COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina Department of Commerce held its first economic development summit Monday, and workforce readiness was at the forefront of issues as thousands of jobs are headed to the Palmetto state. The theme of the day was ‘launch to legacy.’
With a more than $830,000 rebrand, the Department of Commerce looked back at why businesses chose South Carolina and looked ahead to attracting more.
“Well, certainly our plan is to have good companies come to South Carolina and also for good companies to be created in South Carolina," Secretary of Commerce Harry Lightsey said. "You know we got the opportunity to hear today from entrepreneurs who started their businesses right here in South Carolina and they’re now global leaders in their particular areas.”
South Carolina welcomed Scout Motors in 2023 and already is home to BMW, Nephron, and other manufacturing companies. Lightsey said in 2024 there will be room for growth in other industries.
“For example, we talked about life sciences as being an area we really want to emphasize for the future of South Carolina. Life sciences, life science and technology companies have been the second fastest growing economic sector for the last several.”
Scout Motors is expected to bring around 4,000 jobs to the state, but a question posed to the governor was filling those jobs with South Carolinians.
“We have plenty here who can do the work, but we have to show it to them. You can’t tell them about it," McMaster said. "That’s on reason we’re so excited about Scout. Scout is going to excite a lot of people want to get off the sofa and get to work.”
McMaster said collaborating with the state technical colleges will also help fill these jobs.
