Prep work

Sensing better times ahead, some businesses are heeding the tried-and-true Boy Scout credo: Be prepared.

DBW Advanced Fiber Technologies Corp. in Summerville elected to cut against the grain in 2009 in anticipation of the elusive economic rebound.

The manufacturer, which makes forms that fit inside car mufflers, plowed about $350,000 back into its business in one of the worst years on the books for the automotive industry and most others. The money paid for new equipment that will enable the company to operate more efficiently when the good times start to roll again.

The investment is now showing signs of a payoff, as DBW is already seeing an uptick in business, said Mike Motes, general manager.

"We are getting in quite a few new products to quote on," Motes said.

He's confident that business will increase even more when automakers start placing their orders for the 2011 models, which come out in the fall.

"We know it's going to increase as it gets closer to summer," Motes said.

DBW also is sensing other upbeat signals about the economy.

"We have looked at the new business coming onboard," Motes said. "Some of the big companies are starting to gear back up. We are seeing more response and a faster lead time from when they need it."

While hardly in the majority, DBW is among the businesses that are positioning themselves now for the eventual sustained turnaround. That's despite some unpleasant facts about the current economy: Unemployment is still high, home sales are still off, spending is still down and the credit pipeline is still, for the most part, frozen.

'It's coming'

Debbie Williams, president of Goose Creek personnel development firm Signet Human Resource Management, said she sees glimmers of hope working on the front lines of the local employment market.

Williams noted that, unlike many parts of the country, the Charleston economy is likely benefiting from "all the good things coming here."

She cited as examples the Boeing 787 assembly plant, the Clemson University wind research project, the TBC Corp. tire warehouse and DuPont's $500 million Kevlar plant.

"We are starting to see some manufacturers filling positions. We are starting to see private companies ramping up. It's coming," she said.

Jim Geffert of Dale Carnegie Training of S.C. LLC expects to see more emphasis on customer service this year.

Geffert bases that prediction on his recent interviews with top executives of 21 large, unidentified employers in the Charleston area about their five top strategies for this year. Four of the five dealt with engaging customers more effectively, he said.

Most of the executives ranked cost reduction and hiring at the bottom of their priority lists because they have already trimmed overhead as much as possible and are making do with the workers they have left.

Some industries will be sticking with what worked for them during the recession even when business picks up again.

Retailers, for example, were forced to focus intently on controlling the amount of inventory on their shelves, and, just as importantly, the type of inventory. In many cases, that has been the difference between making money and losing money in a down market.

As a result, value suddenly has become an imperative for many merchants. And that's not likely to change anytime soon, said Susan McWatters, manager of Belk's Citadel Mall department store and regional vice president for the Charlotte-based chain.

"It is now a priority for the company to have everyday value for our customer," McWatters said. "Value is here to stay in our mind."

Retailers didn't order as much inventory last year and avoided deep discounts during the holiday shopping season. Now, they are ordering only what appears to be selling well.

"You don't carry over markdowns that nobody wants," McWatters said.

The real estate industry is coping with its own version of marked-down merchandise in the form of empty homes and vacant commercial buildings. For many project-hungry builders, that means the competition for remodeling jobs and upfit work will remain fierce in 2010.

"We will be the last to come back," said Mike Blanchard, immediate past president of the Charleston Contractors Association. "Commercial construction is going to lag behind everyone else. There is a glut of it on the market. Most of it is dependent on business loans, and they aren't too forthcoming right now. You will see a leaner, meaner industry when the recovery does come."

Seeking an edge

Just as eager for a sustained turnaround are unemployed residents such as Mildred Smalls of Moncks Corner. A 21-year employee at the Gates Corp., she lost her job last April when the auto parts supplier consolidated operations elsewhere. Smalls, 57, found work at another company but that went away when a new contract didn't come through.

To improve her odds of landing a post-recession job, she attended a recent seminar sponsored by Signet Human Resource to improve her interviewing techniques.

"I've applied everywhere ... I stay on the Internet. I look everywhere. I'm here to see what else I need to do," Smalls said.

Also at the session was Summerville resident Blair Stewart, 59. Laid-off last spring after 15 years at J.W. Aluminum, where most recently he had been vice president of raw materials, he said the economic recovery on the employment side has been slow to develop.

"It's coming," Stewart said. "Demand is up, but there is not enough confidence to go out and start hiring people."

He's hopeful that's about to change. He's preparing for it.

"It's a herd mentality," Stewart said. "When one moves, they all will move."

Planning ahead

The Top 10 strategies, in declining order, for 2010 from 21 Charleston-area executives as told to Jim Geffert of Dale Carnegie Training:

--Find opportunities in the market with old and new customers.

--Adjust offerings to match the market and customers' motivations.

--Engage staff to think and act like business owners and producers.

--Structure a sales process that finds new customers and keeps them.

--Implement a customer-centric service strategy.

--Create and implement a training development plan.

--Implement an innovations-centric strategy.

--Deliver a compelling story.

--Reduce costs to match declining sales.

--Hire a new team to take us forward.

Reach Warren Wise at 937-5524 or wwise@postandcourier.com.