring stated engagement objectives are met. Piper received her master’s and bachelor’s degrees from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill.

Joined T&S Brass and Bronze Works as the eastern regional sales manager for plumbing.

Donleavy is responsible for managing and extending T&S Brass’ network of clients and customers in the eastern United States and eastern Canada. Donleavy brings to T&S an extensive sales management background and 15 years of experience in the plumbing industry. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business management and an MBA.

Joined Jackson Marketing, Motorsports & Events as financial analyst. Kurtz comes to Jackson from Greenville accounting firm A.T. Locke P.C., where he was as an accounting specialist. He also has worked as a personal banker for a major national bank. A native of Florida, Kurtz holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Palm Beach Atlantic University. He began his professional career in public accounting with a West Palm Beach CPA firm, where he worked with a variety of individual and corporate clients.

Joined Greenville Area Development Corporation as an administrative assistant.

McLaughlin will provide customer support to GADC prospects, allies, and investors and assist the GADC team in research, marketing, operational, and administrative capacities.

McLaughlin owned and operated a small business for eight years, where much of her personal and professional focus was on supporting development of the local economy. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the Savannah College of Art and Design.

LAW FIRM Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd P.A. announces the elections of Harvey Cleveland, Ken Shaw, and Kimberly Witherspoon as new shareholders of the firm. Cleveland represents companies and health care entities in a range of commercial transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, leases, and corporate reorganizations. He is a graduate of the University of South Carolina. An experienced trial attorney, Shaw’s practice centers on defending health care professionals and institutions in matters that range from medical malpractice to premises liability.

Shaw is a graduate of Florida State University.

Witherspoon, a public finance attorney, serves as bond counsel, underwriter’s counsel, borrower’s counsel, and corporate counsel in various financing structures. She is a graduate of Georgetown University.

ENGINEERING O’Neal Inc. has hired Tracy Prinsloo as structural engineer. Prinsloo has more than 10 years of structural engineering experience and previ-

ously worked for Jacobs Engineering Group and CB&I. She earned her master’s and bachelor’s degrees of science in civil engineering from Clemson University.

GREENVILLE POLICE DEPARTMENT The Greenville Police Department held a promotional ceremony on Jan. 17. The ceremony included the promotions of Traci Weeks as communications supervisor; Dustin Sherbert as assistant communications administrator; Jessica Crawford and Shamika Gibbs-Sanders as master patrolmen; Mark Holbrooks, Michael Hammett, and Charles Lane as sergeants; and Michael Austin as lieutenant.

REAL ESTATE Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP announces that attorneys J. Bennett Crites III, Elizabeth Sims Hedrick, Robert S. “Trey” Ingram III, Frankie T. Jones Jr., Brian G. Morrison, and Colin J. Tarrant have been elected to the firm’s partnership effective Jan. 1. The new additions bring the firm’s number of partners to more than

CONTRIBUTE: New hires, promotions, & award winners may be featured in On the Move.

Send information and photos to onthemove@upstatebusinessjournal.com.

100 across seven offices throughout North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia.

NONPROFITS Meals on Wheels of Greenville welcomes six new community leaders to its board of directors.

The following are serving the first of a three-year term: Johnny Wentzell of Ogletree Deakins, Howie Houston of Elliott Davis Decosimo, Bobby Browning of Greenville Mechanical LLC, Cheryl Cromartie of Greenville County Sheriff’s Office, David Sudduth of Greenville Health System, and David Smith of Empower Retirement.

24 | SOCIAL SNAPSHOT |

INSIDE THE UPSTATE’S NETWORKING AND SOCIAL SCENE

CHAMBER HONORS LEADERS The Greenville Chamber held its 128th Annual Meeting, presented by TD Bank, on Tuesday, Jan. 31, at the TD Convention Center. The event, emceed by Merl Code, featured the presentation of the Chamber’s annual awards, remarks from new Chamber President and CEO Carlos Phillips, and the passing of the gavel from 2016 Board of Directors Chair David Lominack to 2017 Chair Brenda Thames. Photos by Alaina Lutkitz.

