South Carolina Business Review

Citizens are pushing back against data centers, fearing that their power and water needs will cause utility bills to increase.  Congress is trying to address this issue with a bill that has cleared a House subcommittee, known as the Ratepayer Protection Act, but it also faces headwinds.  What does all this mean for our state?  Mike Switzer interviews Weston Adams, an attorney with the Nelson Mullins law firm in Columbia, SC.

Most people give to charities out of their checking accounts.  But our next guest says there could be more effective donation strategies to consider that may also help you rebalance your investment portfolio while avoiding capital gains taxes.  Mike Switzer interviews Peter Pigeon, a certified financial planner at Hobbs Group Advisors in Columbia, SC.

Mike Switzer interviews Rick Jenkins, host of the podcast: Let’s Talk Business South Carolina, based in Greenville, SC.  Rick gives us his thoughts on the outlook for our state’s tech industry cluster.

For the past five years, student athletes have been able to make money from their name, image, and likeness, known as NIL.  Since then, rules from the resulting created entity known as the College Sports Commission, have been put into place, but there are still many controversies, which is why Congress is getting involved again.  What does all this mean for the student athletes in our state?  Mike Switzer interviews Clay Grayson, an attorney in Mount Pleasant, SC. 

Our state’s capital city has often been criticized for its relatively unattractive entry corridors.  In other words, when people enter the Columbia area by plane, train, or automobile, are they impressed?  Or not?  Our next guest’s organization has made improving that perception one of their top goals and recently celebrated work done near the airport entry.  Mike Switzer interviews Mike Crapps, board president at Midlands Business Leadership Group.

Not all men who leave prison return to a life of crime but there are some who are likely to return to that cycle if they don’t experience an intense intervention followed by the necessary support.  And that’s where our next guest’s organization comes in.  Mike Switzer interviews Amy Barch, founder and executive director of Turn90 in North Charleston, SC.

Important financial decisions many people make don’t necessarily revolve around stocks, bonds, or the markets. We’re talking instead about certain major life purchases that shape our financial future for years to come, things like buying a home, purchasing a vehicle, managing debt, and preparing for unexpected expenses.  Our next guest is going to share how families can better prepare for the big life purchases.  Mike Switzer interviews Gyles Laney Headley, a certified financial planner with Jeter Hrubala Wealth Strategies in Isle of Palms, SC.

It’s Monday, and that’s when we like to take a look at current business issues that are trending across our state and discuss them with one of our fellow news media friends.  This week, Mike Switzer interviews Jessica Holdman, a reporter with the South Carolina Daily Gazette in Columbia, SC. Jessica tells us about a Spartanburg data center creating its own power but much more than originally projected. She also tells us about Duke Energy asking the SC Supreme Court to overturn the Public Service Commission’s ruling that Duke must wait a year before raising rates. And finally she updates us on the status of the $150 million needed to pay for cost overruns at the Scout Motors site in Blythewood, SC.

Since 1979, our next guest’s organization has been busy helping entrepreneurs and business owners start and grow their companies through free consulting and low-cost seminars. And now they have a new program designed to help companies meet their exit goals. Mike Switzer interviews Marquise Jackson, the state director for the South Carolina Small Business Development Centers.

We’ve been following our next guest’s company since its early years as a single location biofuel company in the Midlands of our state. They’ve grown significantly since then into one of the East Coast's largest biofuel operations. Our legislators have taken notice with the South Carolina House of Representatives honoring them recently for their leadership in renewable energy and environmental stewardship. Mike Switzer interviews Joe Renwick, founder and CEO of Green Energy Biofuel in Winnsboro, SC.

One in three South Carolinians has a disability.  Unfortunately, though, 60% of people with disabilities are unemployed.  Our next guest says this is a workforce that employers shouldn’t dismiss.  And that’s why her organization holds a one-day conference for business managers, executives, HR professionals, and service providers that is coming back to Columbia on October 7th.  Mike Switzer interviews Marly Saade, with Able SC in Columbia, SC.

