Where does a Navy Seal go with an idea to improve the treatment of critical wounds on the battlefield? How do you ensure one-hundred percent accuracy of a guided missile? What can you do to make sure critical components can withstand the extreme environment of outer space? All of these…
*Please note: There’s been an exciting update to the Blue Ridge Bucha story. Please read the entire article for the full story.* Over a decade ago, Ethan Zuckerman started an interesting hobby. He began homebrewing kombucha, a fermented tea that’s flavored and served cold. Kombucha is heralded as a lower-…
When Brian Mininger was a kid, something exciting happened in his Waynesboro neighborhood – a construction crew began working on his street. To many, this may seem like an ordinary, even unnoteworthy scene, but young Brian was fascinated. He’d rush through breakfast and make his way to the site, passing…
Cael Kendall’s lifelong sustainability journey has landed under the soaring beams of a heavy-timber warehouse in Waynesboro, Virginia. But once, it began in the mists of the coastal Rocky Mountains, in the old growth forests of British Columbia. Born into an era of clearcutting booms, Cael spent his childhood watching…
Inventing the Perfect Bagel When Janet Dob wanted to invent a bagel that could build a better world, she had a few things in mind: healthy and nutritious food, a worthy business plan, and a winning strategy to avoid the up-before-the-sun hours of traditional bakeries. Fortunately, Janet loves a good…
Initial Inspiration runs what founder and owner Jennifer Ledford calls an “Idea Factory.” Curious customers with t-shirt concepts, costume ideas, Pinterest images, embroidery designs, and more are welcomed into the business’s production studio for collaborative and personalized fabric and design creations. “If you’ve seen it on the Internet,” she says,…
The first pressing question upon arriving at PEV Labs in Waynesboro is obvious: Would you like to ride the Dork Pod? An inviting yet slightly terrifying brainchild of Brian Williford, the Dork Pod boasts a zero degree turning radius and one-thumb navigation controls. But it is only one of many…
Boom Town to Brewery Basic City once sat at the crossroads of two railroads and the coming industrial boom. Founded in 1890, the town experienced a three-year rally of manufacturing investments in the “basic” process of turning pig iron into steal. For its moment, prior to a national depression beginning…
Rockfish Gap is in the business of outfitting smiles on rivers, bicycles, and trails in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Chuck Walker is a 40-year veteran of the outdoor business, but he still insists that the joy and satisfaction of his customers is his number-one priority. “The people who shop here…
The Farmhaus Coffee Co. might be ringing in its one year anniversary this winter, but its roots and connections to Waynesboro run much deeper. “We knew we wanted to be a coffee shop that functioned as a gathering place,” says Bethany Mallory, who co-owns the business with her husband Aaron.…