Charleston County Economic Development Provides Full-Service Business Support > SC Biz News

Mission is to provide help for business success, to lead the promotion of economic growth!

Charleston county economic development is a valuable business partner to local industries. The department’s staff compares their service to a corporate concierge, available to assist business leaders with recruiting, resources, relocation support, or anything else they need to succeed.

That included specialized training of staff, connecting businesses with financial aid programs and championing local businesses at the government level.

Since its inception in 1993, Charleston County Economic Development has helped facilitate and announce more than 36,000 jobs and a $6.7 billion investment by community businesses.

“Our mission is to lead the promotion of economic growth and shared prosperity for all of Charleston County,” said Ashley Richardson, director of strategy and communications for Charleston County Economic Development. “We are addressing this by recruiting new businesses, taking care of our existing industry and improving the business environment. The most impactful part is forming relationships with entrepreneurs for the life of their business.

The main industries that the economic development division supports are aerospace, automotive, international trade and logistics, life sciences, information technology, defense, manufacturing, distribution, and corporate headquarters.

“Workforce has become a more prominent discussion among all the companies we help, and we’ve instilled in ourselves connecting companies with resources in the area to educate employees and promote jobs,” Richardson said. “Our relationship with a company does not end with a ribbon cutting. We are an added value for the entire life of their company.”

A major success was training workers for the Mercedes-Benz Vans plant that opened its $500 million campus in North Charleston in 2018.

“When Mercedes-Benz Vans announced that their factory was opening here, they had to hire 1,300 people in a short period of time. We rolled up our sleeves and found a way to organize many job fairs and partner not only with the SC Department of Commerce but also with Trident Technical College to offer a program (ManuFirst SC) to train employees , which accelerated their hiring process and provided a great skill set for prospective employees looking to embark on a career in manufacturing,” said Richardson.

Charleston County Economic Development promotes job opportunities on its social media platforms, resulting in the recruitment of top talent, and publishes positive news about business events in the media.

“The work we do makes our community better,” Richardson said. “It’s worth watching our citizens get jobs in one of our existing industries and create meaningful careers and better lives. That is what public service is, and we are proud to create a thriving business community in Charleston.”