We are grateful for the continued support of Randolph Electric Membership Corporation (REMC), a cornerstone of our local community since 1938. Born right here in Asheboro, REMC was founded on a simple but powerful belief — that people in rural areas deserve the same quality of life that electricity provides to everyone.
Today, that cooperative spirit lives on as REMC proudly serves over 34,000 member accounts across more than 4,500 miles of line in central North Carolina.
As a member-owned cooperative, REMC is guided by values of integrity, accountability, innovation, and community involvement. They are dedicated not just to keeping the lights on, but to investing in the neighborhoods and people they serve — through grant programs, youth initiatives, and economic development efforts.
We're proud to have REMC as a partner. Learn more at randolphemc.com..
The family-owned company from Maryland held ribbon-cutting ceremonies on May 8 at the new facility at 6577 High Pine Church Road, southwest of Asheboro. Among those celebrating, in addition to invited local guests, were dozens of employees and a host of Gillespie family members.
Andrew Gillespie, the president of Gillespie Precast, said he’s among the fifth generation in the family business. He said his great-great-grandfather, George Edward Gillespie, founded the company in 1922 on his Maryland farm when he decided to build a milking parlor with concrete blocks. He did such a good job that one of his neighbors asked him to make blocks for him.
According to Andrew Gillespie, the business started slowly, branching out into septic tanks, ready-mix concrete and then premix concrete. Eventually, George Edward’s son joined the business and today Gillespie Precast has more than 200 employees at four production plants, including the Asheboro location.
The company makes concrete products primarily for underground utilities.
FREE WORKPLACE LITERACY TRAINING
Randolph Community College’s College and Career Readiness department is promoting a new initiative called Workplace Literacy, a FREE customized training opportunity designed to strengthen the adult education, literacy, and basic academic skills employees need for workplace success. Training may include workplace English, reading and understanding workplace documents, communication, digital literacy, applied math, and other foundational skills that support productivity, confidence, and advancement on the job. Training can be hosted at your business location or offered in partnership with other local employers through a shared consortium model. Workplace Literacy classes are tailored to your workforce needs and provide an easy way to invest in employee growth, improve retention, and support long-term workforce success.
A big shout out to Randolph Sports Central, the go-to destination for live local sports in Randolph County! From live audio broadcasts to scores, schedules, and the stories behind the scoreboard.
Randolph Sports Central keeps our community connected to the athletes and teams we love — covering high school, middle school, and American Legion baseball across the county. Check them out atrandolphsportscentral.com.
Lisa Bennett our longtime staff member is retiring at the end of this month. She has served with the office for 24 loyal years! Her contributions and organizational memory will be missed. A retirement party was held in her honor and we thank all of those who were able to attend. Lisa has been a great friend to me as the newest member of the team and she will be sorely missed. Good luck in retirement Lisa, you deserve it.
JetZero, the California startup that plans to hire more than 14,000 workers in Greensboro over the next decade, announced today it will break ground on its new factory at Piedmont Triad International Airport next month.
The fledgling aerospace company is planning to build the world's first commercial all-wing aircraft in Greensboro, will hold a public groundbreaking ceremony on June 15, marking the official start of construction on its $4.7 billion manufacturing campus at PTI. JetZero said its 8 million-square-foot production facility "will integrate advanced digital and AI-driven manufacturing processes."
The aerospace facility will be capable of manufacturing up to 20 Z4s per month. The company also has a contract with the U.S. military for its blended wing jets.
JetZero's Z4 is an all-wing body airplane that blends the wings and fuselage to enable the entire wingspan to produce lift, delivering up to 50% greater fuel efficiency and an associated reduction in emissions. JetZero's timeline calls for the Z4, designed in Long Beach, California, to enter into commercial service in the early 2030s.
The company's release on the groundbreaking said the "ceremony will celebrate a milestone not only for the Piedmont Triad and North Carolina, but for American aerospace manufacturing and aviation innovation."
The sustained impact of the conflict in Iran is weighing on consumers and increasing economic pessimism in most of the country's major metro areas.
Consumer confidence dropped sharply in the Winston-Salem metropolitan area dropped sharply in April. In the Greensboro/High Point metro area, the decline wasn't as sharp but consumer confidence was already lower than the Winston-Salem area. Both metro areas are now below the national average.
“Sustained period of elevated energy prices historically — and I think this is true now — spill over and affect other categories outside of the energy sector,” Leer said. “Right now, we’re still in a world where that’s contained to goods, but I would imagine that will spill over and start affecting services soon.”
