YONKERS, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC) and Fortune announced yesterday that Clason Point Partners, which provides IT, logistics, administration, and acquisition support services to both government and commercial clients, received first place on the 2017 Inner City 100 list and the Staples Business Growth Award. The list, which was revealed at the 19th Annual Awards and Conference in Boston on October 3rd, ranks the fastest-growing inner city businesses in America by revenue growth. Clason Point also received the Staples Business Growth Award, which is presented annually to a company on the list that displays impressive growth. The firm reported 2016 revenues of $4,550,868 and a five-year growth rate of 3,828.24% from 2012-2016. The full Inner City 100 list, is available on Fortune’s website.
During the awards ceremony, Bill Peterson, regional vice president, Staples Business Advantage, presented Clason Point with the Staples Business Growth Award. Staples is committed to fostering entrepreneurship, and presents the award each year in celebration of the companies that are making critical economic contributions. “At Staples, we are committed to supporting entrepreneurs and businesses by providing them with the resources they need to succeed,” said Peterson. “We are honored to recognize Clason Point for its tremendous growth, success, and accomplishments within its own business as well as the community.”
Under the leadership of President and Founder Albert Cruz and Vice President and Co-Owner Raul Collado, Clason Point Partner’s annual revenues have skyrocketed from $115,850 to $4,550,868 in only 5 years. Their growth can be partly attributed to the “dogmatic commitment to quality and customer service” with a results-oriented focus on efficiency that Albert and Raul have instilled in the company.
ICIC’s Inner City 100 list seeks to celebrate and enable urban entrepreneurship. Over the course of nearly 20 years ICIC has awarded 928 companies whose success illuminates the innovation and business growth happening in our inner cities. Inner City 100 companies are forces of economic opportunity, optimism and transformation in their communities. Providing a platform for recognition, networking and learning, the Inner City 100 program continues to open doors for other budding urban entrepreneurs and stimulate inner city business development and job creation.
“We are extraordinarily proud of these pioneering entrepreneurs who lead the way in innovation and economic revitalization in America’s inner cities,” said Steve Grossman, CEO of ICIC. “In addition to excellence in business, they also demonstrate a deep commitment to and passion for their communities, which plays a huge role in the wellbeing of their local economies.”
In addition to being published in Fortune, CEOs from the winning companies were invited to the Inner City 100 Conference and Awards, a full-day event featuring robust networking opportunities and educational sessions led by executives and academics from top-tier universities, including Harvard Business School and New York University. Past winners have reported connecting with multi-million dollar investors as a result of appearing on the Inner City 100 list and attending the Conference.
Keynote speakers at this year’s event included former CEO of Constant Contact, Gail Goodman; award winner and CEO of The Menkiti Group, Bo Menkiti; and Harvard Business School Professor and ICIC Founder and Chairman Michael E. Porter. Other speakers included Tom Lewand, CEO of Shinola, David Segura, CEO of VisionIT, Lynda Applegate of Harvard Business School, Arun Sundararajan of NYU’s Stern School of Business, and Loren Feldman from Forbes. ICIC also celebrated 17 businesses as members of the Inner City 100 “Hall of Fame,” which recognizes companies that have achieved making the list at least five times.
Boasting an average five-year growth rate of 320% between 2012 and 2016, the 2017 Inner City 100 companies represent a wide range of geographies, hailing from 27 states. Collectively, the winners employed 9,402 people in 2016, and on average 42% of their employees live in the same neighborhood as the company.
Highlights of the 2017 Inner City 100 include:
- Employed 9,402 individuals in 2016.
- Created 5,724 new jobs in the last five years.
- On average, 42% of employees live in same neighborhood as the company.
- Average company age is 16 years.
- Average 2016 revenue is $13.1 million.
- 32% are women-owned.
- 45% are minority-led.
- 29 industries represented in the top 100.
Inner City 100 Methodology: The Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC) defines inner cities as core urban areas with higher unemployment and poverty rates and lower median incomes than their surrounding metropolitan statistical areas. Every year, ICIC identifies, ranks, and awards the 100 fastest-growing businesses located in America’s inner cities. In 2017, companies were ranked by revenue growth over the five-year period between 2012 and 2016. This list was audited by the independent accounting firm Rucci, Bardaro, and Falzone, PC.
Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC)
ICIC is a
national nonprofit founded by Harvard Business School professor Michael
E. Porter. ICIC's mission is to promote economic prosperity in America's
inner cities through private sector investment that leads to jobs,
income and wealth creation for local residents. Through its research on
inner city economies, ICIC provides businesses, governments and
investors with the most comprehensive and actionable information in the
field about urban market opportunities. The organization supports urban
businesses through the Inner
City 100, Inner
City Capital Connections and the Goldman Sachs 10,000
Small Businesses programs. Learn more at www.icic.org or @icicorg.
About Staples, Inc.
Staples brings technology and people
together in innovative ways to consistently deliver products, services
and expertise that elevate and delight customers. Staples is in business
with businesses and is passionate about helping businesses work better.
Headquartered outside of Boston, Mass., Staples, Inc. operates primarily
in North America. More information about Staples is available at www.staples.com.
