July 15, 2025 • 27 mins
A Conversation With Charleston Metro Chamber President & CEO Kevin T. Sheilley
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey, it's Michael Blaze. Thanks for tuning into Your Home
three sixty today, the show where we talk about everything
that has to do with your home. I recently interviewed
Kevin T. Sheeley, CCEE. He's the President CEO of the
Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce, and I thought that I
would replay that interview for you here on Your Home
three sixty since we talk about affordable housing issues and
(00:24):
a whole lot of things about the local economy and
drivers of that, which of course affects the housing market.
So I thought it would be a good interview to
play for you here on Your Home three sixty. So
welcome Kevin T. Sheeley.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Thank you, good to be with you today.
Speaker 1 (00:38):
Let's inform our listeners on what exactly the mission of
the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce is.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Absolutely you know, our mission is to initiate, advocate, and
empower for more prosperous business community here in our region.
And that's something we're really focused on right now, is
ensuring that we're aligning around that mission. You know, it's
interesting as we think how we do that. This is
the oldest chamber in the United States, goes all the
(01:05):
way back to seventeen seventy three, so older than our country,
and so looking at how do we initiate, advocate and
empower here in this region to ensure that this is
a place where businesses can be successful, because we believe
where business is successful, people will be successful.
Speaker 1 (01:21):
Yes, And it's just amazing how old this Chamber is.
I mean, when you think about the history of it
and everything that's happened since its inception.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
It's incredible. I had the opportunity recently to visit the
South Carolina Historical Society, which maintains our archives, and they
pulled out some documents for me to review, including the
oldest that they have is a minutes book from seventeen
eighty four. Wow, so how interesting. And two things I
think are really cool. The Chamber was formed in seventeen
(01:50):
seventy three as a result of the Charleston Tea Party.
Many people don't know that the Charleston Tea Party predated
the Bosston one. We just didn't dump ours into to
the ocean there. But you know, it was about tax, right,
the Chamber which foreign business leaders came together to talk
about a tax issue, and the minutes in seventeen eighty four,
we're talking about tariffs. Foreign tariffs are being put on
(02:14):
South Carolina rice and what they were going to do
about that, how that was going to impact trade in
the area. And it's the same issues we're concerned about today,
are taxes and tariffs and ways to ensure that our
environment is a place where businesses can succeed.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
Well, as they say, eventually everything old is new again,
absolutely nothing new under the sun, exactly. Well, the Chamber,
I know, has been focusing on two main initiatives, attainable
housing and entrepreneurship. Let's start with attainable housing. Housing costs
in the Low Country have become very prohibitive.
Speaker 2 (02:46):
Absolutely, And you know it's interesting people will ask me, Okay,
why is the chamber, Why is the business community engaged
on attainable housing. Shouldn't that be the purview of government
or nonprofits? And yes, but also it's absolute key to
the business community. If we think, if I were to
ask any business leader what's your most valuable asset, They're
(03:08):
going to tell me their workforce, their people. But if
their people don't have a place to live, if they
can't get to work, or the commute is too long,
they're not going to work there. So it's absolutely imperative
to our business community that we're not only engage, but
really we need to be a leading voice about attainable
housing and ensuring that people have I mean, that's the
most basic need, right and if we get housing right
(03:30):
in our community, quite frankly, we believe that begins to
address a lot of other challenges like transportation. So it's
really key, and so that's an area we're focused and
really bringing business solutions to the table thinking of it
because it is an economics issue. It is much of
our housing cost constraints are driven by supply and demand.
(03:51):
We just simply have not for the last two decades
built enough houses for the people that live here. In fact,
only once in the last twenty years have we built
a enough in that one year for the number of
people in our community. So it's a long term challenge,
it's a it's a mess that's been created over two decades.
Now we've got to begin to dig out of that,
(04:11):
and we need to bring the right business solutions to
be able to do so well.
Speaker 1 (04:15):
Absolutely, And you know, I happen to also be a realtor,
so I'm quite familiar you know, with the with the
issue of the cost of housing, and I mean it's
a multi pronged issue on what's causing you know, prices
to be so high, but one of them is certainly zoning,
you know, you know, the density that's allowed. But so,
(04:36):
what are some of the things that you focus on
that you advocate for when it comes to making housing
more affordable?
Speaker 2 (04:41):
Well, I think, you know, first off, interesting if you
look at the housing economist Jay Parsons, he has identified
that forty of the cost of a new house is
government fee and regulations. You know, there's not much we
can do about labor costs, there's not much we can
do about material cost. But a cost man, that's something
that we need and should do something about. And so
(05:04):
looking at that, and how do we work with our
cities and counties to look at their regulatory process. And
I think, you know, generally, when I'm talking to almost
all of our municipalities in the time I've been here,
they already recognize, hey, there's a challenge here, there's a problem. Right,
we have a system that's been built up over sixty
seventy years and it really needs to be looked at.
(05:26):
Are we are we doing things the best way. Are
we doing things that they need to be done in
twenty twenty five following processes that reflect this time period.
So really looking at working with local governments about the
whole regulatory scheme. How do we help them evaluate those
pieces so that they can be more productive we can
address these housings. So that's our biggest place. I think
(05:47):
also educating our elected officials and our appointed officials, those
policymakers about those key issues which can affect There are
a lot of things that can sound good from a
government standpoint, Oh we need to do that. A great
example that might be impact fees. Well, sure we're going
to make new construction, new people pay for this infrastructure
(06:10):
that we need. But what we know, and you can
look at impact fees across the country, it generally doesn't
deliver what is promise. But what it does do is
create additional cost without adding value, so that the home,
instead of it being a let's pick a number, a
three hundred thousand dollars home is now a three hundred
and fifteen thousand dollars home, and we add carrying costs
(06:32):
and so that number just keeps going up. It's going
back to the consumer who's paying for that. But also
because that increases the cost across the board. Now all
of our homes when they're evaluated are sold, are also
costing more. So we're just making the attainability piece more expensive,
more prohibitive. But along the way, government collects more tax dollars.
(06:54):
So really stopping the same Wait a minute, what is
it we want to accomplish? What is most important? Now?
