Eight West Virginia Companies among Inc.'s 5,000 fastest growing

NEW YORK — Inc. magazine this week announced its fourth annual Inc. 5000, an exclusive ranking of the nation's fastest-growing private companies. The list represents the most comprehensive look at the most important segment of the economy—America’s independent-minded entrepreneurs. Music website Pandora, convenience store chain 7-Eleven, Brooklyn Brewery, and Radio Flyer, maker of the iconic children’s red wagon, are among the prominent brands featured on this year’s list.

In addition, eight West Virginia based companies were named to the Inc. 5000 list. 

They are:

• No. 392  Cenergy with a 3-year growth rate of 750 percent and revenue of $12 million;

• No. 638  HMS Technologies with a 3-year growth rate of 477 percent and revenue of $31.2 million;

• No. 764 The McEvoy Administration with a 3-year growth rate of 400 percent and revenue of $2.1 million;

• No. 1508  McKinley Carter Wealth Services with a 3-year growth rate of 190 percent and revenue of $2.8 million;

• No. 2426  Reliable Environmental Transport  with a 3-year growth rate of 101 percent and revenue of $7.1 million;

• No. 2642  Performance Results with a 3-year growth rate of 88 percent and revenue of 13.8 million;

• No. 2715  KeyLogic Systems with a 3-year growth rate of 84 percent and revenue of 16.1 million;

• No. 3236  Advanced Technical Solutions  with a 3-year growth rate of 60 percent and revenue of $8 million.

Complete results of the Inc. 5000, including company profiles and an interactive database that can be sorted by industry, region, and other criteria, can be found at www.inc.com/5000 .

The Hottest Regions for Fast-Growing Companies

Once again, California tops the Inc. 5000 with the most companies of any state with 684. The Golden State is followed by Texas (404), New York (353), Virginia (293), and Florida (262). All 50 states, plus Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, are represented on this year's list. New York boasts 410 Inc. 5000 companies, making it the top metro area, followed by Washington, D.C. (363), Los Angeles (262), Chicago (203), and Boston (189).

The Inc. 5000 at a Glance

The Real Estate sector, although small, was the top-performing industry, with a total growth rate of 189 percent. Software was second with a growth rate of 126 percent, and Telecommunications was third with 119 percent. 

In total, the companies on the Inc. 5000 have created 1.4 million jobs. The Health sector is the top employer with 287,726 jobs, followed by Business Products & Services (230,066), Food & Beverage (108,344), Human Resources (107,924), and Retail (96,858). 

Business Products & Services had the most companies on this year’s list with 640, followed by IT Services (607), Advertising & Marketing (410), Health (396), and Government Services (336). 

This year’s fastest-growing company is Ambit Energy, a Dallas-based firm that buys electricity and natural gas at wholesale prices and resells the energy to customers acquired through a direct sales channel. The company saw $325 million in revenue in 2009 and a three-year growth rate of 20,369 percent. 

The top woman-run company is Lexicon Consulting (No. 4 overall), based in El Cajon, California. Lexicon creates mock Iraqi and Afghan villages used to train military personnel. The firm, founded by Jamie Arundell-Latshaw in 2005, recorded revenue of $17.9 million in 2009 and a three-year growth rate of 14,018 percent. The top minority-run company is WDFA Marketing (No. 5 overall), a San Francisco–based firm that specializes in guerrilla, grass-roots, and micromarketing. WDFA, founded by Raj Prasad, posted revenue of $38.4 million in 2008 and a three-year growth rate of 13,350 percent. 

The Inc. 5000 posted an aggregate revenue of $321.6 billion in 2009, up more than 50 percent from the previous year. The top five industries by total revenue are Business Products & Services ($84.7 billion), Health ($48.3 billion), Consumer Products & Services ($26.4 billion), Retail ($22.3 billion), and Government Services ($15.1 billion).

Methodology

The 2010 Inc. 500|5000 is ranked according to percentage revenue growth when comparing 2006 to 2009. To qualify, companies must have been founded and generating revenue by June 30, 2006. Additionally, they had to be based in the United States, privately held, for profit, and independent—not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies—as of December 31, 2009. (Since then, a number of companies on the list have gone public or been acquired.) The minimum revenue required for 2006 is $80,000; the minimum for 2009 is $2 million. As always, Inc. reserves the right to decline applicants for subjective reasons. The top 10 percent of companies on the list constitute the Inc. 500, now in its 29th year.

 

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SBA to host business financing event Sept. 27 in Charleston

CLARKSBURG – The U.S. Small Business Administration and its network of small business resource partners, will be hosting a “Borrower/Lender Matchmaking Event” on Monday. September 27, 2010 at the West Virginia State Training Center – Capitol Room located in Building 7 at the State Capitol Complex in Charleston.

This “One-Stop Business Financing Marketplace” event is specifically for businesses looking for funding to grow a business, capital to start a business venture, or help making ends meet in today’s economy.

“Small businesses have been struggling with financial issues since the onset of the economic recession,” said SBA West Virginia District Director Judy McCauley. “To help alleviate these concerns we are bringing together representatives throughout the state, to meet one-on-one with small business owners and nascent entrepreneurs to specifically discuss financing.”

Attendees can also participate in the loan packaging workshop being offered as part of the event. The workshop will provide step-by-step guidance on what it takes to obtain small business financing.

“Before a business owner leaves this matchmaking event, they should know what the qualifications are to obtain small business financing and learn how to put together an acceptable loan application package,” added McCauley.