$40 trillion in federal debt, high oil prices, more tariffs…are the headwinds facing our economy right now finally going to start causing causing enough damage to trigger a recession?  Mike Switzer interviews Joey Von Nessen, chief economist at the Darla Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, SC. 

It’s Monday, and that’s when we like to take a look at current business issues that are trending across our state and discuss them with one of our fellow news media friends.  This week, Mike Switzer interviews John McDermott, business editor of the Post and Courier in Charleston, SC.  John tells us about news from the ports authority, a big corporate acquisition in Summerville, a Netflix TV series in its final season that brings big tourism bucks to our state, and how much money will SC receive in the Meta settlement.

While our country has been celebrating a certain tea party that occurred around 250 years ago, our next guest’s company has been enjoying a tea party of sorts, as well, for the past 16 years in our state’s Lowcountry. Mike Switzer interviews Darren Hartford, owner of Oliver Pluff & Company in Charleston, SC.

There was a new category in this year’s US Small Business Administration awards, the Blue-Collar Small Business of the Year and the inaugural South Carolina winner is our next guest.  Mike Switzer interviews Taylor Powell, chief operating officer of Industrial Motor Service in Anderson, SC.

In case you hadn’t heard, paper mills in our state and neighboring states have been shutting down their operations, which has had a major effect on South Carolina’s forest economy and rural communities.  Mike Switzer interviews Pete Madden, president and CEO of the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities in Greenville,SC.

According to AARP, nearly 1 in 5 adults in this country are providing care to someone 50 years or older. Even if your aging parents do not require formal care at that age, our next guest says that certain topics do deserve attention to ensure they are supported and set up to thrive.  Mike Switzer interviews Ann Beckwith, a certified financial planner with Abacus Planning Group in Columbia, SC.

It’s Monday, and that’s when we like to take a look at current business issues that are trending across our state and discuss them with one of our fellow news media friends.  This week, Mike Switzer interviews Alan Cooper, founder and editor of three online business news websites in South Carolina: MidlandsBiz, UpstateBizSC, and LowCountryBizSC.  Alan talks about our state’s efforts over the past 25 years to compete with North Carolina’s Research Triangle Park.

If there’s one area of our state that is dependent on the tourism economy, it would be our coastal regions, and in particular that area known as the Grand Strand, which is where our next guest is.  Mike Switzer interviews Matt Pivarnik, CEO of the Greater Myrtle Beach Collaborative.

The last time we interviewed our next guest’s company in 2022 they had just patented a chemical digestion technology that they hoped would become the preferred method of pharmaceutical waste disposal.  They’ve made enough progress since then to attract the attention of SC Launch, which recently rewarded them with a $400,000 investment.  Mike Switzer interviews Justin Stas, founder and CEO of SafeMedWaste in Charleston, SC.

The EV industry got an additional boost from the Biden administration with a slew of investment tax credits.  And while the current administration has eliminated a lot of these, the commitments that companies have made in our state continue to move forward.  Our next guest’s company is one example as they have recently completed a $1.7 billion investment covering the expansion of an EV factory in  Spartanburg and construction of a new battery assembly facility in Woodruff.  Mike Switzer interviews Derek Lowe with BMW in Greer, SC. 

Most investors spend a lot of time deciding what stocks to own. But when it comes to bonds, our next guest says that it basically comes down to two questions: should you own individual bonds, or a bond fund?  Mike Switzer interviews Scotty Scott, a certified financial planner with Abacus Planning Group in Columbia, SC.

It’s Monday, and that’s when we like to take a look at current business issues that are trending across our state and discuss them with one of our fellow news media friends.  This week, Mike Switzer interviews Rick Jenkins, formerly the publisher of SC Biz News and now the founder and CEO of Let's Talk Business South Carolina, a network of B2B talk shows that airs on YouTube.  Rick tells us about current trends and challenges in our state’s defense industry cluster.

Many entrepreneurs spend decades building their business without actually having a clear exit strategy. And to make matters worse, Entrepreneur magazine says that 75% of owners who do sell regret their decision within one year.  That’s why our next guest says entrepreneurs should start getting their “for sale” ducks in a row…early.  Mike Switzer interviews Micah Brandenburg, founder of Legendary Exits in Greenville, SC.

