Exploring the Valley
Discover the hidden gems, local legends, and can’t-miss experiences in Black Mountain and the Swannanoa Valley as we dive into the perks of Chamber membership and uncover what makes this mountain town a must-visit destination. Whether you're a local business or just passing through, there's something cool waiting for you!
Exploring the Valley
Why Painting A Flood High Water Mark Matters
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A local business owner pulls you aside at dinner and says, “We want you to take ownership.” That’s the moment Jessica Gruver and her now-husband Nathan step into a life-changing decision: buying Black Mountain Handyman and leading a team that homeowners across Black Mountain, Montreat, and Swannanoa already trust with their houses and their to-do lists.
We talk with Jessica about the real mechanics of a small business acquisition, why an 11 month transition can feel like having a baby, and what it means when a founder hands you the keys early and says, “Treat it like it’s yours.” We also get specific about what “handyman” can mean at a professional level, from helping an elderly neighbor change a light bulb to managing full renovations through Black Mountain Renovation and Design, backed by licensed general contractors and a team culture shaped by Montreat College ties and Eagle Scout values.
Then the conversation turns to Hurricane Helene and the kind of resilience you can’t fake. Jessica shares how 37 inches of water hit their building, what they lost in vehicles and tools, and how they rebuilt the space. One of the most powerful details is the painted high water mark on the exterior, a clean line with a date that quietly says: it happened here, and we kept going.
You’ll also hear how they show up for the community through Hammer and Heart and the Valley Hope Foundation, including donated labor that turns skills into real help. Subscribe for more stories from the Swannanoa Valley, share this with a neighbor who loves local businesses, and leave a review with your favorite takeaway.
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Welcome And Small Town Connections
SPEAKER_01Jessica Groover, I am so glad you're here today. Thanks for having me. Of course, you and I have gotten to know each other through Black Melon Handyman. When I first got here and didn't know a soul and was knocking on doors, you were in the office and you were like, I know your dad. And that's how we started. And so Newton. Old Newton, the big fig. There's little little big fig and big little fig. My brother is also. Do you know Newt? Newton? Little Newt? I think so. Oh, everybody knows. Oh, wait. You knew me before you knew my brother? Yeah. That is unusual. We'll have to talk about that. We will. Anyway, I'm glad you're here. And I always like to start with what's your story? Where are you from?
SPEAKER_00Well, I'm Jessica Groover. I am a Western North Carolina native. I was born and raised in Arden. Lived in Black Mountain for 20 years. I currently live in Marion, but business is here. So I like to tell people that my second home is in Black Mountain. Well, because the business is here and I spend a majority of my time here. Yes. So yeah, I'm in Black Mountain
Jessica’s Roots And Family Life
SPEAKER_00all the time. Very cool.
SPEAKER_01So you lived in Arden and then you moved here. Or is there anything that happened between those two times?
SPEAKER_00Oh, life. Like college and where'd you go to school? School. Went to Western Carolina University. Okay. Went to high school in Arden. Yeah, I went to Robertson. And uh, let's see here. Two daughters in the middle of all that. Emily's 22. She'll be 23.
SPEAKER_01Holy cow, you have a 22-year-old? Yeah, I know. I need to eat what you're eating.
SPEAKER_00Wow. That's awesome. It's sweetie's. No, it's not. Abby is 17. She graduates in April. Yay. Going into the National Garden. Wow, that's cool. Recently married. Got married in uh March of this. I'd say, come on now. It was just March. Yeah, it was just March. So in the middle of like getting doing wedding planning and blending families because my husband Nathan has two daughters. So we have 22, 17, 17, and 13. Four daughters. Four of mine. Wow. So in the middle of blending families and planning a wedding and all that stuff, we just decided to buy a business. Oh, that's a great idea. Yeah. So let's just add more stress onto it. Sprinkle it like salt. Might as well. Might as well. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01So how did that happen? How did the whole buying the business happen?
