Ep. 44: John Darby: The Beach Company legacy leads to Kiawah River
In this episode of the Alosant Innovator Series
We sit down with John Darby, CEO and Chairman of the Board of The Beach Company, a fifth-generation real estate development company based in Charleston.
John shares the company’s origin story, beginning with his grandfather acquiring land to build affordable housing for WWII veterans—an early example of The Beach Company’s commitment to community investment. Today, the company operates in 27 cities, managing construction, brokerage, master-planned communities, and mixed-use developments. Notably, John details how the company continues their legacy of giving back by supporting nonprofits at both groundbreaking and ribbon-cutting ceremonies in the communities they build.
A standout example of The Beach Company’s work is Kiawah River on Saint John’s Island. To differentiate the development from well-established neighboring communities, John explains how they embraced the natural landscape and partnered with local farmers. He explains how features like a farm stand and a “goatery” helped weave agriculture into the community’s identity. John also shares key decisions, such as choosing a boutique hotel over a large-scale resort, ensuring the development remains true to the existing character.
We also discuss the success of Kiawah River’s Southern Living Idea Home, which attracted over 20,000 visitors and highlights the unique lifestyle they are cultivating. John shares key lessons learned from the project, from managing construction traffic to fostering seamless integration between hotel guests and residents. He also discusses how the Alosant App, with an impressive 80% adoption rate in only 4 weeks, is helping solve these challenges.
Join us for this insightful conversation as John Darby shares how The Beach Company is redefining community development while honoring its legacy of thoughtful investment.
About John:
John Darby serves as CEO and Chairman of the Board of The Beach Company, a prominent real estate firm headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina. Since its inception in 1945, this privately-owned enterprise has been a driving force in Southeastern real estate, leaving an indelible mark on the region's landscape and economic vitality.
Under John's leadership, The Beach Company has expanded its expertise across various real estate sectors to include development, construction, and investment towards commercial, residential, and resort properties. The company's commitment to "making the world better, one place at a time" is evident in its progressive vision and diverse portfolio. With a workforce of over 700 employees, The Beach Company is active in more than 27 cities in the Southeast and consistently ranks among South Carolina's largest privately held companies.
In addition to its development platform, The Beach Company's influence extends through several affiliate businesses:
• Kiawah River: A master-planned community (www.kiawahriver.com)
• Gulf Stream Construction: A full-service general site contractor (www.gulfstreamconstruction.com)
• Beach Real Estate Fund: Investment opportunities in real estate (www.beachrealestatefunds.com)
• Beach Commercial: Commercial real estate brokerage services (www.beachcommercialre.com)
• Beach Residential: Residential real estate brokerage services (www.beachresidential.com)
Beyond its business success, The Beach Company, under John's guidance, has made corporate philanthropy a cornerstone of its mission. The company actively gives back to each community where it operates. John and his family are known for their generous support of numerous nonprofits, including MUSC Children's Hospital, United Way, Emmanuel Nine Memorial, ECCO, Dee Norton Lowcountry Children's Foundation, and the Children's Museum. In recognition of their philanthropic efforts, John and his family received the Outstanding Philanthropist Award from the Lowcountry Association of Fundraising Professionals in 2014.
John’s leadership has been instrumental in shaping The Beach Company into a multifaceted organization that not only excels in real estate development but also significantly contributes to the social and economic fabric of the Southeastern United States.
John graduated from The Citadel in 1985. He is a member of the Palmetto Business Forum, Trident CEO Council, Chief Executives Organization and serves on the Mother Emanuel Memorial Foundation board. He served on The Citadel Foundation Board of Directors from 2010 to 2018 and in 2016, he helped form the Citadel Real Estate Foundation where he served as Chairman. John is also a former board member of the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce, South Carolina Chamber of Commerce, South Carolina Tourism Council, East Cooper Land Trust Advisory Council, Charleston Stage, and Ashley Hall School Board. He lives in Mt. Pleasant with his wife Georgia. They have 3 children and 4 grandchildren.
Connect with John
Episode Transcript
April LaMon
Hello and welcome to the Alosant Innovator Series. I'm April LaMon, CEO of Alosant. And today I am delighted to welcome John Darby from the Beach Company on this episode. John, thank you so much for taking time to be with us today. Do you mind starting out by just telling us a little bit more about yourself and how you made your way to where you are now?
John Darby
Hi April. Thanks for having me. I graduated in 85 from Charleston and went into the banking business. I moved around several cities. Charlotte, Orlando, Greensboro, ended up in Columbia, South Carolina. My uncle, Charlie Way, who ran the Beach Company, approached me to come work there.
So after a while, we agreed that I would come home and enter the family business. So I've been there since, late 1990.
April LaMon
You mentioned that the Beach Company is a family business. It's not just a family business. It's 80 years strong, fifth generation strong.
Can you tell us a little bit more about the legacy of the company?
