SC Minority Business Accelerator available statewide

By Mike Switzer

Published April 18, 2024 at 6:30 AM EDT

STACEY GARDIN/Smit'N Photography

Provided

Natasha Pitts, Vice President of Diversity and Economic Inclusion at the Greenville Chamber of Commerce, SC Minority Business Accelerator

Our next guest’s minority business accelerator program was born from the Greenville Chamber’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiative to advance economic inclusion way back in 2012. But then a few years ago, a generous grant from Bank of America expanded that program to now cover the entire state with the help of the Charleston and Columbia chambers. Mike Switzer interviews Natasha Pitts, vice president of diversity and economic inclusion at the Greenville Chamber of Commerce SC Minority Business Accelerator

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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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