eMYRge

eMYRge is a nonprofit in downtown Myrtle Beach where founders, remote workers, and entrepreneurs work, learn, and connect.

Coworking, education, and community, all in one place.

09/02/2026

Every other Tuesday, a room at 509 9th Ave N fills up with people who build things for a living, and nobody brings a slide deck.

That's TECH TALK Tuesday. No pitch, no polish, just peers working through the messy middle together over lunch.

Trent Robinson, cofounder of Plaqrd.io, keeps coming back for the same reason a lot of people do. "I like putting myself in rooms full of people who know more than I do... I just listen, ask questions, and absorb as much as I can." What sticks with him is how specific it gets. "Someone will mention a tool, workflow, or way of thinking about tech that I never would have considered." More than once he's walked out with a new way to do something he hadn't thought of before.

Product managers, designers, engineers, data folks, founders, anyone actually shaping tech around here, this is your room. Everyone talks, nobody dominates, and what gets said in the room, stays in the room.

Next session is September 8, 12 to 1 PM, at eMYRge.
Request to join: https://luma.com/7luwd5d5

09/01/2026

The most expensive mistake in a startup is building something nobody needs.

That is the exact thing the Lean Canvas was designed to catch. Before you map your solution, you map the problem. Who has it, how badly, and what they are doing about it right now. Get that wrong and everything downstream is wasted effort.

Lean Canvas at eMYRge is a working session, not a lecture. You put your whole business on one page and pressure-test it in the room, with other founders asking the questions you have been avoiding.

Come once to get an idea out of your head and onto paper. Come back monthly and watch it change. The canvas is built to be redrawn.

Join us Thursday, September 3, 11:00 AM. If you have been circling an idea without pinning it down, this is a good one to walk into.

Registration link for this free session is in the comments.

08/31/2026

Five years ago, eMYRge did not exist. Joe Clarke was sitting at a table at Cowork MYR, the space that came before it, when he was asked: do you want to help build the board for a nonprofit we haven't started yet.

He said yes, and treated it like the technical problem it was. No policies, no procedures, no back office, just a small group deciding what needed to exist and building it in order. Joe has run his own company for 15 years and worked as a CTO evaluating what to build and when to slow down and harden it. That same instinct shaped eMYRge's early architecture: figure out what's load-bearing, get it stable, then scale.

Joe is also, by his own description, close to the exact profile eMYRge was built to serve: an engineer who understands entrepreneurship because he's lived both sides of it. That's not incidental. It's why he's still at the table five years in.

What keeps him there is bigger than governance. He sees Myrtle Beach as underbuilt for the people it could keep: remote engineers, technical founders, anyone who could do this work from anywhere and would choose here if there were a real professional community to plug into. Affordability and quality of life get people to look. What's been missing is the room where they'd actually stay, find mentors, and build something. Joe has spent five years on the board trying to make eMYRge that room.

08/28/2026

Tuesday, we cut the ribbon on something that signals where the Myrtle Beach area is heading.

When eMYRge at the HTC Aspire Hub opened in 2022, 5,000 square feet held six offices and two meeting rooms. Within four years, more space was needed. The expansion opened in May, adding another 5,000 square feet. We waited to celebrate. Let the dust settle. Let people get comfortable. Then invited everyone in to mark what this moment really means.

People were invited and oh did they show up! High energy. Casual. Happy. Not stuffy. From our broad membership to stakeholders from around the region, it felt like the room to be in. Stuart Butler, President of Visit Myrtle Beach, gave opening remarks. Mayor Mark Kruea from the City of Myrtle Beach spoke and gave a glowing review of what was accomplished.

Then Joe Clarke, our board chair, stood up. His reflection landed differently. He talked about being part of the startup community before eMYRge even existed. Watching how far this has come. Why it matters to him to be part of it now. As a startup founder himself, he spoke to what it means to have a community like this.

Then came the moment everyone was waiting for. Executive Director, Jenny Halstead was handed the giant scissors, but she wanted to make sure everyone felt like they were cutting the ribbon too!

This is not a finish line. This is an inflection point. We cannot wait to see what comes next.

Giant thanks to the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce
Photo Credit: Trent Robinson

08/27/2026

Next week at eMYRge, two rooms worth putting on your calendar. And the best part? They're free!

