BUFFALO, W.Va. — Bob Gritt stared at the side of his barn Wednesday as two skilled painters from Richmond, Virginia placed the finishing touches on a newly designed logo for his small business, Gritt’s Farm. Bob is a third generation farmer working the land in rural Putnam County and wouldn’t want to do anything else.
“I’ve never done anything else. I’ve never worked a public job,” he said. “I enjoy what I do.”
The farm, started by his grandfather in 1927, evolved in its production over the years. The land previously produced tobacco and transitioned to eggs and eventually into today’s products of plant and flower seedlings, produce, and agri-tourism. Bob is helped in the venture by his two sons Bobby and Brad who represent the fourth generation of Gritt’s Farm operators.
“Neither one of them have any kids,” laughed Bob. “I guess we may have to go adopt some.”
The longstanding family business attracted the attention of Carhartt, a company with a name synonymous with hard work. The blue collar apparel company had a film crew on site this week to tell the Gritt’s story.
“This project is a Father’s Day initiative,” said video producer Mark Sarosi. “Carhartt is a fifth-generation father-son business. We thought it would be interesting if we could go out and as a Father’s Day gift to some of the fathers in America who continue that tradition of family business and tell their story.”
The Gritt family will be featured in a video tribute to their daily work and lifestyle in the video to be promoted on Father’s Day next moth on the Carhartt website and across social media platforms. However, Sarosi stressed it’s not a commercial.
“It’s not scripted, it’s documentary. It’s not a fashion show, we’re not dressing up models. We’re not advertising a new shirt, new jacket, or new clothing technology,” said Sarosi. “It’s a continuation of what Carhartt has been doing for years now and that’s going out with a film crew, identifying incredible people with shared values, and telling their story.”
The Gritt story is incredible and Bob readily admits, it’s not a lifestyle for everyone.
“We sacrifice a lot,” he said. “Our business is summers, weekends, and holidays. It’s pretty demanding, you can’t take summer vacation, you can’t take weekends off, and just because it’s the Fourth of July and you want a day off, no we don’t get that.”
The new sign on the barn was part of the bargain, another gift from Carhartt paying tribute to a way of life. It will be featured prominently in the video.
“I think people are interested in stories about what we do,” Gritt added. “If Carhartt needs to promote that, it’s fine with me. I’d like to promote it, but I just reach a small amount of people. They can reach a whole lot more.”
“What we loved about Gritt’s in particular is it’s a third generation running it right now and we also loved what they do for the community,” Sarosi explained. “That’s why we do these things. It’s to give back and say, ‘Thank-you.’ We just put clothes on people’s back, they’re the ones out there making America great and making it beautiful. What we can do is help them to tell their stories.”
The Gritt’s video is the first of four which Carhartt will produce for Father’s Day. The others include a family run auto salvage yard in Minnesota, a family meat packing operation in Michigan, and a farm/hardware store in Pennsylvania.