The North Eastern Strategic Alliance (NESA) is a regional, non-profit economic development organization that serves nine counties—Chesterfield, Darlington, Dillon, Florence, Georgetown, Horry, Marion, Marlboro, and Williamsburg—in the northeastern corner of South Carolina. Our primary objective is to create jobs for the residents of the region by working within the existing industry base and recruiting new companies.
Through our experienced staff, we stand ready to provide regional site selection assistance, extensive economic database access, infrastructure support, workforce training opportunities, and direct connections with our county and state partners to help coordinate incentive packages. We customize our service to ensure you have access to all of the components needed to jump-start or expand your business.
NESA will work with representatives from each of its nine counties to identify the best buildings or sites based on your company’s needs. From there, extensive research and guided site tours allow you to make a fully educated decision before you commit.
NESA has access to numerous databases and resources that we utilize to provide up-to-date economic and demographic information that will help your company make an informed decision about locating or expanding a facility in the region.
Establishing operations can be a daunting task for any company, but at NESA we are committed to using our resources and vast network to your advantage. By coordinating with state and local government agencies, permitting entities, utilities and other allies, we work to make the process as seamless as possible.
NESA will coordinate with our county partners and the South Carolina Department of Commerce to develop competitive incentives packages, making locating or expanding in the NESA region one of the easiest and best business decisions you have ever made.
There are a number of resources at both the state and regional level that can assist your company in meeting its workforce needs. Combing through that list and finding the resources you specifically need can be difficult. We are here to help ease that search and guide you to the correct resources to meet your company’s needs.
Existing industries are the backbone of our region and as such we provide them with the support they need to continue their success. We work with our county partners to help them with workforce needs, research, and additional incentives they can utilize.
NESA considers itself an extension of our county partner’s staffs. As such, we provide our counties with assistance in product development, research, marketing, and business development.
NESA’s Formation
The North Eastern Strategic Alliance (NESA) was founded in 2000 by a consortium of higher education, business and political leaders with the idea of bringing together the Pee Dee and Waccamaw regions of South Carolina to create regional cooperation for economic development. In 2001, NESA was incorporated and the organizations first Executive Committee was formed. Those original committee members included: Francis Marion University President Dr. Fred Carter; Coastal Carolina University President Ronald R. Ingle; Representative Mark Kelly of Myrtle Beach; Senator Yancey McGill of Kingstree; Senator Hugh Leatherman of Florence; Representative Douglas Jennings of Chesterfield; Doug Wendall of the Council of Myrtle Beach Area Organizations; City of Florence Mayor Frank Willis; and Crown Beverages CEO Fred DuBard. Carter and Ingle served as the first co-chairs.
Mission Statement
NESA’s mission is to work with existing county and state economic development organizations to create new jobs and increase the per capita wage of the citizens of the North Eastern region of South Carolina at a rate faster than the per capita growth rates for the state and the nation.
Regional Impact
Since the foundation of NESA, our region has turned the corner on unemployment, with most of our member counties seeing their unemployment rates more than halved. Additionally, the region has benefited from economic development project announcements totaling more than $3.6 billion in new capital investment and nearly 19,000 jobs.
"Our regional collaboration compliments and supports the important work of our state and local development programs. We work hand-in-hand with our county partners to ensure our region of South Carolina is recognized as an economic destination on the world stage. The time has never been better to invest in the NESA region and with your support, we can strive together to make our communities the ideal place to work and do business." -Tim Norwood, NESA Foundation Chairman
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