BRISTOL, Va. – Employees of a Tri-Cities company learn they'll keep their jobs after months of worrying that Wise Foods Snack Foods would close.

Now another national snack found company has bought the Bristol, Virginia business and they plan on bringing in even more jobs.

Wise Foods Plant Manager Mike Wells calls it, "The plant that refused to close."

The potato chip company has survived 8 decades in Bristol, Virginia. It begun as Moores and was later purchased by wise.

However, this fall it looked like the final chips would crumble.

27 year employee Joyce Matherly couldn't believe she could lose her jobs. Matherly recalls, "It just about made your heart sink. To have that just suddenly hit you in the face, it was pretty hard to take."

Mike Wells says morale has been low the last few months, "Somber, sad, concerned because we all know what the economic conditions are in the area."

Matherly adds, "We had hopes that maybe somehow it would keep going. We just kept hoping against all odds that it would."

Now it will. Oregon based Snack Alliance Inc. bought out the manufacturing plant in an estimated $9.8 million dollar deal.

The 85 remaining employees will keep their jobs. Snack Food Packer Carol Roberts was overwhelmed by the announcement. She says, "It was exciting. We knew then we was going to have a job left."

The city of Bristol, Virginia secured a $225,000 state economic development grant and $350,000 in tobacco settlement funds to help put the deal together.

Snack Alliance produces cheese snacks and chips for major retailers like Wal-Mart to sell as their name brand. It's a plan they hope will keep them viable longer.

Snack Alliance products will be on store shelves of the top ten retailers across the nation as well as mom and pop shops.

Snack Alliance plans to add 95 new jobs after refitting the plant.