Serial Entrepreneur Selects Charleston for Next Enterprise

In 1997, while many of his classmates were looking for job opportunities following graduation, Matthew Gough hit the ground running and formed his first company in upstate New York at age 22. Four years later, recognizing that content management systems were increasingly becoming commoditized, Matt packaged up the company and sold it.

Then came a few years of consulting on entrepreneurial strategy with Fortune 500 companies, which at times was "very inspiring and exciting. . .however, at the end of the day, the big company style would often dominate the ability to be agile," Matt says. From there he went on to form and successfully exit two additional companies, and now, this seasoned entrepreneur has formed Echovate - a company helping to empower small businesses to make better hiring decisions.

When deciding on a location for a new company, Matt looked at several known tech cities including the Bay Area, Austin, Boulder, Raleigh, and Boston before selecting Charleston, South Carolina. Matt emphasizes he is a numbers guy, taking a "fact-founded thought-out approach to decision-making." When looking at the data, Charleston rose to the top from the standpoint of livability, cost of living and climate.

While Matt talks about Charleston's vibrancy and scale, he also appreciates the city's commitment to protecting the historical fabric and natural environment, elements that are important to his family. He says, "It feels like a very natural blend of all these amazing things."

Beyond the numbers, Matt Gough sees Charleston as an asset to his employees, customers, and investors. "What I especially appreciate about Charleston is that people are making a coordinated effort to develop the digital economy," he stated. "I feel like I can make a meaningful contribution to Charleston's tech ecosystem by offering my fellow entrepreneurs some of the lessons learned along the way."

Echovate will commence operations at the Charleston Digital Corridor's Flagship business accelerator in downtown Charleston, a business facility targeted towards early-stage software start-ups and has graduated 78 companies since it's launch in 2009.

Perhaps a sign of seasoned entrepreneurship, Matt is already thinking about how he can also contribute to his soon-to-be adopted hometown. "Looking down the road, I would love to be involved with an investment fund and business accelerator and add to the acceleration of Charleston's tech economy."