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Advance
America & National Cash Advance Headquartered in Spartanburg, Advance America owns, operates and manages cash advance centers throughout the United States. It opened its first branches in late 1997, and as of February 1, 2000, it had 810 branches and was the largest provider of cash advance services in the United States. see also George Dean Johnson
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Having gone through a number of transformations over the past thirty years, Denny's was acquired by a food service company founded in Spartanburg by Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson and Partner Charlie Bradshaw. That company, which at one time was Spartan Food, Flagstar & later Advantica, at one time was the largest Hardees franchise in the country. The first franchised Hardees restaurant in the country on Kennedy St. in Spartanburg within sight of Denny's Corporate headquarters, was closed in 2004. Now recognized as a national leader in diversity training, the company has streamlined its operations to focus on the Denny's chain. see also Jerry Richardson
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Home of the Z3 and Z4 sportster, North American headquarters consists of not only a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility and offices, but also a showcase and visitors center, the Zentrum, which houses vintage BMW cars, motorcycles and engines as well as a few of the famous "art cars".
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Carolina
Panthers Based
in Charlotte, N.C. the Panthers maintain a summer camp at Wofford
College. The 2004 Super Bowl in which the Panthers narrowly lost
to the New England Patriots will be known as one of the greatest
games that annual event has ever produced.
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Christian
Supply, Inc. In 1999 Christian Supply had nearly $7 million in sales. 50% larger than its nearest competitor, it was ranked the top independent Christian bookstore in the nation in 2000 by Christian Retailing, a magazine devoted to the bookstore business.
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MacFarlane
Cates Longtime chairman and CEO of Arkwright Mills, Mac Cates was presented with the textile industry's highest award - the Samuel Slater Award - for his contributions to the U.S. textile industry. Other local recipients of the award have been Roger Milliken and Walter Montgomery. As president of the American Textile Manufacturer's Institute from 1992 to 1993, Cates working closely with U.S. negotiators in Washington, D.C. and Geneva when it the ATMI formally endorsed NAFTA. Active in his community, Cates has served as president or chairman of a number of local nonprofit organizations including the United Way of Spartanburg, the Spartanburg County Foundation, the Spartanburg Music Foundation and the Spartanburg Regional Medical Center Foundation. He also has also served on the board of trustees of Chatham Hall, Hollins College, Independent Colleges and Universities of South Carolina and the Sirrine Foundation.
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From 1958-72 Dent was President of Mayfair Mills. Locally, Dent served as chairman of the Spartanburg County Planning and Development Commission from 1960-72. From 1974-75 this longtime Spartanburg resident served as Secretary of Commerce under Gerald Ford.
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Extended
StayAmerica The
first hotel is in Spartanburg on Mobile Dr. In March 1999, the company
owned 325 hotels in 38 states, with others under construction. Company
headquarters are in downtown Spartanburg.
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Gibbs
International Operating out of a 1,000,000 square foot warehouse in Spartanburg, Gibbs International, Inc. is the largest second-hand textile machinery dealer in the world.
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Dennis
Hayes Internet users world wide use the Hayes Modem Standard which was pioneered by this former Spartanburg resident. |
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John
D. Hollingsworth, Jr. Under
the leadership of John D. Hollingsworth, Jr., the range of products
developed and manufactured by John D. Hollingsworth on Wheels, Inc.
has achieved a worldwide reputation.
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Hollywild
Animal Park Located on 100 acres near Inman in Spartanburg County, on over 100 acres, Hollywild is home to one of the largest private collections of rare and exotic animals in the Southeast. Hollywild animals have been featured in countless commercials and over 60 Hollywood movie productions. Credits include The Big Chill, Prancer, Prince of Tides, Monkey Shines, Reversal of Fortune, Days of Thunder, Betsy's Wedding, Last of the Mohicans, The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking, and The Stand. Other animals include a male lion who modeled for the Disney animators of The Lion King and the black panthers who appear in NFL Carolina Panthers promotions.
