Women today continue to push to the forefront of small business. So for the second year, Entrepreneur and the Women Presidents' Organization set out to find north america's 50 fastest-growing women-led companies. Topping the list is one woman holding her own in a male-dominated field.
From Entrepreneur.com
These women-led businesses are speeding their way to the top.
Women today continue to push to the forefront of small business. So for the second year, Entrepreneur and the Women Presidents' Organization set out to find north america's 50 fastest-growing women-led companies. Topping the list is one woman holding her own in a male-dominated field.
Heidi Smith Price might speak in a soft voice, but she's definitely loud enough to be heard. In fact, at only 29 years old, she has established a notable presence in a male-dominated industry. "You hardly see any women in the construction industry, much less the industrial industry," says Smith Price, who has grown her heavy industrial contractor business, Spartan Constructors LLC, from a mere $100,000 in revenue in 2003 to a projected $150 million this year--landing her securely at the top of this year's list of the 50 fastest-growing women-led companies.
In 2004, Smith Price bought majority partnership in the Sugar Hill, Georgia-based business and was up for the challenges that it presented--namely earning respect from her peers. "You just have to stand your ground and not let other people walk all over you," says Smith Price, who has focused instead on the opportunities that she knew lay beneath the surface. She immediately certified her company as a Women's Business Enterprise and was thereby able to open up her business to major contracting opportunities. This simple decision has enabled her to enjoy substantial growth over the past four years--at a rate faster than even she thought possible.
And while many might find the turf unfamiliar, it's been Smith Price's stomping ground ever since she was a young girl learning the ins and outs of her father's construction company. That experience as his executive assistant prepared Smith Price well for her role today, which requires that she wear many hats to get the job done. This level of competency, coupled with high standards for quality control and attention to safety, has won over major clients like Georgia Power and Southern Co.
The rate at which Smith Price has grown her business is exceptional, but her success is not unusual. The Women Presidents' Organization, the nonprofit peer advisory organization for multimillion-dollar women-led and women-owned businesses, estimates that 41 percent of all privately held companies in North America are owned by women. Meanwhile, WPO members earn average annual sales of $13 million, says Marsha Firestone, founder and president of the organization. "It's very difficult to build a business. And it keeps the fire in the hearth burning to see women who have made it."
1. Spartan Constructors LLC
Industrial construction, Sugar Hill, GA spartanconstructors.com
Heidi Smith Price
2. Pinnacle Technical Resources Inc.
IT staffing, Dallas pinnacle1.com
Nina G. Vaca
3. Temporary Housing Directory Inc.
Temporary housing & hotel placements, Castle Rock, CO temporaryhousingdirectory.com
Teresa Vidger
4. EnterForce Inc.
Managed services provider, Waukesha, WI enterforce.com
Marie L. O'Brien, Filippa C. Weber
5. Strategic Staffing Solutions Inc.
Staffing solutions, Indianapolis strategicstaffonline.com
Debra J. Maynard
6. Polaris Direct
Mailing services, Hooksett, NH polarisdirect.net
Judith Maloy, Suzanne Lampognana
7. Artech Information Systems LLC
IT staffing, Cedar Knolls, NJ artechinfo.com
Ranjini Poddar
8. Global Resource Management Inc.
IT & supply chain management services, Suwanee, GA grmi.net
Naheed Syed
9. United Scrap Metal Inc.
Metal recycling, Cicero, IL unitedscrap.com
Marsha Serlin
10. Morpheus Media
Interactive advertising & marketing agency, New York City morpheusmedia.com
Shenan Reed
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