Tuesday afternoon was a visual reminder of the work that is ongoing in Weldon — work that officials and business owners hope will change the landscape of the town.

Andy Whitby, a longtime advocate for the revitalization of the town celebrated the rebranding of his Downtown Weldon Flea Market to Red Wagon, a shop that houses more than 60 vendors located at 221 Washington Avenue.

Whitby engaged the help of Bizzell Designs, a nationally known branding and design expert which the town has employed for wayfinding signage, civic branding, downtown destination strategies and themed architectural designs.

It was through consultation with the firm that the name Red Wagon was born.

“We’ve been in business for five-and-a-half years known as the Downtown Weldon Flea Market,” Whitby said before a brief program and ribbon-cutting. “Over a period of time we just kind of improved our merchandise appearance. We have over 60 vendors now and they have brought in really nice stuff. Really, we are no longer a flea market or flea market was no longer a description.”

The new name gives a nod to Christmas and Santa, who Whitby, with his long white beard, portrays throughout the season. “I loved it from the start,” he said. “It is representative of our business.”

The rebranding comes as the town just recently adopted the facade improvement program, Whitby said. “I immediately jumped on and got the application filled out. I’m just really excited about the facade improvements that can happen.”

Whitby said he is also excited about the new effort coming from the Weldon Town Board and revitalization group Weldon in Action. “There’s a lot of new energy in town working to try to improve the economy in Weldon. Between them and the Halifax County Convention and Visitors Bureau, the economic development office, the town, it’s a lot of people working together to make this happen.”

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Part of a bigger vision

Mayor Hugh Credle said the event is only part of the revitalization efforts ongoing in the town. “We are trying to proclaim us as the rockfish capital of the world. The waterway is our gateway. We’ve got monies and funds coming in that we need to build the boardwalk. The boardwalk is going to be a continuation of the Canal Trail. We’re going to hopefully get everything worked out with Wildlife so we can get everything done to extend the boardwalk and have a picnic area.”

The town is also trying to extend its police force from six officers to seven, Credle said. “We just got a Cops grant.”

The mayor said work continues on the Amtrak project. “It’s a long way away. We’ve got to get a lot more funds to come in. We’ve got a lot of funds for it but we need more to establish it so it can be on-ground instead of above ground.”

There are also renovation funds to restore the old depot. “We’re going to have directional signs. They’re going to be put up pretty soon.”

Credle wants to see downtown businesses blossom from the revitalization efforts and said he is appreciative of the efforts Whitby has put forth. “We’ve got Weldon in Action and they’re helping us to raise funds so that we can modify the blocks of our streets on Washington Avenue.”

The mayor said he feels good about the direction Weldon is headed. “We’ve got a long way to go but as far as revitalization is concerned I think we’re on the right track. We’ve got a lot of help from Representative Michael Wray. We've got a lot of help from our county commissioners to include Vernon Bryant and Judge Manning and all the rest of the board there. They are taking steps to make sure Weldon is on the right track.”

Credle said the Weldon Town Board is instrumental in the efforts. “We’ve got some very good board members who are very futuristic. They understand what it takes to make this town grow. They have a lot of good ideas. We’ve just got to make sure we come together and push those ideas as one so we can get the things done in Weldon that we need to. Right now we have very little opposition against each other so we’re all trying to work toward the same goal to establish this town to become the best town it can be.”

Town Commissioner Muzette Kiger said, “This is just a great way to have a transformation of our downtown. We’re very fortunate that Halifax Horizons believes in the project as well as commerce. These businesses have an opportunity to completely change and transform our downtown into a destination. It will have a huge impact.”

Weldon Town Administrator Connor Winstead Jr. said of the efforts, “I think it’s indicative that the town has a dynamic mayor and board in place. Hopefully this is a bellwether of great things to come.”

Remarks during the program

During the program, Credle said, “Mr. Whitby never stopped. He’s one of the frontrunners. I hope he’s leading many more to come behind him.”

Kelly Barber, of the Halifax Community College Small Business Center, said, “Andy has over 30 years of entrepreneurial support in this area. Our community is blessed that he has contributed the time, the energy and the dollars that he has contributed — to not just his business, but our entrepreneurial community.”

Barber presented Whitby with an excellence in entrepreneurship plaque honoring his 30 years of efforts. “It’s presented in recognition of his sustained contributions to the Roanoke Valley business community.”

Winstead said, “Mr. Whitby and the Red Wagon is a shining example of our first facade improvement grant.”

In his remarks Whitby thanked Barber, the town, the convention and visitors bureau, and the county’s economic development commission for sponsoring the event. “I want to thank the town of Weldon for the facade improvement program and Halifax Horizons for the initial funds to provide support for this program.”

He thanked Buzz Bizzell for the facade design and helping him with the new name. He thanked the town and Weldon in Action for the “new direction and energy for working to improve the economy in Weldon so that all Weldon businesses can be successful. I want to thank the vendors of our market for the merchandise selections that they’ve brought in for our business that has transformed our business from a flea market to an eclectic market.”

Lastly, he thanked his wife, Angel. “She has put up with a lot — the good days, the bad days, and the ugly days.”

Lori Medlin, president and CEO of the HCCVB, said, “This is the start of a revitalization of Washington Avenue. This is the first step to making three blocks of this beautiful small town over again with new, exciting eclectic businesses and a new energy and new destinations for tourists to visit when they come to Halifax County.”

For the bureau, Medlin said the efforts in Weldon mean the county has more products. “The more wonderful businesses, interesting places to shop, interesting places to eat and visit, the longer they will stay here and that’s good for our economy.”