SMB Fast Track

For many companies across numerous verticals, surviving and growing during the last two years has been a challenge. Job gains and unemployment news were dismal. Business investment spending and consumer confidence fizzled. And the stock market tanked. Thankfully, the downturn wasn't equally distributed. The following 25 SMB companies are on the fast track to growth and their stories are upbeat reality TV shows worth watching.

NOTHING SIMPLE ABOUT GOOD TASTE

Tastefully Simple promotes its line of gourmet soups, dips, desserts, and convenience foods through in-home parties where attendees can taste prior to buying. Its standard food items range in price from $4.99 for beer bread mix to $41.99 for a large gift pack. Many are ready-to-eat, while others require only one or two additional ingredients to prepare. Tastefully Simple has about 4,000 sales representatives in 47 states, and it buys its products from specialty food vendors.

GROWTH FACTOR: There is nothing simple about the company's estimated $100 million in sales for 2002 representing a 191.5 percent growth spike.

LOTSA PASTA

Monterey Pasta makes refrigerated gourmet pasta products, including cut and stuffed pasta, pizza, calzones and pasta sauces under the Monterey Pasta, Arthur's, Emerald Valley Kitchen, and Nate's brands. The company also cooks up a line of fresh soups and has bolstered its lineup with private-label and organic dips and sauces through acquisitions. Monterey Pasta sells its products through nearly 9,000 grocery and club outlets across the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Costco generates 40 percent of the company's sales, while Wal-Mart and Sam's Club account for 30 percent. Acquisitions and new product lines are part of the company's plan for growth.

GROWTH FACTOR: 2002 net growth for Monterey boiled up 115.9 percent to $9.5 million.

STORAGE BOOM

Merillat has grown into the nation's largest manufacturer of cabinets by keeping its doors open to the needs of customers. Today, Merillat has 11 plants, over 4,200 employees and product lines including Merillat Masterpiece, Merillat Classic and Merillat Essentials. The company's commitment to provide innovate products based on the needs of customers continues with the introduction of Organomics, an approach to product development where balance, form, function, style, organization and ergonomics meet.

TECH FACTOR: Merillat's recent growth is sparked by a sales analysis application, called BlueSky by Relational Solutions, Inc. of Westlake, Ohio. BlueSky provides the ability to gain better insight into data so Merillat can better understand detailed buying patterns of its products. BlueSky gives analysts quick access to information and lets management easily track performance, react to issues and detect trends allowing Merillat to respond to customers needs quickly.

RISE AND SHINE

Green Mountain Coffee roasts about 90 varieties of arabica coffee, which it sells to more than 7,000 wholesale customers including supermarkets, convenience stores, resorts and delivery services. The coffee is sold under the Newman's Own Organics brand, as well as the Green Mountain Coffee label. The company also markets its coffees and accessories via catalogs and the Internet. Started with a single shop in 1981, Green Mountain Coffee has closed its retail outlets to concentrate on its wholesale business.

GROWTH FACTOR: Net sales in the second quarter of 2003 grew 14.3 percent to $26,311,000, up from $23,013,000 in the second quarter of 2002. Total coffee pounds shipped perked up to 10 percent equaling 3,483,000 pounds.

HIGH JUMPER

LeapFrog Enterprises manufactures technology-enhanced toys to help kids. From only two toys in 1995, the educational toy maker's product line leaped to include more than 100 interactive learning toys and books covering subjects ranging from math to music. The company's best-selling LeapPad learning system looks like a laptop and teaches spelling, reading, and phonics to children. LeapFrog's SchoolHouse division also sells directly to schools.

GROWTH FACTOR: LeapFrog's net income for 2002 equaled $43.4 million, a jump in growth of 347.4 percent

ITALIAN-AMERICAN IDOL

American Italian Pasta Company (AIPC) is the largest dry pasta maker in North America. Its customers include most major U.S. grocers, food service giant Sysco, and food processors Kraft and General Mills, which put its pasta in their products. AIPC moved into retail brands with the purchases of the Mueller's pasta brand from Bestfoods, seven brands from Borden Foods, Italy's Lensi brand, and two smaller brands from Archer Daniels Midland. Acquisitions have made for vibrant growth but AIPC has invested heavily into building and renovating plants in the U.S. and Italy where it produces pasta for sale to consumers in Europe, the UK and the U.S.

