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Auto repair and body shops in South Carolina by county
South Carolina had 1,860 auto repair shops, body shops and car washes with paid employees in 2023, according to Census County Business Patterns, including 1,067 general repair shops and 475 body and paint shops. That is 3.39 per 10,000 residents, about 17 percent below the U.S. rate of 4.09, and unlike most professional services the shops are spread roughly in line with population.
Research · Oct 28, 2026
How long do South Carolina businesses survive?
The small business survival rate in South Carolina is close to the national rate: for new private establishments opened in 2015 through 2019, about 79% were still operating after one year, 61% after three years and 50% after five years, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics Business Employment Dynamics data. Nationally, the five-year figure for the same cohorts averaged 51%.
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Research · Oct 28, 2026
Receptionist salary in South Carolina: what front-office staff earn and cost
The median receptionist in South Carolina earned $17.07 an hour in May 2025, about $35,500 a year full time, according to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program. Medical secretaries earned a median $19.31, legal secretaries $25.41 and customer service representatives $18.69. With benefits, which are 31.3 percent of compensation for office and administrative support workers, a median full-time receptionist costs an employer about $51,700 a year.
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Research · MarketingAuto repair and body shops in South Carolina by countySouth Carolina had 1,860 auto repair shops, body shops and car washes with paid employees in 2023, according to Census County Business Patterns, including 1,067 general repair shops and 475 body and paint shops. That is 3.39 per 10,000 residents, about 17 percent below the U.S. rate of 4.09, and unlike most professional services the shops are spread roughly in line with population.Oct 29, 20268 min readResearch · ConsultingHow long do South Carolina businesses survive?The small business survival rate in South Carolina is close to the national rate: for new private establishments opened in 2015 through 2019, about 79% were still operating after one year, 61% after three years and 50% after five years, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics Business Employment Dynamics data. Nationally, the five-year figure for the same cohorts averaged 51%.Oct 28, 20268 min readResearch · CommunicationsReceptionist salary in South Carolina: what front-office staff earn and costThe median receptionist in South Carolina earned $17.07 an hour in May 2025, about $35,500 a year full time, according to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program. Medical secretaries earned a median $19.31, legal secretaries $25.41 and customer service representatives $18.69. With benefits, which are 31.3 percent of compensation for office and administrative support workers, a median full-time receptionist costs an employer about $51,700 a year.Oct 28, 20268 min readResearch · ConsultingColumbia and the Midlands: business and population figuresThe seven-county Midlands region around Columbia had 909,396 residents in 2024 and 12,729 service businesses with employees in 2023, according to Census Bureau data. That is 14.0 service establishments per 1,000 residents, in line with the state. Richland and Lexington counties hold 88% of the region's service businesses, and Lexington and Kershaw are growing fastest.Oct 27, 20269 min readResearch · ConsultingSouth Carolina's service businesses by the numbersSouth Carolina had 122,958 business establishments with paid employees in 2023, and 72.2 percent of them had fewer than 10 employees, according to U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns. Service sectors made up 63.4 percent of those establishments, and the fastest population growth from 2020 to 2024 was concentrated along the coast and in the Upstate and Charlotte suburbs.Oct 26, 20264 min readResearch · PlatformTechnology adoption by firm size: what the Annual Business Survey showsTechnology adoption by firm size rises steadily with headcount. In the Census Bureau's Annual Business Survey for 2022, 28.1% of firms with 1 to 4 employees used cloud-based technology and 32.2% used specialized software, against 53.6% and 55.5% of firms with 100 to 249 employees. Much of the gap comes from small firms saying the technology does not apply to them.Oct 21, 20268 min readResearch · OperationsTourism seasonality and employment in South Carolina: how much hospitality jobs swingHospitality employment in South Carolina peaks in June and bottoms out in January, with a statewide swing of about 9 percent of the annual average, according to BLS monthly data for 2025. On the coast the swing is far larger: 26 percent in Horry County, 21 percent in Georgetown and 19 percent in Beaufort, while Charleston, Greenville and Richland stay under 9 percent.Oct 21, 20268 min readResearch · MarketingSalons, barbershops and nail salons in South Carolina by countySouth Carolina had 1,422 beauty salons, barbershops and nail salons with paid employees in 2023, according to Census County Business Patterns: 1,038 beauty salons, 302 nail salons and 82 barbershops. That is 2.60 per 10,000 residents, about 29 percent below the U.S. rate of 3.65, though the count leaves out the many booth renters and solo stylists who work without employees.Oct 20, 20268 min readResearch · MarketingThe fastest-growing cities and towns in South CarolinaAmong South Carolina cities and towns with at least 5,000 residents, Hardeeville grew fastest from 2020 to 2024 (84.9%), followed by Fort Mill (47.8%), Blythewood (41.5%), Moncks Corner (37.9%) and Fountain Inn (32.4%), according to Census Bureau Vintage 2024 estimates. Fort Mill added the most people (11,715), just ahead of North Charleston (11,120) and Greer (10,938).Oct 15, 20268 min readResearch · ConsultingNew business applications in South Carolina, 2019 to 2025South Carolina residents filed 94,104 new business applications in 2025, up 82.7 percent from 51,499 in 2019, according to the Census Bureau's Business Formation Statistics. About 26 percent (24,702) were high-propensity applications likely to become employers, and through September 2026 filings were running 13.2 percent ahead of the same months of 2025.Oct 14, 20267 min readResearch · AutomationWhich service industries are using AI, by the Census numbersAI adoption by industry varies widely among U.S. businesses: 24.6% of employer firms used AI in some business function in the two weeks before the Census Bureau's October 2026 survey, from 46.4% in information and 43.8% in professional services to 27.6% in health care and 10.7% in food service and lodging. Use rose in most service sectors since November 2025, and firms with 250 or more employees use AI at nearly twice the rate of the smallest firms.Oct 14, 20268 min readResearch · MarketingReal estate offices in South Carolina: counts, sizes and growth marketsSouth Carolina had 3,321 real estate brokerage offices with paid employees in 2023, according to Census County Business Patterns. That is 6.06 per 10,000 residents, about 26 percent above the U.S. rate of 4.79, and almost half of those offices are in four coastal counties.Oct 8, 20268 min read
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