UBJ

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2.10.2017

2.10.2017

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upstatebusinessjournal.com

BUSINESS BRIEFS YOU CAN’ T MISS

| THE FINE PRINT | 25

Assess the Health of your HR LS3P

Clemson approves plans for new digs for business school, tennis teams Clemson University trustees last Friday approved a $87.5 million budget for a new home for the College of Business in the center of the school’s campus and a resolution authorizing issuance of revenue bonds to help pay for it.

Trustees also approved plans for a new tennis center.

The new College of Business building will have 162,000 square feet, which is twice the size of its current home, Sirrine Hall, built in 1938.

The business building will be funded through a combination of state capital appropriations, state institutional bonds, and private gifts. It will be built adjacent to the Alumni Center and facing Bowman Field. Construction is expected to begin this summer and the building is expected to open in summer 2019.

LMN Architects of Seattle is designing the building in collaboration with the Greenville office of South Carolina-based LS3P, the architect of record.

The tennis center for the men’s and women’s varsity teams will retain existing tennis facilities, including outdoor competition courts and a 700-seat permanent stadium. The new 48,000-square-foot tennis center will include six indoor courts, two outdoor courts, a clubhouse, a ticket office, and public restrooms.

The $12.5 million project will be paid for either by athletic facilities revenue bonds or private gifts. It is scheduled to be completed next winter.

Trustees also approved $10 million for renovation and expansion of IPTAY offices at Memorial Stadium. The work will be paid for by private gifts to the athletics program.

Old Colony Furniture launches new website Old Colony Furniture, in its 71st year of business, recently launched its newly redesigned website built and designed by local Greenville web development firm BizzApps. Updated features include an online form to schedule the new complimentary ASID design service consultation, ability to search for furniture by any of the Top 30 brands or by room selection, current listing of all the specials and promotions, email sign-up to receive the newsletter and subscriber only specials, Instagram feed and links to all social media, and the weekly blog highlighting all the newest trends in the home furnishings business. Visit oldcolonyfurniture.com.

Southeastern Dock & Door is sold to ASSA ABLOY Southeastern Dock & Door in Greenville was sold to ASSA ABLOY, a global leader of door opening solutions headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. Southeastern Dock & Door is a leading industrial and commercial door and docking solutions distributor in South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia. For the last 20 years, the company has established itself as a leading seller, installer, and servicer of both industrial doors and loading dock equipment. More recently, the company expanded beyond the industrial markets by beginning to service the commercial door markets as well as access control security systems, certified biometrics, and fire inspections industries. For more information, visit southeasterndockanddoor.com.

We all know the value of visiting the doctor for an annual checkup. Preventative healthcare can help you avoid illness and diagnose problems even before you notice symptoms. If something is discovered in your annual physical, a path can be set to correct the problem. Often the doctor will suggest lifestyle changes such as diet or exercise. Other times, a stronger course of action, such as medicine or medical intervention, may be needed.

When it comes to our health or the health of those we love, it is easy to see the value of preventative health assessments. However, when it comes to our businesses, we don’t always take the same approach.

Instead of proactively assessing potential risks, we often wait until the problem is too big to ignore. We become so focused on the dayto-day business, that we don’t look at our internal processes to see if we have any potential HR health issues.

What are healthy Human Resources practices and how do you assess the health of your HR? Human Resources refers to the activities relating to your organization’s employees, such as recruiting and hiring, training and orientation, administrating of employee benefits, and employee retention. Healthy HR requires a set of best practices when implementing policies and procedures surrounding these activities.

When evaluating your company’s HR health, it is important to ensure that the evaluation is objective. Do not have the persons who are responsible for the HR functions at your company give the full assessment. By using an outside HR firm or consultant, you will have receive a second opinion and you will have someone help hold your organization accountable when implementing any changes.

At your annual physical, your doctor will check your vital signs, perform visual and physical exams, and order a panel of blood tests. He or she will update your medical history and discuss factors like medications and stress, which could impact your health. A physical cannot uncover every potential illness, but it does provide the doctor with an overview of the general health of the patient. An HR assessment is similar; it is a general review of the HR health of the organization. Policies are reviewed, records are sampled, and many questions are asked about the culture of the workplace and the administration of the HR activities. Often during an assessment, needs are discovered and work can begin to improve the overall health of an organization’s Human Resources.

