Small towns have long been known as good places to raise kids. It turns out they’re also good places to grow national businesses.

The proof is in Page Interworks PA, an engineering and consulting firm started in the basement of Carl and Brenda Page’s North Wilkesboro, N.C., home in 1994.
When the firm began to soar, Carl, a 1985 Carolina electrical engineering graduate, and Brenda, a 1987 accounting grad, elected to stay in North Wilkesboro where they were raising their three daughters rather than move to a big city.

The family had settled in the town when Carl was working for Duke Power. He started Page Interworks as a sideline specializing in the design of electrical systems before making the business a full-time endeavor in 1999.

Page Interworks now does business in 49 states, providing plumbing, mechanical, and electrical design services for commercial and industrial facilities. The firm has grown to 21 employees, including fellow Carolina engineering alumnus Michael G. “Mike” Lynn, ’78. Brenda serves as office manager and bookkeeper.

“We’ve learned to love North Wilkesboro for all the things it offers our family,” Carl Page said. “With the Internet we can live here and work anywhere. We didn’t need to move to grow the company.” Clients include Lowe’s Home Improvement and The Fresh Market, whose stores feature plumbing, mechanical, and electrical systems developed by Page Interworks. 

The decision to stay in North Wilkesboro was facilitated by a program of the N.C. Historic Preservation Office and the Department of the Interior, which provided state and federal tax credits for the restoration of a historic 1922 building on Main Street that became Page Interworks’ headquarters in 2005.

The work turned the former J.C. Penney building into what the Wilkes Journal-Patriot described as a “meticulously restored” Main Street showcase that garnered a string of awards and honors.

“I don’t think I’ll ever be involved in anything like that again that gains so much recognition and gratitude from people,” said Brenda Page, adding that the restoration was “quite an honor and an experience.”