When we last interviewed our next guest in 2019, they had received a grant from the National Institutes of Health to continue developing a double-balloon catheter using technology licensed from the Medical University of South Carolina.  They finished that development and are now shipping the device across North America.  Their success has led them to be named the US Small Business Administration's Manufacturer of the Year for 2026 for South Carolina.  Mike Switzer interviews Dr. Cephus Simmons, founder and CEO of SealCath in Mount Pleasant, SC.

Our next guest’s organization has launched a nationwide “Monumental Ideas” initiative inviting individuals to share perspectives on how women’s history should be represented.  Their goal is to build the first monument on the National Mall in Washington DC dedicated to American Women's History.  Mike Switzer interviews Kimberly Wallner, executive vice president with the Women’s Suffrage National Monument Foundation and she joins us by phone from her office in Greenville, SC.

It’s been another crazy year for financial markets but now that we’re in the final months of this year, we thought we’d check in with our resident prognosticator to see how he feels about it.  Mike Switzer interviews Doug English, a certified financial planner with ACT Advisors in Charleston, SC.

It’s Monday, and that’s when we like to take a look at current business issues that are trending across our state and discuss them with one of our fellow news media friends.  This week, Mike Switzer interviews Jessica Holdman, a reporter with the South Carolina Daily Gazette in Columbia, SC.  Jessica  tells us about the SC Public Service Commission allowing GOP lawmakers in on the discussions involving the Dominion - NextEra merger; a new pharmaceutical company coming to Rock Hill to the site of the former proposed Panthers practice facility; and BMW’s new EV battery plant in Woodruff.

Our next guest’s organization recently received some research which he says is the most comprehensive look yet at financial hardship among working families across our state.  And it involves an acronym known as ALICE: Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed.  Mike Switzer interviews DJ Hampton, president and CEO of Trident United Way in North Charleston, SC.

When children in poverty are not reading on grade level by third grade, it eventually affects high school graduation rates, options for college, and ultimately the strength of our state’s workforce pipeline.  Which is why our next guest’s organization is working hard to bring those students up to par.  Mike Switzer interviews Sandi Smith, executive director of the Augustine Literacy Project of the Upstate in Mauldin, SC.

Anyone in the business community will tell you that communication skills are very important.  Our next guest says that developing those skills starts early in childhood.  Mike Switzer interviews Elizabeth Smithson, a speech language pathologist with Innovative Pediatric Therapy in Charleston, SC.

Global unrest, both political and economic, continues to threaten the upward trend in our economy.  But our next guest says it’s not derailed yet, at least here in our state.  Mike Switzer interviews Frank Hefner, Director Office of Economic Analysis and Professor of Economics at the College of Charleston.

Mike Switzer interviews John McDermott, business editor of the Post and Courier, about a big aluminum plant in Goose Creek, as well as an update on the Dominion Energy/NextEra merger, and the possibility of private security contractors taking over at the Charleston International Airport.

Our next guest’s organization recently announced it is a founding partner in the National Science Foundation’s Grid Modernization Engine in the Carolinas.  What exactly does this mean?  Let’s find out.  Mike Switzer interviews Catherine Hayes, with the South Carolina Research Authority in Greenville, SC.

Over the past few years we have interviewed Kirby Player, director of the Palmetto Leadership for the Environment, Agriculture, and Forestry (PLEAF) program at Clemson University, and today we have one of the program's graduates on the phone to tell us about her real world experience since graduating.  Mike Switzer interviews Kellee Melton, South Carolina State Conservationist for the Natural Resource Conservation Service at the US Department of Agriculture in Columbia, SC.

Agriculture is a big part of our state’s economy, one that our next guest would like to see grow.  Which is why he stays busy working to support and strengthen our agribusiness community.  Mike Switzer interviews Jim Johnson, agribusiness senior consultant with the South Carolina Small Business Development Centers (SC SBDC) in Columbia, SC.  Additional resource: SCRA Agribusiness Initiative

Our next guest says one of the most valuable planning tools isn't an investment strategy or even a legal document. It's actually just a conversation.  And she calls it a "Family CEO Meeting."  Mike Switzer interviews Beth Jeter Hrubala, a certified financial planner in Spartanburg, SC.