Business owners can attend anytime during one of two offered sessions, from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m., or from 2 p.m. until 6 p.m.

There is no charge to attend or participate in this event, but pre-registration is required. To register, contact Karen Jones at (304) 253-3145 or via email at kjones@westvirginiawbc.org. A list of participating lenders and resources as well as registration information can be found on the SBA’s West Virginia web site at www.sba.gov/wv. Simply select the Lender/Borrower Matchmaking link under the Spotlight section.

 

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SBA to host webinar on 'Doing Business with the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection'

CLARKSBURG – The U.S. Small Business Administration is hosting a FREE webinar on “Doing Business with the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)” on Thursday, Sept. 30,  from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.

The DEP needs qualified contractors, especially minority and women-owned small businesses, to fulfill their various contracting opportunities throughout the state.

Jamie Lenore Chambers, accountant/auditor for the WV DEP’s grant management section, will be presenting an overview of state purchasing procedures and providing tips on how to navigate through the states contracting process.

The webinar is one in a series of free small business clinics and webinars for small businesses.

Upcoming sessions include:

• Small Business Loans: No Hype, Just the Facts Clinic, Charleston, September 16, 2010

• LLC v. S-Corporation: Which is Right for You? Webinar, September 21, 2010

• Marketing to Federal Agencies Webinar, September 23, 2010

• Taxes v. Liability: Business Legal Organizations Explained Clinic, Charleston, October 14, 2010

• Small Business Taxes from A to Z webinar, October 19, 2010

• Marketing to Prime Contractors webinar, October 21, 2010

Registration for all the above clinics and webinars can be made online at www.wvscore.org .

 

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Small Business Development Center to host small business startup workshop

CHARLESTON – The West Virginia Small Business Development Center (WVSBDC) will offer a small business startup workshop from 1 to 4 p.m. on Sept. 14.

The training will be at the Kanawha Valley Community and Technical College Workforce Division in the Schoenbaum Center at 1701 5th Ave. in Charleston.

WVSBDC business coach Anne Lane will advise participants on the aspects of starting a business, including startup issues, legal structure, licensing, business planning, budgeting and financing. There is no fee. Registration is required and is limited to 10 people. To register or for more information, call Dreama Wolfingbarger at 304-558-2960. 

The West Virginia Small Business Development Centers are part of the West Virginia Development Office and work with colleges, universities and other host institutions to provide cost effective business coaching and technical assistance statewide. 

The WVSBDC is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration. All opinions, conclusions or recommendations expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SBA. Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least two weeks in advance. Call Dreama Wolfingbarger at 304-558-2960.

 

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Extreme Entrepreneurship Tour Coming to Marshall in September

HUNTINGTON – The power of the entrepreneurial spirit will take the Tri-State Area by storm this fall when The Extreme Entrepreneurship Tour visits Marshall University’s Huntington campus.

The tour, a high-energy, half-day event, will take place from 3 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 23, at the Marshall University Foundation Hall, Home of the Erickson Alumni Center. Those in attendance will hear the stories of and learn the secrets behind the success of the world’s top entrepreneurs who are still in their 20s.

The event is sponsored by Marshall University’s Office of the President, MU Online College in the High School, the Center for Business and Economic Research and the Marshall University Research Corp.

The Extreme Entrepreneurship Tour is the first and only nationwide entrepreneurship tour. It is run by three award-winning young entrepreneurs – Sheena Lindahl (27), Michael Simmons (28) and Arel Moodie (26). Created in 2006 by Lindahl and Simmons, the tour features many of California’s top young entrepreneurs who have made, or sold companies for, millions of dollars and/or made a huge impact before the age of 30.

One speaker, Cameron Johnson (24) from Los Angeles, started a dozen profitable businesses and became a self-made millionaire while he was still a teenager. Another speaker, Rahim Fazal (27) from San Francisco, sold his first business for $1.5 million as he was graduating from high school. Fazal is the co-founder and CEO of the venture-backed company, Involver.

“More than half the companies on the 2009 Fortune 500 list were launched during a recession or bear market,” Simmons said. “Technology and globalization have made it very inexpensive to start a business. Now is the best time that there has ever been to become your own boss."

According to a 2007 Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation survey by Harris Interactive, four out of 10 young people would like to start their own businesses someday.

“However, when we talked with students, we realized that many of them needed inspiration and support to achieve this dream,” Lindahl said. “That’s why we started the tour.”

The goal of the Extreme Entrepreneurship Tour is to have college students around the nation graduate with an entrepreneurial mindset.

The tour uses numerous themes and resources to reach and inspire those in attendance. Some are:

• Focus – students are inspired and learn how to start and run their own businesses;
• Keynote – this speaker is an extremely successful young entrepreneur who shares his or her story and business lessons:
• Workshop – helps students come up with a viable business idea based on strengths and passions;
• Speed networking – focuses on students connecting with each other based on their business ideas;
• Panel – consists of the event speakers and local entrepreneurs with a focus on entrepreneurship. Local participants will include some who have created businesses and been successful in commercializing products, including representatives from Vandalia Research Inc., which is the first biotechnology research company based upon Marshall University research. Other panelists include local K-12 students, including award-winning students from Cabell Midland High School.

Registration to the event is limited to Marshall University students, faculty and staff, and to K-12 students. To register, they may go to www.extremetour.org/marshall.

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