What's going to move that forward? And thinking differently, understanding
sometimes the unintended consequences.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
Yeah, it seems to be a vicious cycle everything you
just described, right, Absolutely, so I think part of it
is someone and I think that's our job.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
It's got to stand up and go hold on, wholl
who wo. Let's look at this. Let's think there are
other ways. We all agree we need infrastructure. No one
is saying we don't need infrastructure, but is this the
best way to fund it? And are we creating more
problems instead of solutions? Yes?
Speaker 1 (07:28):
And you mentioned educating you know, the lawmakers and the leaders.
Is there any kind of you know, movement to educate
the public, because it's also there's the nimbi have thing
going on, you know, not in my backyard. We don't
want to see the development, but they don't realize that
people are here anyway and the development's coming anyway, and
it just exacerbates the problem when you try to push
(07:50):
back against.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
That, absolutely, and that's we're working through some plans actually
right now about how do we do that, How do
we educate people to understand what this really means? You know,
it's funny, it's having worked in Florida for the last
twelve years and now here, I have spent some time
in fast growing communities, and as people tend to think
once they're here, Okay, let's pull up the gates, I'm here,
(08:13):
anyone else is new as a problem, well, you know,
that's just part of it. We want to be a
community that's growing because if we're not a community that's growing,
where a community that's dying, those are the only options
that exist. And so how do we help people understand
really what that means? How do we do that?
Speaker 1 (08:28):
You know?
Speaker 2 (08:29):
One of the things that I think really concerns us
is we think about housing and how it impacts our
community and some of the things that make Charleston so
uniquely Charleston is if we don't in the near future
begin to figure out housing, especially on the peninsula, we
really risk a hollowing out of the city of Charleston
(08:49):
because there won't be anyone who can work downtown, who
can work in their bars and restaurants, work at our hospital,
work in our businesses. There're gonna be other opportunities for
them elsewhere, closer to where they live. So that we
have a downtown that begins to lose its luster. People
don't want to come there, people don't want to live there,
and so it can quickly become a downward spiral. We've
(09:11):
got to be able to address that, and that is
about looking at things like density, looking about things, you know,
talking about the missing middle. The Charleston Trident Council of
Realtors has a great report out now about the missing
middle housing and how do we integrate that. That's really
what our communities has long been about. It got lost
starting in the fifties with some of our zoning. We
(09:32):
need to bring that back and being able to help
people understand what that is and why it's important. We're
again you go back to your question, We're really looking
at how do we tell that message, How do we
get that message out in ways that people understand. Oh,
that's not just the business community. They're just trying to
make a profit. Of course they're trying to make a profit.
But that's how we do things. That's how we move
our community forward, that's how people move forward. How do
(09:55):
we educate them in a way so they understand the
impact and value. Hopefully we'll have some things in the
next few month as we'll begin to roll out on
that front.
Speaker 1 (10:01):
Yeah, and the inner connectivity between you know, the residents
and businesses is so important for a thriving city, and
I think that's what they missed the point on. Oftentimes.
Speaker 2 (10:13):
Absolutely, you know, a little bit right, it becomes a
little bit selfish. You know, we've got phenomenal people, what
an amazing community we have, but people often only think
about well, you know, I've got my house, I have
my grocery store, I have my access to goods and services.
Why don't you have yours? Well, it's because we've created
a system whereby people can't. And so we've really got
(10:33):
to work help people understand the value in addressing those
pieces and that that really creates a better, stronger community
for everyone.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
Absolutely, and that's good work that you're doing there. By
the way, Thank you. So let's move on to another
focus of the Chamber, entrepreneurship.
Speaker 2 (10:51):
Yeah, you know, And I'll tell you what's interesting is
I'm a strong believer. We recently hosted our Opportunity Summit
where we focused on a ten housing and entrepreneurship, which
might seem like an odd pairing, but we believe as
we think about the challenges of housing that it's going
to be entrepreneurs who help solve the problems, because that's
(11:11):
what entrepreneurs do. They find solutions, they find new ways,
new ideas, new approaches, and build businesses around that. And
I think entrepreneurship is going to be partly how we
resolve our housing issues. And so putting those two together,
you know, this is a phenomenally entrepreneurial community. I don't
know that we recognize sometimes, especially if you're inside the community,
(11:33):
how very entrepreneurial it is, and so we really want
to support and grow that. I have to share some
data with you that I think is so exciting. One
of the data points, and we love data at the Chamber.
We're really getting into using that and tracking that both
of ourselves and as we're making decisions. But looking at
the number of Ink five thousand companies in our area.
(11:55):
And if you're not familiar, Ink five thousand every year
names the five thousand fastest growth owing businesses in the country.
And as we look at that, probably owned businesses. And
as we look at that, the Charleston metro is the
seventy first largest metro, but we rank number thirty one.
And the total number of businesses on the INK five
thousand list, now that's really impressive. But then if you
(12:17):
break it down on a per capita basis, we rank
number four. Only Provo Salt Lake, Austin, Nashville barely are
above us. There's really an opportunity for us to be
a major startup sitting in fact, we ought to be
in that conversation today as you look at this community,
all the assets and opportunities we have. So we think
(12:38):
part of our role with the chamber and focusing and
encouraging entrepreneurship is also to help tell the story internally,
to help local folks understand, man, this is an incredible asset.
We've got a lot of good things going here. How
do we really grow and let that be a big
part of our economy.
Speaker 1 (12:54):
Yes, and if there's any entrepreneurs listening right now. What
kind of resources can you offer them?
Speaker 2 (12:59):
Yeah, so there are a number of things that we
have at the Chamber, but I think the biggest thing
we can offer today is to help connect them with
them organizations who this is what they do. You know,
We've got a phenomenal organization here in town called the
Client Fund, and the Client Fund makes loans targeted to entrepreneurs,
small businesses, startups in places where businesses entrepreneurs struggle to
(13:22):
get access to capital. They can come to the table
with that capital and providing technical as systems that's needed
with it. And there are a number of those organizations.
