BOSTON, MA – Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC) and Bloomberg BusinessWeek released the 2010 Inner City 100 list of the fastest-growing inner city companies in the U.S. Park Inc from Charlotte, NC ranked 54 on this year’s list. The Inner City 100 program recognizes successful inner city companies and their CEO’s as role models for entrepreneurship, innovative business practices and job creation in America’s urban communities.

This year marks the fifth consecutive year Park Inc ranks on the Inner City 100 list and their induction into the 2010 Inner City Hall of Fame.  This honor is due to Park Inc’s ability to be part of a small subset of these dynamic inner city businesses that have been able to sustain their rapid growth over multiple years, appearing on the list at least five times.

By comparing the unique characteristics of these hall of Fame companies and their CEOs to the rest of the Inner City 100 group and other firms across the U.S., we can gain valuable insights into what it takes to not only grow, but to maintain a high level of growth over many years.  As a Hall of Fame company, Park Inc continues to have a positive impact in the local communities they serve through civic leadership, volunteer programs and philanthropic activities.

The rankings for each company were announced at the Inner City 100 Awards Dinner on Wednesday, May 5, 2010 in Boston, MA. Winners attended a two-day event featuring seminars for Inner City 100 owners and managers at Harvard Business School, a reception at the Boston Public Library and an Awards Gala that drew more than 800 guests.

The Inner City 100 list provides unmatched original data on the fastest growing inner-city businesses in the U.S. In the last 12 years, 607 different companies have earned positions on the Inner City 100, collectively generating more than $27.2 billion in revenues and creating nearly 72,000 new jobs.

For the 2010 list, a record number of nominations were received.  Winners represent a wide span of geography, operating in 58 cities and 34 states.  The 2010 Inner City 100 winners grew at a compound annual growth rate of 37 percent and an average standard growth rate of 340 percent between 2003 and 2008. Collectively, the top 100 inner city businesses employ 10,700 employees and have created more than 6,300 new jobs between 2004 and 2008.

“We are delighted to celebrate businesses like Park Inc that are playing a critical role in revitalizing America’s urban communities.  Through their achievements, the Inner City 100 winning companies exemplify America’s remarkable potential and the road to future economic recovery,” Mary Kay Leonard, ICIC president and CEO. “These extraordinary companies demonstrate the market possibilities that exist within our inner cities.  If we can leverage these possibilities, we can create jobs, income and wealth for local residents and produce the next chapter of American innovation and opportunity.”

Eighty-five percent of companies expect steady growth and 27 percent expect their revenues to grow more than 30 percent. Individually, the median Inner City 100 Company’s revenues were $6.6 million. This year’s winners have a median employee turnover rate of less than 8 percent and 96 percent of them provide health insurance to their workers.

Founded in 1994, Park Inc is a service disabled veteran owned company that is dedicated to providing world class service to customers.  Headquartered in Charlotte, NC, Park Inc currently offers valet, shuttle, parking lot and/or garage management, greeter services, internal patient transport, and consultation services in 12 different states.  Corporate administrative functions are housed at the headquarters’ office while regional and local offices provide hands-on management of local service operations.

“We appreciate the work of the ICIC and the recognition that they have given us for what we have been able to achieve,” Brian Haupricht, President of Park Inc.  “This award validates to everyone at Park Inc that what we are doing is important and that our hard work has been recognized.”

The list is proof of concept that doing business in an inner city area holds a distinct competitive advantage.  ICIC has been studying the economic condition of the largest 100 American cities for more than a decade and is working to revitalize inner cities across the country.

Highlights of the 2010 Inner City 100 list include:

• Inner City 100 companies are 34 percent minority-owned.  Nationally, just 8 percent of companies with annual revenues over $1 million are minority-owned.
• 18 percent of the 2010 Inner City 100 are women-owned. Nationally, only 10 percent of companies with over $1 million in annual revenues are women-owned.
• The 2010 Inner City 100 boasts an average workforce that is comprised of 45 percent minority employees and 40 percent inner city residents.

Notes:

To qualify for the Inner City 100 list, companies were required to have at least 51 percent of their operations located in an economically distressed urban area; have at least 10 full-time employees; and a five-year operating sales history that includes at least $200,000 in revenues in the first year of consideration, an increase in year five sales over year four sales, and fifth-year sales of at least $1 million.  For the 2010 list, ICIC looked at total revenue growth from 2004 to 2008, and the specific rankings were based on these growth rates.  An economically distressed urban area is defined by ICIC as having a 50 percent higher unemployment level, 50 percent higher poverty level, and 50 percent lower median income than the metropolitan statistical area.

Inner City 100 Sponsors: Bank of America, Chevron Corporation, Goldman Sachs and Staples Foundation for Learning.

Tags: inner city 100, inner city parking management
Posted in: Awards and Accolades