Vector not only gives the business the space it needs but also a scalable labor force, warehousing and bulk purchasing and shipping and distribution.īut, only businesses that have the demand could be housed here, Johnston said. They would not disclose how much that fee would be, but it would be dependent on what the business would need for the space.

That means people can come in, outfit their own space and pay Vector a fee. 'We also want to help the community,' said Vector CEO Chrissy Johnston. More: Library gets 3D printer Going green organization starting compost collection - The buzz When she's making batches, Cannon does 10 pounds at a time in various containers: 3 ounces, 5 ounces and 7 ounces. She can make between 100 and 200 pounds of her salt mixture a week. She invested between $12,000 and $16,000 in the new space, which included new equipment for production. Now, Cannon is in a 600-square-foot space inside Vector Industries in Waynesboro where she can make her product, package it and ship it. The hope is to bring in more small businesses into a 5,000 square foot space inside the company's building. It also provides employment to citizens with disabilities in Waynesboro, Staunton and Augusta County. The company, based in Waynesboro, assists businesses with packaging, product assemblies, quality inspections, document shredding, prototype testing. View Gallery: Peg's Salt and new Valley Food Production Hub It's a really affordable way for a new business to get started.' 'We've got a comfortable group of people that don't compete with each other for time or resources. 'When we moved into our new space, we wanted to concentrate on giving back to the community,' he said.

He said his community kitchen is a place for people to start out in, then move out to a bigger space. After that, Cannon started looking for a larger space, which is what Matheny said he's hoping for when he rents out his kitchen. It took friends and family members to help box up all the product, load it up and help with distribution. 'I'm like, 'I don't know if we can do it.' And he looked at me and was like, 'We have a rule around here, there's no such thing as can't do it,' Cannon said. Cannon need to make 610 cases (that's 12 salt mixture containers per case) in three weeks. It was a snowy February when a fax came in with a huge order from Food Lion to fill its Local Goodness shelves in Hampton Roads and Tidewater area. Want to read more stories by The News Leader? Click here to get a subscription. She started selling it in the fall of 2012, after Virginia Department of Agricultural and Consumer Services approved her space at home. Then she moved to Waynesboro in 2018 for a brief time and then to Staunton at Nu-Beginnings The Store, where owner John Matheny has a community kitchen he rents out. Some local stores include Nu-Beginnings Farm: The Store, Wade's Mill, The Meating Place, Cranberry's Grocery and Eatery, Stanley Meat Market, Valley Pike Market and The Cheese Shop, to name a few. More: What happens if your Waynesboro house received a poor rating? Nothing, the city says. Now her friends actually have to purchase the salt, which is available in more than 50 stores in the state and beyond, including Amazon. Her friends and family members are obsessed with it, which pushed her to start producing it and come up with a company. how you can create, like, a symphony of flavor.' 'I think she just opened the cabinet and used almost everything in it,' Cannon said. Peg passed away 20 years ago, but Cannon was able to get the recipe from her. It's a pinch of this and that, per se - Cannon wouldn't divulge the secrets, but the salt mixture is a blend of 25 different spices and salt. The recipe came from her mother, which her company gets its namesake from.

WAYNESBORO - Who knew a grain of salt could help start a small business hub in Waynesboro?Ĭass Cannon used more than a dash of her product to grow her company - and the new Valley Food Production Hub at Vector Industries. Her company, Peg's Salt, started in 2012 in her basement and just giving it away to her friends.

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