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John
D. Hollingsworth on Wheels, Inc. With facilities in the United States (headquarters are in Greenville),Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, and England, Hollingsworth is one of the world's leading manufacturers of textile equipment. Founded in the late 1800's, as a one-man machine shop in a mule-drawn wagon, Hollingsworth serves the world-wide textile industry with a state-of-the-art research and development center, located in Greenville, South Carolina.
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George
Dean Johnson A graduate of Spartanburg High School and Wofford College, Johnson served three terms as a state representative until 1974. Working out of Johnson & Associates offices, he built 208 Blockbuster Video Stores in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia becoming the largest Blockbuster franchise in the country. In 1993, WJB merged with Blockbuster, and Johnson served as president of Blockbuster's Consumer Products Division. Johnson is founder, President and CEO of Extended Stay America. The first hotel opened in August 1995 in Spartanburg and the company went public later that year in December. In March 1999, the company owned 325 hotels in 38 states, with others under construction. Johnson is also founder of Advance America which is headquartered in Spartanburg. As of Feb. 2000, Advance America had 810 branches and was the largest provider of cash advance services in the United States. A director of Republic Industries, Inc., Florida Panthers Holdings, Inc., Duke Energy Corporation, William Barnet & Son, Inc., and Morgan Corporation, Inc., Johnson currently lives in Spartanburg.
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Lockwood
Greene Consulting
• Design • Construction
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Michelin
of North America
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Roger
Milliken Milliken and Company is one of this country's largest textile companies, producing finished fabrics and chemicals. It holds 1,500 patents and operates the largest textile research center in the world. In 1957, Milliken and Charles Daniel of Greenville realized that the upstate needed a modern airport. In 1962 the Greenville-Spartanburg Airport officially opened. In 1989 Milliken won the Malcom Baldridge Award, an industry award for quality. He is also the recipient of the Samuel Slater Award, the textile industry's highest award. Milliken is a longtime director of Citibank, W.R. Grace and Company, Mercantile Stores Company, and Westinghouse Electric Corp. Milliken's contributions to the community include commitments to education and the arts. The company's "Pursuit of Excellence" program, in which all Milliken associates are encouraged to share their thoughts on how quality might be achieved has received attention in numerous books and articles. A longtime board member of Wofford College, he has also served on the board of the Foundation of Independent Colleges.
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Walter
Montgomery "People are our most important asset" was the guiding principle of Montgomery and motto of Spartan Mills, which his grandfather founded. During the 63 years he was with Spartan Mills, he brought the textile company to national prominance and received the Samuel Slater Award, the textile industry's highest award. More than just a successful businessman, Montgomery took an active roll in his community. He was was instrumental in the formation of the Spartanburg County Foundation. Among his community interests were the Boy Scouts of America, Converse College where he was a board member for 49 years, Junior Achievement, and the Spartanburg United Way. In recognition of his efforts in promoting good relations between Belgium and the United States, Montgomery was made an Officer of the Order of King Leopold II of Belgium. This is highest honor Belgium has ever bestowed upon a non-Belgian citizen.
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Jerry
Richardson When he graduated from Wofford College in 1958, Richardson was drafted by the Baltimore Colts where he won Rookie of the Year honors. Later he came back to Spartanburg, and with partner Charlie Bradshaw, bought the first Hardees franchise in the country (which still stands on Kennedy St.) and over the next twenty years built a company that at its peak was not only the largest Hardees franchise in the country, but owned El Pollo Loco, Dennys and Canteen Food Service. Today Richardson is no longer with the company and devotes his full attention to the Panthers.
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Greg
Swayne A graduate of Spartanburg High School, Swayne co-founded A.D.A.M. Software Inc. which creates, publishes and markets educational multimedia software products that provide anatomical, medical, scientific and health related information from the academic and consumer markets. A.D.A.M. software, which was originally designed as a tool for medical schools and has since had a commercial version created, is considered by some to be the best program of its kind in the country.
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Charles
Hard Townes The maser is a device that amplifies electromagnetic waves, which has many applications in radar, communications, astronomy, surgery and navigation. From 1959 to 1961 Townes served as director of research for the Institute for Defense Analysis in Washington, D.C. He received the 1964 Nobel Prize for Physics for his contributions to the field of quantum electronics.
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