Loudoun Company Has First-Mover Advantage
Brian Tinsman
Digital Properties Manager
Proximity to the nation’s capital means that a number of Loudoun businesses have interacted with the White House and its occupants.
For example, JK Moving Services has a long history with the first families on both sides of the aisle. After all, both Democrats and Republicans need competent movers to help the White House transition effectively between administrations.
It started with President George H.W. Bush in 1993, and continued through the Clinton, W. Bush and Obama administrations. Movers helped Bill Clinton sort his expansive CD collection in early 2000. The coordinated team worked around the clock for five days to move George and Laura Bush to Houston in early 2008.
But perhaps the most memorable interaction was when President George W. Bush selected JK Moving’s Sterling headquarters as the site of his economic policy speech on January 19, 2006.
JK Moving is one of the largest independently owned moving companies in North America and has grown under owner Chuck Kuhn as a family enterprise. That left an impression on President Bush, who commended Kuhn in his speech:
“Speaking about families, Chuck Kuhn’s family is pretty remarkable. Turns out, his mother works for him. That’s the opposite in my family. I need a little advice on how to restructure the chain of command in the Bush family.
“But I love being here in a place where a guy who had a dream at age 17 — that’s how old Chuck was when he started to act on his entrepreneurial instincts — said, ‘If I work hard and if I’m smart and if I figure out what the market wants, I can build something that I call my own.’
“And 23 years later, we’re standing, obviously, in what has become a very successful business enterprise. Successful because he is thriving and expanding. Successful because he has provided people a good place to make a living.”
Thirteen years later, Bush’s comments are even truer, as Kuhn has dramatically expanded JK Moving to more than 1,300 employees, with work around the world.
In addition, Kuhn saved the Middleburg Training Center, an iconic equine facility that had fallen on hard times. No longer losing money, the Center has turned the corner from break-even to profitable under his family’s stewardship.
In 2018, Kuhn and his family also celebrated the first harvest at JK Community Farm, a strictly charitable enterprise in Purcellville. In year one, the 150-acre farm produced 53,000 pounds of organic vegetables for food pantries.
In year two, that number is expected to rise to 62,000 pounds, with an additional 50,000 pounds of beef and pork, all for charity.
JK Moving is #26 on the list of Loudoun’s major employers. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute, #29 on our list, is planning an expansion, and Neustar, #33, just closed on acquiring its 22nd company in 22 years. These companies are just a few examples that show how business success is #LoudounPossible.
Contact us for details about moving to or expanding here: 1-800-LOUDOUN.
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