NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – The city’s chamber of commerce is trying to get more entrepreneurs to open up in North Myrtle Beach.
The North Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce is creating what’s called a business incubator. It provides resources and office space to help entrepreneurs start a business.
The business incubator will be called the North Myrtle Beach Innovation Center. It’s open to any newer business and it’s in a partnership with Coastal Carolina University.
Jacob Oressie is part of that partnership. He started his own marketing company called FomCo last year.
Oressie’s working with Grand Strand businesses to improve how they connect with people online and on social media.
“I absolutely love designing a website,” Oressie said. I love the look of it when I’m finished. I just get satisfaction from watching something start to finish.”
FomCo is one of several businesses in the Conway Innovation Center, leasing an office at an affordable cost.
“It kind of gives us a space to work,” Oressie said. “It gives us a space to show that we’re a legitimate business.”
North Myrtle Beach will be the third city to team up with Coastal Carolina for a business incubator, joining Conway and Georgetown.
A spokesperson for the city’s chamber of commerce says the goal is to have about eight to 12 businesses per month in the incubator.
“We just are excited for the possibility to help this innovation center diversify the economy, attract new businesses and help new, young entrepreneurs grow and call North Myrtle Beach their home,” said Claire Yoder, who’s the chamber’s vice president of resource development and member engagement.
Jan Silverman with the Conway Innovation Center says incubators help new and existing companies get micro loans.
The North Myrtle Beach chamber is holding a microlending seminar on Friday at 11:30 a.m.
“It’s very, very difficult for a small business to get a small loan to get started,” Silverman said. “That’s not the kind of business that banks traditionally are in.”
The chamber of commerce says it hasn’t picked a final location for the North Myrtle Beach Innovation Center, but that it’ll likely be in a busy part of the city.
Some of the center’s services will be at the chamber’s building on U.S. Highway 17 until the center opens in the fall.