South Carolina Business Review

Keeping the best and brightest local

By Mike Switzer

Published February 8, 2023 at 5:30 AM EST

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During one of our recent Monday morning conversations with entrepreneurial advocate, John Warner, we talked about a Midlands organization that is working to keep the area’s college graduates in the area by exposing them to employers and opportunities they may not have been aware of. Kelsey Bickley is the board chair at Columbia Opportunity Resource, in Columbia, SC.

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Mike Switzer

After almost 20 years, Mike Switzer retired from Wells Fargo Securities in 2001 as Senior Vice President/Investment Officer and Certified Portfolio Manager. In 1999, he and his wife, Maggie, purchased and operated for eight years the Baskin Robbins ice cream store on Forest Drive in Columbia. They grew the store from a bottom-tier operation in the Baskin Robbins franchise system to one in the top 5% nationwide within three years, tripling sales along the way. While operating the ice cream store, Mike and Maggie received patents for a portable ice cream sink and fold-down sneezeguard they invented and in 2002 started Magnolia Carts, an ice cream cart manufacturing company, which they sold in 2013.

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