In fact, one of the first things that we're going
to be doing here coming up hopefully in the fall,
is really bringing all of those different parties to the
table and then laying out an entrepreneurship roadmap from ideation. So, Hey,
(13:44):
I just want to start a business, but I don't
know what it is all the way to initial public
Offering IPO that talks about here are the resources, and here,
depending on where you are in your entrepreneurship journey, here's
who can help you. And so we want to get
that laid out and then also where are their gaps
so we can help fill those.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
I mean, that sounds great. And another long term initiative
that I wanted to talk about is your people First initiative. Yes,
explain to us what that.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Is, absolutely, so let me give it background first. There
are three things that we focus on at the Chamber,
three ways that we seek to make impact, and we've
discussed One of those is is entrepreneurship. The second one
is business advocacy, right, and we've kind of referenced through
that with housing and some other things, and we have
a phenomenal advocacy team. And the third one is workforce,
really making sure that the business communities at the table
(14:30):
to build the workforce we need both for the day
in the future. But people First who is really an
initiative working through those three pillars where we're focused on,
as we've already talked about attainable housing, workforce, making sure
we have a future ready workforce that we need. Transportation right,
that's a huge issue for all of us, and we've
talked about how that's related and important. And the last
(14:51):
one is a high quality, affordable childcare. If a family
does not have access for their children, especially those early
ages children, newborns through preschool to get high quality childcare.
That means that there's probably going to be a parent
who can't be or won't be in the workforce, and
we need everyone in the workforce, especially talented people that
(15:14):
we can get. It also means is that child's not
getting high quality childcare, they're odds of being ready for
kindergarten go down significantly. And if you're not ready for kindergarten,
the chance that you're going to be reading on level
at third grade, which is absolutely the key metric, also
goes down. So really making sure that we're preparing long
(15:34):
term is we need to address some of these upfront items,
and childcare is a huge piece of that.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
Yeah, I can't tell you how often I hear from
friends and clients of mine how prohibitive they find the
childcare situation to be.
Speaker 2 (15:47):
Yeah, and you know, all of these issues, I will
tell you are not uniquely Charleston. We have our own
take on them, right, but I would tell you if
you go to any of the fifty fasters growing cities
in our country, that's a big number, they're gonna be
talking about the same issues. And childcare is even in
areas that aren't growing is a big issue. It goes
(16:08):
to right workforce costs. That's the biggest driver in childcare
is making sure you have you can bring the right people,
you can pay them appropriately. That is eighty percent of
the cost of a childcare center. So how do we
help how do we grow that? What are ways? And
again as we think about advocacy and workforce that we
contribute and lean into that space. So really looking at
(16:28):
ways that we can do that that are sustainable and effective.
Speaker 1 (16:33):
Absolutely, Now let's change gears a little bit. It's calling CEOs.
You should know. So we get into some personal questions too,
because we like to get to know our CEOs on
a more personal basis. So you grew up in Louisville, Kentucky.
Tell us about your upbringing.
Speaker 2 (16:46):
Yeah, so I grew up in me Let me help
you here. If you ever meet someone from there, if
you say Louisville, they're going to know immediately you're not
from there. We say, we say Louisville, Louisville. That's how
you know that you're from Louisville or someone who oh
the area. You've got to pretend like you got a
little bourbon in your mouth and you don't want it
to slip out.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
So Louisville, but I'll practice on my pronunciation.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
There you go, but I want you to sound like
a native.
Speaker 1 (17:12):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (17:12):
So I grew up in Louisville. I am the very fortunate,
the third of four kids. I'm actually a twin. I
have a twin sister. So we were a little bit
late life surprises, and you know, I think for me,
the interesting my dad was a CEO, really phenomenal personal
story that he has. High school dropout was what has
(17:33):
been called a wondering generality instead of a meaningful specific.
But he went through Dell Carnegie, changed his life and
had an amazing career after that. But people talk about
you know, what did you talk about around the dinner
table at home. You know, some family it's the news
of the day, or politics or sports. In our family,
we learned about leadership and inventory turns our company, we
(17:55):
ran a lot of inventory, a lot of warehouses, and
so that was important. But I think that's key. You know,
I look at my siblings and I it's really about
leadership and those were lessons and things that we talked
about from an early age around the dining room table. Now,
did you ever work for your dad at any point,
I did, which is why I didn't do it for long.
You know, there are two ways you do that. You
(18:17):
are either if you're the son of the owner or
the CEO, you either get to do half the work
that everyone else does or you have to do double
the work. And and our family that meant we had
to set the example. So we were supposed to do
double the work. And so I did a number of
summers and weekends and as soon as I could do
(18:37):
something else, I did.
Speaker 1 (18:39):
That's very similar to I worked for my dad too,
and he was the same way. It's like, you're you're
not skating here because you're the boss's kid, that you're
going to work harder exactly, and you're not going to
embarrass me here at my company. But you learn some
valuable lessons being able to work that close to and
I'm sure your situation was the same. It's not like
you're in your dad office hanging out, you know bs
(19:02):
and with your dad. You know, there's a lot of
times where you never even see him when you were
at work, but you pick up so many valuable lessons
by being that close to it.
Speaker 2 (19:10):
Absolutely, you know, we have a great friend and mentor
who talks about with kids, it's more caught than taught.
It's those things that the kids see, you're there and
you're observing, and that is what really makes a difference.
And as many of the very specific things that my
parents taught, it's those things that we just caught watching
them right and so being able to think back of
(19:33):
how I watched my dad treat people, both his employees,
his customers. He was a huge personality and so he
loved people, and I think people were He could walk
into a room and immediately people were drawn to him
because he treated everyone fairly. He cared about the individual
and not what they could do for him, or what
(19:54):
customer or what they had, but simply who they were.
And I think that's one of the most impactful things
I can think about from my growing up.
Speaker 1 (20:02):
Absolutely. Well.
Speaker 2 (20:03):
How about your mom, ah, my mom, amazing woman, the
picture of a of a Southern lady. My wife and
I have been married thirty years. My mom passed away
two years ago, and but we talked about my wife
can never remember and I can never remember my mom
saying a negative thing about anyone. She was a big
fan of. You don't have anything nice to say, shut
(20:25):
up and so well, really really key for her. You know,
she was a great supporter to my dad and of
all four of us kids, who were all very active,
but also a real paragone of doing the right thing.
