General News

At Lowcountry Local First, we believe local ownership matters. Our goal is to support the local business community and tailor our programs to help our community gain access to every chance at success. That’s why we work with businesses, community members, and policymakers to build support... Continue Reading

New Data: We recently wrapped up our 2024 Member Survey, with more than 60 responses captured. These results help inform our team of what kinds of programming and advocacy efforts matter most to you, and what the community needs at large in order to fulfill our mission. View the summary and key... Continue Reading

Lowcountry Local First has been advocating for stronger, enforced and tracked local preference policies with our local municipalities for more than a decade. In the realm of municipal governance, few policies hold as much potential for catalyzing local economic growth as robust local preference... Continue Reading

En medio del vibrante tapiz de apoyo comunitario y espíritu emprendedor, la Academia Empresarial de Lowcountry Local First ("La Academia") celebró otro logro notable el 13 de junio. Un total de 17 personas dedicadas, representando tanto a las cohortes de inglés como de... Continue Reading

Local Level Worth celebrating: The Lowcountry Rapid Transit (LCRT) project recently received a $1.2 million grant from the FTA to advance TOD planning by focusing on the implementation of affordable housing strategies in the project corridor. This grant moves LCRT into Phase 3 of its TOD... Continue Reading

Deep Dive: A Look at the June Primaries & November Elections Depending where you live in SC, you could be voting on June 11 for your next State Senator, Solicitor, Sheriff and more. The below deep dive is being shared via TogetherSC, with permission: This year, all 170 legislator seats... Continue Reading

Below are things you should know or take action on right now as a local-independent business owner or community leader: Local Level Did you see? The City of Charleston has joined the ‘gram. Follow along for updates! Stay up to date with what's happening in the city by signing up here... Continue Reading

Every time a shopper uses a credit card, the merchant pays a fee to process the transaction, commonly known as a swipe fees. Supporters of a bipartisan bill in the US Senate say the bill could help merchants by lowering swipe fees. Continue Reading

Below are things you should know or take action on right now as a local-independent business owner or community leader: Federal Level LLF was proud to be an indie-biz advocacy group to co-host a recent virtual Town Hall with the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, which recently shared a recap... Continue Reading

Guest Blog Post by Zach Giglio, GCM: I was honored to moderate this incredible [Good Business Summit] panel on demystifying AI. Here are some of my favorite takeaways:Eric Elliott gave tons of good advice on how to approach AI while still relying on what makes us uniquely human. One of his best... Continue Reading

Below are things you should know or take action on right now as a local-independent business owner or community leader: Federal Level LLF has been connecting members to Sen Graham’s staff to share stories and the negative impacts of unrestrained and excessive credit card fees on their... Continue Reading

TICKET POLICY: This event is rain or shine and tickets are non-refundable. A one-time ticket transfer is permissible. HEALTH POLICY: Due to the nature of this event, we cannot address individual allergy concerns. Each participating chef is asked to prepare at least one vegetarian dish. We... Continue Reading