Cortland County Legislator Paul Heider(R) 16th District (left) and Truxton Outpost Owner Jeanetta Laudermilk discuss renovations at her business funded by County ARPA dollars
For nearly a decade Jeanetta Laudermilk and her husband had been raising high quality beef cattle at their farm in Truxton. They sold their beef at the farm as well through direct sales to customers but, Jeanetta realized that she needed to diversify her offerings as well as find a more central retail location to serve her growing customer base.
Laudermilk had long considered purchasing and renovating a dormant commercial building in the heart of Truxton to serve as her retail store but, the COVID pandemic slowed the acquisition of their ideal location.
Finally, Laudermilk had her new location and had a solid product, but she realized that the community and her businesses needed more variety and more products to sustain itself; this is where the Truxton Outpost was born.
Laudermilk was awarded just over $19,000 through the BDC’s Small Business Expansion and Façade Repair grant programs. She has used the funds to purchase equipment to expand her food offerings and is using the façade funds to re-side the Truxton Outpost to enhance the look of the property and surrounding rural aesthetic.
The Truxton Outpost is reminiscent of the old general stores that used to dot Cortland County’s rural countryside. Customers can get a fresh hot meal, pick-up brand-new pair of work boots, purchase some local maple syrup, and still put some of that quality beef in their freezer.
Laudermilk said she developed her business model while traveling the Country with her husband who served in the military, “in our travels and living different places we fell in love with certain aspects of different small businesses, and this was our chance to bring some of those concepts to life.”
The Truxton Outpost offers that historic feeling with a modern spin aimed at today’s shoppers. “I love being able to greet people when they come in, learn their names and make those customers feel that they want to find a seat and spend time with us.”
Laudermilk wants her small-town experience to compliment neighboring businesses in the Town including Reakes Country Goods, The Truxton Corner Store, and the recently re-opened Hiawatha Inn.
“We put every dollar we had in this building just to get the business started, I don’t like using credit, so I wasn’t able to overspend on equipment and inventory.” “Being able to invest these grant dollars into equipment helps our business to grow and adapt.”
Laudermilk said her experience with BDC staff and accessing the grant funding was a positive one, “the nicest thing was anytime I was confused or needed more information it was a quick phone call or email away.” Laudermilk also cited the ease of being able to reallocate the funds towards other projects as the costs of labor and materials increased during the pandemic.
Note: The Cortland County Business Development Corporation is publishing a series of stories highlighting the small businesses that received funding from Cortland County’s American Rescue funds allocation. The BDC was tasked with distributing $600,000 in funds to qualified small businesses.
