Lowcountry Economic Network - Beaufort, South Carolina

How do we recruit the 'Creative Class' to the Lowcountry?

This column will run in the Aug. 26 Neighbors section of The Beaufort Gazette

Wake up on any given Lowcountry morning and you’re liable to see a beautiful sunrise, a porpoise bobbing its head up and down in the Beaufort River and any number of unique scenes that are distinctly Lowcountry. 

It’s those kinds of moments that draw people to our region.  

While we’re very familiar with those who decide to retire and vacation here, what about those who are here now part-time or live here but departon theearly Monday morning fight out and return Friday? Those folks who are doing everything they can tomaximizetheir weekends and holidays here in the Lowcountry. 

This column is being written to tell you thatyou don't have to wait ... do it now. Relocate your business, or start that small business you have always thought about.Those who have a small- to mid-sized business with today’s technology truly can operate from anywhere.  

So what are these types of businesses that should consider moving NOW? 

They fall under several different headings, though most recently the favorite terms used to describe the companies and their employees are ‘Knowledge Intensive’ and ‘Creative Class.’ 

What do members of the ‘Knowledge Intensive’ and ‘Creative Class’ look for when they consider moving or relocating their business? Well they want many of the things we offer in this region: walkable neighborhoods, recreational opportunities and a community that respects and places a high priority on the environmental landscape. They want to explore in-fill opportunities within towns and cities that will meet their creative needs but also provide them with that small-town feel.  

These businesses – computer programmers, designers, architects, engineers, healthcare professionals, copywriters, artists and entrepreneurs – all want what the Lowcountry offers. 

While we’ve become very good at placing ourselves on the retiree and vacation radar, the same has not been true for the ‘Knowledge Intensive’ and ‘Creative Class’ groups. We haven’t marketed ourselves as a destination for those businesses. We haven’t shown that we can support their operations and the families that they’ll bring with them. We haven’t positioned the existing population of creative and high-tech professionals.

Until now...

We now find ourselves in the midst of a unique opportunity to rebrand what this region is all about and what we’re looking for in terms of economic development. In my first column I spoke about our four focus areas of logistics and distribution, green, aeronautics and knowledge intensive. So how do we highlight the knowledge intensive?

Well it starts with taking an inventory of what we already have here. The Network is helping to coordinate Beaufort’s first Pecha Kucha Night. Pecha Kucha is an event aimed at highlighting a community’s creative talent. The events are held quarterly in more than 200 cities around the world. Pecha Kucha Night Beaufort Vol. 1 will be held Oct. 8 at The Shed in Port Royal. For more details visit http://www.pknbeaufort.com

We need to start the conversation and understand what we have locally and then take that message to our neighbors, to the rest of the country and around the world.

The Lowcountry’s environment, history and tradition are what make us unique. But we’re much more modern and creative than we give ourselves credit for. Did you know that according to a recent U.S. Department of Agriculture study 26 percent of Beaufort County’s workforce is considered part of the ‘Creative Class’? We’re tied with Lexington and Charleston counties for third in S.C., and we’re the No. 1 non-metro county.

So the secret's out ... we are the place where Life is Good and Business can be even Better.

Best,

Kim