In the early 1980s when Mark Farris was beginning his career in economic development, not many people would have predicted South Carolina would become a world-class manufacturing hub for global automotive and transportation companies.
That the Palmetto State, and the Upstate in particular, became an economic powerhouse is a signal of achievement. Farris took time to reflect recently on his role in achieving that reality after announcing he will retire as president and CEO of the Greenville Area Development Corp. at the end of September.
Farris, who has led the GADC since 2014, said it is almost impossible to overstate the importance of the Upstate’s geography as a foundation for the region’s economic and population growth.
Ideally situated at the halfway point of the vital Interstate 85 corridor between Atlanta and Charlotte, Greenville’s beauty, abundant resources and infrastructure have underpinned the area’s success, Farris said.
Where this has paid particular dividends, he added, is the tremendous growth in manufacturing, which received a healthy head start from the more than a century the region enjoyed as a preeminent textile-manufacturing center.
“My career has been marked by the benefit of being in a well-located area,” Farris said.
The region’s deep manufacturing roots provided fertile ground for attracting advanced manufacturers like BMW and Michelin, and the presence of those corporate behemoths helped attract hundreds of other innovative companies.
“The type of industry has changed dramatically,” he said.
Whereas the area’s “cheap land, cheap labor” reputation seemed sufficient to attract investment in decades past, “Industry 4.0” with its emphasis on technology and highly skilled labor has come to define many of the manufacturers that call Greenville home, Farris said.
Achievements and challenges
While there are many companies in the county that typify this new innovative manufacturing, Farris said one company stands out as emblematic of what has been achieved: Lockheed Martin’s F-16 Center for Excellence at the South Carolina Technology & Aviation Center in southern Greenville County.
“When you have everybody talking about a particular aircraft like the F-16 and it’s made only in one place — in Greenville, South Carolina — that’s a tremendous opportunity for us in aviation and aerospace,” Farris said.
But that very success also represents one of the more significant challenges going forward in terms of economic development, namely recruiting and retaining skilled workers.
Farris said the quality of life in the region provides an edge in this endeavor, but the economic-development community will have to continue to work with local and state leaders to provide the educational and other resources needed to sustain and expand the talent pipeline.
Another area of challenge is the county’s limited inventory of industrial properties with the requisite infrastructure in place. Farris is particularly proud of the development of Fountain Inn’s Fox Hill Business Park, the county’s first new major business park in 20 years.
Despite the challenges, Farris is extremely optimistic about the area’s prospects in the future. But what does the future hold for him once he’s no longer in the hot seat leading Greenville County’s primary economic development arm?
“I don’t know what the future holds, but I do know I won’t be sitting on the couch,” he said.
