Belabored shortages
Faced with a shortage of drivers, Trevor Dunlap had to find a new way to recruit interested candidates for his Chesapeake-based trucking and warehousing companies, Givens Transportation Inc. and Givens Inc. “It’s very challenging to find qualified people and then be able to retain them,” he says, “and the wages we’re paying are substantially higher […]
Fifth District economy little changed since August, Fed says
The economy in the Federal Reserve’s Fifth District (a multistate region including Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia and Maryland) has been largely unchanged since August, according to the latest edition of the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, released Wednesday. Published eight times per year, the Beige Book is based on anecdotal information about economic […[...]
Lowe’s to open distribution facility in Suffolk
North Carolina-based home improvement retailer Lowe’s Cos Inc. will establish a coastal holding facility in the city of Suffolk, adding 100 jobs, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Thursday. Lowe’s had more than $96 billion in sales in fiscal 2021 and it operates or services nearly 2,200 home improvement and hardware stores, employing more than 300,000 associates. […]
Fighting back
Inflation and supply chain problems have pushed up the price of citric acid by 200%. That’s a problem for Crystal Wellman because citric acid is a primary ingredient in bath products she sells at Sugar + Spruce, her bath, body and skin care products shop in downtown Fredericksburg. Wellman could try just raising prices, but […]
COVID challenges continue for Va. restaurants
Liz Kincaid faced a major problem in August after the walk-in refrigerator in one of her Richmond restaurants — Max’s on Broad — broke. Her usual supplier told her the wait for the replacement part would take two months. “I have raw oysters and produce and fish and chicken,” recalled Kincaid. “I’m like, ‘What am […]
Arlington supply chain tech unicorn hires CFO
Arlington-based supply chain management technology company Interos Inc. has hired Aida Sukys as chief financial officer. Sukys was previously CFO at Justworks Inc., a human resources tech company. Sukys also was the group CFO and global head of financial business services for Willis Towers Watson PLC, a global risk management and insurance company. In that […]
Port of Va. partnering with Norfolk Southern
The Port of Virginia is part of a new partnership with Norfolk Southern Corp., Hapag-Lloyd and Union Pacific Railroad. The partners will provide expedited train shipping from the East Coast to the western U.S., Norfolk Southern announced last week. The partnership, called OceaNS Bridge Express, will start at the Port of Virginia’s Norfolk International Terminals […]
Economic growth to continue slowing, ODU experts say
The U.S. economy will continue to slow in the second half of 2022 and a recession is increasingly likely, according to the Old Dominion University’s Dragas Center for Economy Analysis and Policy’s mid-year economic forecast released Friday. Increases in inflation are expected to slow as well but harden, leaving costs elevated, report Robert McNab and […]
ODU to create supply chain, logistics, maritime school
Old Dominion University will create a School of Supply Chain, Logistics, and Maritime Operations, pending approval from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia, the university announced Friday. In its June meeting, the university Board of Visitors approved a resolution to create the school, effective Oct. 15. “Coordinating our academic and research initiatives through […]
Va. CEOs expect increased sales despite shortages
About 70% of CEOs expect sales to increase in the next six months, despite supply chain and labor shortages, according to the first quarter CEO Economic Outlook survey conducted by the University of Richmond’s Robins School of Business and the Virginia Council of CEOs (VACEOs). Ninety percent of CEOs reported a labor shortage impacting their […]
Lambert’s Point Docks in Norfolk to become $100M maritime center
In a deal predicted to bring more than 500 jobs and over $100 million in capital investment, the Lambert’s Point Docks property in Norfolk will become a maritime operations and logistics center to support local offshore wind, defense and transportation industries. The land, owned by Norfolk Southern Railway Co., has been leased by Virginia Beach-based […]
Setting a course
Each week, MDV SpartanNash LLC, the nation’s leading supplier for overseas U.S. military commissaries and exchanges, loads 100 to 200 containers filled with everything from peanut butter to clothing aboard steamships bound for Europe, Africa, Bahrain, Kuwait and Honduras, as well as Puerto Rico and Guantanamo Bay. “In places like Guantanamo Bay and Bahrain, there’s […]