But the declining sentiments nationally hide a substantial amount of fragmentation, meaning many changes in sentiment have been influenced by local conditions. Today, about one-fifth of what is happening to sentiment in a given city can be attributed to local conditions instead of shared national trends, according to Morning Consult.
Local News and Announcements
Collective Interiors moves into larger downtown Asheboro space:
After several years at 113 N. Church St., Asheboro, Collective Interiors is now open at 129 Sunset Ave., which includes a second floor. Barney has filled the ground floor with furniture and accessories with plans to use the upper floor for a design studio.
With retail sales downstairs, Barney will use the second floor for her concierge design business. She said she’s aiming for a September opening to do the custom services. When it’s open, the design services will require clients to book an appointment.
That was part of the problem with the Church Street location, Barney said. Retail products and design items were being confused by customers. With the move to Sunset Avenue, retail and custom services will be completely separate.
Asheboro City Schools officials showed off on Tuesday the ninth lab at the Global Innovation Center featuring state-of-the-art equipment for hands-on learning experiences that connect to real-world careers in Randolph County.
The Toyota Experience Lab was created with a $250,000 donation by Toyota North America along with the help of shift_ed, a regional nonprofit focused on education that played a key role in designing the lab. Among the equipment in the lab are some involving circuitry and computerized vehicle systems.
Don Stewart, president of Toyota North Carolina, said the lab equipment doesn’t all relate to batteries and electric cars but has broader applications across Toyota’s parent company.
“We’re part of the bigger ecosystem of Toyota,” he said.
North Carolina’s attorney general filed suit Thursday against a car manufacturer that had pledged to build a plant in Chatham County for making electric vehicles and batteries.
Attorney General Jeff Jackson alleged in the suit, filed on behalf of the N.C. Department of Commerce, that VinFast Manufacturing US has breached its economic development incentive agreements with the state, and therefore the state has the right to acquire the plant site for future economic development opportunities.
“VinFast agreed to build a factory and create jobs for North Carolinians — it didn’t do either,” Jackson said in announcing the suit. “When North Carolina makes a deal, we build in protection for taxpayers. VinFast broke the deal, so we’re using that protection to find a project for this site that will create jobs.”
City, county work with regional water authority on similar goals for water needs:
Short-term and long-term water needs are on the minds of Asheboro and Randolph County leaders.
Members of the city council attended the Board of Commissioners meeting on April 6, where they heard Greg Flory, executive director of the Piedmont Triad Regional Water Authority (PTRWA), present the findings of a regionalization study.
Commissioners voted in favor of a resolution to support the findings.
Members of the Asheboro City Council were there to show support for a separate interlocal agreement with the county to cooperate on construction projects such the Wolfspeed water main and upgrades to the Seagrove-Ulah Metropolitan Water District. Later in the week, at their regular meeting, they accepted bids for water treatment chemicals and took the next steps on water-related projects.
Randolph County’s jobless rate has held steady at the beginning of 2026.
After a post-Christmas seasonal uptick to 4% in January, the rate was 3.8% in February and held at that same rate in March, according to an N.C. Department of Commerce report this week. The rate was 3.4% in March 2025.
The county had a labor force of 67,247 in March, with 2,571 listed as out of work, both numbers nearly the same as February.
Statewide, unemployment rates decreased or stayed the same in all 100 counties from February to March 2026. Hyde County had the highest unemployment rate at 8.5%, while Stanly and Currituck counties had the lowest at 2.8%.
Lumber mill in Randolph County positioned for growth after rezoning approval:
The rezoning of property in Randolph County may allow for the expansion of a lumber mill operation off N.C. Highway 22 South.
The owner of a 96-acre property just south of the Culpeper Treated Lumber mill in Coleridge asked the Randolph County Planning Board this month to rezone around 13.6 acres adjacent to the facility to allow for “possible future expansion” of the business, according to the county.
The planning board approved a request to rezone the property to light industrial and recombine the site with the adjacent parcel to the north. The property owner, according to county documents, is Deep River Properties LLC, based in Culpeper, Virginia.
In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, IndustryWeek Senior Staff Writer Anna Smith speaks with Kapitus COO Ben Johnston about the CAPE portal. Johnston discusses how manufacturers should prepare to file claims, common mistakes companies should avoid and potential implications for everyday consumers.
Recent Renewals
Thank you to the companies below which recently renewed their support of the EDC and the Randolph Rises campaign. Your contribution continues to make our service, reach, and impact felt across the county.
If you are interested in becoming a Randolph Rises investor, please click the button below.
