New Jobs Coming to Brunswick County
Brunswick County, VA - The Brunswick County Industrial Development Authority, the Brunswick County Board of Supervisors, and the Town of Lawrenceville announced today KASS Foods, a healthy snack food manufacturer, will invest to establish an operation in Brunswick County, Town of Lawrenceville. Virginia successfully competed against North Carolina and Maryland for the project, which will bring eight new jobs to the region.
Mike Dotti, Chair of Brunswick County IDA Board said, “It is an easy thing to say Brunswick County is open for business. To create an environment where new business is possible takes the work of a lot of people. We could not have done this without our team. The Board of Supervisors, Carthan Currin, Economic Development Director, C. J. Dean and the Town of Lawrenceville, the Tobacco Commission, the amazing IDA board all moving forward under the proactive leadership of our County Administrator, Dr. Woolridge. A special thanks to Ajay and the fine people of KASS for their investment in our County.”
“We are extremely pleased that KASS Foods chose to locate their company in Brunswick County,” said Dr. Charlette T. Woolridge, Brunswick County Administrator. “President Sujanani’s business investment results in the restoration of the former Southern States facility, the creation of employment opportunities for Brunswick residents, increased tax revenues, and even more benefits.” Dr. Woolridge also thanked the partners who helped to make this project possible. “I am very appreciative of the collaborative partnership between KASS, the Board of Supervisors and staff, Brunswick County Industrial Development Authority Board, Town of Lawrenceville, Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission, Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, Virginia’s Growth Alliance and Southside Planning District Commission who were instrumental in making this project a reality.”
“The Town of Lawrenceville would like to welcome KASS Foods (Ajay and Kareena) to our community. They are bringing much needed jobs to our Town and putting a vacant building back into productive use. We would like to thank all of those involved in bringing this manufacturing facility to Lawrenceville, including the Virginia Tobacco Commission, Virginia’s Growth Alliance and our partners in Brunswick County. Lawrenceville looks forward to the future with KASS and assisting with their future goals and plans,” said CJ Dean, Lawrenceville town manager.
“We are excited to be a part of Brunswick County and the Town of Lawrenceville. We believe this is the perfect location for our facility,” said KASS Foods president Ajay Sujanani. “The wide support and consistent enthusiasm we have received for our project reassures us that we have made the right choice in selecting Town of Lawrenceville in Brunswick County for our manufacturing plant.”
KASS Foods focuses on manufacturing of healthy snack products in various segments including organic, children, adult, as well as sweet and savory. Their product portfolio will consist of several European style snacks customized to the American palette. With robust R&D tie-ups with Universities in Germany and US, KASS has various innovative products that will be rolled out in phases once they start operations.
Tobacco Commission Vice-Chair, Senator Frank Ruff said, "This is exciting news for Brunswick County. Attracting an innovative company like KASS Foods to our region shows that we can compete successfully for manufacturing jobs in any sector. I'm glad that the Tobacco Commission chose to support this project through the refurbishment of the former Southern States building and look forward to the success of KASS Foods in their new home here in Southern Virginia."
The Tobacco Commission awarded a $447,000 Southside Economic Development grant to assist with the renovation of the building located on the Virginia Tobacco Heritage Trail in historic downtown Lawrenceville.
With assistance from the Southside Planning District Commission, the Town of Lawrenceville was able to secure a Community Development Block Grant from the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development for additional building renovations needed for the project. The Southside PDC, through Lake Country Development Corporation's loan pool program, was also able to assist the client with project financing.
The company will be located in the former Southern States building adjacent to the Tobacco Heritage Trail.
This project was developed by Virginia’s Growth Alliance. Brunswick County, along with Amelia, Buckingham, Charlotte, Cumberland, Greensville, Lunenburg, Mecklenburg, Nottoway and Prince Edward counties and the city of Emporia comprise the Alliance (http://vagrowth.com).