And it was never a question if there was a choice, well,
(20:46):
you know, maybe I could skate by it. No, the
expectation was that you're going to do the right thing,
and and you do it because it is the right thing,
and you do it quietly.
Speaker 1 (20:54):
Well, that's excellent, and it sounds like, you know, you
had some very good parents that that sent you on
the on the right path.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
I think so you're right, and that's one of the
older The older we get, the more we appreciate and
see those things, and probably once we also have our
own kids and then we recognize, oh my goodness, this
is so hard. Yeah, this is I can't believe what
mom and dad did.
Speaker 1 (21:12):
Well. Absolutely, and you always have to, especially when you
have your own kids, you know, keeping the back of
your mind, like you just said, the learned behavior that
they for lack of a better description there that you're
conditioning them for exactly right and you always have to
keep that in mind. Is you know, what kind of
example am I setting here?
Speaker 2 (21:28):
Of course, and that's because they are always watching.
Speaker 1 (21:32):
Absolutely. So what do you do when you're not working? Kevin?
Speaker 2 (21:36):
You know what I work. I love what I do.
I do. I am an early riser, I'm at the
office early in the morning, I'm off in there till
late afternoon. But I just I love what I do.
I love the work of chamber in economic development organizations,
the impact we have on communities. I consider myself so
(21:58):
blessed and fortunate. I stumbled into this career as a
twenty two year old. I had no idea what it
was and got into it and went, oh, this is
what I've always wanted to do. I just didn't know
what it was called. So yeah, I love my work.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
Well, it's funny that you say that, because I talk
about that often when we talk about different techniques and
approaches to business, And how many times have you seen
somebody that they're taking a certain approach. They'll and there's
even a name for it, and they might even teach
it in Dale, Carnegie or elsewhere, But the person doesn't
even realize that that's what they're doing. They couldn't tell
(22:37):
you and use that name. But they practice it out
of maybe instinct.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
Absolutely yeah. I mean they have done it so much
that it's become part of who they are, right, I
mean that's what if you repeat an activity, what is
it ten thousand times? You become a master. You know,
if you're not just talking but doing, you're already becomes
integrated into who you are as a person.
Speaker 1 (22:57):
Well, I think we've already kind of stumbled upon some
insight onto what your answer is going to be for this,
But what's the philosophy that drives you each day?
Speaker 2 (23:07):
You know, let's make a difference. I am a there's
a a This is gonna seem a little funny, but
there is a quote. It's on the board in my office.
I discovered it a few years ago. It's from a
thirteenth century German theologian, which does not set up to
sound like a very exciting quote, But to me, it's
(23:28):
just really profound that the price of inaction is far
greater than the cost of a mistake. Let's do something.
We could in five minutes come up with dozens of
things that need to be addressed in our businesses and
our homes and our communities in our nation. Let's not
(23:49):
talk about them, Let's go do something. And you know
that means I'm all about strategem big big on being
strategic and being aligned. But I want there to be action.
And I think that's what I come back to you.
It may not at the end of the day, it
may not be the best thing, but something's better than nothing,
and so what are we going to do. Let's move
forward and try to have impact. Well, I love that approach.
(24:12):
And you know, whether you know some people, the inaction
is born out of either frustration right it's overwhelming, or
I call it analyzation, paralyzation absolutely where you overanalyze and
you end up just being your own roadblock. So I
love the fact that you that you advocate for that
is just do something. And that's what I've always taught
(24:33):
my kids when they're at those crossroads, you know, because
when you're at a young age, you don't know always
Some people have the benefit and the luxury of knowing
what they're going to do, but there's a whole lot
of people, the majority of us probably don't start out
that way when we're young. And I always told my kids,
you know, like you said, do something, pick a direction,
(24:56):
go in it. You can always change direction, and how
are you going to know unless you go down the road, right,
you know? And I think part of it too. We
often want to make every decision the pentacle decision, and
it's probably not right. I mean, you know, I think
sometimes we put way too much emphasis on an individual
decision and quite frankly on the role that we play.
(25:18):
And so I think it becomes really key just to
know I've got to do something. The price of fin
action is far greater than the cost of mistake. When
I think back. I'm fifty three, and I think back
over my life, I far more regret the things I
didn't do than any decisions that I made and did do.
Speaker 1 (25:33):
You pick up so many things along the way, so
you tend to look back and really not have any
negative connotation to any of that you say. You usually
end up saying, I'm glad I did that because I
wouldn't have known otherwise this other thing that I learned
during that process.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
Absolutely, and that doesn't mean that we don't make mistakes,
but we also learned they're probably not as big or
as significant as we feared.
Speaker 1 (25:58):
Right, Well, I mean, I've I certainly enjoy talking to
you and believe it or not. Time has been flying
and we're almost out of time. But I wanted to
ask what advice would you give to an inspiring business owner?
Speaker 2 (26:08):
You know, I think what we've just been talking about,
do it, try it, move forward again. I want people
to be strategic. I want them to be aligned. I
want them to have a plan, but then implement that plan,
move forward on it, and keep moving forward. Don't be afraid,
you know. I think we talked about the hardest step
to take is the first step. The next hardest step
(26:30):
is the second. But once you take the one and
then two, and then you get moving forward, then you
build that momentum and then you'll see what really can happen.
Speaker 1 (26:38):
Absolutely, Kevin. If people are interested in joining the chamber
or finding out more about the chamber, how can they
reach here? You know?
Speaker 2 (26:45):
Probably right? The best way to do that today is
to go to our website Charleston Chamber dot org. You
can get all of our contact information there, you can
see programs and events, you can join online. We love
you know, we want to represent every business in the Trialst.
Speaker 1 (27:00):
Metro.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
Such a great place to do that. But again, Charleston
Chamber dot org. I want to thank Kevin T. Sheeley, CCEE.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
He's the President CEO of the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce. Kevin,
thank you for being my guest today. I'm out of time.
Thanks for listening to your home three sixty. You can
catch the podcast at ninety four to three WSC dot
com or on the iHeartRadio app. Enjoy the rest of
your weekend and I will talk to you again on
Monday morning.
