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Greenville Tech Honors Local Entrepreneurs

Submitted by: Richard Breen on Sep 28, 2011 at 2:54 pm Tagged with: Crawford Strategy, Education, Greenville Tech, Hampton Development Co., Jain Chem, KM Fabrics, Legacy Charter School, Scholarships Source: Crawford Strategy

The Greenville Tech Foundation continued its tradition of celebrating our community’s entrepreneurial spirit with its 13th Annual Entrepreneurs Forum Gala on Sept. 27 at TD Convention Center.

Each year, Greenville Tech honors local entrepreneurs for their success in business and their contribution to the prosperity of Upstate South Carolina. This year’s honorees include William Brown of Family Legacy Inc. and Legacy Charter School, Ed Good of Hampton Development Co., Richard Heusel of KM Fabrics Inc., and Surendra Jain of Jain Chem Ltd.

“Year after year, we are amazed at the depth of entrepreneurial talent we have in the Upstate,” said Bob Howard, president of the Greenville Tech Foundation. “This year’s group of honorees has helped in many ways to create the quality of life that we all enjoy here.”

2011 HONOREES

WILLIAM BROWN: Citadel graduate and military veteran William W. Brown started a CPA firm in Greenville in 1977. Brown was among the first CPAs in the country to earn the PFS (Personal Financial Specialist) board specialization from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. In 1995, he launched an investment advisory firm now known as Family Legacy Inc. Most recently, he helped create Legacy Charter School, a free public charter school that operates out of the former Parker High School and Fine Arts Center campuses in West Greenville. He is the school’s board chairman and also serves on the boards of The Peace Center, The Greenville Symphony Orchestra and the Greenville Tech Foundation.

ED GOOD: A former schoolteacher, P. Edwin Good Jr. worked in the mortgage industry for more than a decade before launching Hampton Development Co. in 1995. He continues to serve as president of the retail and commercial real estate development firm, which is based in Greenville and has properties in Georgia, the Carolinas and Virginia. The Furman University graduate currently serves on the school’s board of trustees and is a past president of the Furman Paladin Club. He serves as chairman of Public Education Partners, Hollingsworth Funds Inc. and the United Way of Greenville County’s Poinsett Society. Good is also on the boards of the Upcountry History Museum and Greenville Housing Fund.

RICHARD HEUSEL: Richard K. Heusel is founder and CEO of KM Fabrics Inc., America’s leading manufacturer of velvets and velours. He served as chairman of Textile Hall Corp. and The Blood Connection during his 44 years in Greenville while also playing a vital role in the development of West Greenville and the Pendleton Street Arts District. Heusel currently is a board member of The Nature Conservancy of South Carolina and the Shoeless Joe Jackson Museum & Baseball Library. Previous board service includes the Peace Center for the Performing Arts, Greenville Chamber of Commerce, Greenville Convention & Visitors Bureau, Metropolitan Arts Council, Phyllis Wheatley Community Center and Greenville Technical College.

SURENDRA JAIN: A native of India, Surendra Jain graduated in textile chemistry from Philadelphia University in 1961 and moved to Greenville in 1964 with Charles S. Tanner Co., a manufacturer of textile chemicals. In 1978, he started Jain Chem, a sales and marketing company, and one year later partnered with Hays Reynolds to launch a business of compounding adhesives and coatings. Surendra sold his interest in that company in 1999 and in 2002 joined with Phil Patrick and Bob Chatham to form CPJ Technologies, which manufactures polymers, coatings and specialty chemicals. In 2011, Jain Chem purchased Ulterion International, a maker of textile specialty chemicals and specialty coatings for the paper industry.

The Greenville Tech Entrepreneurs Forum was created in 1998 to provide resources and advice for Greenville Tech as it builds programs to educate and train the new work force and the next generation of entrepreneurs in the Upstate. The Forum has inducted more than 78 esteemed community business leaders who represent all facets of expertise and entrepreneurship.