Florence County Economic Development Partnership: Gregg Robinson

Gregg Robinson,

Florence County Economic Development Partnership CEO

When scheduling this meeting with newly appointed Florence County Economic Development Partnership CEO Gregg Robinson, the intentions were to learn more about Gregg and his background in economic development. The conversation instead became a learning experience on the incredible impact Florence County Economic Development Partnership (FCEDP) has on our community. While Gregg‘s accomplishments in previous positions, such as Orangeburg County Development Commission Executive Director, speak volumes, they took a backseat when discussing his passion for growth in Florence County. Gregg’s interests are first and foremost in promoting Florence County to outside institutions and revealing future plans he and his team have in place to continue the economic development of Florence County. Gregg was just eleven days into the job with FCEDP during this interview and was already considerably invested. He talked about how he admired the work previous Executive Director, Joe King, implemented in the county and how it was his goal to not only retain the businesses currently here but to also see them expand. FCEDP has a great group of professionals – Stephanie Bosch, Debbie Jones, and Kim Culberson – that continue to share their excellent experience of the area involving Gregg Robinson

Florence County Industrial Park Map

economic development. Gregg shares, “We want to make sure that our existing industries remain happy and are getting the attention they deserve. We focus energy on existing industry reach where we literally knock on doors and speak to people. It’s all about communication.” If a company has an issue or a need to expand, FCEDP wants to be their first call. “These large industries such as GE, Honda, and Niagara Bottling have multiple locations they can move or expand into, our goal is to meet all of their needs right here. All of the new business is great and that’s often what people get most excited about. However, we can’t lose sight of our current customer base. Florence County has an excellent customer base of manufacturing. We have to make sure they are happy.”

Niagara Bottling

As Gregg drives around Pee Dee Commerce City East, located near the intersection of South Carolina Highway 327 and I-95, he showcases the big businesses that live there and describes the economic impact each has. The park is home to existing industries such as Pepsi of Florence, Ruiz Foods, FedEx, Innovative Construction Group, GE Distribution, and Performance Food Group. Marlboro Development Team, managed by Marlboro Pee Dee Electric Cooperative, is currently expanding the industrial park across S.C. 327 to include an additional 174 acres. The expansion will also include the construction of a 117,180-square-foot industrial speculative building.

Two of Gregg's main focus areas for Florence County are workforce development followed by product development. “Those two things are critical to the process of selling because we can’t win a new project without it,” he explains. “The utilities, the site, the building...All of these factors are important for an industry with needs to expand. All of these items take time and where an industry goes depends on speed to market at the decision process. If we are not prepared and Lumberton is, we lose. If we don’t have a site that fits their needs, we lose. With Florence County Industrial Park East, by building a pad, we are pad ready. We’ve saved a business six months. Now, all that needs to be done is the building. We do speculative buildings, essentially big boxes, that you can fill with several objects. Our job is to target as many industries as we can inside that box and then help them cultivate that speed to market. These industries are chasing new businesses just like we are. When an existing industry supplier is growing, we want a Florence County location to be able to fully service their needs.” Gregg served Orangeburg County for 17 years. During his time there, he increased their industrial parks from four to eleven, offering nearly 3,000 acres for economic development. He and his team in Orangeburg were also able to secure private-sector investment totaling over a million square feet of new construction over the last 18 months. “This is how you build the environment,” says Gregg. “You build the base of infrastructure then allow the private sector to come in and do what it does best. In economic development, we create an environment for return on investment, and when the investor sees that, they’ll invest. It creates this buzz and cluster. That’s what we want to do across Florence County, create these hubs of industrial development."

below: Florence County East, New Industrial Park

above and right: a rendering of the 117,180 squarefoot industrial spec building that will be at the expansion of Pee Dee Commerce City Park

During his time in Orangeburg County, Gregg observed firsthand the importance of not only working to gain large industries but also the small, family-owned businesses. “Orangeburg County obtained Inbra Chemicals Co., a Brazilian company. Orangeburg was their first entry into the United States. For them to come into the U.S., in a rural area, south of town, when they could literally be anywhere in the world, was a big hit. The capital investment was around twenty million dollars and only offered 15 to 20 jobs, but that wasn’t the point. The point was that a company came in, planted its flag, and had faith in our state and our region to provide for their needs. The small projects are just as important as the big projects. A lot of times we can focus on the big hits when the gazelles are truly what you want. They are the industries that become medium size companies that eventually become large companies. They help cultivate that environment of success.” Additionally, Gregg is excited about Florence County’s logistics. “Our access to I-95 and I-20 are incredible. We need to cultivate what we do well. Because of our location and access to main highways throughout the county, food, timber, clusters and plastic make complete sense. Logistically, we are blessed.” Like any position, Gregg faces difficult decisions and daily obstacles. One area of concern is the aging work population, the Baby Boomers, that will retire within the next ten years based on national statistics provided by the United States Census. However, with the educational opportunities that Florence County offers, Gregg believes we have the ability to backfill those positions. “We, as economic development, have to continue creating these markets so that new opportunities are offered for individuals who above: current map of businesses located in the Pee Dee Commerce City East located in Florence, off I-95

below: site pad & rendering of the future Florence County Industrial Park South which will be located in Scranton

Global Reach with a Southern Touch

are graduating and gaining degrees. These industries can change lives locally. When an employee is undervalued in a current job and all of a sudden they get a new opportunity and their wage grows significantly, you’ve enhanced that quality of life. Jobs are critical to the development of our community.” Additionally, there will always be naysayers – Someone upset over a win or everyone upset over a loss. “It’s a constant struggle to make sure that across the county, from north to south and east to west, that everyone feels like they are part of the process. We believe in transparency. We get people involved at the grassroots level but most importantly we want our stakeholders, meaning your big pillars of industry and institutions, to be involved in the process of recruitment.” Gregg and his staff at FCEDP can’t be the only ones doing the job. “We need elected leaders and even media working with us. We have to constantly feed good information. The future is very bright for Florence County.” Since 1999, FCEDP has served as the public-private entity that works to recruit new business and industry to Florence County while also helping existing industries grow and expand. Through memberships with Florence County Progress, more than 250 businesses across a broad spectrum of industries and services provide critical private sector support for quality economic development in Florence County. With a range of membership levels, there is a place at Florence County Progress for every business and organization interested in making a difference in the future of Florence County. above: Existing industries continue provide employment and development in our community

The definition of economic impact: a financial effect that something, especially something new, has on a situation or person.

(Cambridge Dictionary)

To learn more about FCEDP or to learn how you can become a member of Florence County Progress, visit www.fcedp.com.