2021 was a successful year for Shenandoah Valley’s economic growth.
“We have exceeded what we anticipated from a business activity perspective,” says Jay Langston, executive director of the Shenandoah Valley Partnership, dedicated to promoting local economic development. “When government shut down in 2020, we thought, ‘What in the world are we going to do?’ That lasted about a month. We only saw a temporary blip in business activity, and it came back in a big way.”
In fact, in 2021, the Shenandoah Valley Partnership worked with businesses on over $165 million in investments set to create 650 jobs.
Economic growth in Augusta County
Augusta County’s attempts to attract manufacturing companies, especially in the food and beverage sector, have been a success: Cava, the Washington, D.C.-based Mediterranean restaurant chain, is now set to establish a new 57,000-square-foot processing and packaging operation in Mill Place Commerce Park. They’re going to invest over $30 million and create 52 jobs.
“It’s a great fit for the county,” says Rebekah Castle, Augusta’s director of economic development and marketing. “The company is wonderful to work with, and we are looking forward to their opening in the next few years.”
Once they open, strong marketing will play a key role in customer retention. Promotional merchandise, in particular, is an effective marketing method able to generate brand awareness and encourage customers and sales. With a good heat press machine, Shenandoah Valley and Augusta County businesses can easily create branded clothing to promote themselves. In fact, by investing in a multi-purpose heat press machine, it’s possible to also print onto mugs and plates, as well as textiles.
Waynesboro’s economic boom
Waynesboro is also seeing a boom in small local businesses, new development, and expansions.
“We have weathered the storm of COVID-19 pretty well. Most of our manufacturing firms are in hiring mode now”, says Greg Hitchin, the city’s director of economic development and tourism.
Additionally, Mitchener Properties LLC, an Augusta County-based private developer, is set to open Waynesboro Marketplace this spring or summer with Popeyes Chicken, Sheetz, Aspen Dental, Chipotle, and Take 5 Oil Change being initial tenants. The Virginia Museum of Natural History also plans to open a natural science interpretation facility in downtown Waynesboro in 2025. It’s expected to attract 65,000 visitors every year.
The Shenandoah Valley Partnership intends to keep a number of measures implemented during the pandemic.
“Doing business the same old way doesn’t work in the current dynamic environment,” Langston says. “The virtual environment allowed us to deliver our message in more efficient ways. Also, we are much more heavily engaged in outreach marketing with high return-on-investment programs, and we are paying much more attention to talent retention and attraction, as well as quality-of-life messaging.”
Overall, the valley is on the same page when it comes to the area’s economic growth, despite the individual “sub-regions hav[ing] different goals and means of achieving them,” Langston says. “We have been blessed by a region that collaborates and works to solve problems.”
Story by Meg Travis
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