Hey, it's Michael Blaze. Thanks for tuning into Your Home
three sixty today, the show where we talk about everything
that has to do with your home. I recently interviewed
Kevin T. Sheeley, CCEE. He's the President CEO of the
Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce, and I thought that I
would replay that interview for you here on Your Home
three sixty since we talk about affordable housing issues and
(00:24):
a whole lot of things about the local economy and
drivers of that, which of course affects the housing market.
So I thought it would be a good interview to
play for you here on Your Home three sixty. So
welcome Kevin T. Sheeley.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Thank you, good to be with you today.
Speaker 1 (00:38):
Let's inform our listeners on what exactly the mission of
the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce is.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Absolutely you know, our mission is to initiate, advocate, and
empower for more prosperous business community here in our region.
And that's something we're really focused on right now, is
ensuring that we're aligning around that mission. You know, it's
interesting as we think how we do that. This is
the oldest chamber in the United States, goes all the
(01:05):
way back to seventeen seventy three, so older than our country,
and so looking at how do we initiate, advocate and
empower here in this region to ensure that this is
a place where businesses can be successful, because we believe
where business is successful, people will be successful.
Speaker 1 (01:21):
Yes, And it's just amazing how old this Chamber is.
I mean, when you think about the history of it
and everything that's happened since its inception.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
It's incredible. I had the opportunity recently to visit the
South Carolina Historical Society, which maintains our archives, and they
pulled out some documents for me to review, including the
oldest that they have is a minutes book from seventeen
eighty four. Wow, so how interesting. And two things I
think are really cool. The Chamber was formed in seventeen
(01:50):
seventy three as a result of the Charleston Tea Party.
Many people don't know that the Charleston Tea Party predated
the Bosston one. We just didn't dump ours into to
the ocean there. But you know, it was about tax, right,
the Chamber which foreign business leaders came together to talk
about a tax issue, and the minutes in seventeen eighty four,
we're talking about tariffs. Foreign tariffs are being put on
(02:14):
South Carolina rice and what they were going to do
about that, how that was going to impact trade in
the area. And it's the same issues we're concerned about today,
are taxes and tariffs and ways to ensure that our
environment is a place where businesses can succeed.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
Well, as they say, eventually everything old is new again,
absolutely nothing new under the sun, exactly. Well, the Chamber,
I know, has been focusing on two main initiatives, attainable
housing and entrepreneurship. Let's start with attainable housing. Housing costs
in the Low Country have become very prohibitive.
Speaker 2 (02:46):
Absolutely, And you know it's interesting people will ask me, Okay,
why is the chamber, Why is the business community engaged
on attainable housing. Shouldn't that be the purview of government
or nonprofits? And yes, but also it's absolute key to
the business community. If we think, if I were to
ask any business leader what's your most valuable asset, They're
(03:08):
going to tell me their workforce, their people. But if
their people don't have a place to live, if they
can't get to work, or the commute is too long,
they're not going to work there. So it's absolutely imperative
to our business community that we're not only engage, but
really we need to be a leading voice about attainable
housing and ensuring that people have I mean, that's the
most basic need, right and if we get housing right
(03:30):
in our community, quite frankly, we believe that begins to
address a lot of other challenges like transportation. So it's
really key, and so that's an area we're focused and
really bringing business solutions to the table thinking of it
because it is an economics issue. It is much of
our housing cost constraints are driven by supply and demand.
(03:51):
We just simply have not for the last two decades
built enough houses for the people that live here. In fact,
only once in the last twenty years have we built
a enough in that one year for the number of
people in our community. So it's a long term challenge,
it's a it's a mess that's been created over two decades.
Now we've got to begin to dig out of that,
(04:11):
and we need to bring the right business solutions to
be able to do so well.
Speaker 1 (04:15):
Absolutely, And you know, I happen to also be a realtor,
so I'm quite familiar you know, with the with the
issue of the cost of housing, and I mean it's
a multi pronged issue on what's causing you know, prices
to be so high, but one of them is certainly zoning,
you know, you know, the density that's allowed. But so,
(04:36):
what are some of the things that you focus on
that you advocate for when it comes to making housing
more affordable?
Speaker 2 (04:41):
Well, I think, you know, first off, interesting if you
look at the housing economist Jay Parsons, he has identified
that forty of the cost of a new house is
government fee and regulations. You know, there's not much we
can do about labor costs, there's not much we can
do about material cost. But a cost man, that's something
that we need and should do something about. And so
(05:04):
looking at that, and how do we work with our
cities and counties to look at their regulatory process. And
I think, you know, generally, when I'm talking to almost
all of our municipalities in the time I've been here,
they already recognize, hey, there's a challenge here, there's a problem. Right,
we have a system that's been built up over sixty
seventy years and it really needs to be looked at.
(05:26):
Are we are we doing things the best way. Are
we doing things that they need to be done in
twenty twenty five following processes that reflect this time period.
So really looking at working with local governments about the
whole regulatory scheme. How do we help them evaluate those
pieces so that they can be more productive we can
address these housings. So that's our biggest place. I think
(05:47):
also educating our elected officials and our appointed officials, those
policymakers about those key issues which can affect There are
a lot of things that can sound good from a
government standpoint, Oh we need to do that. A great
example that might be impact fees. Well, sure we're going
to make new construction, new people pay for this infrastructure
(06:10):
that we need. But what we know, and you can
look at impact fees across the country, it generally doesn't
deliver what is promise. But what it does do is
create additional cost without adding value, so that the home,
instead of it being a let's pick a number, a
three hundred thousand dollars home is now a three hundred
and fifteen thousand dollars home, and we add carrying costs
(06:32):
and so that number just keeps going up. It's going
back to the consumer who's paying for that. But also
because that increases the cost across the board. Now all
of our homes when they're evaluated are sold, are also
costing more. So we're just making the attainability piece more expensive,
more prohibitive. But along the way, government collects more tax dollars.
(06:54):
So really stopping the same Wait a minute, what is
it we want to accomplish? What is most important? Now?
