Business briefs: Mister Bee Potato Chips named WV's best food

“Our team at Mister Bee could not be happier to learn that we won this designation,� said Mary Anne Ketelsen, president of Mister Bee Potato Chips since 2015. “What we have built here is very special, and it is important that our customers appreciate our small business and our commitment to quality.�

Readers of the West Virginia Living magazine nominated candidates (companies and products) in 75 categories from July 26 to August 8, 2021, and the top nominees, including Mister Bee, moved to the final round for September-October voting. Winners were announced in the magazine’s Winter issue.

Kanawha Scales buys Roanoke firm

Kanawha Scales & Systems (KSS) is pleased to announce that, after several years of collaboration, the company has acquired the assets of Roanoke, Virginia-based Security Scale Service Company (SSS). Since 1971, SSS has supplied quality industrial weighing products and services to a wide range of well-established customers across Virginia and into Tennessee. Kanawha Scales & Systems is proud to join forces with this Virginia-based weighing industry leader.

SSS distributes, installs, calibrates, and services a wide range of quality industrial weighing products manufactured by leading manufacturers. Kanawha Scales, a ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä-based company, services customers in West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Alabama through its 14 existing sales and services locations. KSS also has an office in Beijing, China, operating as KRS.

“Security holds the same kind of commitment to employee opportunity and development to quality that we do,� said Kanawha Scales chief operating officer Jim Freeman. “We believe these common values will be a great fit in our continuing growth goals.�

Kanawha Scales now welcomes the addition of the five Security Scales locations. Roanoke, Virginia, serves as the main office for administrative, sales, and service staff. Two more sales and service offices are in Richmond and Suffolk, Virginia, and there are two service offices in Lynchburg, Virginia, and Blountville, Tennessee.

Advantage Valley announces childcare webinarAdvantage Valley announces an upcoming webinar entitled “How to Start or Grow a Child Care Business� in Advantage Valley, scheduled 6 p.m. Dec. 9.

This free, hour-long webinar will offer helpful resource information on childcare stabilization grants, licensure and reimbursement rates. It will also showcase the updated comprehensive Childcare Start Up Guides for the region. Registration is available here or through the Advantage Valley website https://advantagevalley.com/entrepreneurship/childcare/.

This webinar is for those interested in starting or expanding a childcare business in Boone, Braxton, Cabell, Clay, Kanawha, Lincoln, Putnam or Wayne counties.

New Edward Jones office opens in ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä

Brett Harper of the financial services firm Edward Jones has opened a new office at 1522 Oakhurst Dr.

“I am thrilled about our new location, and I am eager to continue to partner with clients and their families in the new space and to help keep them on track toward their individual long-term goals,� said Harper, who has been a financial advisor since 2017.

Harper has lived in ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä for 29 years.

WV Hive invites business leaders, entrepreneurs

The West Virginia Hive is encouraging the business community to participate in the next 10-session CO.STARTERS Core training program, set to begin in January, and is hosting a Dec. 13 kick-off gathering at its offices to allow for networking and information sharing about the program.

“Whether you are a business owner seeking to explore new products and services, or you have an idea for a new business startup, we encourage you to stop by,� said Judy Moore, executive director of the West Virginia Hive. “The nationally recognized program is an excellent way to test your ideas and develop a workable business plan during the course.�

The kick-off meeting is from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the WV Hive’s offices and business hub, located at 205 South Kanawha Street in Beckley. Moore and her team of business advisors will be available to respond to any questions or needs.

Moore said Truist is once again underwriting the cost of the program to ensure it is affordable. Cost of the program is $52 (a discount from the regular price of $500). Those interested in attending can register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/costarters-core-training-winter-2022-tickets-208188386067.

Mon school district to add bike tech program

By linking outdoor recreation, youth development and education, the West Virginia University Brad and Alys Smith Outdoor Economic Development Collaborative and its partners Rad Power Bikes, Project Bike Tech and the Youth Cycling Coalition will spark the next generation of innovators, leaders and outdoor enthusiasts in West Virginia.

The Monongalia County school district will add a Bike Tech in School classroom and curriculum to a high school campus in 2022. This one-of-its-kind program that uses bicycles and bicycle mechanics to teach core and STEM academics, along with technical and mechanical skills, prepare students to enter the workforce and introduce them to small business operations.

The accredited elective from Project Bike Tech uses curriculum designed to introduce students to the many career pathways within the vast bicycle and outdoor industries, as well as prepare them for positions as bicycle technician or salesperson among a variety of other launching points in the workforce.

“We’re excited to have the support of a fantastic company like Rad Power Bikes. Their generous donation to Monongalia County Schools gets us a long way, giving students the opportunity to learn bicycle and e-bike mechanics while preparing them for a career in the outdoor industry,� said Project Bike Tech Executive Director Mercedes Ross.