Employees are typically the greatest assets that a business has, yet often the HR functions and liabilities are overlooked in the day-to-day operations.

Just like an annual doctor’s visit, a periodic review the practices surrounding HR is essential. Yes, you might uncover some unhealthy risks that you don’t know about, but in the long run, this preventative assessment will reduce your liabilities and put you on the right track for success.

Lee Yarborough President

669 N. Academy St. Greenville, SC 29601 propelHR.com Info@propelHR.com 800–446–6567

26 | #TRENDING |

UBJ

INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW

OVERHEARD @ THE WATERCOOLER FEBRUARY, 3 2017

COMMERCIAL REAL

ESTATE QUARTERLY

>Donna Wrabiutza “Wonderful news for those seeking to be in the medical profession!”

E OF THE REALOPS’ PURCHAS BUILDING BANK OF AMERICA BOOM IS A SIGN OF A NEW

RE: ASHEVILLE’S NEO BURRITO TO OPEN THIS SUMMER IN THE VILLAGE OF WEST GREENVILLE >Larry Durham “Don’t particularly like patchouli, but glad to see West Greenville rise from the ashes.” >Kelly Shedd Geppi “Yay! Favorite fast burrito place!!” >Gregory Warner “YES more Greenville taco options!”

Pictured: Kyle Putnam, Photo by Will Crooks

Reggie Bell, and

Paul Sparks.

| VOL. 6 ISSUE 5

ISSUE

>Greg Sisk “Please. Not another car dealership in Greer.”

RE: GHS AND CLEMSON ANNOUNCE $31.5 MILLION NURSING SCHOOL

RIS NG

DIGITAL FLIPBOOK ARCHIVE >> The layout of print meets the convenience of the Web. Flip through the digital editions of any of our print issues, and see them all in one place. >> upstatebusinessjournal. com/past-issues

We’re great at networking.

The Top 5 stories from the past week ranked by shareability score

>> 2,300

1. At 23, Spartanburg restaurateur with Mexican roots is helping to shape downtown’s dining scene

>> 627 2. Fork & Plough to open in 2017 as Overbrook’s first restaurant

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Get it off your chest.

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>Don Dillard “GOD. I hope we don’t wind up like Asheville.” >Alyssa Cure Montgomery “We are getting a lot of great restaurants this year!”

>> CONNECT WITH US

2.10.2017

BIZ BUZZ

Distilled commentary from UBJ readers

RE: CAR DEALERSHIP PLANNED AT FORMER HOSPITAL SITE IN GREER

|

3. Asheville’s Neo Burrito to open this summer in the Village of West Greenville

>> 176 4. Spartanburg entrepreneur finalizes purchase of Greenville’s Circa Doughnut

>> 96 5. Audi Greenville ranked No. 3 Audi dealer

>Adventures of a Southern Fellow “I would say we get more tacos, but they have BREAKFAST BURRITOS!”

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DATE Wednesday

2/15

EVENTS YOU SHOULD HAVE ON YOUR CALENDAR

EVENT INFO

WHERE DO I GO?

HOW DO I GO?

Coffee & Conversation: Revitalizing the Textile Crescent

Upstate SC Alliance Office 124 Verdae Blvd., Ste 202 8–9 a.m.

Cost: Free to members; others contact LScoggins@upstatealliance.com.

For more info: bit.ly/2jO5f5i

2nd Annual Business Power Play

Bon Secours Wellness Arena 650 N. Academy St.

For more info: bit.ly/2kYQGw0, 235-8330, emily@smoakpr.com

Collaborators & Cocktails: Jonathan Gantt, director of new & creative media, and Joe Galbraith, assistant athletic director/ communications of Clemson University Athletics

ONE Main Building 1 N. Main St., 4th floor 5–7:15 p.m.

Cost: Free to members, $25 for registered guests.

For more info: Endeavor@EndeavorGreenville.com

Global Competitiveness Summit VI

Harris Conference Center 3216 Harris Campus Drive, Charlotte, N.C. 7:30 a.m.–noon

Cost: $50 For more info: bit.ly/2kAE7Jq 704-330-2722, global@cpcc.edu

Clemson University's Men of Color Summit: TIckets available now

TD Convention Center 1 Exposition Drive 8 a.m.–5 p.m.

