Frank Wells, Founder & CEO
Holy City Med wasn’t started by a doctor. It was started by Frank Wells — a Charleston businessman who grew up learning that caring for people is the job. This is his story, and how it became Holy City Med.
1973It Started at Piggly Wiggly
It started before I was old enough to know it was starting.
I was not supposed to be bagging groceries at the Piggly Wiggly at 9 years old. My parents wanted me to learn customer service, hard work, long hours, and personal accountability — and it worked.
My dad ran public accounting for Piggly Wiggly for 20 years, then bought the small store in Summerville in 1973. I worked for 25 cents an hour, and tips could double that.
“I could afford to buy as much candy as my nine-year-old body could consume.”
A few years laterFrom Piggly Wiggly to Dairy Queen
A dream job for a preteen.
Then he bought the Dairy Queen on Rivers Avenue. My brothers and I left mom running the grocery store and spent our days cooking burgers and dipping cones into liquid chocolate that firmed as it cooled.
Dinner-table conversations were about customer counts, margins and revenue. And about my parents serving people — feeding the homeless, looking after the employees who made it all run.
“I learned that it was a true honour to care for employees and to serve our community.”
The next 30 yearsThe HealthFirst Years
Healthcare as a competitive advantage — most businesses didn’t even know they were missing it.
Over the next 30 years Frank helped business owners rebuild their companies. In 12 years operating, growing and selling the HealthFirst medical clinics, he learned that local, same-day healthcare was a competitive advantage most businesses never knew they were missing.
