Groomed For Success

Brent Skinner has a special appreciation for quality clothing and college sports, and he’s turned his retail success with the first into a future gift for the second.

A 1996 graduate of the University of South Carolina, Skinner owns B.P. Skinner Clothiers, a premium men’s clothing store he launched in Columbia in 2012. He and his wife, Marlo, have grown it into a very successful business that builds on relationships they’ve cultivated since Skinner completed his sports management degree 25 years ago. The Skinners are huge fans of Gamecock football, basketball, baseball and golf, and they have designated the Athletics Department as the beneficiary of a significant life insurance policy.

Their gift will one day support Gamecock sports, but they are not waiting until then to show their appreciation for Gamecock Nation. “We give away a men’s blazer at every home football game for the Gamecock Club Legendary Fan of the Game,” Skinner says. “We’ve done that for a long time, and it’s become a very popular thing.”

For Skinner, the motivation for the estate gift is simple. “You look back and see everything the university has done for you—to help you get to the stage in life where you are—and you want to do what you can in return.”

The Skinners hope their legacy at the university will extend beyond their financial planning as their two daughters, Emily and Lauren, look toward their own educational futures as Gamecocks. Their oldest daughter, Emily, is a rising high school senior with her sights set on business and law degrees from South Carolina.