SPEAKER_00Uh so Nathan had been an employee of Mark Mulert at Black Mountain Handyman for five, almost six years. Mark, Mark was a former professor of outdoor education at Montreat College. Mark left the college, started Black Mountain Handyman almost eight, well, right at eight years ago. So Nathan worked for Mark for five, six years. I worked for Mark
The Offer To Buy The Business
SPEAKER_00for three years. And Nathan and I just kind of started dating and seeing each other secretively. Of course. So that our boss didn't find out. But we were we were both were really good friends with Mark. And we went to dinner February 2025. Like double date night, Mark and Kenda, Nathan and I. It was great. And I guess Mark knew by then. Mark, yeah, Mark knew by then. Okay. So we're having this dinner. I can't remember where we were. We were at Black Black Bear and Asheville, I think. Anyway, it doesn't matter. And Mark was like, I'm paying for dinner. I'm gonna turn this into a business meeting. And at that point, we were like, oh man, like, are you having another baby? Are you closing the business? What's going on? And he said, We want you to take ownership. We're moving. And we were like, uh What? There was this shock that instantly. So he suggested it. Yes. Okay. He said, We're, you know, Ken's parents are getting older. They're both not well with their health. And, you know, my dad's not well. He he his father had cancer and passed away last year, which was sad. But we uh it was it just it just it it shocked. We were we were in shock. And he said, uh, we want you to take ownership, we really want you to think about this. Let's have another dinner in a couple weeks, and you know, we can we can talk things through and Nate and I left dinner and we drove back to the office. We had to pick up our laptops or something from the office, and we I remember us opening the gates and we were like, this feels very different. Like weird. This can be ours. That's really cool. Acquisition process takes way longer than buying a car, way longer than buying a house. Like we're talking 11 months. It was an 11-month process, longer than having a baby, yeah.
SPEAKER_01That's kind of like having a baby, yeah. So that's that's how I ended up here. I never would have I thought it was the other way around. Y'all went to him and said, Hey, what do you think? But wow, that's that's a huge compliment for an owner of an established, well-run, well-organized business to come to you. That's really awesome, right?
SPEAKER_00Very cool. So, you know, we were we were Mark's like left and right hand pretty much. Like Nate was the general contractor. Nate, uh, you know, he was the project manager, and Mark just kind of ran the business. He was there and he was present and he did so much work. And then I did all the managerial like office admin side of things. Uh, and it just kind of came together. And Mark, so Mark asked us in February, he moved his family to Texas in July. So we didn't close on the business for a good eight months between him moving his family to Texas and and you know, getting back, uh like getting to that acquisition point. Uh so Mark pretty much just gave us freedom, like treat it like it's your own. And he set us up for so much success and he believed in us so much, he just gave us complete reins. Like, here you go, control it. And then once uh February 13th at noon came around, which was our acquisition date and time, uh, everything kind of just turned on. We had it set up to where all of our accounts just transferred over. Insurance turned on.
SPEAKER_01It was it was really your chamber membership just became yours. It was easy. Yeah, it was all you do is go into the directory and change it yourself. It was easy. It actually was really easy. Isn't it funny? I mean, why is it so hard? But yeah, well, good, good, good, good. Well, yeah, it's also funny. I'm sitting here thinking about all the guys that work with Black Mountain Handyman, and I think, you know, how many of them have been in my house? How many of them have been in my bedroom? Right. That's creepy. Yeah, they like know my house inside out and my parents' house, right? Which is kind of cool. And anytime I have a problem and I ask my dad, my dad's really handy and he can do almost anything, but he knows he also knows when he
Taking The Reins And Building Trust
SPEAKER_01needs to get somebody else to do something. He's good about, you know, nope, that's out of my league, and he will get somebody else. Yeah, but I'll ask him, I'll say, Daddy, how do I do this? He goes, that one's for Rob. Meaning, right, meaning, call Black Mom Handyman and get Rob up here because he's the one who knows how to do whatever it is that I don't know how to do. But yeah, so and then there's also a Montreat connection with a lot of the guys.
SPEAKER_00Right, there is. So one really awesome thing about Black Mountain Handyman, because Mark started it, and Mark was a professor at at Montreat College, uh, the connection between Montreat and Black Mountain Handyman isn't only Mark Muller being an OE professor. Nathan Gruver, who's uh my husband, current owner, is an outdoor education graduate from Montreat. Writer Van Dyck is he's got his bachelor's from Montreat. He just got his his master's from Princeton Theological Seminary in Church History. Almost all of our guys have a degree from Montreat College, which is outstanding. Almost all of our guys are also Eagle Scouts. I love that. Yeah, I love that. Yeah, so there's a there's a code that the Eagle Scouts live by. Yes. Um I worked at Montreat College for years in the academic affairs office, and there so there's that connection to Montreat College, but also Rob Robinson. Rob is well known in the area for he he had Rob Robinson builders. So he built 64 homes in Black Mountain and Montreat. Rob's also a member of Christ Community Church, and he has been a missionary his entire life. He actually grew up in in North Korea. What? I didn't know that. Yeah. So speaks fluent Korean and grew up there. His he remembers his earliest memory is going on a mission trip over to Korea, and he actually was on a boat sailing across the Pacific to get there. Which is pretty awesome. So that's awesome.