Cost: $249 (thru 2/28), $329 (thru 4/15) For more info: clemson.edu/inclusion/ summit, menofcolorsummit@clemson.edu

Thursday

2/16 Tuesday

2/21 Wednesday

3/15 Thursday-Friday

4/27-4/28

| PLANNER | 27

CONTRIBUTE: Got a hot date? Submit event information for consideration to events@upstatebusinessjournal.com.

ART & PRODUCTION VISUAL DIRECTOR

IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE OF UBJ? WANT A COPY FOR YOUR LOBBY?

FEBRUARY 24 THE DIVERSITY ISSUE There’s room for the whole spectrum of backgrounds, ideas and talents.

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LAYOUT OPERATIONS

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UBJ milestone jackson Marketing Group’s 25 Years 1988 Jackson Dawson opens in Greenville at Downtown Airport

Bo Leslie | Tammy Smith

Mark B. Johnston mjohnston@communityjournals.com Ryan L. Johnston rjohnston@communityjournals.com

1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

UBJ milestone

Holly Hardin Kristy Adair | Michael Allen

1988

1997 Jackson Dawson launches motorsports Division 1993

1990 Jackson Dawson

acquires therapon marketing Group and moves to Piedmont office Center on Villa.

>>

with a majority of them utilizing the general aviation airport as a “corporate gateway to the city.”

In 1997, Jackson and his son, Darrell, launched Jackson Motorsports Group. The new division was designed to sell race tires and go to racetracks to sell and mount the tires. Darrell Jackson now serves as president of the motorsports group and Larry Jackson has two other children and a son-in-law who work there. Jackson said all his children started at the bottom and “earned their way up.”

Jackson kept the Jackson-Dawson branches in Detroit and others in Los Angeles and New York until he sold his portion of that partnership in 2009 as part of his estate planning.

The company now operates a small office in Charlotte, but its main headquarters are in Greenville in a large office space off Woodruff Road, complete with a vision gallery that displays local artwork and an auditorium Jackson makes available for non-profit use. The Motorsports Group is housed in an additional 26,000 square feet building just down the street, and the agency is currently looking for another 20,000 square feet.

Jackson said JMG has expanded into other verticals such as financial, healthcare, manufacturing and pro-bono work, but still has a strong focus on the auto industry and transportation. It’s

Chairman larry Jackson, Jackson marketing Group. Photos by Greg Beckner / Staff

Jackson Marketing Group celebrates 25 years By sherry Jackson | staff | sjackson@communityjournals.com

Solve. Serve. Grow. Those three words summarize Jackson Marketing Group’s guiding principles, and according to owner Larry Jackson, form the motivation that has kept the firm thriving for the past 25 years.

Jackson graduated from Bob Jones University with a degree in video and film production and started his 41-year career in the communications industry with the U.S. Army’s Public Information Office. He served during

Vietnam, where he said he was “luckily” stationed in the middle of Texas at Fort Hood.

He left the service and went to work in public affairs and motorsports at Ford Motor Company in Detroit.

After a stint at Bell and Howell, where he was responsible for managing Ford’s dealer marketing and training, the entrepreneurial bug hit and he co-founded Jackson-Dawson Marketing Communications, a company specializing in dealer training and product launches for the auto industry in 1980.

In 1987, Jackson wanted to move back south and thought Greenville would be a good fit. An avid pilot, he

learned of an opportunity to purchase Cornerstone Aviation, a fixed base operation (FBO) that served as a service station for the Greenville Downtown Airport, providing fuel, maintenance and storage.

In fact, when he started the Greenville office of what is now Jackson Marketing Group (JMG) in 1988, the offices were housed on the second floor in an airport hangar.

“Clients would get distracted by the airplanes in the hangars and we’d have to corral them to get back upstairs to the meeting,” Jackson said.

