South Carolina Business Review

Collaborative effort brings major bike manufacturer to the Upstate

By Mike Switzer

Published May 24, 2023 at 5:30 AM EDT

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A French bicycle company whose bikes have won Olympic gold, multiple world championships, and numerous stages of the Tour de France will soon be operating in the Upstate the nation’s largest carbon fiber bicycle factory. Mike Switzer interviews John Lummus, president and CEO of the Upstate SC Alliance about TIME Bicycles about their move to Spartanburg County.

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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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