SPEAKER_01He actually, one of his 64 was he did the I don't know if that does it count as a renovation count as building a home. I mean, it was a complete renovation though. I mean, it was gutted. I mean, the outside walls stayed the same, nothing else inside did.
SPEAKER_00So he built 64 ground up homes.
SPEAKER_01Okay. Yeah. So that's not even one. But he did mom and dad's full renovation. I don't, I think he did, I assume he did my house, which is next door to my parents. I don't know. I need to find out. Anyway, yeah. So we we we love Rob at our house. He's a big deal. Yeah, he's great. But I have I've before I've said to dad, you know, he needed something done. And I said, Well, actually, I know this guy who he goes, Nope. We're calling Rob. We're calling Rob. Okay, got it. I understood loud and clear, Dad. No, y'all have a great reputation in town. And and the name handyman sometimes can have a different connotation to it, but y'all are making it a professional organization. You have professionals that work there. I had a guy in my business club in Georgia and he was a professional, like A V guy. And he's he would always say, We're not the hang and bang your TV guy. We're the guy who puts the whole system in your house. Yeah. Something like that's what you're looking for.
SPEAKER_00So we're not just we're not just a typical handyman, right? We're not just full into just maintenance and stuff like that. We will go in and change a light bulb for an elderly couple that can't climb up a stepladder. We'll change smoke detector batteries and we'll do whole home renovations. The only thing we don't do is build a home from the ground up. We haven't done that yet. It's on our bucket list of business things to achieve, but it's just not come about yet. Y'all are busy all the time. I don't know how you can throw a house in there. So we've got we have 13 full-time employees. I scratch that. We have 13 employees and 11 of them are full-time. So on staff, we've got three licensed general contractors. So it's we're not just a handyman, we are we are a licensed general contractor. So not only are we Black Mountain handyman, but we're also Black Mountain Renovation and Design. Didn't know that. Yeah, which is great. Uh we a whole like serious. We do it all. We do it all from the There we go. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Very cool. All right. So we love Black Mountain Handyman. Thanks. Y'all are super helpful. Thank you. We do a lot of great things. Tell me about Jess. Tell me what Jess does. What does she like to do when she's not talking or thinking about Black Mountain Handyman, which I understand is a ridiculous question because I'm the same way.
SPEAKER_00It's not ridiculous. So one thing that that I really value about mine and Nathan's relationship is we work together day in and day out, right? When we get in the car first thing in the morning,
Turning Work Mode Off At Home
SPEAKER_00we turn work mode on. When we get out of the car in our driveway in the evening, that's when work mode turns off. How do you do that? It is it's a discipline that we've had to there are situations where you know things need attention, right? But we are able to turn it off, and that's when we focus on this is family, this is our time, spending time with our dogs. We both love to garden and he's obsessed with his grass. So we spend a lot of time outside. Good. We we hike, we camp, we love to travel.
SPEAKER_01I think I've called you a couple of times and you were traveling, like literally, you answered the phone and you were on vacation.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, that was the most recent one. We went down to to Edisto with the family. Uh but we love to travel. So we we spent some time over Holy Week in Guatemala, which was which was great. The the culture in Guatemala during Holy Week, it's just oh I bet that's awesome. Fantastic. They literally paint the streets with colored sand. It is just what? Yeah, it's beautiful. So we camp, hike, travel, play with the dogs, hang out with kids. We love to go and you know do family dinners. How do all the kids get along? They they get along uh pretty well, actually. Uh especially the two 17-year-olds. They're like they're budded up big time. That's awesome. Like you've got the younger sister, and she's like feels left out because if there's more than two, then everybody's gonna be left out except the two.
SPEAKER_01And they can rotate from one to it's like a triangle. They can rotate from one to the other, and whoever's gonna be left out is left out yeah that moment, and it will be another time too. But yeah.
SPEAKER_00Now the oldest hasn't really spent much time. She lives in Edison. She's good. She's she's doing her own adult life. She's good.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Well, cool. Yeah. Okay. So hiking, camp, camping. Camping, really? Like camper camping, like tent camping. Tent camping. Yeah, I know.