GROWTH FACTOR: AIPC kneaded 2002 net sales of $41.3 million, a 56.4 percent spike.

HEALTHY GLOW

Orange Glo International produces and sells a variety of cleaning products including: OxiClean laundry additive, Orange Clean cleanser and degreaser and Orange Glo wood polish and cleaner. Orange Glo also produces hand soap, shampoo, car polish and other cleaning accessories. Orange Glo sells its products through mass retail channels, but squeezes a majority of its sales through infomercials.

TECH FACTOR: With a whopping 3,313 percent growth in sales over the last four years, Orange Glo International, a $300 million privately held household cleaning product (HPC) manufacturer, has earned its place as one of the fastest growing companies in America. In 2000, Orange Glo found itself hard-pressed to meet challenging customer demands using a legacy Windows-based software system. In October 2000, Orange Glo turned to J.D. Edwards Supply Chain Management and Enterprise Resource Planning solutions to help them "clean up" in the HPC industry. J.D. Edwards helped Orange Glo meet the demand boom over the last few years and stay one step ahead of the competition moving forward. Orange Glo depends on third-party manufacturers and suppliers and with J.D. Edwards, it is able to serve multiple locations by taking control of planning from raw materials to finished products. This allows Orange Glo to meet varying demands and better control costs.

FAST FEET

Steven Madden shoes are sold in over 2,500 department and specialty stores across the U.S. and Canada and about 75 company-owned stores, with plans to expand into Europe sometime this year. The company's wholesale operation includes the Steve Madden, David Aaron, l.e.i., Stevies, and the Steve Madden Mens brand. Steven Madden Retail operates Steve Madden and David Aaron retail stores as well as the company's outlet stores and Web sites. Wholly owned subsidiary Adesso-Madden, Inc. designs and sources footwear for mass merchandisers.

FAST FACTOR: Steve Madden net income for 2002 stepped toward $19.8 million, representing a 63.6 percent hike.

SMOOTHIE OPERATOR

YOCREAM International sells its frozen yogurt and smoothie mixes to food service customers under the YOCREAM brand and private labels. It also sells a line of co-branded frozen yogurt for food service with Dannon, packs ice creams and sorbets for General Mills' Cascadian Farm brand and produces frozen soy desserts for Imagine Foods. Costco accounts for nearly 70 percent of the company's total sales.

GROWTH FACTOR: YOCREAM grew 12.5 percent in 2002 and net income reached $0.9 million.

MAGNIFICENT MUNCHIES

The Hain Celestial Group sells specialty foods in kosher, sugar-free, low-salt, natural, organic, snack and weight management categories. Hain's products crowd the shelves at natural food stores and are spreading into supermarkets. Company brands include Arrowhead Mills, DeBoles, Estee, Hain Pure Foods, Kineret, Rice Dream, Soy Dream, Westsoy, and Yves. Hain added tea to its menu and changed its name with the 2000 purchase of Celestial Seasonings. The Heinz Company owns approximately 36 percent of the company.

GROWTH FACTOR: Despite net income of only $3 million in 2002, Hain grew 87.3 percent.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

Mission Foods is the largest manufacturer of corn and flour tortillas and delivers products to homes and restaurants across the world. The company utilizes state-of-the-art equipment to produce flour, corn, 98 percent fat-free and multi-grain varieties.

TECH FACTOR: Mission Foods deployed DataAlchemy from Bristol Technologies for its ability to both standardize routine monthly reporting and drive issue specific, value-added analysis. This tremendous time-saving capability enables Mission Foods to focus on increasing category share with key retailers.

NO PAIN MEANS GAIN

King Pharmaceuticals produces generic and brand name pharmaceuticals. Branded product includes cardiovascular, critical care, anti-infective and women's health products. Among the company's most popular drugs are cardiovascular treatment Altace and Levoxyl, a thyroid disorder drug. King contracts its excess manufacturing capabilities to outside pharmaceutical companies. Its King Pharmaceuticals Research and Development unit extends the lives of those products by developing new indications and formulations. Subsidiary Monarch Pharmaceuticals sells King's products to physicians and health care facilities.

GROWTH FACTOR: King's 2002 net income reached $255.1, a healthy growth of 17 percent.

