Skip to main content

Columbia Business Monthly

The Business Narrative: Recognizing the Fastest Growing

Oct 03, 2024 09:32AM ● By Donna Walker

South Carolina 50 Fastest Growing Companies Honored

Columbia-based Integer Technologies was named South Carolina’s Fastest Growing Company in the 2024 50 Fastest Growing Companies competition.

 

South Carolina's 50 Fastest Growing Companies competition is the annual ranking of the Palmetto State's 50 most dynamic and successful companies.

 

This year’s recipients were honored at a luncheon at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center Oct. 1, where Michael Amiridis, Ph.D., president of the University of South Carolina, was the keynote speaker.

 

The event recognizes an exceptional and diverse assembly of businesses from across the state among its Top 50 winners.

 

To be eligible for the SC 50 Fastest Growing Companies Award, a company must be headquartered in South Carolina and be in business for at least three years and show revenues of more than $3 million in the last fiscal year.

 

The companies are selected using a calculation based on year-over-year growth of revenue and employee headcount over the last three years.

 

Once companies submit their data, they are notified of whether they placed in the competition, but rankings aren't announced until the recognition luncheon.

 

Integrated Media Publishing, publisher of Greenville Business Magazine, Columbia Business Monthly, Charleston Business Magazine, and B2B: The Grand Strand, partners with The Capital Corporation to honor these South Carolina companies.

 

The program is in its 23rd year. 

 

Partner sponsors are The Capital Corporation, TD Bank; Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP; and Integrated Media Publishing.

 

For the first 20 years, the program honored the 25 Fastest Growing Companies, but the list was expanded to 50 companies three years ago. 

 

“We are excited to recognize these South Carolina-headquartered companies that are so important to the economic health and quality of life in the Palmetto State,” said Lori Coon, publisher of Greenville Business Magazine, Columbia Business Monthly, Charleston Business Magazine, and B2B: The Grand Strand. “We congratulate all of honorees for their accomplishments.”

 

In addition to the 50 Fastest Growing Companies, awards were also given for excellence in business. 

 

The Employee Retention Award went to Clayton Construction Company, with an average employee tenure of 12 years.

 

The Growth in Revenues Award was presented to Bintelli, which saw 244 percent growth from 2021 to 2023.

 

The Client Retention Award went to Year Round Pool Company, which had an average 23 years’ duration on its top 10 customers.

 

The Community/Philanthropic Impact Award went to Calder Brothers Company, where all 110 full-time employees of Calder Brothers participated in company-sponsored philanthropic activities in 2023.

 

The South Carolina Economic Impact Award, presented by BMW Manufacturing, recognizes companies in the Palmetto State whose activities have produced extraordinary results. 

 

This award honors companies from all regions of the state and across multiple industries for their outstanding contributions to the South Carolina economy.

 

This year’s award was presented to Southeastern Freight Lines.

 

The C. Dan Adams Lifetime Achievement Award, named for the founder of The Capital Corporation, was given for the first time last year.

 

This year’s recipient was Jim Newsome, past president and CEO of the South Carolina Ports Authority.

 

To see the list of the 50 Fastest Growing Companies, ranked in order, go to: 

https://www.greenvillebusinessmag.com/2024/10/01/507499/south-carolina-50-fastest-growing-companies.

Port Operations Update

South Carolina Ports officials said Oct. 1, 2024, that until further notice, SC Ports’ marine terminals are closed after dockworkers walked off the job across dozens of ports from Maine to Texas, including in Charleston.

 

“Following the break in operations, SC Ports and our maritime industry partners will marshal every resource possible to facilitate the swift recovery of business,” the officials said in a notice posted on the SC Ports website. “Measures will be implemented based on terminal operating conditions and need, as well as the duration of the interruption. Operational details will be shared as soon as they become available.”

 

The officials added, “For the duration of the work stoppage, SC Ports will waive loaded container storage charges to the ocean carriers, and SMART Pool chassis billing will be paused for any units out-gated from Charleston locations.”

 

The Wall Street Journal reported the dockworkers’ strike threatens to block the movement of a swath of U.S. trade and rattle the American economy five weeks ahead of the presidential election.

 

The Journal reported the United States Maritime Alliance said it raised its offer of a wage increase to 50 percent over six years, up from an earlier offer of 40 percent, along with benefits improvements.

 

It also reported the union has set an increase of 77 percent in wages over six years as the baseline to enter negotiations, according to a person familiar with the matter.

 

South Carolina Ports owns and operates marine terminals at the Port of Charleston and two rail-served inland ports in Greer and Dillon.

 

As the 8th largest U.S. container port, SC Ports connects port-dependent businesses throughout the Southeast and beyond to global markets.

 

With the deepest harbor on the East Coast at 52 feet, SC Ports is a vital economic engine for South Carolina, with port operations supporting 1 in 9 jobs statewide. 

Report Highlights Financial Challenges Facing Military Community

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its Office of Servicemember Affairs’ annual report, highlighting the challenges that servicemembers, veterans, and their families face when dealing with student loan servicers.

 

Highlights include transcript withholding and frauds and scams that target the veteran community. The report also analyzed complaint trends among servicemembers, veterans, and Reservists. 

