From Dream to Concept to Reality: Agri-Valley Farm Management
Agri-Valley began as one girl’s dream. Grace Gob grew up in Gumbranch, Georgia as she gave good grace to God. In 1969 she filed for her business license and so Agri-Valley Farm Management had begun. After 10 humble years building up a reputation in Georgia, Grace finally opened her second office in Chicago in the late 1970s. From there things took off and the mid-west expansion slowly expanded until the company was servicing all of the United States. Now Canada is even in the mix. If it weren’t for Grace there would be a lot less light shining in this world.
In 1979 Rudy Blumquist took over the Chicago firm and implemented some rather innovative practices which led to the explosion of the company in the early 80s. Around Agri-Valley Grace and Rudy are the heroes to us all. They know farm and plot acquisition like the back of their hands: and that’s not a joke! In the early days of travelling to sites themselves, but now they enjoy the life of the elite from penthouses and board rooms. Oh how things change.
The farm management industry has come a long way since the company began. With the advent of digital technology Grace has had to overcome a lot of obstacles in order to keep the company viable, and this doesn’t even factor in the shifting nature of the agricultural climate. Real estate is difficult enough. Try adding in farmland, grain silos, and farmers whose livelihoods depend on you managing things correctly. 