Bob Taylor, founder and owner of Appomattox River Company, started the business in the basement of his house in April of 1977, wanting to sell whitewater canoes to his friends. Bob soon found himself paddling and testing new whitewater kayaks with paddle sports icons like Bill Masters, founder of Perception Kayaks. As the paddle sports industry grew, Appomattox River Company grew along with it. Bob began selling canoes and kayaks out of the front warehouse of his father’s construction / lumber yard in Farmville. As the business gained momentum, it took over more and more of the warehouses. Under those tin roofs, Bob offered retail space to many of the first kayak manufacturers in the US.
Those warehouses are now full of canoes, kayaks, and SUPs, and the Farmville location has become a destination shop with over 2500 paddle-craft on hand. They’ve also opened up two satellite shops in Ashland, VA and Hampton, VA. As new paddle-sports subsets have sprung up, Appomattox River Company has been there to support the grassroots organizations and events that have followed, always with an eye towards the community. In 38 years of business, they have participated in the growth of canoeing, whitewater kayaking, kayak fishing and stand-up paddle boarding.
These days, you can find paddling professionals at all 3 Appomattox River Company locations - ready to fit you to the right kayak, canoe or SUP for your adventure. Bob Taylor is still the owner, but he’s stepped back and handed the reins to GM, Tom Detrick, who along with Office Manager, Jeff Smith and Repair and Rigging Guru, Al Quinlan, have been around the flagship store for over a decade. Bob’s son-in-law, Brian Vincent, handles much of the Marketing work. Tom’s wife, Sarah, handles the website copywriting. Mary Digrys has been in the old Midlothian store and Farmville for a decade and her son, Daniel, is the manager of the new Ashland store. Brothers, Coltin and Travis work in Ashland and Farmville, respectively. Appomattox River Company is truly a family business, comprised of families. So it’s no surprise that from Vic, Andrea, Kayak Kevin, Bobby and the crew in the Hampton store to Daniel, Travis and Reggie in the Ashland store to Brian Graham in the Farmville office and Sterling, Brian, Chris, Spencer and Hallie in the warehouse, they all treat their customers like family. It’s how they’ve always done it, and it’s how they continue to do it. After 38 years, the team at Appomattox River Company doesn’t know any other way.