KEEPS ON TICKING

Fossil is a mid-priced watchmaker in the U.S. and clocks about two-thirds of its sales from watches. Brands include its Fossil and Relic watches, as well as licensed names such as Giorgio Armani, Donna Karan and private-label watches for Eddie Bauer and Walt Disney. Fossil also distributes trendy fashion accessories such as leather goods, sunglasses, and a growing line of apparel. Fossil sells through department stores and specialty shops in 90 countries and about 85 company-owned U.S. stores.

GROWTH FACTOR: Fossil's net growth for 2002 clicked up to 34.8 percent due to $58.9 million in net sales.

HOT HOME APPS

The Holmes Group makes Bionaire, Family Care, Holmes, and other brands of air purifiers, fans, filters, heaters, and humidifiers. Holmes also distributes decorative lighting products. Its Rival kitchen appliances division comprises can openers, Crock-Pots and toasters. To stem production costs, the company shuttered all U.S. manufacturing operations and is tapping its alliances in the Far East. Company products are sold in Asia, Europe, North America, and South America. Wal-Mart, Kmart, and Target generate nearly half of Holmes' sales.

GROWTH FACTOR: Holmes grew 22.4 percent in 2001 by earning sales of $628 million.

RAISING THE BARS

Sweet Productions, a developer and manufacturer of nutrition bars, more than doubled its sales to $65 million in 2002. A healthy portion of this success can be attributed to ZonePerfect Nutrition Co., a marketer of nutrition bars, snacks, powdered drinks and frozen meals. ZonePerfect is Sweet Productions' largest customer. The company pumped up sales 81 percent to $50 million in 2002.

GROWTH FACTOR: Sweet Productions took the bold step of more than doubling its capacity in response to ZonePerfect's request for increased production. ZonePerfect has sold 172 million bars, and management forecasts 40 percent annual growth for the next five years.

BELLY UP

The Jelly Belly Candy Company (formerly Herman Goelitz Candy Co.) makes about 50 different flavors of "the original gourmet jelly bean," including licorice, champagne punch and jalapeno. The company's products are exported worldwide. Other products include candy corn, chocolate candies, gummies and licorice. Jelly Belly's sales grew 12 percent in 2001 by raking in $140 million.

GROWTH FACTOR: To broaden its product offerings, the company will soon introduce "JBz," which pair chocolate centers with crunchy candy shells in 20 surprising flavors.

RICE DISHES

Riviana Foods sells Carolina, Mahatma, and Success rice brands and the company is the leading seller of rice in the U.S. by volume. Dollar-wise the top brands include Quaker Foods' Rice-A-Roni, Mars' Uncle Ben's and Kraft's Minute Rice. Riviana also supplies food service products, private-label rices for grocery chains and bulk rice for use in processed foods. Riviana's Central American subsidiaries produce and market canned vegetables, cookies, and fruit drinks.

GROWTH FACTOR: Riviana nabbed a net income of $25.2 million in 2002, a 31.2 percent

SUIT OF ARMOR

Under Armour Performance Apparel is a global sports apparel manufacturer that pioneered synthetic "always-dry" compression undergarments for football, baseball, basketball, soccer, and hockey players. The company's products are the equipment of choice for the NFL, Major League Baseball, USA baseball, Major League soccer and the U.S. Ski Team. The company is growing at a break-neck speed, at an average of 300 percent per year.

TECH FACTOR: Under Armour recently implemented a fully integrated ERP/MRP/WMS supply chain solution from Lilly Software and has budgeted 2003 supply chain capacity and resources to produce and ship more than three times the number of units shipped in the previous year. The company presently retains a whopping 90 percent market share.

X-TREME SALES

Vans designs and sells footwear and apparel for casual wear and for use in activities such as skateboarding, snowboarding, surfing, and bicycle motocross (BMX). Its distribution network reaches about 50 countries, and the company operates more than 150 stores in the U.S. and Europe. Van's unique marketing strategy includes sponsoring alternative sporting (skateboarding, snowboarding, surfing) and entertainment events. The company also generates brand awareness and revenue through the 10 large indoor skateboard parks it owns and operates.

GROWTH FACTOR: Vans 2002 sales skated towards $332.4 million.

