Marion County sees surge in economic development, bringing hundreds of new jobs

MARION COUNTY, S.C. (WMBF) – This summer, it was announced the Beneteau facility in Marion would close after 33 years in operation.

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Marion economic leaders believes new industry and expansion will positively impact the community

As one door closed, residents didn’t have to wait long for another door to open as a new company, Leisure Pools, announced it would be taking over the Beneteau site.

The good news didn’t end there. In recent weeks, two companies already present in Marion County, DMA Holdings and Maxwood Furniture, announced they’d each be building new facilities in the county.

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Dr. Julie Norman, Executive Director of the Marion County Economic Development Commission, said it’s unheard of to see so many of these announcements in such a short time period.

Norman said these companies will have a major economic impact on the area.

“These projects are going to have a tremendous impact on Marion County because we’re talking about in this month alone by next week, we will have announced four projects totaling 400 jobs and this year that’s over $30 million of investment in Marion County,” said Norman.

Norman believes Marion County is in a prime location for industry, being located between Florence and Horry counties and only 15 miles from Inland Port Dillon.

More importantly, Norman hopes by bringing these companies to Marion County they can keep residents from having to commute elsewhere for work.

“Having those people come back and be able to work for a company right here in Marion County, it’s a win-win for everyone,” she said.

She added the area has seen extensive growth in Downtown Marion and Mullins, and she expects that to continue as these projects are completed.

“The companies that come here bring people to work and the people who come here want amenities and restaurants and want a place to grab a drink after work, and hotels and shopping, so we expect those things to continue growing as well,” said Norman.

Norman said the recent announcements are amazing, but they aren’t done bringing jobs and industries to the area.

“We’re going to continue this momentum and we’ll keep growing and you’ll want to know who Marion is,” said Norman.

Norman said along with the projects in place, there is going to be another announcement in the coming weeks about another company coming to Marion County.

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