The 2006 Top Ten Small Business Awards were given to a strong field of established and growing businesses on Thursday, June 22.
The awards are presented annually by the Waukesha County Chamber of Commerce and Small Business Times.
This year’s winners are: World Class Wire & Cable Inc., Waukesha; Cesarz, Charapata & Zinnecker Funeral Home, Waukesha; Frett/Barrington Ltd., Waukesha; Tailored Label Products Inc., Menomonee Falls; VJS Construction Services Inc., Pewaukee; M&M Office Interiors Corp., Pewaukee; La Crosse Litho Supply LLC, Pewaukee; Molded Rubber & Plastic Corp., Butler; Wiscraft Inc., Milwaukee; and Briohn Building Corp., Brookfield.
“It’s apparent from reviewing the nominations for the 2006 Top Ten Small Business Awards that our local businesses are experiencing favorable economic conditions. The 10 winners enjoyed significant economic gains,” said Patti Wallner, president of the Waukesha County Chamber of Commerce. “Winners indicated that the gains were a result of investments in staff and technology, as well as introducing impressive innovations within their industries. The region’s businesses are not accepting global competition as a negative. Instead, they are focusing on new strengths that set them apart from the competition.”
Dan Meyer, publisher of Small Business Times, said, “Each year, this program shines a worthy spotlight on some of the best and brightest entrepreneurs in southeastern Wisconsin. All of us can learn from their best practices.”
VJS Construction Services Inc. was named the Small Business of the Year.
The Pewaukee-based company has grown from a 1947 startup company, to a $2.5 company in the 1970s when the Jorgensen and Schueler families first took principal roles, to a company with 200 employees and $97 million in revenues last year.
“VJS is the epitome of a ‘culture of success.’ Ensuring a future of continued projects is a role that is accepted by all employees, no matter what their position,” Wallner said. “We recognize a sense of pride, of accepting their role as community leaders and the delivery of a product that is micromanaged on every level to achieve results that will result in an ecstatic customer. They truly inspire us.”
Elite Human Capital Group of Brookfield received the Emerging Business Award.
The leaders of the winning companies shared some of their best strategies for business growth at the luncheon, which was held at the Country Springs Hotel’s grand ballroom in Waukesha.
The awards are presented each year to companies, based on the following criteria: no more than 250 employees; growth in employees or sales; minimum of two years in business; based in southeastern Wisconsin; committed to good business practices; history of good employee relations and benefits; strong customer focus; and financial growth and consistency.
The annual awards program recognizes companies that are headquartered in southeastern Wisconsin, not just Waukesha County. A panel of business people affiliated with the chamber judged the entries.