SPEAKER_00This is something that Nathan brought into my life.
SPEAKER_01You run with an outdoor education, recreation, studies kind of guy.
SPEAKER_00These things will happen. Uh we have an entire shed in our the back part of our property that's dedicated to only camping stuff. Okay. But I will tell you when Helene happened, I know. Oh, and that we had all smoke stoves. We we were very much prepared. We just set up an outdoor kitchen and it was great. It was fine.
SPEAKER_01Yes. Yes. Tell me. I don't like to talk about Helene, but you brought it up, so we're gonna talk about it. But I generally don't talk about Helene on this show because that's just we just don't. But I want you to tell me the story of the 37 inches of water.
Helene Flood Damage And Rebuild
SPEAKER_00Oh man. So obviously people in the area know all about Helene. We uh Black Mountain Heinyman took on 37 inches of wall inches of water in on the building. 37 inches. We had to do a complete gut job of the entire office space, which insurance did not cover. Thank you. Liberty Mutual. We lost six of nine fleet vehicles and over forty thousand dollars worth of tools. Uh so so the building sustained substantial damage. Uh like I said, that we had to cut the entire inside and we rebuilt it. It's beautiful. And thankfully, we're a handyman company.
SPEAKER_01I was gonna say, at least you know a guy. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00So we knew plenty of guys. Plenty of guys to do it. I so the work on the interior of the building was done under a previous ownership. Now the exterior of the building is something that Nathan and I inherited with acquisition. Recently, we uh we added new gutter systems. We you painted it.
SPEAKER_01It's beautiful.
SPEAKER_00Did paint it.
SPEAKER_01It's beautiful, it looks contemporary and up to date, and it just looks thank you. It looks professional.
SPEAKER_00It does, and that's something that we we we want our customers to be able to come in and hang out in our office. A lot of them do. Which is a super nice office.
SPEAKER_01It's so pretty and like homey, but not gigantic. Right. Not a lot of space to hang out in there, folks.
SPEAKER_00Right. But yes. So we wanted something that had a that was a nice curb appeal, something that could welcome and welcome our customers and show them, hey, we actually know what we're doing. We're not we're not operating out of a dump. That's right. Uh so changed the whole appearance. It's changed the whole, it's great. Yeah. So we did a lot of work on the exterior, like I said, the gutter system that we installed. Uh, we also updated the and refreshed the exterior of the building.
SPEAKER_01So I love the line. I want you to tell about the line. It's just they're clean lines. That's what I love is that it's clean lines and it looks professional, but the line means something.
SPEAKER_00The line does mean something. So the bottom half or the bottom 37 inches of the building is a dark blue, and the top area of the wall space is is a gray. The the line itself is our high watermark. So on the exterior of the building, we painted, and there's a little graphic there that that notates that this is our high water mark, and it uh notates. It says it just tells you, it just tells you that Helene happened here. Happened here. And it it's good, we've got the date on there as well. So that's something that's that hopefully, you know, it brings some kind of peace and understanding and hope, and not just to Black Mountain Handyman or to business owners in the area, but to also members of the community that, hey, this happened to us too, and and this is in memory of it. That's right.
SPEAKER_01And it just I just love yellow in a very high traffic area. Yeah. So people are gonna drive by it every day. But it doesn't say, hey, look, look, Helene was right here. It doesn't point it out like or, oh poor me, we got hit by Helene too. Right. It's just there. Yeah. I think it was classy. So I think it was a great choice.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and it was it was a good time to do it because with with purchasing the business, we did a whole complete rebranding. So our logos changed, we've added new signage, we've done a couple different different things, and it it was good to to add that to our rebrand. Right.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. So perfect referral for you is gonna be I mean specific perfect referral for you. Somebody wanted to know. I know that sounds really lame because it's anybody who needs something done, but somebody who is where do they live?
SPEAKER_00Our service area is is pretty dialed into Montreat specific, Swannanoa specific, and Black Mountain. However,
Rebrand, Service Area, Ideal Customers
SPEAKER_00we the Ridgecrest area of Black Mountain. So the Swannanoa Valley. Yeah, Swannanoa Valley, however, we don't go like past the straightaway cafe on number nine. It's just too hard. Yeah, it's too far. Right. Um which is unfortunate because we've got several people that call in, you know, on a regular basis that just need somebody to do work for them.