What's going to move that forward? And thinking differently, understanding
sometimes the unintended consequences.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
Yeah, it seems to be a vicious cycle everything you
just described, right, Absolutely, so I think part of it
is someone and I think that's our job.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
It's got to stand up and go hold on, wholl
who wo. Let's look at this. Let's think there are
other ways. We all agree we need infrastructure. No one
is saying we don't need infrastructure, but is this the
best way to fund it? And are we creating more
problems instead of solutions? Yes?
Speaker 1 (07:28):
And you mentioned educating you know, the lawmakers and the leaders.
Is there any kind of you know, movement to educate
the public, because it's also there's the nimbi have thing
going on, you know, not in my backyard. We don't
want to see the development, but they don't realize that
people are here anyway and the development's coming anyway, and
it just exacerbates the problem when you try to push
(07:50):
back against.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
That, absolutely, and that's we're working through some plans actually
right now about how do we do that, How do
we educate people to understand what this really means? You know,
it's funny, it's having worked in Florida for the last
twelve years and now here, I have spent some time
in fast growing communities, and as people tend to think
once they're here, Okay, let's pull up the gates, I'm here,
(08:13):
anyone else is new as a problem, well, you know,
that's just part of it. We want to be a
community that's growing because if we're not a community that's growing,
where a community that's dying, those are the only options
that exist. And so how do we help people understand
really what that means? How do we do that?
Speaker 1 (08:28):
You know?
Speaker 2 (08:29):
One of the things that I think really concerns us
is we think about housing and how it impacts our
community and some of the things that make Charleston so
uniquely Charleston is if we don't in the near future
begin to figure out housing, especially on the peninsula, we
really risk a hollowing out of the city of Charleston
(08:49):
because there won't be anyone who can work downtown, who
can work in their bars and restaurants, work at our hospital,
work in our businesses. There're gonna be other opportunities for
them elsewhere, closer to where they live. So that we
have a downtown that begins to lose its luster. People
don't want to come there, people don't want to live there,
and so it can quickly become a downward spiral. We've
(09:11):
got to be able to address that, and that is
about looking at things like density, looking about things, you know,
talking about the missing middle. The Charleston Trident Council of
Realtors has a great report out now about the missing
middle housing and how do we integrate that. That's really
what our communities has long been about. It got lost
starting in the fifties with some of our zoning. We
(09:32):
need to bring that back and being able to help
people understand what that is and why it's important. We're
again you go back to your question, We're really looking
at how do we tell that message, How do we
get that message out in ways that people understand. Oh,
that's not just the business community. They're just trying to
make a profit. Of course they're trying to make a profit.
But that's how we do things. That's how we move
our community forward, that's how people move forward. How do
(09:55):
we educate them in a way so they understand the
impact and value. Hopefully we'll have some things in the
next few month as we'll begin to roll out on
that front.
Speaker 1 (10:01):
Yeah, and the inner connectivity between you know, the residents
and businesses is so important for a thriving city, and
I think that's what they missed the point on. Oftentimes.
Speaker 2 (10:13):
Absolutely, you know, a little bit right, it becomes a
little bit selfish. You know, we've got phenomenal people, what
an amazing community we have, but people often only think
about well, you know, I've got my house, I have
my grocery store, I have my access to goods and services.
Why don't you have yours? Well, it's because we've created
a system whereby people can't. And so we've really got
(10:33):
to work help people understand the value in addressing those
pieces and that that really creates a better, stronger community
for everyone.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
Absolutely, and that's good work that you're doing there. By
the way, Thank you. So let's move on to another
focus of the Chamber, entrepreneurship.
Speaker 2 (10:51):
Yeah, you know, And I'll tell you what's interesting is
I'm a strong believer. We recently hosted our Opportunity Summit
where we focused on a ten housing and entrepreneurship, which
might seem like an odd pairing, but we believe as
we think about the challenges of housing that it's going
to be entrepreneurs who help solve the problems, because that's
(11:11):
what entrepreneurs do. They find solutions, they find new ways,
new ideas, new approaches, and build businesses around that. And
I think entrepreneurship is going to be partly how we
resolve our housing issues. And so putting those two together,
you know, this is a phenomenally entrepreneurial community. I don't
know that we recognize sometimes, especially if you're inside the community,
(11:33):
how very entrepreneurial it is, and so we really want
to support and grow that. I have to share some
data with you that I think is so exciting. One
of the data points, and we love data at the Chamber.
We're really getting into using that and tracking that both
of ourselves and as we're making decisions. But looking at
the number of Ink five thousand companies in our area.
(11:55):
And if you're not familiar, Ink five thousand every year
names the five thousand fastest growth owing businesses in the country.
And as we look at that, probably owned businesses. And
as we look at that, the Charleston metro is the
seventy first largest metro, but we rank number thirty one.
And the total number of businesses on the INK five
thousand list, now that's really impressive. But then if you
(12:17):
break it down on a per capita basis, we rank
number four. Only Provo Salt Lake, Austin, Nashville barely are
above us. There's really an opportunity for us to be
a major startup sitting in fact, we ought to be
in that conversation today as you look at this community,
all the assets and opportunities we have. So we think
(12:38):
part of our role with the chamber and focusing and
encouraging entrepreneurship is also to help tell the story internally,
to help local folks understand, man, this is an incredible asset.
We've got a lot of good things going here. How
do we really grow and let that be a big
part of our economy.
Speaker 1 (12:54):
Yes, and if there's any entrepreneurs listening right now. What
kind of resources can you offer them?
Speaker 2 (12:59):
Yeah, so there are a number of things that we
have at the Chamber, but I think the biggest thing
we can offer today is to help connect them with
them organizations who this is what they do. You know,
We've got a phenomenal organization here in town called the
Client Fund, and the Client Fund makes loans targeted to entrepreneurs,
small businesses, startups in places where businesses entrepreneurs struggle to
(13:22):
get access to capital. They can come to the table
with that capital and providing technical as systems that's needed
with it. And there are a number of those organizations.
