A credit union in western North Carolina announced Monday it will open its first offices in nearby Henderson County over the next two years, following its members as they spread further from the center of the Asheville metro area.

Champion Credit Union ($269.8 million in assets, 25,194 members) was founded in Canton in 1932 for employees of a paper mill in the Haywood County village. In 2000, its charter made it a community credit union, and it now serves nine counties in the state's southwest corner.

Since Jake Robinson became president/CEO in 2015, the credit union has added more than 1,000 members and $56.1 million in assets. Last year it opened an office in downtown Asheville, its fourth branch. Besides its Canton headquarters, the other two are in Waynesville, the Haywood County seat, and Arden, a Buncombe County community about 13 miles south of Asheville.

The next branch to open will be in the Mills River area about 8 miles south of Arden and near the Sierra Nevada Brewery, which like Asheville, has become a popular tourist destination. In early 2020, Champion CU will open its sixth branch in Hendersonville itself, the county seat and home of the North Carolina Apple Festival on Labor Day weekend.

Asheville has been drawing young people and retirees for decades, some for the cooler weather or the counter-cultural vibe. As home prices and rents have risen, young folks and others with more modest incomes have settled on the outskirts.

Champion CU has been gaining members in Henderson County and elsewhere on the edges of its territory, in part, through aggressive indirect car lending and mortgages. Also, residents are keen to buy local and buy through co-ops, said Noralynn Gudger, the credit union's marketing and communications manager.

Champion CU is the oldest credit union in an area where residents are familiar with cooperative principals, forming co-ops for foods and crafts that have lasted decades. But Champion CU had no office in one of the largest counties in its territory.

“The absence of a physical presence in Henderson County represents a significant void in one of the largest markets in our community charter,” Robinson said. “While we have been successful in acquiring members through business, indirect, and mortgage channels, we have struggled to develop primary banking relationships because of the convenience barrier. Beginning today, we will be breaking down that barrier.”