John Darby
When I joined 1990, there was 18 employees. I included the receptionist, parking lot attendant. The company had a lot of land that it owned, but it wasn't really a full fledged development company. For the 1st, part of my career, we develop the land that we own, it was good land. It was in great locations.
Charleston was a thriving market where most of the land was located. And then in the early 2000s. Acquiring land and building more I would say, except the recession. We have been 2, 3, 4 development projects. We've started each year since then.
J. C. Long. He acquired the Alapalms, which is a 4000 acre Barry Island, off of Charleston. In America, people did a lot for the veterans coming home from the World War. So he bought the really to build affordable housing for the veterans coming back from World War 2.
And that's how the company started fast forward to today. We're in 27 cities. We have all sorts of different components of the company. We're in construction business. We manage, we're in the brokerage master plan communities, and mixed use development in the southeast.
April LaMon
It strikes me anyway, and maybe you could share a bit more about that with us, is that you have a very unusual or unique structure as a company, and maybe that's helped contribute to now generation 5, as part of the ownership structure.
John Darby
We're unique in a lot of ways. We have an independent board, five independents, non family board members and two family board members. Our incoming president is a non family member. We're unique that we're in our 5th generation. I'm 3rd generation. When we get together, it's about 110 of us, including spouses.
Most companies like three or 4 percent family businesses make it to the fourth generation and there really isn't any good data of who makes it to the fifth generations though. It sounds like, you've had the good fortune to own good land.
April LaMon
You've been in the path of progress as you've described it. One of the other things that I recall you mentioning is how you invest in the communities in which you're doing these projects. Can you talk a little bit more about that philosophy?
John Darby
We try to invest in the community wherever we do business and you'll see us at a groundbreaking, we'll contribute to a nonprofit in the area and same thing with the ribbon cutting. And, that's just, something that we have done for decades and it's goodwill, but we feel like it's the right thing to do. We want to be welcome it's a way to accomplish that.
April LaMon
Yeah, that's terrific. And of course, you have that very strong legacy in your own backyard there in Charleston. How do you spread that? I'm sure you're relying on their workforce their residents for the future success of those projects. So just makes a whole lot of sense.
I'd like to turn our attention to Kiawah River because that's where our paths crossed this amazing project. Like most of these projects, it can be a slog to get them entitled and out of the ground.
And you're asking people to do things they haven't done before, maybe at the county or municipal level. Can you tell us a little bit about how that whole project came to be?
John Darby
We purchased Kiawah River, and back then it was called Mullet Hall. It was a very popular place to go hunting and, play with nature, beautiful oak trees and wildlife.
We bought it thinking that everything else that was happening on John's Island, this land would appreciate faster - fast forward about 20 years. I thought it was time to entitle it and develop it so we approached the county. We're not in the municipality. It took us 10 years to entitle the property.
We had to design and get a private sewer system in place. Didn't have any zoning. And it was the 1st development agreement ever done in Charleston County. And then we went through the Great Recession in the middle of all that. We came out the other end and teamed up with, close family, friends the McNair family invested in developing property.
April LaMon
You're in the shadow of a big well known development called Kiawah Island, right? That has all kinds of perceptions and expectations how did you think about Kiawah River? You have Seabrook Island, Kiawah Island. All established, very successful communities.
John Darby
So we're thinking, what will Kiawah River be? We didn't have the ocean. I was surrounded by gulf
Kiawah Island, Seabrook and have their own identity. And, we thought about that. Let's embrace the wildlife, the nature, make it very casual, even though we were zoned to build a big hotel, we went with a boutique, high end hotel, no club, and so far it's been the right decision.
April LaMon
One of the things that I've learned more about and you've shared with me is there were a couple of farmers there on this land as well, and took the mindset of leave them be. What became of that part of the property?
John Darby
It's interesting. I get that question a lot, how did you plan the AgriHood? In all of our research design charrettes, we never even said the word. It just happened. There are some farmers that have been on the property for generations, the Limehouse family, the Freeman family, these are well known people on John's Island. So we said, look, we don't need this land today. Let's just work around the farmers and see how that goes. And that led to the goatery. They raise about 150 goats and they have goat milk, goat cheese.
People can come visit, have events. They have goat yoga every Saturday morning and then they have chickens and pigs and cattle out there, beef cattle, when you think about the farm stand where they sell the produce.
And where they grow it and the livestock, it's bigger than most neighborhoods it's become a huge amenity, if not the best amenity at Kiawah River. Not everybody wants to go down there and, dig up sweet potatoes, but some do and they love the fact that I’m.
April LaMon
Eating off the land and they buy their produce and feed their families and it's very authentic to the state to the land itself. So I'm sure it feels like part of being home.
Some of the highest priced homes overlook the farm. Speaking of that, didn't you have the southern living home of the year?
John Darby
We did. It had over 20,000 visitors. And they built it in one year from start to finish. It's the first time we've ever been involved with the Southern Living Ideal Home.
