Experience Clemson is reopening in downtown Greenville with a new plan

GREENVILLE — Located on the highly visible ground-floor space in the One Building on Main Street in Greenville, Experience Clemson has undergone a renovation and revamping.

The glass-fronted space will have a grand reopening Friday, Sept. 28, as a welcome center where visitors can connect to Clemson University’s people, places, programs and traditions. Director Ellis Burnett thinks of it as “a visitor’s center in Greenville” that can tell guests what is new and exciting at the university in the areas of academics, research and athletics.

Experience Clemson opened in 2015 in the One Building, whose upper floors are home to Clemson’s MBA and other graduate school programs. It was an interactive brand center where visitors could don headsets to listen to stories about Clemson, make a virtual run down The Hill in Memorial Stadium and rub a replica of Howard’s Rock.

While the rock is still there, Experience Clemson now will be a “touch point” for people in Greenville, where more than 16,000 alumni, 500 Clemson employees and 1,000 students live. Groups with a connection to Clemson University can have gatherings and meetings at Experience Clemson.

“We hope we can be more of an asset to people in Greenville without them having to come to the main campus,” Burnett said. “We want Experience Clemson to be a showcase for the Clemson brand and a home away from home for the Clemson Family,” she said.

A May graduate of Clemson’s parks, recreation and tourism management program, Burnett is putting her classroom and internship experience in event planning to use.

Burnett is training her student ambassadors to answer questions and provide information to visitors who are interested in admissions, exploring graduate programs, connecting with the Alumni Association or just learning more about Clemson. They will have brochures, information and some exclusive Experience Clemson-branded items for sale, including shirts, backpacks and insulated mugs.

Experience Clemson is open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Friday and will open during some downtown events. It has a social media presence, too, on Facebook and Instagram.

On Thursdays and Fridays before Clemson home football games, Fanatics will set up a pop-up shop at Experience Clemson to sell Clemson-branded gear to fans. This week, Fanatics will be there for Friday’s reopening.