West Virginia

Webster Springs may have “the one traffic light in the whole county,” but that didn’t stop Angie Cowger and her family from dreaming big and turning a treasured recipe into Custard Stand Food Products. It opened as an ice cream stand in 1991, also selling hot dogs topped with the family’s chili. Before long, customers were asking to buy the chili on its own. “My husband and I had been looking for a way to expand our business and he said, ‘Angie, if you can figure out how to market it, I can make it.’ And that's what we did.” In 2003, they turned a car wash into a kitchen and factory and took their hot dog chili to the retail market. “We started out with a map of West Virginia on the wall,” Angie says. “We would take chili in the ice box, a hot plate and a kettle, and go to independent retailers. We'd sample the store owner, the manager, whoever was around.” Now, their products are available in 20 states and 3,000 grocery stores.

Alissa Clayton, Angie’s daughter and Custard Stand’s social media and marketing manager, says that while they were always efficient, Google tools boosted their reach and capabilities and account for more than 20 percent of their business growth. Angie uses Google Workspace–Calendar is her favorite–to keep the team organized and up to date. “I can create an event for a demo, add everyone from the person packing the supplies to the ad person, and put all kinds of notes in there,” Angie says. She uses Gemini for email support: “I have a tendency to be very wordy,” she admits, “but when I use Google Workspace with Gemini, I can write an email and then get help to shorten it. And it’s easy!” In 2024, the company saw over 30 percent revenue growth and has an expansion in the works. “It amazes me how my parents figured it all out and reached this level,” Alissa says. “My mom doesn’t take no for an answer–that’s the driving force behind this business.”

C. Anthony Parker knows cars. He started his first dealership at age 19, selling cars for nearly two decades and expanding into body and mechanical work before deciding to focus on the detailing side of the industry. In 2019, C. Anthony founded Elk City Auto Spa to keep the cars in his hometown of Charleston looking sharp. “We spend around nine hours transforming a filthy vehicle into a showroom-quality vehicle inside and out,” he says with pride. ”And our clients love what we do.” Elk City Auto Spa and their 7 employees serve over 1,500 customers yearly across the Mountain State, cleaning everything from minivans to fleet vehicles with top-notch attention to detail, using compounds C. Anthony designed himself. Since the beginning, he’s trusted Google tools to help his business deliver customer experiences that sparkle.

More than 80 percent of customers find Elk City Auto Spa through their Google Business Profile, where they showcase their skills, photos of their work, and–most importantly–their happy customers. When potential customers see over 300 five-star reviews, they “know that they’ve found the best,” C. Anthony explains. Revenue is up more than 300 percent since the shop began using their Business Profile. “These leads are hot and ready. They’ve seen our work, they’ve seen the reviews, and they know they can trust us,” he says. Elk City Auto Spa also uses Google Workspace tools like Slides and Sheets to deliver business presentations and customer invoices that are as polished and professional as their work. As they look to the future, they plan to add a traveling detailing service and hire more technicians, and they’re looking into AI-powered chatbots to process customer inquiries even faster. “Charleston is a small city with a big heart,” C. Anthony says. “Being a cornerstone business that people here can count on means everything.”

West Virginians are used to being self-sufficient, and when they have a good idea, they’ll make it blossom. When a federally funded grant project growing lavender–a hearty plant that loves rocky soil–on reclaimed coal mine land ended, team member Jocelyn Sheppard knew she had found a good idea for a business–and for her southern West Virginia community. “We’re employing former coal miners, veterans, people who didn’t finish high school, and people who just need a second chance. They enjoy growing lavender, and don’t have to move away to make a living,” Jocelyn says. Appalachian Botanical Co. stands as a bold alternative to the 98 percent of lavender that is imported into the U.S., selling premium aromatherapy, body care items, and culinary products made from Boone County’s own lavender fields. And as Appalachian Botanical Co. makes plans to grow demand for West Virginia’s finest across the country and around the world, they’re using Google tools to help make it happen.

With a good sense of who their local buyers are, Appalachian Botanical Co. focuses their Google Ads to find more customers nationwide and around the world. They use Google Ads to identify dense population clusters that make for super efficient ad campaigns. “We’re finding them in Southern California, Texas, Colorado, and more; Google Ads is just so valuable because it gets us the most bang for our buck,” Jocelyn says. And when COVID-19 compounded the communication challenges in the remote and mountainous state, Google Workspace tools like Google Meet and Docs kept Jocelyn’s team connected, productive, and on the same page. Appalachian Botanical Co. is growing just as fast as their lavender fields–continuing to give second chances to West Virginia’s people and land, and to export a little piece of the Mountain State to the rest of the world. “I'm just so proud of everything that we've accomplished,” Jocelyn says. “And I'm excited about the opportunities to come.”

In 1996, Tim Hanlon and his wife, Carma, took a leap of faith in purchasing Grogg’s Home Services, a heating-and-air-conditioning business founded by her father, Leon Grogg. Operating first out of their home, Tim learned the trade while working a second job, and Carma juggled phone calls and scheduling with raising their children. They dispatched service calls from their kitchen, and on one occasion, the neighbor’s dog stole a pair of their employee’s work boots off the porch. “He had to get to the job, so I gave him $50 to buy a pair of boots on his way to the customer’s house,” Tim recalls. Their hard work and philosophy of exceeding expectations have made Grogg’s Home Services a success.

The company has been online since 2006. While Tim admits he resisted technology at first, “eventually, I became the driving force behind totally getting out of the yellow pages,” he shares. Today AdWords, Google’s advertising program, accounts for 80 percent of their online sales, according to Director of Finance and IT Adam McDowell. They use insights from Google Analytics to optimize their ad campaigns, improve web traffic, and keep customers engaged. The Internet has allowed the company to expand their service area from West Virginia into Ohio, and informs customers about new service offerings. “Online advertising has helped us reach further than what typical print media will allow us to reach,” says Adam. “And having that online presence to say we now provide these other services has been huge.”

Grogg’s Home Services has long since outgrown the Hanlons' kitchen, adding a Clarksburg branch to their location in Parkersburg. They service nearly 10,000 customers a year, and have expanded into electrical, plumbing, and other services. Despite their growth, Adam says, “Grogg’s is still very much a family environment.” They offer extensive training—75 to 100 hours a year—to their employees. “We invest in them because we want them to stay here, and to have the tools they need to be successful,” he explains. They also give back to the community by donating to charities and supporting local families in need. “We always try to do the right thing, even if it costs us money to do so,” Tim says, which has earned Grogg’s a reputation for providing reliable, quality service, and for doing right by customers and employees alike.