COLUMBIA, S.C. — Scout Motors and the South Carolina Department of Commerce hosted a supplier event in Columbia for local businesses on Wednesday.
Over five hundred and seventy businesses signed up to attend, of those, one hundred and fifty-five self-identified as minority owned companies.
Doctor Jan Spies is the chief production officer for Scout Motors. He says this event is important for Scout Motors and their future collaborations.
“I think it is important to know that experiences as today's are very important for all of us to show this is the scope we are sourcing and this is just the start of it," said Spies. "We wanted to get to know you, and we want to understand what is out there to find the best for all of us.”
Tammie Greene is the supplier outreach manager with the South Carolina Department of Commerce and says this event gives smaller businesses opportunities.
“This event is really important for smaller businesses, again, it is just a way for them to not only network with the Scout procurement team," said Greene. "It is also a way to get their name out, who they are, to build up their confidence and also to network with the other three hundred local suppliers that are here today.”
The CPR ASAP Center came to Scout Motors event with hopes of making an impression on the Scout procurement team. Tanjenique Anderson is the founder and safety consultant for the CPR ASAP Center and says this attending this event will impact her business.
“Being picked up by Scout would be monumental for my small minority owned, woman owned business and we are looking forward to it," said Anderson. “Landing a major contract with Scout would definitely put us in a position where we would be able to grow our business and put more safety certification information into the community so it’s a win win situation for everyone.”
At the CPR ASAP Center, hundreds of individuals in South Carolina each year are trained in CPR, first aid, AEDs and blood born pathogens.
“What I thought was going to happen and what happened were two totally different things. I experienced the most impactful five minutes in my business career," said Anderson. "I’m hoping to land relationships and contracts with Scout. But what actually happened in addition to the possibility of that is that we met so many other organizations that wants to partner with us as well.”