HandCraft Expands into Martinsburg, Reaching New Customers and Increasing Volume

HandCraft Healthcare Linen and Uniform Services recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its fifth plant in Martinsburg, West Virginia. Half of the plant is already operational, processing millions of pounds of laundry for regional medical providers, with the other half opening in 2027.

“Martinsburg is an excellent location for us,” says Will Anderson, Chief Experience Officer at HandCraft. “We have a lot of business north of Spotsylvania, Virginia, along with customers throughout Maryland, West Virginia, and across the Eastern Shore.”  

Historically, customers in these geographic areas were supported by the Virginia and North Carolina plants. The business expansion into Martinsburg allows HandCraft to better serve these clients while attracting new ones. 

HandCraft Offers Laundry Services for Medical Providers

HandCraft is a family-owned business that has served customers since 1969. What started as a dry-cleaning business evolved into a model supporting hospitals, medical practices, and even private dental and medspa offices.

“We’ve invested in and built world-class operations in regard to commercial laundry,” says Anderson. “Our clients are our top priority, and servicing them efficiently is our mission. Managing healthcare linen is a task that hospitals and medical practices have historically struggled to navigate on their own.”

HandCraft has a team of commercial drivers who pick up dirty linen and scrubs for laundering while dropping off clean ones. This ensures that any medical office, from a dental practice of 10 to a major hospital with 500 workers, has a reliable source of clean linen and scrubs.

“HandCraft has grown significantly in the past decade, and we’re not slowing down,” says Johanna Moskovich, Marketing and Communications Coordinator for HandCraft. “Our service and experience set us apart, and we’re fortunate to have a leadership team that is so passionate about laundry.” 

The Expansion Brings Up to 240 Jobs to Berkeley County

By the time the West Virginia facility is fully operational, it will have between 220 to 240 employees in the building. HandCraft will continue to add staff to its Berkeley County operations in a variety of positions. Here are a few types of team members they look for:

• Experienced drivers: HandCraft needs people with commercial driver's license (CDL) certification to drop off and pick up linen. The drivers are often the face of the company, meeting with clients directly to exchange laundry. This means the drivers also need to be good at interacting with others. 
• Maintenance technicians: HandCraft runs seven days a week and keeps up with a dedicated preventative maintenance schedule. The company is always looking for people with mechanical maintenance skills. 
• Plant workers: Even in the era of automation, there are still manual tasks required to keep the laundry operations running.

The Martinsburg plant isn’t just designed to take pressure off of HandCraft’s other facilities. It was built with growth in mind, and the company has significant plans for scaling production. This is why it will continue to hire in Berkeley County over the next few years. 

HandCraft Worked With the BCDA to Choose Martinsburg

HandCraft’s expansion into Martinsburg was made possible in part by the Berkeley County Development Authority (BCDA). Both Anderson and Moskovich highlight how Executive Director Jennifer Smith proactively helped HandCraft establish its operations and become a part of the community.

“Jennifer played a pivotal role in us landing in Martinsburg,” says Anderson. “We wouldn’t be here without her.”

Moskovich adds that the BCDA offered an abundance of help and has continued to support HandCraft since the facility became operational. The HandCraft team also credits the Martinsburg-Berkeley County Chamber of Commerce, specifically President Kristie Hadley, for its support during the expansion process.

“This was my first experience opening a new plant, and I didn’t know what to expect,” she says. “I didn’t know how much help they would be.” 

There’s Room for Growth in Berkeley County

HandCraft proves there’s room for companies to expand their operations into Berkeley County, West Virginia, to take advantage of its location, ample workforce, and strong economic development resources. Moving here can be an easy process for organizations across several industries, with different utility and customer needs.

Learn more about Berkeley County and the other employers that operate here. See your future in Martinsburg and its surrounding communities.