South Carolina

• Elevated poverty: At 14.1%, the rate supports federal funding narratives across distressed counties (CDFI, NMTC, EDA).

• Largest sector: Retail Trade employs 269,010 workers (16.4% of the tracked sectors), at an average wage of $39,589.
• Economic scale: State GDP of $357.1B (2024).

• Top specialization: Textile Mills concentrates at 9.04x the national norm, top-decile concentration, the kind of signature sector that defines a region's economic identity.
• Cluster depth: 10 sub-sectors register LQ ≥ 1.5, suggesting an interconnected industrial base across the state.
• Attraction whitespace: 8 sub-sectors register LQ < 0.5, candidates for diversification or recruitment.

• In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 3.7x sits near the ~4.1x national average; affordability is neither a clear advantage nor a recruitment friction.
• High home ownership: 71.9% owner-occupied; rental supply may be tight for incoming workers.
• Elevated vacancy: 13.3% vacancy rate; potential redevelopment opportunity.

• Succession risk is real: 22.1% of working-age residents are 55-64. Plan for retirements over the next decade and pair attraction strategy with talent retention.

South Carolina shows strong potential for textile mills attraction, with a 9.04x concentration and 10,930 jobs in this sub-sector. Near-term succession risk is elevated, with 22.1% of the working-age population within 10 years of retirement age.

Cluster depth across textile mills, forestry and logging, and electrical equipment, appliance manufacturing creates supply-chain attraction leverage, a structural advantage for industrial recruitment.