NATURAL GROWTH

Nutraceutical International sells about 2,500 nutritional supplements, vitamins, minerals, diet and energy products in the U.S. and in Europe. The company manufactures more than 85 percent of its products and sells them under such names as Solaray, NaturalMax, VegLife, KAL, Natural Sport, Premier One, Thompson, ActiPet, Action Labs, and Solar Green (marketing many brands helps the firm gain more shelf space). The company's Au Naturel unit markets its brands in 40 other countries. The acquisitive company also publishes natural health books under the name Woodland, and manufactures bulk materials for its own use and to sell. Bain Capital owns more than 40 percent of the firm.

GROWTH FACTOR: Company sales for 2002 grew seven percent, equaling $110.9 million.

COOL SHADES

Oakley manufactures high-performance sunglasses and goggles for the sports and fashion industries. The company's eyewear sells from $65 to $375 and features high-tech designs, including interchangeable, high-optical clarity lenses and damage resistance. The company operates a handful of its own retail stores and more than 40 newly acquired Iacon sunglasses stores. If that weren't enough, Oakley also offers a line of athletic shoes, watches, apparel and accessories. Oakley grew its net income by 19.4 percent in 2002, earning $40.6 million.

TECH FACTOR: The company uses the SAP Apparel and Footwear solution to assess consumer buying patterns and to react to profitable opportunities while keeping costs under control. SAP Apparel and Footwear gives Oakley the capacity to manage and interpret the massive volume of information it generates while providing real-time access to every element in its value chain, helping to identify challenges and opportunities in time to respond proactively

HILL OF BEANS

Goya produces about 1,000 Hispanic and Caribbean grocery items, including canned and dried beans, canned meats, olives, rice, seasonings, plantain and yuca chips and frozen entrees. The company also sells more than 20 rice products and 30 types of beans and peas under Goya and Canilla. Goya also sells tropical fruit and nectar beverages as well as soda and coffee.

Founded in 1936, Goya is the largest Hispanic-owned food company in the United States, and employs more than 2,000 people worldwide. The company operates more than 13 facilities throughout the U.S., Caribbean and Europe. Though Goya has grown steadily over the past six decades, its mantra is the same today as it was in 1936, which is to provide high-quality food and beverage products that meet and exceed the needs of its customers.

GROWTH FACTOR: Goya grew its sales by 4.9 percent in 2002 by generating $750 million in revenue.

JACKED UP

Jakk's Pacific Inc. is a multi-brand company that designs and markets a broad range of toys and leisure products. Product categories include action figures, arts/crafts activity kits, stationary, writing instruments, performance kites, water toys, sports activity toys, vehicles, infant/pre-school, plush and dolls. Products are sold under various brand names, including Flying Colors, Road Champs, Remco and Funnoodle. Products are sold to toy and mass-market retail chain stores, department stores, drug and grocery store chains, club stores, toy specialty stores and wholesalers. Some of Jakk's Pacific biggest customers include Target, Kmart, Toys R Us, Wal-Mart and Kay Bee Toys. The company also participates in a joint venture with THQ Inc. that has exclusive worldwide rights to publish and market World Wrestling Entertainment video games.

GROWTH FACTOR: Last year, Jakk's Pacific acquired a controlling interest in Toymax International, Inc., a worldwide creator, designer and developer of innovative and technologically advanced toys

SMELL OF SUCCESS

Inter Parfums, Inc., manufactures and distributes domestic and international brand name and licensed fragrances, alternative designer fragrances and mass-market cosmetics. Fragrance brands include FUBU, Celine, Paul Smith, Burberry and Christian Lacroix. The company also retains 100 percent ownership of Jean Philippe Fragrances, LLC. Inter Parfum's net sales rose 16 percent in 2002, from $112 million to $140 million.

GROWTH FACTOR: Product line extensions in the prestige brands category in addition to mass-market opportunities such as the recent creation of a new line of health and beauty aids, will allow the company to grow annual revenues by at least 10 percent and net income by approximately 15 percent annually over the next three years.

HANGING AROUND

The Hayes Company manufactures decorative lawn and garden products including shepherd hooks, trellises and plant stands to mass merchants like Wal-Mart and home improvement centers such as Home Depot. Hayes also hangs around gift shops, hardware stores as well as grocery and drug store chains throughout the U.S. and internationally.

TECH FACTOR: The company recently deployed Matrix10 product lifecycle management (PLM) software from MatrixOne. With Matrix10, Hayes can view, mark-up and modify product designs with its international partners and suppliers securely in real-time over the Internet. The company expects to reduce its shipping costs by as much as $200,000 annually.