Basic Accounting for Small Businesses Workshop

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Are you unsure what the difference is between revenue, income, and profit? Do you know your business break-even? Have you ever had to look up what P&L or COGS means? If so, make sure to join the FMU Kelley Center for our Basic Accounting for Small Businesses Workshop on Wednesday, May 13th. This free, in-person workshop will cover topics such as: accounting terms, common financial reports, how to create a budget, accounting tools, and more.

For more information, click here.

Chamber’s Leadership Florence Attend Local Government and Law Enforcement Day

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Last Tuesday, the Chamber’s Leadership Florence Class of 2026 had Local Government and Law Enforcement Day. The cohorts had the opportunity to hear from the Mayor of Florence, City Manager, County Council Chair and County Administrator.

The class also experienced presentations from local law enforcement officials. A special thank you goes out to the City of Florence, Florence County Police Department, Florence County, Florence County Solicitors Office, and Florence County Sheriff’s Office.

It was an amazing and exciting day for this special group of business leaders.

Leadership Florence is a comprehensive nine-month program designed to identify, cultivate and motivate new leadership for the Greater Florence Area. Participants will increase their knowledge of our area and enhance their involvement in community activities while further developing their leadership skills. For more information on joining the next program, please contact the Chamber at (843) 665-0515.

To see more photos from the day, click here.

Florence Food Truck Festival Returns to the Florence Center May 1 – 2

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Join the Florence Center for two days full of flavor, fun, and family-friendly activities on Friday, May 1 from 4:00 PM – 8:00PM & Saturday, May 2 from 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM.

Enjoy 20+ food trucks serving a wide variety of delicious eats, plus a kids area, live performances (to be announced), seating areas to relax and enjoy your food, and non-food vendors to explore. Best of all — the festival is pet-friendly, so bring your furry friends along!

On Saturday only, there will be a car show hosted by the Swamp Fox Old Car Club from 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM. Top 25 Plus Best of show with a $25 Entry Fee. Questions about car show? Call Tom Spence 843-773-0189

For more information, click here.

Florence Symphony Orchestra Invites Community to Celebrate 250

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The Florence Symphony Orchestra invites the community to Celebrate 250, a free concert on Sunday, April 26 at 4:00 PM at the FMU Performing Arts Center, located at 201 S. Dargan Street in Florence. Doors open at 3 PM, seating begins at 3:30 PM.

As part of the performance, one member of the community will have the opportunity to conduct the orchestra in Stars and Stripes Forever through the Symphony’s “Be the Conductor” initiative. Participants can enter at florencesymphony.com. One participant will be selected based on their response and overall enthusiasm and contacted prior to the concert, with the on-stage moment revealed live.

The program celebrates the music of America with a lively mix of patriotic orchestral favorites and Broadway highlights, including Hoe-Down by Aaron Copland and a featured Broadway showcase with soprano Fran Coleman.

This free community concert is made possible through the generous support of the Bruce & Lee Foundation.

Admission is free | No tickets required

For more information, click here.

Area Unemployment Figures Creep Upward

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Unemployment rates were up for Florence, Darlington and Marion counties in January, according to South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce data released April 8.

Florence County’s January unemployment rate was 5.9%, up from its December rate of 5.2%.

Darlington County’s January unemployment rate was 6.3%, up from the December rate of 5.6%. Marion County’s rate was 8.0% in January, up from 6.9% in December. It had the fourth-highest unemployment rate among the state’s 46 counties.

The release of the January data was delayed because the Bureau of Labor Statistics had to conduct its annual revision of national estimates.

“As of January 2026, South Carolina’s workforce grew to 2,516,227 individuals,” S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce Executive Director William Floyd said. “While we closely monitor unemployment trends (4.9 percent as of January), the state’s labor force, which includes those currently working and those unemployed looking for work, expanded again to a record-setting 2,646,507 during the month, a substantial increase of 62,659 people compared to the same time last year.”

Other county unemployment figures:

Chesterfield – 6.5%

Clarendon – 7.8%

Dillon – 7.1%

Lee – 7.6%

Sumter – 6.7%

Williamsburg – 9.6% (highest rate in the state)

PLC Commercial Real Estate Featured on ChamberLink Radio

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Ken Jackson of PLC Commercial Real Estate was the Florence Chamber’s guest this past weekend talking about PLC’s services including brokerage, leasing, property management and development.

We encourage you to tune-in every Sunday from 12:00-12:30pm on LIVE 95.3FM in Florence, SC.

This program is brought to you by the Greater Florence Chamber of Commerce, MUSC Health Florence Medical Center and LIVE 95.3FM.

Looking for past ChamberLink Radio Show interviews? Click here:

https://www.flochamber.com/events-programs/podcasts/

Second Chipotle Location Coming to Florence

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Did you know that Chipotle Mexican Restaurant is about to open its second location in Florence later this summer? The new locations will be on South Irby Street according to a previous reporting from The Post and Courier Pee Dee. Expect it to be next door to the now-closed Salvation Army Store, adjacent from Chick-fil-A and Walmart SuperCenter. An ordinance to annex and zone 2037 and 2111 S. Irby St. for commercial use was introduced at a July 2025 Florence City council meeting.

To read the full story, click here.

MUSC Imaging Center Coming to Former Walgreens in Florence

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MUSC is working to open a medical imaging center at the location of the former Walgreens on the corner of Cherokee and Irby street in downtown Florence.

The location is expected to open in the fall and has been in the works for about a year, according to Chief Operating Officer Jason Cox.

“It has medical imaging and so that is things like X-ray, ultrasound, mammography, CT scanners and MRI scanners,” Cox said. “So patients will often get orders from their doctor to have a certain imaging study and to follow up with them after that study.

“So this creates a new access point that’s not located inside a hospital. A lot of those specialized imaging machines are inside hospitals.”

To read the full story, click here.

SC Senate Finance Committee Advances FY2026-27 Budget

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All eyes were on the Senate Finance Committee last week as they worked to advance their version of the state’s roughly $15.3 billion FY2026-27 budget.

Highlights of the Senate budget include:

  • $309 million to cut the state income tax from 6% to 5.21%. Governor McMaster signed the Income Tax Reform bill (H.4216/Act 110) into law last week.
  • $248 million to fund the Senate-passed Homestead Exemption increase (S.768).
  • $190 million to the Department of Transportation (DOT) for bridge repairs, with $50 million in recurring funds.
  • $150 million to increase teacher pay and raise the minimum starting salary to $50,500.
  • $95 million intechnical college scholarships for critical-needs jobs via SCWINS.
  • $12.5million to DOT for a road buyback program to transfer state roads to county control.
  • $6 million for statewide water and sewer projects.
  • $1.5 million to the Department of Environmental Services (DES) to develop an artificial intelligence (AI) pilot program to make environmental permitting more efficient.
  • A new proviso establishing a Transportation Economic Development Fund that can be used for road improvement, construction, or right-of-way acquisition to recruit or retain high impact economic development projects or expansions.

To read the full story, click here.

Community Broadcasters Florence to Host Business After Hours

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Join us on Wednesday, May 20th for a Business After Hours hosted by Community Broadcasters Florence.  The event will take place at their studio (2423 Walker Swinton Rd) from 5:30 – 7:00 PM.

Bring plenty of business cards for networking!

To register, click here.