SPEAKER_01So so very local. And I like that. Yeah. A lot of times people go too far and then it gets to where you can't get them back in time. Right. Exactly. So that's good. And let's see, you're coming to business club. You promised me you would. Yes, I that's one of the questions we always ask about. But um, but you said that you would, you know, change the light bulb and you would you would do the things that people need. Right. But there's also a need for people who may or may not be able to swing it, make it happen. What do we do with those people? So how do we help those people?
SPEAKER_00So one really interesting thing about Black Mountain Handyman is its connection to Hammer and Heart. We love them. Yeah, we do love them. So Hammer and Heart was actually started by Mark Mullart, who is Mark and Kenda started that. Uh, I can't remember the year. It may have been 2019, 2020. So that's why the recent move. Oh, all the pieces are coming together. So Hammer and Heart was launched by Mark and Kenda Mullart,
Partnering With Hammer And Heart
SPEAKER_00and it became so big so fast, and helped so many people who just don't have the accessible funds to make necessary repairs. Right. And that's the connection to Hammer and Heart. Charlie Wilson's doing a great job right now as the director of Hammer and Heart. So that torch was passed from Black Mountain Handyman to the actual 501c3 that is Hammer and Heart. Another great resource is the Valley Hope Foundation. We recently partnered up with them right after acquisition. We've done many jobs for them. Will Carpenter and his team at Valley Hope Foundation are outstanding. They've done so much good and so much work in the community.
SPEAKER_01They are also chamber members. We love them. We love them. Timothy's the one I know really well. I've met Will a couple of times, but Timothy's the one I see the most.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. So Will's one of those guys where when you're having a conversation with him, like he doesn't break eye contact and he is fully like invested in everything you're saying. And he's just, Will, Will and Charlie both are just like human magnets. Like they they just suck in so much energy and resources, and that's their job. That's what they do. Yeah, that's what they do. They just like they they bring in all this energy, bring in all these resources and these people, and they're able to help tremendously. Yes.
SPEAKER_01I love both of those organizations. And you and I both went to the Hammer and Hearts grand opening and their that lined up with Swanna Valley Christian Ministry's 50th anniversary. So they did a whole party. Yeah. And I think everybody on the planet was invited. And I think half of the planet showed up. I was and it was a torrential rain day, and it just stopped raining right at five o'clock.
SPEAKER_00Big dealing. I don't even know how you get them to play anymore. They played at Sourwood.
SPEAKER_01Did they? They sure did.
SPEAKER_00Interesting. Grayson and I are gonna have to have a game.
SPEAKER_01Grayson's awesome. Love Grayson. Yeah. Anyway, yes, it was a big deal. And I love Hammer Heart. I love their new building. And uh Rotary helped them one day. Not a whole lot, but they helped them one day and it was a lot, helping to just clean the building and get ready to move in there. So it's taking a whole community to build it. Right. So but I'm cool. I didn't know that it started with y'all. I didn't know that.
SPEAKER_00That's cool. And we have an agreement with Charlie to two or three of our guys first Monday of every month. We're just donating our resources, our labor hours, all of that. And we're just throwing two or three guys every single Monday to a project for them. That's great. So hopefully we can give back. And our guys love doing that work. Of course they do. They love it. That's great. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01So, Jess, one more thing. Is there anybody you want to shout out? Anyone you want to talk about? Anything I didn't ask you that you wanted to mention that I've failed to ask you in all.
SPEAKER_00Let's see here. My favorite restaurant in Black Mountains, probably the Trailhead. Well, yeah. Yeah. Like you take a family of five in there for dinner and it's like 60 bucks. It's fantastic. Fantastic, yes. But it's also really good food. Oh, I know.
SPEAKER_01I know. And they they they compete
Shout Outs And Closing Thoughts
SPEAKER_01with one other place that I can think of for the best margarita in town. Not that I have a favorite because I'm not allowed to, but maybe. Just saying.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_00Let's see here. I I don't know. It's okay. Shout out, shout out to Nathan Grover. There you go.
SPEAKER_01That's who I was looking for. That's what I was expecting. Huh? I get it. Well, thank you very much for coming today. Thank you for coming in. And I just I didn't know a lot of the things you taught us, so that was cool. Thank you very much. I appreciate you. Yeah, thank you. Thanks for joining us on Exploring the Valley. Until next time, keep celebrating the pride of our community and discovering the magic of the mountains. In the meantime, you're free to move about the valley.