Farmville, Virginia, is centrally located in the Heart of Virginia, just a day’s drive from 76 percent of the United States population. The Farmville area is the primary commerce center for seven counties with a service area of over 150,000. As the home of two outstanding institutions of higher education, Hampden-Sydney College and Longwood University, the community is alive with cultural, commercial and entrepreneurial opportunities.
Numerous shopping centers and an historic downtown shopping district offer a retail selection to rival metropolitan areas. With regular additions of new businesses on Main Street and beyond, retail sales in Farmville have increased year over year, topping $358 million in 2017. Overall, business revenues of all types are growing steadily, with an increase of 4.7 percent in 2017.
Abundant natural resources offer opportunities for visitors and businesses alike. High Bridge Trail is a major attraction, crossing Main Street in the heart of the historic downtown. The trail boasts the longest recreational bridge in Virginia, providing opportunities for hikers, bikers and horseback riders and the businesses that serve them. Natural resources also support our many agricultural businesses, including wood products and many small local food producers.
The Farmville area offers excellent publicly owned site options for industrial and business locations in the Prince Edward County Business Park, the Farmville Industrial Park and the Virginia’s Heartland Regional Park in Keysville.
Prince Edward County Business Park is home to Southside Virginia YMCA, Lowe’s, Social Security Administration offices and Virginia Department of Transportation district offices. Three of the county’s major manufacturers are also located in the Business Park, including Tri-Boro Shelving and Partitions Corporation and Tri-Boro Rack and Storage are manufacturers of metal shelving, racks and storage units. Paris Ceramics USA, Inc. manufactures high-end stone tiles, countertops and specialty decorative stone items, all custom order. The Prince Edward County location is their only warehouse internationally.
Farmville Industrial Park is the home of YakAttack, a leader in the kayak fishing industry, that manufactures kayak fishing gear designed and made in the USA.
J.R. Tharpe Trucking Co., Inc. is a family-owned, local trucking business that serves Virginia, North Carolina, West Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Maryland and has operated for over 45 years, providing contract hauling, front end loader service, and excavator service.
Other businesses that are part of the industrial and manufacturing base of the region include CMC Rebar Virginia, which manufactures rebar for the construction industry, and Asal Lumber Company.
Non-manufacturing major employers include:
- Longwood University
- Hampden-Sydney College
- Green Front Furniture
- The Woodland Inc.
- Centra Health & Centra PACE
- Crossroad Services Board
- Trinity Mission of Farmville
- Home Recovery
- Helton House Inc.
Workforce Development
Prince Edward County is part of the Certified Work-Ready Communities Program. The program is designed to assist an area in developing its workforce pipeline to provide skilled workers for employers. Working toward becoming a certified location, the county is dedicated to investing in this designation, which requires reaching targeted amounts of individuals earning the ACT National Career Readiness Certificate. The county’s certification as a Certified Work-Ready Community, along with the certifications of the individuals in the workforce, will help to attract new industry by showing that the area is ready for business with a skilled workforce.