COMMUNITY

Ventures in the Countryside: A Rural Entrepreneur’s Guidebook

There are many considerations when starting any business, and for rural entrepreneurs there is a laundry list of practical concerns both unique and familiar. Is there a local labor pool large enough to support the venture? What does access to resources such as internet and transportation look like? Will potential customers be willing to make the hike for the offered services?

Country Benefits

The most auspicious time to reach out to businesses making their way in the countryside may not have been during the first snow of the season. For many, state maintenance ends before their property lines begin, meaning they are on their own when it comes to inclement weather. The tradeoff though?

“When I’m out there I feel like I’m on vacation,” says Corbin Snow, owner

BY EMILY CURRIER

and president of Snow’s Garden Center in Belmont and his new venture The Blue Ridge Farm in Nelson County. The area is blessed with an abundance of gorgeous scenery, rolling grass and mountain views that more and more entrepreneurs want to enjoy, though not without consideration of the terrain’s demands and desires.

Sharon Merrick, REALTOR® with Roy Wheeler Realty Co., explains as well that “many people want privacy, but they don’t want to be too remote. Many are relocating from densely populated areas where they’ve lived in subdivisions or tight quarters.”

Marketing

When Snow began looking for an additional location for his family-founded business, he started in Charlottesville and Albemarle County before he discovered a property on Route 151, also known as the Brewridge Trail due to the bountiful numbers of breweries, wineries, and distilleries along the corridor. He originally planned to build a garden center on the site, but as he considered the property and the existing structures, he began to formulate a different plan: an event venue with a reception or wedding barn and onsite rentals via AirBNB.

Lower Sherwood Farm, a llama farm halfway between Charlottesville and Scottsville, also employs AirBNB for their marketing efforts, exclusively advertising their llama walks as a special ‘experience.’ Another family-run business, Lower Sherwood Farm was founded in 1986 by current co-owner Paige McGraph’s mother. They began doing tours of the farm, featuring 39

llamas, 3 horses, 4 alpacas, 12 angora goats, and an assortment of cats and dogs, in 2016.

To get even closer to nature and the animals, the farm offers camping through the booking site Hip Camp. Part of the draw, says co-owner Steven Harrison, is their proximity to Charlottesville but with relative isolation.

Open for Agritourism

Merrick, who manages properties in Albemarle and surrounding counties, has witnessed a shift in buying patterns as Albemarle zoning regulations and AirBNB standards become more restrictive. “You have to have a from the degradation and problems you see happening in the big cities of California and New York. Here you can purchase fairly large tracts of land and do anything you would like.”

Al Schornberg and his wife Cindy founded Keswick Vineyards in 2000 after searching the country, from California to Texas, for the appropriate place to call home for their winery. The picturesque quality of the southwest mountains along with the accommodating nature of Keswick made the location an obvious choice for the couple. Twenty years later, the winery has won a slew of awards for their winemaking efforts as well as hosted 450 weddings.

lot of endurance and keep pushing to get anything done around here,” she warns potential entrepreneurs eyeing Albemarle as a place to locate. She has seen people move towards Louisa or Orange counties as friendlier and less constraining places to do business.

“I love the open-for-business invitation and attitude that Nelson [County] has, especially toward the AirBNB industry and agritourism; their county is built on agritourism,” remarks Snow regarding his decision to leave Charlottesville city limits to pursue his dreams in Nelson County.

Agritourism is defined broadly as an agricultural activity or operation that takes place on a farm or ranch. Many farms rely on agritourism as an extra stream of income during lean times when crops are not in season. It depends heavily on location, specifically one attractive enough to draw customers.

An Ineffable Something

These business owners agree there is no shortage of natural beauty throughout Virginia.

“Grapes don’t grow in ugly places,” Keswick Vineyards owner Al Schornberg says bluntly. “Keswick is isolated Keswick Vineyards, Lower Sherwood Farm, and Blue Ridge Farm all attract guests from across the East Coast because they offer an ineffable something only rural businesses can: a break from the hustle and bustle of big cities in a lovely and appealing setting. There are reasons to pause and consider, though, before jumping headlong into a venture in the country. While the owners of Lower Sherwood Farm cited any challenges, they face as “inconveniences” rather than disadvantages, location is an essential feature of any business.

In today’s world, a place built from bricks and mortar is not always essential given the popularity of online shopping. Internet service is frequently less accessible, though, in the country, or may be much slower. And other utilities vary in price as well and could be more expensive depending on how far out you choose to locate. Other less quantifiable, though no less valuable, resources to consider include manpower and the quality of the talent pool.

Emily Currier is a Charlottesville native. After living in Philadelphia for a time, she returned to the Blue Ridge Mountains for school and to enjoy the fresh, country air. 21

“I had been living in a home that was not safe or healthy for me or anyone else. I don’t know where I would be living today if it weren’t for AHIP.” —Seniors Safe at Home client

Safe at Home

SENIORS

179 elderly neighbors are waiting for critical home repairs right now. Your support will keep them safe. Seniors Safe at Home helps local senior citizens age in place by taking care of urgent repairs: leaking roofs, access ramps, plumbing and electrical issues, failed furnaces, and more.

SENIORS Safe at Home AHIP + CAAR + BRHBA | AHIPVA.org

SPONSORS Champion: Wells Fargo Benefactors: Pape and Company, Inc. and Home Instead Senior Care Supporters: Better Living, Inc.; Central Virginia Waterproofing; and Blue Ridge Termite and Pest Management