In fact, one of the first things that we're going
to be doing here coming up hopefully in the fall,
is really bringing all of those different parties to the
table and then laying out an entrepreneurship roadmap from ideation. So, Hey,
(13:44):
I just want to start a business, but I don't
know what it is all the way to initial public
Offering IPO that talks about here are the resources, and here,
depending on where you are in your entrepreneurship journey, here's
who can help you. And so we want to get
that laid out and then also where are their gaps
so we can help fill those.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
I mean, that sounds great. And another long term initiative
that I wanted to talk about is your people First initiative. Yes,
explain to us what that.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Is, absolutely, so let me give it background first. There
are three things that we focus on at the Chamber,
three ways that we seek to make impact, and we've
discussed One of those is is entrepreneurship. The second one
is business advocacy, right, and we've kind of referenced through
that with housing and some other things, and we have
a phenomenal advocacy team. And the third one is workforce,
really making sure that the business communities at the table
(14:30):
to build the workforce we need both for the day
in the future. But people First who is really an
initiative working through those three pillars where we're focused on,
as we've already talked about attainable housing, workforce, making sure
we have a future ready workforce that we need. Transportation right,
that's a huge issue for all of us, and we've
talked about how that's related and important. And the last
(14:51):
one is a high quality, affordable childcare. If a family
does not have access for their children, especially those early
ages children, newborns through preschool to get high quality childcare.
That means that there's probably going to be a parent
who can't be or won't be in the workforce, and
we need everyone in the workforce, especially talented people that
(15:14):
we can get. It also means is that child's not
getting high quality childcare, they're odds of being ready for
kindergarten go down significantly. And if you're not ready for kindergarten,
the chance that you're going to be reading on level
at third grade, which is absolutely the key metric, also
goes down. So really making sure that we're preparing long
(15:34):
term is we need to address some of these upfront items,
and childcare is a huge piece of that.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
Yeah, I can't tell you how often I hear from
friends and clients of mine how prohibitive they find the
childcare situation to be.
Speaker 2 (15:47):
Yeah, and you know, all of these issues, I will
tell you are not uniquely Charleston. We have our own
take on them, right, but I would tell you if
you go to any of the fifty fasters growing cities
in our country, that's a big number, they're gonna be
talking about the same issues. And childcare is even in
areas that aren't growing is a big issue. It goes
(16:08):
to right workforce costs. That's the biggest driver in childcare
is making sure you have you can bring the right people,
you can pay them appropriately. That is eighty percent of
the cost of a childcare center. So how do we
help how do we grow that? What are ways? And
again as we think about advocacy and workforce that we
contribute and lean into that space. So really looking at
(16:28):
ways that we can do that that are sustainable and effective.
Speaker 1 (16:33):
Absolutely, Now let's change gears a little bit. It's calling CEOs.
You should know. So we get into some personal questions too,
because we like to get to know our CEOs on
a more personal basis. So you grew up in Louisville, Kentucky.
Tell us about your upbringing.
Speaker 2 (16:46):
Yeah, so I grew up in me Let me help
you here. If you ever meet someone from there, if
you say Louisville, they're going to know immediately you're not
from there. We say, we say Louisville, Louisville. That's how
you know that you're from Louisville or someone who oh
the area. You've got to pretend like you got a
little bourbon in your mouth and you don't want it
to slip out.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
So Louisville, but I'll practice on my pronunciation.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
There you go, but I want you to sound like
a native.
Speaker 1 (17:12):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (17:12):
So I grew up in Louisville. I am the very fortunate,
the third of four kids. I'm actually a twin. I
have a twin sister. So we were a little bit
late life surprises, and you know, I think for me,
the interesting my dad was a CEO, really phenomenal personal
story that he has. High school dropout was what has
(17:33):
been called a wondering generality instead of a meaningful specific.
But he went through Dell Carnegie, changed his life and
had an amazing career after that. But people talk about
you know, what did you talk about around the dinner
table at home. You know, some family it's the news
of the day, or politics or sports. In our family,
we learned about leadership and inventory turns our company, we
(17:55):
ran a lot of inventory, a lot of warehouses, and
so that was important. But I think that's key. You know,
I look at my siblings and I it's really about
leadership and those were lessons and things that we talked
about from an early age around the dining room table. Now,
did you ever work for your dad at any point,
I did, which is why I didn't do it for long.
You know, there are two ways you do that. You
(18:17):
are either if you're the son of the owner or
the CEO, you either get to do half the work
that everyone else does or you have to do double
the work. And and our family that meant we had
to set the example. So we were supposed to do
double the work. And so I did a number of
summers and weekends and as soon as I could do
(18:37):
something else, I did.
Speaker 1 (18:39):
That's very similar to I worked for my dad too,
and he was the same way. It's like, you're you're
not skating here because you're the boss's kid, that you're
going to work harder exactly, and you're not going to
embarrass me here at my company. But you learn some
valuable lessons being able to work that close to and
I'm sure your situation was the same. It's not like
you're in your dad office hanging out, you know bs
(19:02):
and with your dad. You know, there's a lot of
times where you never even see him when you were
at work, but you pick up so many valuable lessons
by being that close to it.
Speaker 2 (19:10):
Absolutely, you know, we have a great friend and mentor
who talks about with kids, it's more caught than taught.
It's those things that the kids see, you're there and
you're observing, and that is what really makes a difference.
And as many of the very specific things that my
parents taught, it's those things that we just caught watching
them right and so being able to think back of
(19:33):
how I watched my dad treat people, both his employees,
his customers. He was a huge personality and so he
loved people, and I think people were He could walk
into a room and immediately people were drawn to him
because he treated everyone fairly. He cared about the individual
and not what they could do for him, or what
(19:54):
customer or what they had, but simply who they were.
And I think that's one of the most impactful things
I can think about from my growing up.
Speaker 1 (20:02):
Absolutely. Well.
Speaker 2 (20:03):
How about your mom, ah, my mom, amazing woman, the
picture of a of a Southern lady. My wife and
I have been married thirty years. My mom passed away
two years ago, and but we talked about my wife
can never remember and I can never remember my mom
saying a negative thing about anyone. She was a big
fan of. You don't have anything nice to say, shut
(20:25):
up and so well, really really key for her. You know,
she was a great supporter to my dad and of
all four of us kids, who were all very active,
but also a real paragone of doing the right thing.
