No images? Click here BY EMILY WILLIAMS Good afternoon. Be careful on the bridges this afternoon. Thunderstorms are expected to reach the Columbia area by 4 p.m. and the Charleston area by 6 p.m., bringing gusts that could be close to hurricane strength. Reporter Bo Petersen has a weather update for you here. The one to watch When Vincent Stanley, chief philosopher at the outdoor retailer Patagonia, arrived in Charleston late Wednesday night, he said he noticed one thing immediately. "I can already feel, much more than in most places, an extraordinary sense of place," said Stanley, who was in town to give the keynote at Thursday's Good Business Summit, an annual event at the Charleston Music Hall offered by the nonprofit organization Lowcountry Local First. The event centers around discussions of how businesses can be forces for good in a community. It's a conversation that's only become more popular in the business world, especially as concerns over climate change and economic inequality build. Having a sense of place — the kind "that is already so strong" here in Charleston — will be critical to preserving the planet and making business work for the greater good, Stanley said. As the world has become more globalized, that's happened at the expense of a strong sense of place, Stanley said. It's become much more difficult to visualize supply chains and to understand a businesses' impacts. Just a couple weeks ago, the CEO from another top outdoor retailer was in town to talk about promoting sustainability in business. Perk Perkins, CEO at Orvis, spoke at the Flourish Conservation Summit, hosted by the Lowcountry Land Trust. Perkins spoke about approaching business growth in way that's responsible — and not just in a business sense. "Not all growth is good growth," Perkins said. Both Stanley and Perkins spoke about expanding their companies' abilities to repair clothing and equipment that their customers purchase. Initially, both described how their brands used to respond to customers with broken or damaged products by sending them new products. Not only has offering repair services been more sustainable, they said, but customers prefer it, since those items can often hold sentimental value. Stanley said Patagonia has had to walk a fine line of being a company that's trying to sell clothes while also promoting a message that their customers should not generate unnecessary waste. "You should need what you buy, and companies should make things that are useful," Stanley said. Openings, closings
Financial statement
Holtzman addressed hundreds of farmers at a recent meeting in North Charleston about agritourism. By making minor tweaks to menus and pricing, he told them, they could double or triple their sales. Other stuff you should know
Sound smart at work "Hey boss, did you know that South Carolina trades more goods with China than any other country?" Despite that, it's still been business as usual at the Port of Charleston even as the coronavirus has shut down Chinese factories and cut off travel to affected areas. Jim Newsome, president and CEO at the State Ports Authority, said the impact will be dependent on when workers can return to the factories. Read more about how the virus could impact the port's business here. RECOMMENDED FOR YOU Get our real estate newsletterGet hot properties, Lowcountry real estate transactions, exclusive development news and more in your inbox every Saturday. |