It’s Monday, and that’s when we like to take a look at current business issues that are trending across our state and discuss them with one of our fellow news media friends.  This week, Mike Switzer interviews Alan Cooper, founder and editor of three online business news websites in South Carolina: MidlandsBiz, UpstateBizSC, and LowCountryBizSC.  Alan tells us about new collaborative efforts between entrepreneurship organizations, economic development organizations, and other public/private partnerships across our state. 

Our next guest’s company started during the pandemic, initially to help underserved local healthcare facilities, schools, manufacturers, and community agencies in their quest to acquire essential health safety supplies.  We interviewed them during that time.  They have since grown into a truly national operation.  Mike Switzer interviews Lance Brown, cofounder and CEO of Rhino Medical Supply in Columbia, SC.

One of the ways the business community contributes to a community’s quality of life is through sponsorship of charitable events.  An example is the annual Three Rivers Bridge Dinner  coming to Columbia on October 25th. Mike Switzer interviews the event director, Erin Curtis.

Back during the waning days of the pandemic, in 2021, we interviewed our next guest about a theater venture he cofounded.  The next year, he cofounded a drama festival that is now in its fifth year.  Mike Switzer interviews West Hyler, cofounder and executive director of the South Carolina New Play Festival in Greenville, SC, July 29  -  August 9.

Our next guest says that one of the best things you can do for your children is to teach them how to be responsible with money.  And he has three steps you can follow.  Mike Switzer interviews Chris Cabri, a certified financial planner with Wells Fargo Advisors in Greenwood, SC.

Mike Switzer interviews Jessica Holdman, a reporter with the South Carolina Daily Gazette in Columbia, SC.  Jessica tells us about the potential Dominion Energy - NextEra merger, carbon capture credits from state forest lands, new law requiring US-made steel in public projects, the upcoming sales tax holiday, and a new rule for shrimp labeling.

Stress can be caused by a multitude of factors, including job-related.  And our next guest says that he has found that most people do not know how to keep stress from turning into chronic muscular pain.  Mike Switzer interviews Christopher Allen Neumann, owner of CAN Therapeutics in Aiken, SC.

South Carolina has been working on growing its footprint in the film industry for many years and over the course of those years, we’ve interviewed local film makers, directors of film festivals, and representatives from our own state film commission.  Today, we’re going to interview someone from our state who has been able to break into some work for major studios.  Mike Switzer interviews Ava Cuturic.

Coworking spaces have rebounded significantly from the challenges of the pandemic as we continue to see them grow and expand across our state.  Mike Switzer interviews Peter Marsh, founding partner at Flywheel in Greenville, SC.

We’ve talked many times about how volatile the stock market has been over the past several years and about how you shouldn’t try to time these swings.  But our next guest says you can manage how volatility affects your portfolio.  Mike Switzer interviews Ashton Lawrence, a certified financial planner with Mariner Wealth Advisors in Greenville, SC.

It’s Monday, and that’s when we like to take a look at current business issues that are trending across our state and discuss them with one of our fellow news media friends.  This week, Mike Switzer interviews John McDermott, business editor of the Post and Courier in Charleston, SC.  John tells us about: DoD to bankroll a $150M German-operated chemical plant to make military ammo accelerant on Cooper River in Charleston Santee Cooper sets a key date for $2.7B sale of nuclear reactor Polestar, which builds electric SUVs at the Volvo SC plant, is banned from selling its vehicles in the US under the feds’ web-connected policy Last cruise at Union Pier; possibility of cruises coming back

Making a living as an artist can be a trying experience, as most artists will tell you.  But there are resource and support organizations, such as the one run by our next guest, that can help with that process.  Mike Switzer interviews Sara Grambach, CEO at the Greenville Center for Creative Arts.

Our next guest’s company was recently named the “Rural Small Business of the Year” for South Carolina by the US Small Business Administration for their success at operating a small batch dairy.  Mike Switzer interviews Patrick Myers, CEO of Lowcountry Creamery in Bowman, SC.