Growing Your Brand During Difficult Times

By Mike Switzer

Published November 13, 2020 at 5:30 AM EST

Small businesses continue to suffer through this pandemic and fortunately, assistance continues to be available. For example, our next guest’s South Carolina-based marketing company has just partnered with a California company to create a free, open-source, brand-building toolkit for businesses, nonprofits, and social enterprises.

Mike Switzer interviews Teresa Coles, President of Riggs Partners in West Columbia, SC. Their new initiative is called Responsible Brand.

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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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