“Curiosity is a secret weapon”: Clemson alumna to speak on the journey from humanities to entrepreneurship

Growing up in the tiny town of Mayesville, SC, never stopped Racquel “Rocky” Collier ’18, M ’19 from building big things.

“It doesn’t have a stoplight,” she recalls. “There’s one store and one post office.”

Now she is the founder and CEO of Caliber Real Estate, a development and asset management firm. Her portfolio includes the development of a 52-lot townhome subdivision, management of over 20,000 square feet of commercial real estate, and oversight of more than 1,300 multifamily units.

A two-time Clemson graduate with a bachelor’s degree in English and a master’s in real estate development, she will return to Clemson on October 22 from 5-7:30 p.m. for College of Arts and Humanities Week at the Brook T. Smith Launchpad.

Turning Points

Collier arrived at Clemson as a chemistry major with her sights set on being an anesthesiologist.

“That’s because at the time when they asked 18-year-olds what they wanted to be, the easiest thing was to Google ‘highest paying jobs in America,’ and that’s what I landed on,” she explained. But she soon learned that the sciences were not for her, and she switched to a major in English with an emphasis on writing and publication studies.

Once in the major, one of her professors had a profound impact on her thinking.

“Dr. Megan Eatman is my absolute favorite at Clemson,” she said. “Once I started taking her courses, I understood how to look at the world a little bit differently.”

She credits Eatman and other members of the English faculty with helping her to question media, read deeply, think critically and ultimately bridge the gap between her own varied interests and real estate.

“I remember being in her class and thinking, ‘Now I understand that buildings communicate with the communities they are in,’” she said.

Entrepreneurship, in general, is about identifying a problem and then offering a solution for that problem.

Racquel “Rocky” Collier, CEO, Caliber Real Estate

Disc jockey to CEO

While Collier’s English major helped her to define how to make an impact in the world, it was far from the only part of her Clemson Experience that shaped her future.

“Somewhere along the journey, I started deejaying in college. That was my true entrepreneurial start,” she noted.

She worked as a disc jockey for parties, then weddings, then for the Greenville Drive — work which she said “fueled the entrepreneurial side” of her.

Two other experiences as a Clemson student also shaped her dreams for the future. The first was a mission trip to the Dominican Republic on which she and friends helped build a home for a local family. The second was her leadership of the Clemson Black Student Union.

“Leadership on campus was very important for me,” she said.

Still, as she neared the end of her college career, she knew that being a D.J. wouldn’t fulfill her long-term career goals. A mentor who knew of her desire to build community and be an entrepreneur steered her toward Clemson’s Master of Real Estate Development program.

“The MRED program set us up with so many connections, and I found out where I wanted to fit in this ever-evolving field,” she explained.

Shortly after she graduated, the COVID-19 pandemic struck. Her opportunities to work as a D.J. dried up, and the real estate landscape of the Upstate began to change dramatically. She founded Caliber Real Estate in 2021 and never looked back.

Third Places

“Entrepreneurship, in general, is about identifying a problem and then offering a solution for that problem,” Collier explained. There is one problem that Collier is still actively working to solve: third places.

“At the end of 2022, I decided I wanted to just try something different — I stopped drinking,” she recalled. “I would realize, in the mornings, I could go work at a coffee shop and enjoy myself there, but around five o’clock it’s time to transition to do something else. But the only options would be restaurants or bars, and that’s it.”

Collier saw a need for “third places,” which is a term for where people can exist that is neither their home nor their work. She is actively working to develop third places where people can build community without being under immediate pressure to buy alcohol or other goods.

“I’m looking for a community where I can go, and exist, and just be,” she said.

Superpower and secret weapon

As Collier prepared to return to speak to students in English and other humanities majors, she reflected on the advantage of a liberal arts education even on teams that develop real estate.

“It is a superpower,” she said. “I’ve noticed the difference between people who don’t have such a diverse team versus the ones that do, and their spaces are the ones that feel better.”

She said she plans to stress the importance of community, hospitality and endless curiosity.

“I think curiosity is a secret weapon. It’s definitely my secret weapon,” she explained. “Find someone you’re comfortable with to ask those questions because questions often open up doors to different areas that you probably wouldn’t see on the surface.”