And it was never a question if there was a choice, well,
(20:46):
you know, maybe I could skate by it. No, the
expectation was that you're going to do the right thing,
and and you do it because it is the right thing,
and you do it quietly.
Speaker 1 (20:54):
Well, that's excellent, and it sounds like, you know, you
had some very good parents that that sent you on
the on the right path.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
I think so you're right, and that's one of the
older The older we get, the more we appreciate and
see those things, and probably once we also have our
own kids and then we recognize, oh my goodness, this
is so hard. Yeah, this is I can't believe what
mom and dad did.
Speaker 1 (21:12):
Well. Absolutely, and you always have to, especially when you
have your own kids, you know, keeping the back of
your mind, like you just said, the learned behavior that
they for lack of a better description there that you're
conditioning them for exactly right and you always have to
keep that in mind. Is you know, what kind of
example am I setting here?
Speaker 2 (21:28):
Of course, and that's because they are always watching.
Speaker 1 (21:32):
Absolutely. So what do you do when you're not working? Kevin?
Speaker 2 (21:36):
You know what I work. I love what I do.
I do. I am an early riser, I'm at the
office early in the morning, I'm off in there till
late afternoon. But I just I love what I do.
I love the work of chamber in economic development organizations,
the impact we have on communities. I consider myself so
(21:58):
blessed and fortunate. I stumbled into this career as a
twenty two year old. I had no idea what it
was and got into it and went, oh, this is
what I've always wanted to do. I just didn't know
what it was called. So yeah, I love my work.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
Well, it's funny that you say that, because I talk
about that often when we talk about different techniques and
approaches to business, And how many times have you seen
somebody that they're taking a certain approach. They'll and there's
even a name for it, and they might even teach
it in Dale, Carnegie or elsewhere, But the person doesn't
even realize that that's what they're doing. They couldn't tell
(22:37):
you and use that name. But they practice it out
of maybe instinct.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
Absolutely yeah. I mean they have done it so much
that it's become part of who they are, right, I
mean that's what if you repeat an activity, what is
it ten thousand times? You become a master. You know,
if you're not just talking but doing, you're already becomes
integrated into who you are as a person.
Speaker 1 (22:57):
Well, I think we've already kind of stumbled upon some
insight onto what your answer is going to be for this,
But what's the philosophy that drives you each day?
Speaker 2 (23:07):
You know, let's make a difference. I am a there's
a a This is gonna seem a little funny, but
there is a quote. It's on the board in my office.
I discovered it a few years ago. It's from a
thirteenth century German theologian, which does not set up to
sound like a very exciting quote, But to me, it's
(23:28):
just really profound that the price of inaction is far
greater than the cost of a mistake. Let's do something.
We could in five minutes come up with dozens of
things that need to be addressed in our businesses and
our homes and our communities in our nation. Let's not
(23:49):
talk about them, Let's go do something. And you know
that means I'm all about strategem big big on being
strategic and being aligned. But I want there to be action.
And I think that's what I come back to you.
It may not at the end of the day, it
may not be the best thing, but something's better than nothing,
and so what are we going to do. Let's move
forward and try to have impact. Well, I love that approach.
(24:12):
And you know, whether you know some people, the inaction
is born out of either frustration right it's overwhelming, or
I call it analyzation, paralyzation absolutely where you overanalyze and
you end up just being your own roadblock. So I
love the fact that you that you advocate for that
is just do something. And that's what I've always taught
(24:33):
my kids when they're at those crossroads, you know, because
when you're at a young age, you don't know always
Some people have the benefit and the luxury of knowing
what they're going to do, but there's a whole lot
of people, the majority of us probably don't start out
that way when we're young. And I always told my kids,
you know, like you said, do something, pick a direction,
(24:56):
go in it. You can always change direction, and how
are you going to know unless you go down the road, right,
you know? And I think part of it too. We
often want to make every decision the pentacle decision, and
it's probably not right. I mean, you know, I think
sometimes we put way too much emphasis on an individual
decision and quite frankly on the role that we play.
(25:18):
And so I think it becomes really key just to
know I've got to do something. The price of fin
action is far greater than the cost of mistake. When
I think back. I'm fifty three, and I think back
over my life, I far more regret the things I
didn't do than any decisions that I made and did do.
Speaker 1 (25:33):
You pick up so many things along the way, so
you tend to look back and really not have any
negative connotation to any of that you say. You usually
end up saying, I'm glad I did that because I
wouldn't have known otherwise this other thing that I learned
during that process.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
Absolutely, and that doesn't mean that we don't make mistakes,
but we also learned they're probably not as big or
as significant as we feared.
Speaker 1 (25:58):
Right, Well, I mean, I've I certainly enjoy talking to
you and believe it or not. Time has been flying
and we're almost out of time. But I wanted to
ask what advice would you give to an inspiring business owner?
Speaker 2 (26:08):
You know, I think what we've just been talking about,
do it, try it, move forward again. I want people
to be strategic. I want them to be aligned. I
want them to have a plan, but then implement that plan,
move forward on it, and keep moving forward. Don't be afraid,
you know. I think we talked about the hardest step
to take is the first step. The next hardest step
(26:30):
is the second. But once you take the one and
then two, and then you get moving forward, then you
build that momentum and then you'll see what really can happen.
Speaker 1 (26:38):
Absolutely, Kevin. If people are interested in joining the chamber
or finding out more about the chamber, how can they
reach here? You know?
Speaker 2 (26:45):
Probably right? The best way to do that today is
to go to our website Charleston Chamber dot org. You
can get all of our contact information there, you can
see programs and events, you can join online. We love
you know, we want to represent every business in the Trialst.
Speaker 1 (27:00):
Metro.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
Such a great place to do that. But again, Charleston
Chamber dot org. I want to thank Kevin T. Sheeley, CCEE.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
He's the President CEO of the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce. Kevin,
thank you for being my guest today. I'm out of time.
Thanks for listening to your home three sixty. You can
catch the podcast at ninety four to three WSC dot
com or on the iHeartRadio app. Enjoy the rest of
your weekend and I will talk to you again on
Monday morning.
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