Business boom in Greenville, SC, the new Start Up hub

Diana C Ariza
Social Media ASTA
Published in
5 min readMay 20, 2019
Downtown Greenville, SC

Once the textile capital of the world, Greenville was forced to innovate itself out of a dying industry. A city filled with everything most of the people dream of: a small city, with a vibrant hype, shops, business support and a well rounded city full of professionals, top Universities and Corporations.

Greenville has decades of commitment to create a community that’s appealing to college graduates and high-skilled workers. The city also has access to technology and research talent from nearby Clemson University and state-of-the-art manufacturing plants turning out Michelin tires and BMWs.

GE power, Fluor, Bausch & Lomb, Samsung Networks America, Eurokera, Kyocera Mita, Mitsubishi, Saint Gobain, Ahold, Magna, Bosch Rexroth, Pierburg, Nutra, and Michelin. Greenville’s culture of risk-taking and its network of investors who fund early stage businesses, it’s what makes it almost unique!

According to Bloomberg Business Week

This city of 670,000, a onetime hub for textile and apparel production, seems to have found the answer to the question confounding the U.S. right now: How do you revive postindustrial towns and make them part of the knowledge economy?

Displaced factory workers were receptive to Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” message during the 2016 election campaign. Yet the president’s policy prescription of lower taxes, higher tariffs, and fewer immigrants is untested, while Greenville’s leaders can rightly claim they have a success on their hands. In per capita terms, the city’s rate of new business creation approaches that of Boston, one of the country’s hotbeds of innovation.

Photo by Luca Bravo on Unsplash

The Greenville Area Development Corporation Business recruitment efforts are focused on key target industry segments. Offering an ideal balance of skilled workforce, essential infrastructure, pro-business mindset, quality of life, and other corporate relocation advantages, Greenville, SC is uniquely positioned to respond to the needs of these target industries.

The dynamic pro-business climate in Greenville, SC is supported by corporate tax incentives, workforce development programs, an entrepreneurial network of resources, and other features designed to give area businesses a competitive advantage in the global marketplace. The Networking events, the chamber of commerce and different networking programs are available to those who would like to have a better outcome in this city.

Many small business owners have opened their second or third location in the restaurant industry, due to the need, outcome and financial gain. Meaning that the city is growing faster than ever, which brings a great economic support as well as lot of enforcement to infrastructure in order to keep up with the demand.

Photo by Kyle Glenn on Unsplash

Some of the benefits to be living and working or investing in Greenville, SC are:

Taxes, Incentives & Training

The area provides aggressive incentives to support projects in Greenville, SC. Corporate tax incentives, cash reimbursements, accelerated depreciation, and other options are available. Learn More

The Jobs Tax Credit is a valuable incentive that rewards new and expanding business owners for creating jobs in South Carolina. These companies must create and maintain a certain number of net new jobs in a taxable year.

International

Greenville is a hub for international business, with more than 350 international companies located in the region and the highest foreign investment per capita in the country.

Photo by Adeolu Eletu on Unsplash

Fun Facts:

  • Approximately 230 different international firms from 27 countries have a major presence in Greenville County.
  • 2010 to 2018, more than 76 companies have either opened new or expanded facilities or offices in Greenville County. These announced investments have totaled over $1.4 Billion in capital investment

Another great organization for many newcomers or International workers that come for a three to five year assignments is Upstate International (www.upstateinternational.org), which offers many services to internationals designed to integrate cultures and help them get involved in the community.

  • Language classes are offered in French, German, Italian, Spanish, Chinese, and English as a second language.
  • Upstate International provides country contacts in the Greenville area for over 20 different countries around the globe.
  • Personal assistance is provided to newcomers through the Ambassadors Program.

Many other international associations are located in the Greenville area such as:

Aside from all these possibilities to newcomers or Natives, is the great possibility to have it all around the city. The nature, the mountains, many golf courses, events, cultural empowerment, free family gatherings, weekly concerts, Food and cultural festivals, swim teams and activities that makes the city an Unsurpassed Quality Of Life! Greenville has established itself as a cultural sensation with a wide variety of museums, theaters, symphonies, and performing arts centers making their home in the area.

Photo by Mark Koch on Unsplash

Greenville has outdoor space for everyone! You can ride or walk the 15 mile Swamp Rabbit trail through downtown, and stop at Falls Park to admire the suspension bridge and natural waterfalls. Visit the Cancer center park, dedicated to those who have survived or had family members going through this turmoil.

The zoo in downtown and neighboring Cleveland Park, there’s plenty of open space for your dog friends that can enjoy a great dog park. For cycling enthusiast, bike lanes are prevalent through downtown with more being added all the time. Right now the Swamp Rabbit trail going through the Cancer Survivor park is under construction, where you can stop by many monuments and Art dedications as well as historical stops. Want to take a hike? Beautiful Paris Mountain State Park is 20 minutes away, and it’s just a short drive past that to the Blue Ridge Mountains.

So do you need more reasons to invest in Greenville? Start ups and Investors are equally getting the grip of what Greenville is now getting into: A hub for new business and top quality life!

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Diana C Ariza
Social Media ASTA

Entrepreneur & Startups | Social Media |Non-Profit| Mom | Disabilities Advocate | Emprendedora | Nurse | www.ASTAbusiness.com https://about.me/dianac.a