South Carolina Business Review

2022 was a bad year for the financial markets, in fact it was one of those rare years when both stocks and bonds experienced negative returns. But our next guest says that this year should be the exact opposite. Mike Switzer interviews Doug English, a certified financial planner and our resident market prognosticator with ACT Advisors in Charleston, SC.

Mike Switzer interviews John Warner, a serial entrepreneur and founder of Innoventure in Greenville, S.C. John discusses our state’s efforts to attract the electric vehicle industry: SC Powers EV

Released in July of 2020, our next guest’s short film now has more than 112 million views, spawned sequels, and has launched his small upstate production company into stardom. Mike Switzer interviews Sam Wickert, co-founder of SOKRISPYMEDIA in Greenville, SC, the company behind the viral video: Chalk Warfare.

Next month, our next guest’s organization will celebrate the 17th edition of its annual food and wine festival, bringing more than 100 events to locations throughout the Lowcountry. And an annual economic impact exceeding $25 million. Mike Switzer interviews Alyssa Maute Smith, executive director of the Charleston Wine and Food Festival, coming March 1-5.

Film festival season has begun and in our state, the first one is just around the corner. Mike Switzer interviews Ken Seay, co-founder of the Reedy Reels Film Festival in Greenville, SC.

Once again, our country is facing the uncertainty caused by our national debt ceiling. How will it affect our personal financial lives? Mike Switzer interviews Chris Cabri, a certified financial planner with Wells Fargo Advisors in Greenwood, SC.

Mike Switzer interviews John Warner, a serial entrepreneur and founder of Innoventure in Greenville, S.C. John talks about why it’s important that SkyDrive, Inc. chose SC for its headquarters.

You may have noticed that our state has several cities, towns, and counties named after places in England. And a lot of them are concentrated between Columbia and Charlotte. Over the past several years, this area has been developing an economic identity all its own. Mike Switzer interviews Jenny Parrish, executive director of our state’s Olde English District in Fort Lawn, SC.

Our next guest’s Lowcountry film festival is curated by an advisory board with a pretty distinguished list of names, including Blythe Danner, Andie Macdowell, and Gary Sinise. We’ve been attending this event for over a decade and as they enter their 17th year, the featured films continue to improve and impress. Mike Switzer interviews Ron Tucker, president and CEO of the Beaufort Film Society, the...

During one of our recent Monday morning conversations with entrepreneurial advocate, John Warner, we talked about a Midlands organization that is working to keep the area’s college graduates in the area by exposing them to employers and opportunities they may not have been aware of. Kelsey Bickley is the board chair at Columbia Opportunity Resource, in Columbia, SC.

Most everybody appreciates a good shortcut from time to time. However, our next guest, who has 33 years experience advising people about their finances, says shortcuts rarely work when it comes to your money. Mike Switzer interviews Bobby Cummings, a certified financial planner in Mt. Pleasant, SC.

Mike Switzer interviews John Warner, a serial entrepreneur and founder of Innoventure in Greenville, S.C. John talks about state population demographics and their importance to income levels and the state economy and educational attainment. Census data by city and county in SC can be found here: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/SC/DIS010221

Our next guest believes that doing good through service is the key to success not only for individuals but for companies, as well. Mike Switzer interviews Dan Hoppe, executive director of Multiplying Good in Myrtle Beach, SC.

Did you know that our country has one of the worst traffic safety records in the world? If you do, you would probably not be surprised to also learn that South Carolina drivers cause the most traffic accidents in the country which gives our state the highest traffic fatality rate, as well. And this statistic keeps our next guest very busy. Mike Switzer interviews Amy Johnson Ely, executive directo...

Our next guest once had a thriving career in the hospitality industry working as a sommelier and growing the wine program at an Upstate resort into a multi-million-dollar business. Now he’s a tech entrepreneur helping the wine industry preserve taste. Mike Switzer interviews Eric Cooperman, founder of Bottle Titan, in Greenville, SC.

At about this time each year, we hear economic forecasts from the Davos World Economic Forum in Switzerland. That event has concluded and our next guest says he’d like to share his thoughts on those prognostications. Mike Switzer interviews Bruce Yandle, Dean Emeritus at the College of Business & Behavioral Science and Alumni Professor of Economics Emeritus, both at Clemson University. He is a...

Mike Switzer interviews Alan Cooper, founder and editor of three online business news websites in South Carolina: MidlandsBiz, UpstateBizSC, and LowCountryBizSC. Disclaimer: Alan Cooper’s company has a business relationship with Voterheads.com, an affiliate of Magnolia Media, which is the producer of the South Carolina Business Review.

Not too long ago, most companies wanted a mobile app for their business. But today, the mobile app vs web app choice is not always a clear decision. If you survey startup founders, you will hear strong opinions on either side. The reason for the disparity is that the answer really depends on your business and the nature of your app. Joining us today to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of b...

The 7th annual German-American Business Summit is coming to the College of Charleston on February 8th and here to tell us more about the event is Knudt Flor, the former CEO of BMW and the current senior vice president for Innovation and Industry Engagement at the College of Charleston.

Timber is big business in our state and, in fact, is our largest cash crop. But as most people are aware, trees are also a big part of the climate change equation. Which is why our next guest is leading an effort to create a climate smart lumber industry. Mike Switzer interviews Rob Baldwin, a professor and the Margaret H. Lloyd Endowed Chair of Conservation in the Department of Forestry and Envir...

Nearly three years after the SECURE Act was passed in December 2019, another retirement bill was enacted known as SECURE Act 2.0, which has brought another wave of changes to retirement planning. Mike Switzer interviews Ann Beckwith, certified financial planner with Abacus Planning Group in Columbia, SC.

Mike Switzer interviews John Warner, a serial entrepreneur and founder of Innoventure in Greenville, S.C. John updates us on the growing electric vehicle industry in SC.

Our next guest’s company became an SC Launch member company in 2019, receiving a $25,000 academic startup grant. Three years later, they became an SC Launch portfolio company with a $200,000 investment. And all because of treatments they are developing to address vision loss. Mike Switzer interviews Michael Voevodsky, president and CEO of MitoChem Therapeutics in Charleston, SC.

Over the past several years, our next guest’s small manufacturing company has continued to win awards and recognition for their innovations and growth, most recently the 2022 Emerging Manufacturer of the Year award from the South Carolina Manufacturing Extension Partnership. Mike Switzer interviews Donna Brin, president and CEO of bFIVE40 in Little River, SC.

Grilling pellet trend expands into nuts