Inaugural Launchpad Real Estate Entrepreneurship Symposium draws 150, connects professionals from across the industry

More than 30 professionals from residential, commercial and alternative real estate, along with experts in real estate technologies and financing gathered for Clemson University’s inaugural Launchpad Real Estate Entrepreneurship Symposium at the Brook T. Smith Launchpad in downtown Clemson last month.

Attended by 150 students, faculty, staff and community members, the event is part of a yearlong series designed to educate and empower South Carolina entrepreneurs, Clemson students and alumni.

The Launchpad is the University’s Entrepreneurship Hub located in downtown Clemson at 390 College Avenue. It conducts eight symposiums a year focused on topics that include the life sciences, medical devices, new venture financing and sports entrepreneurship. The final symposium for this semester will feature “The Business of AI” on Friday, April 24, 2026. All are welcome to attend with an RSVP.

The real estate symposium was made possible with support from co-chairs D. Reid Townsend ’95 and Robertson Allen ’99, M’00. They brought together a national network of Clemson-affiliated experts, including faculty, alumni and parents, so that attendees could examine and discuss career and investment opportunities in the critical, evolving real estate sector.

Networking with industry leaders

The event kicked off Thursday night with a VIP dinner and networking opportunity for those who arrived from across the country, including Bob Horvath ‘98 of Boston. He said the symposium marked his first visit back to campus in nearly 30 years.

“I am thrilled that I had the opportunity to participate,” Horvath said. “Incredible colleagues. Incredible agenda. It made me realize how I can’t ever let time slip away again like that before I come back.”

Launchpad Founding Director John Hannon and Senior Director of Development Chris Peters, along with Townsend and Robertson, worked throughout 2025 to plan and organize the inaugural symposium. By Fall, they were able to announce the March event at a kickoff in Charleston attended by several dozen real estate leaders from across South Carolina.

Topics for the symposium included “Real Estate Education, A Multigenerational Perspective,” real estate finance and investing, as well as emerging and alternative types of real estate. Attendees also participated in two panels — one with residential real estate experts and one with commercial real estate speakers.

“This is a fabulous example of how accomplished industry leaders can step up with ideas and resources to impact hundreds of eager students in one fell swoop,” Hannon said. “This is a pebble-in-the-pond moment. The ripple effect from this event will go out far and wide for years to come.”

Over the course of the day Friday, students from a variety of majors, including business, architecture and construction science, mingled and networked with  a wide range of real estate industry professionals.

“Prior to planning this symposium, the co-chairs had never worked together, but from the beginning, our skills truly complemented each other as we collaborated to make the event a success,” Townsend said. “I’m commercial, whereas Robertson Allen has a residential real estate background — and we both know a ton about the latest technological and financing trends.

“We called a few of our current friends, got referred to some new ones and, boom, our roster was built.”

Future symposiums

Although the event marked the Launchpad’s first-ever real estate-focused professional event, it will not be the last. In the coming months, additional student-centric real estate initiatives are in planning at the Launchpad. Work is already under way for a 2027 symposium.

“We heard from numerous VIP invitees that they regretted not putting this year’s symposium on their calendars,” said Allen. “I have every reason to think that we will double the number of speakers, sessions  and attendees next year.”

The Brook T. Smith Launchpad is the entrepreneurship hub of Clemson University and is located in a 9,000-square-foot commercial space in downtown Clemson. The hub provides educational, networking and support opportunities to students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members. Learn more about the Launchpad and its offerings by visiting them online.