Jackson sold the FBO in 1993, but says it was a great way to get to know Greenville’s fathers and leaders

>>

2003 motorsports Division acquires an additional 26,000 sq. ft. of warehouse space

1998 1998 Jackson Dawson moves to task industrial Court

also one of the few marketing companies in South Carolina to handle all aspects of a project in-house, with four suites handling video production, copywriting, media and research and web design.

Clients include heavyweights such as BMW, Bob Jones University, the Peace Center, Michelin and Sage Automotive. Recent projects have included an interactive mobile application for Milliken’s arboretum and 600-acre Spartanburg campus and a marketing campaign for the 2013 Big League World Series.

“In my opinion, our greatest single achievement is the longevity of our client relationships,” said Darrell Jackson. “Our first client from back in 1988 is still a client today. I can count on one hand the number of clients who have gone elsewhere in the past decade.”

Larry Jackson says his Christian faith and belief in service to others, coupled with business values rooted in solving clients’ problems, have kept

2009 Jackson Dawson changes name to Jackson marketing Group when larry sells his partnership in Detroit and lA 2003

2009-2012 Jackson marketing Group named a top BtoB agency by BtoB magazine 4 years running

him going and growing his business over the years. He is passionate about giving back and outreach to non-prof non-profits. The company was recently awarded the Community Foundation Spirit Award.

The company reaffirmed its commitment to serving the community last week by celebrating its 25th anniversary with a birthday party and a 25-hour Serve-A-Thon partnership with Hands on Greenville and Habitat for Humanity. JMG’s 103 full-time employees worked in shifts around the clock on October 22 and 23 to help construct a house for a deserving family.

As Jackson inches towards retirement, he says he hasn’t quite figured out his succession plan yet, but sees the companies staying under the same umbrella. He wants to continue to strategically grow the business.

“From the beginning, my father has taught me that this business is all about our people – both our clients and our associates,” said his son, Darrell. “We have created a focus and a culture that strives to solve problems, serve people and grow careers.”

Darrell Jackson said he wants to “continue helping lead a culture where we solve, serve and grow. If we are successful, we will continue to grow towards our ultimate goal of becoming the leading integrated marketing communications brand in the Southeast.”

2011 Jackson marketing Group/Jackson motorsports Group employee base reaches 100 people

2008 2012 Jackson marketing Group recognized by Community Foundation with Creative spirit Award

pro-bono/non-proFit / Clients lients American Red Cross of Western Carolinas Metropolitan Arts Council Artisphere Big League World Series The Wilds Advance SC South Carolina Charities, Inc. Aloft Hidden Treasure Christian School

CoMMUnitY nit nitY inVolVeMent in inVolV olVe VeMent & boarD positions lArry JACkson (ChAirmAn): Bob Jones University Board chairman, The Wilds Christian Camp and Conference Center board member, Gospel Fellowship Association board member, Past Greenville Area Development Corporation board member, Past Chamber of Commerce Headquarters Recruiting Committee member, Past Greenville Tech Foundation board member

MARCH 17 THE INNOVATION ISSUE What’s the big idea(s)?

David Jones (Vice President Client services, Chief marketing officer): Hands on Greenville board chairman mike Zeller (Vice President, Brand marketing): Artisphere Board,

Metropolitan Arts Council Board, American Red Cross Board, Greenville Tech Foundation Board, South Carolina Chamber Board

eric Jackson (Jackson motorsports Group sales specialist): Salvation Army Boys & Girls Club Advisory Board

November 1, 2013 Upstate bUsiness joUrnal 21

20 Upstate bUsiness joUrnal November 1, 2013

AS SEEN IN

NOVEMBER 1, 2013

CLIENT SERVICES Anita Harley | Jane Rogers

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APRIL 7 THE PERSONAL FINANCE ISSUE Keeping your bottom line top of mind.

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Copyright ©2016 BY COMMUNITY JOURNALS LLC. All rights reserved. Upstate Business Journal is published weekly by Community Journals LLC. 581 Perry Ave., Greenville, South Carolina, 29611.

Upstate Business Journal is a free publication. Annual subscriptions (52 issues) can be purchased for $50. Postmaster: Send address changes to Upstate Business, P581 Perry Ave., Greenville, South Carolina, 29611. Printed in the USA.

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