It came to be because, one of the Associates at Southern Living had Charleston roots. It happened real fast. We were so glad it happened. No other way we could have brought 20,000 people through. Some of those people eventually, contacted us about real estate and bought a home.
April LaMon
The home sold, at 5.4 million. Wow. It's gorgeous. I was looking through the article from the magazine last night, and it was fascinating where in the community they chose to build that home. I imagine you probably would have let them build any way they wanted to.
John Darby
Absolutely. Yeah, they choose to be right next to the farm. That's amazing. You mentioned Belinda's name to me yesterday when we were chatting and, She asked a really good question, right? So we brought Belinda Seward in to do a survey. We really wanted to figure out our target market.
Who would want to live at Kiawah River and this type of community. She did extensive research. She had multiple survey groups. And she came back and said, these are the 30, top things. You should consider to have in your community.
The top five was nature, health, food experience, art, and walkability, the high end amenity, with the pool, golf and ocean access and so forth. It wasn't even on the top 30. The other thing she said when your customer comes to review the property.
They are more committed than your normal prospect. If you want to live in the Charleston region is, there's dozens communities you can go look at. You want to live. On John's Island and have this type of atmosphere and things to do in community is not many. So she said, when they come, they know what they're looking for.
And she was spot on. It's a high conversion rate when someone makes the appointment and comes there, they are already. 50-80% committed. You just need to make sure you can fit them in a house that they want and so forth. And we went back and survey some of the homeowners.
And says, when did you know this is where you wanted to live? Many of them said, the right end. And, and the right end, it does, have a little bit of everything Kiawah River is about. Wildlife, water, you see the farm. It represents the lifestyle here well. We get this comment a lot, is it really does look like you're marketing, you go to your website, you go to the brochure or social media.
And of course, find the right home. And I know you have lots of options there as well. It's really exciting, I know, for your community and for St. John's Island. It doesn't come without a few bumps and bruises along the way.
April LaMon
Looking back in the rear view mirror, but where there's some lessons that you learned along the way that you want to share with others?
John Darby
I think anyone in the community like this probably has the same challenges. Communication is always a challenge.
We do a newsletter. We've had a lot of time and effort in communication, but you can't, Make everybody follow it and read it. We just invested in the app. We think it's going to do really well. That's been well received. I think a little over 80 percent of the community has already signed up.
Construction traffic is an ongoing battle. We have all different vendors. Subcontractors coming on the property every day and policing that. We do the best we can, but it's just an ongoing challenge. And then resident expectations, we did not.
Design the community around a club, wanted to stay away from the atmosphere everyone has access to everything. And we do try to present a club. Atmosphere, but it's not a club. The property owners dues pays for most of all that, but resident expectations is always a challenge and managing that we have a vision and insight committee with some residents that we get together every so often and discuss, how we can make the community better.
What are you hearing out there challenges and so forth. And then the other is just integrating a hotel, a very high end hotel with the residents. And that’s going really well, probably better than we all expected. But it's a challenge. It's not something you can just turn your back on and say it'll work out.
April LaMon
That's awesome. John, before we wrap up, I would love to come back to you and ask you a couple of questions to get to know you a bit better. The first that we ask our guests is about sources of inspiration.
Now, what do you look to keep yourself at the top of your game and enthusiastic and excited and leading a big team? And what fuels you?
John Darby
I talk to interesting smart people like you, listening to podcasts, books, I go to several conferences. Every year and you get great ideas, but I would probably say that my travels, visiting different places, particularly similar to what we do at the beach company.
I always come home inspired. Yeah, and I would say, we can do that, and so I would say I get good ideas. Or good things to think about that we can practice here or anywhere in the Beach Company, but when we decided to go forward with Kiawah River we visited a lot of successful places and, one thing developers do well is they learn from each other typically, the developers are anxious to. Share what worked and what didn't. And we do the same and I would say that's probably where I get a lot of my best ideas.
April LaMon
The last question, just to wrap things up, it's what advice would you give the 25 year old John Darby knowing what you've been through, can you reflect back on some advice you would offer?
John Darby
I would say practice patience. When I was 25, I wanted, everything to move at lightning speed, right? Even today with technology and every. Every business, every thing that's made is how quickly can we do it? You just can't rush real estate.
So for a 25 year old the best advice I could offer you is practice patience, it takes time. It's not always about what you create.
It's sometimes what you protect and if you do it you'll create a legacy for future generations. And that's maybe a lot for someone right out of college to understand. Some of the best projects out there, best communities you will understand how long it took. For those things to happen, hope that helps.
April LaMon
And it is, it's probably one of the most popular questions. So great advice. I agree with you. They can take that to heart. John, this has been such a pleasure.
Thank you so much for spending this time with us. Appreciate your candor and sharing, and letting us know more about the Beach Company and Kiawah River.
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