 

The report identifies the top financial concerns for military families including:

 

* Servicemembers filed more complaints across all major products, including credit or consumer reporting, debt collection, credit cards, checking or savings accounts, and mortgages

 

In 2023, servicemembers submitted approximately 84,600 complaints on a wide range of products and services. This is a 27 percent increase compared to 2022 and a 98 percent increase compared to 2021.

 

* Servicemembers, military families, and veterans report challenges when trying to contact or get help from their student loan servicer. Complaints suggest that servicemembers are spending hours trying to reach their student loan servicer and that those calls often fail to resolve their issue.

 

* Colleges’ and universities’ withholding of transcripts may harm servicemembers and veterans. It may prevent them from receiving promotions, jobs, or completing their degrees. 

 

Servicemembers' work obligations often require frequent relocations; timely access to transcripts is essential to ensure that there is as little disruption as possible when transferring from one educational institution to another.

 

* Older veterans are often the target of frauds and scams. In 2023, the CFPB received approximately 9,300 complaints from older veterans.

 

The report recommends that student loan servicers and financial institutions address these risks:

 

* Federal student loan servicers should streamline and automatically apply payment options and forgiveness programs for eligible servicemembers and veterans.

 

* Loan servicers should ensure online tools are reliably accessible and can meet servicemembers’ customer service needs.

 

* Educational institutions and state and federal policymakers should work to ensure that transcript withholding does not harm military families.

 

* And federal and state agencies will make tools and resources available to veterans to report financial complaints, including complaints about frauds and scams.

The Cliffs' New Director of Sales

Earlier this year, The Cliffs, based in Travelers Rest, South Carolina, announced a new director of sales, and it’s a homecoming for him.

 

Richard Seay is the new sales director of sales. An admired and capable leader with the ability to manage simultaneously on vision and execution – while retaining focus on achieving long-term goals and critical business objectives – he arrives at The Cliffs during an exciting, but complex, next stage of growth.

 

Having spent the last 30+ years working as a sales leader in the luxury real estate industry across the U.S. and the Caribbean, Cliffs officials believe Richard Seay is well positioned to assume the new role.

 

Seay, a Greenville, South Carolina, native, attended The University of South Carolina, receiving a bachelor’s degree in hotel, restaurant, and tourism administration.

 

His father was in the restaurant business for over 20 years and Richard is returning to the Upstate to be close to family and friends.

 

His daughter attends law school at Charleston School of Law and his son is attending Clemson, majoring in chemical engineering. His family is his passion – along with golf – and a new puppy named Ryder Cup.

 

“We are looking forward to Richard’s stewardship of real estate operations at The Cliffs as the new director of Sales at Cliffs Realty. Our communities are entering a phase of considerable growth, and his comprehensive experience will be integral to our success,” said Rob Duckett, president of Operations for South Street Partners, which owns The Cliffs.

 

As sales director, Seay will manage the Cliffs Realty sales teams in the Lake and Mountain Regions, which encompass The Cliffs’ six private luxury communities within South Carolina as well as the firm’s newest brokerage office in the Asheville Region, which includes The Cliffs at Walnut Cove, the sole community in North Carolina.

 

Before arriving at The Cliffs, he was director of sales and vice president at luxury, four-season resort communities in Park City, Utah, and the Pacific Northwest where he was responsible for the creation, development and implementation of all sales and marketing strategies while overseeing record breaking numbers of transactions and a 60 percent increase in the average sales price of lots.

 

Previously, he founded an international resort real estate sales and marketing consulting firm on the island of St. Maarten which negotiated multiple deals with international developers, including the sellout of a 20-acre mixed-use luxury condominium community.

 

Seay began his real estate career at IMI Resort Holdings, Inc., where he held multiple positions throughout a tenure that included appointment to executive vice president of sales, to strengthen the company’s general management and sales operation throughout the U.S., Mexico, and the Caribbean.

 

In the first quarter of 2024, 63 properties were closed across the seven communities at The Cliffs, totaling a volume of $39,469,500 from all brokerages operating within their gates.

 

Cliffs Realty, the official brokerage of The Cliffs, achieved significant success with 35 properties sold, totaling $26,777,500 in volume, and had an additional 35 sales pending to close.

 

The spotlight in Q1 was on homesite transactions, accounting for 46 of the total transactions, while home construction maintains a steady pace with 292 homes under construction across their seven communities.

 

The Cliffs is a collection of seven private, luxury residential mountain and lake club communities located in the Carolina Blue Ridge Mountains, between two of the nation’s top award-winning cities for quality of life – Greenville, S.C. and Asheville, N.C. – and Clemson, S.C., home to Clemson University.

 

The Cliffs’ suite of amenities for club members includes seven clubhouses, seven nationally recognized golf courses, seven wellness centers, multiple tennis and pickleball complexes, a marina, beach club, and equestrian center, more than a dozen restaurant and private event venues, and over 2,000 year-round programs and social activities to create timeless experiences.

 

Homes at The Cliffs range in price from $650,000 to $6M+; homesites, starting at $125,000.

 

Meanwhile, The Cliffs also recently purchased The Village at Mountain Park in Travelers Rest from Blackstone Development. The acquisition included 15 acres of land as well as some roads within the mixed-use village, which comprises commercial and residential buildings and lots. 

 

The parcel of land now connects the homes and homesites in the Mountain Park Estates section to the main portion of The Cliffs at Mountain Park community.

Allow us to tell your company's Business Narrative. Send your press release to David Dykes or for more information email [email protected]