VOLUME 24 NUMBER 7 ■ GSABUSINESS.COM
Part of the
network
APRIL 5 - APRIL 18-, 2021 ■ $2.25
Members of the Deep Orange 12 team collaborate to test their new ride. In the background on the left stands a lightpole fitted with Poxyz’s ultra-wideband receptor used to help navigate autonomous vehicles. (Photo/Provided)
Bottoming out
Despite hosting a very social population, Clemson COVID strategy keeps cases low. Page 20
Return to the sea
Grady Johnson makes more time for surfing after 26 years on the business beat. Page 12
Under new management
The International African American Museum picks top executive. Page 3
FAST TRACK
CU-ICAR accelerates self-driving cars with Deep Orange 12 project See story on page 6
Commerce Club changes hands, keeps doors open By Molly Hulsey
Sound advice
Upstate CPA talks about gaining insight from the opinions of others. Page 4
INSIDE Leading Off .......................... 2 SC Biz News Briefs ................ 3 C-Suite ................................ 4 In Focus: Law..................... 13 LIST: Law Firms.................. 17 At Work ..............................22 Viewpoint ...........................23
T
mhulsey@scbiznews.com
he shift to Zoom networking events and a moratorium on corporation board meetings have impacted everyone in the workforce. But for the small human capital firms that rely on face-to-face engagement and mingling with the professional community — and the venues that foster this environment — this past year could have spanned a century. The outlook grew especially grim when Greenville small business executives discovered the Commerce Club would close in March after almost 37 years. But then BNG Hospitality, owner of Charleston’s Harbor Club, purchased the club with the intention to keep its networking ecosystem intact with a few new updates for a post-pandemic world. When Steve Craig, CEO of SC Premier Signs and a Commerce Club See COMMERCE CLUB, Page 11
The Commerce Club has been located on the top floor of the One Liberty Square building for 37 years. The club’s new owners hope its impact on the Upstate business community will continue for years to come. (Photo/Molly Hulsey)
In Focus Legal advice
Attorneys have advice on how employers should proceed in an ongoing pandemic. Page 13