| Boise, Idaho (October 6, 2003) – Inc.
Magazine, the premier publication for small and medium-sized
businesses, today released its 23rd annual Inc. 500 ranking
of the fastest-growing private companies in the country. Boise
based DJM Sales and Marketing, Inc. ranks #316 on the list,
with five-year sales growth of 561%. The Inc. 500 Special
Issue will appear on newsstands October 14 and will be on
display until January 2004.
Since 1997, DJM has been providing businesses with valuable
outsourced services. From its inception DJM’s goal has
been to provide unprecedented marketing and sales services
to customers in the technology industry. DJM has worked with
companies ranging from startups to fortune 500 companies,
and now has 7 full-time and 17 part-time employees. DJM and
President Deborah Marlor have achieved high recognition in
the Boise area, winning the Business Woman of the Year Award,
presented by the National Association of Women Business Owners,
Boise Area and Southern Idaho Chapter in 2002 and the Top
Diversity Owned Business in Idaho Award, presented by Div2000.com
in 2002. Deborah also serves as President and Board Member
for Entrepreneurial Resources, Inc. (formerly WEMS), the parent
company of the Women's Business Center and takes pride in
mentoring and building her staff of professionals.
The companies that made this list have thrived through continued
stagnation in the economy, posting an average five-year sales
growth of 1,312%. With aggregate revenue of $14.4 billion,
Inc. 500 companies are a formidable market force. And while
the United States shed 1.5 million jobs in 2002, Inc. 500
companies – half of which were launched with less than
$20,000 – provided employment for 67,973 people.
“The entrepreneurs you’ll find on the Inc. 500
have the type of attitude we need to get this economy moving
again,” said Inc. editor-in-chief John Koten. “For
them, a tough market is not an excuse for poor performance,
but an opportunity to innovate and rise above the competition.”
The Inc. 500 ranks privately held companies according to
sales growth over the past five years. With 75% of all new
job creation in the U.S. coming from small businesses, the
Inc. 500 is a prescient indicator of the companies and industries
that are driving the economy forward. Over the years, the
Inc. 500 has identified the next generation of world-class
companies, with Microsoft, Stonyfield Farms, Timberland, Oracle,
Princeton Review, Morningstar, E* Trade, Intuit and Domino’s
Pizza all appearing on the list before they became industry
powerhouses.
Inc. 500 is proof that tenacious businesspeople can succeed
without the benefit of substantial resources. Of the Inc.
500 founders: 48% had start-up capital of less than $20,000,
while only 2% received funding from Venture Capital firms.
Now, 78% have an estimated net worth of over $1 million. Most
Inc. 500 founders jumped right into their businesses; 84%
started companies without benefit of any formal research.
Also of note, is that 12% of Inc. 500 company founders are
women.
Entrepreneurs leading Defense, Advertising & Marketing
and Retail companies are poised to do the most hiring over
the next year. The industry with the strongest showing on
this year’s list is Financial Services, followed by
Healthcare, Software, Information Technology Services and
Advertising & Marketing.
To be eligible for this year's Inc. 500, companies had to
be independent and privately held through their fiscal year
2002, have had at least $200,000 in sales in the base year
of 1998, and their 2002 sales had to exceed 2001 sales. Inc.
verifies all information using tax forms and financial statements
from certified public accountants and by conducting interviews
with company officials.
# # #
|