Wednesday, September 2 at 9:00 AM, pull up a chair at 1 Million Cups Myrtle Beach hear how a founder actually built it, and get to ask the things you really want to know. This week that founder is Redwood Creative Studio's Dylan and Carly Thompson, who built their Myrtle Beach agency on the conviction that strong brands come from strategy, not templates. Ask them what they'd do differently. That's the whole point of the room.
Register: https://luma.com/ermdv9qv

Thursday, September 3 at 11:00 AM, bring your idea to the Lean Canvas Workshop and leave with a plan you can test. This is a working session where you'll map your problem, your customers, your value proposition, channels, revenue, and the edge only you have, all on a single page. It's applied strategy, not a lecture, so you do the work and walk out with a mind-blowing canvas Come solo or bring your team.
Register: https://luma.com/f2vs00yu

Two very different mornings, one throughline: you, in a room with the people building alongside you, doing the work.

08/26/2026

Ten early-stage tech company founders completed twelve weeks in the Launchpad incubator. Tuesday night, they pitched.

The room was packed. Overflow seating needed.

That is the moment. Not just the awards. The courage it takes to stand in front of judges and a full room and say "this is what I built." Ten companies showed up. They did the work. They pitched. That matters.

Eugina Jordan won the grand prize for Unified AI: $500 from First Citizens Bank and the Sword of Success, given to the night's winner for slaying a multitude of demons on the founder journey. Savannah Johnson took best pitch. Oz Merchant was named best mentor.

But here is what really stood out. Paul Feirstein from CCU. Noah Whitlock from HGTC. Daniel O'Sullivan, CPO at Crave Retail, entrepreneur, and member of the eMYRge Board. Three people from different corners of our community, all in one room to evaluate real companies. That does not happen by accident.

And the room itself. Founders. eMYRge members. Family. Friends. Community members. Out of town guests. All there to see nine people bet on themselves. This is what Myrtle Beach looks like when it shows up for itself.

First Citizens Bank and Pepsi Myrtle Beach backed it. That is what real support looks like.

If you missed it, you saw what you are missing. If you are thinking about building something, this is the room to be part of. Ten companies risked something.

The whole room showed up for that.

08/25/2026

The stage is set. 🎉

Today's the day. We cut the ribbon on a bigger eMYRge at 3:30, and from 5 to 8 our first Launchpad founders take the stage.

This milestone belongs to the whole community, the people who showed up, believed early, and built this alongside us. You'll be in the room today, and that's the whole point.

Everyone's invited. Come celebrate with us.

08/20/2026

Golf is one of the last places people expect to find some of the most innovative technology. The people who play it know better, and the companies proving it are coming here.

The first eMYRge GTAC cohort is set. A national group of companies got selected to work across club fitting, how courses run, how you book a round, and the business of golf itself. This October they spend three days downtown, building in front of the courses and operators who run the game every day.

The full lineup of the October 2026 cohort! Press release and details are in the comments

08/19/2026

Three minutes is not a lot of time. It is also exactly enough to lose a room, close a deal, or change someone's mind about what you are building.

Present and Pitch at eMYRge is a monthly hands-on workshop held right here at the HTC Aspire Hub on 9th Avenue in Myrtle Beach, led by Mckean Nowlin for founders, professionals, and anyone on the Grand Strand who needs to communicate with more impact. This month's session focuses entirely on the 3-minute pitch, the format with no room for filler where every sentence has to earn its place. You deliver live, get real-time coaching and peer feedback from the room, and leave with a tighter version than you walked in with.

This month's session also doubles as practice for anyone competing in the Launchpad Graduation and Pitch competition on August 25, where the 3-minute format is the standard. No entry into the competition required. If you are a Myrtle Beach founder prepping for a big meeting, a local professional who presents to clients or leadership, or just someone who wants to get sharper under pressure, this room was built for you.

Open to members and non-members. Seats are limited. Registration required. Link in the comments. The next session is tomorrow!

08/18/2026

Twelve weeks in the Launchpad Incubator comes down to one night on stage.

On August 25, this cohort of founders graduates and pitches what they built: what they made, what they learned, and where they are taking it next. Real companies at the stage where the next few months decide a lot.

The same evening, we are cutting the ribbon on eMYRge's expansion. New offices, meeting rooms, and event space. Already open, already full.

3:30 Expansion ribbon cutting
5:00 Launchpad graduation and pitch night

The ribbon cutting is why the room is bigger. These founders are why it fills up.

Free to attend, and space is limited. If you want to see what is being built in Myrtle Beach, this is the night to do it.

RSVP here: https://luma.com/emyrge-hfk1

Address

509 9th Avenue North
Myrtle Beach, SC
29577

Website

http://www.emyrge.org/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when eMYRge posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to eMYRge:

Want your business to be the top-listed Business in Myrtle Beach?