Patriot Drug and DNA Testing provides a recent example of how the SBDC network can help a new business navigate the myriad of start-up issues and develop an effective business model. Nancy Harms, and her husband William Holmes, business owners, worked with Diane Arnold, Branch Director of the Longwood SBDC Dan River, through the entire startup phase from concept to the actual expansion of their business concept “southward” to the Danville/Pittsylvania County area. Initially conceived as a Roanoke business, Patriot’s concept was changed in the planning process to include a headquarters in Chatham, Virginia and future field offices in Lynchburg, Virginia; and Mebane, North Carolina.
