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Every entrepreneur is different, but the CEOs of America's fastest-growing companies have a lot in common. You're bullish on A.I. You're wary of investment. And most of you have built [...]

Paul Rabil was the world's greatest lacrosse player. Then he decided to parlay that into reinventing professional lacrosse. But the real highlight? How he did it. Paul Rabil was sick [...]

ARRY COOPER WASN'T supposed to be an entrepreneur. After completing a PhD in neuroscience in 2014, he was working at Northwestern University's medical school when he learned that some of [...]

CELESTE BEATTY DIDN'T set out to be the first Black woman in the United States to own a brewery. It just happened that way. After years of homebrewing in her [...]

In 2019, just five months after launching her weighted blanket company, Bearaby, Kathrin Hamm received an email from a buyer at the home furnishings retailer West Elm. The buyer had [...]

Reaching$1 million in sales is a milestone that can take years to achieve. For Emma Grede, it took one day. In 2016, Grede's size-inclusive denim brand, Good American, sold $1 [...]

CHRIS SACCA IS TRYING to save the world. The venture investor and founder of Lowercase Capital, known for his early bets on Uber, Twitter, and Instagram, launched Lowercarbon Capital in [...]

FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS, Inc.'s Founder-Friendly Private Equity Firms list has shined a light on the PE outfits that support founder-led companies through both good times and, well, global [...]

MAKING A CAREER CHANGE IN MIDSTREAM will always be risky, but Kara Goldin is a risk taker. * In 2005, Goldin, who had previously left her job as VP of [...]

For most entrepreneurs, launching a startup three months before a global pandemic would just be bad luck. Not so for Realm founder Liz Young, whose real estate platform helps homeowners [...]

Zico founder Mark Rampolla recently bought back his coconut water company after a sale that decimated the brand. Now he's rebuilding it with a new team, but facing fierce competition [...]

THE 40TH ANNIVERSARY of the first Whole Foods Market in September was bittersweet for co-founder and CEO John Mackey. He marked the occasion with the publication of his second book, [...]

It started with a cookbook. When pastry Chef Fany Gerson couldn't find a book on treats from her native Mexico, she decided to write one herself. 'Most of the sweets [...]

* In 2016, former venture capital investor Jeremy Stein won $1 million playing fantasy basketball. Then he won another $1 million playing fantasy football. Dumb luck? Hardly: Stein, 37, had [...]

The document titled "2024 Inc. 5000 CEO Survey" provides insights into the perspectives and practices of Inc. 5000 CEOs, who are considered leaders in the economy. The CEOs are early adopters of AI and prioritize hiring top talent. The document includes a list of the top 500 companies, ranked by revenue growth, and offers a full list of the 5,000 companies. The document also includes survey results on various topics related to entrepreneurship, such as demographic information, admiration for successful entrepreneurs, use of AI, social media platforms of choice, self-care routines, productivity hacks, funding, sales teams, challenges, and concerns. [Extracted from the article]

When Poshmark went public in January 2021, Tracy Sun never expected that her online fashion marketplace would again be a private company just two years later. But Poshmark, which Sun [...]

When Matt Rollens received the glass tea bottle he ordered from Amazon in 2016, he was so disappointed with its quality that he decided to make a better one himself. [...]

More than a decade after founding her eponymous children's clothing brand, Kate Quinn was still struggling to make a name for herself in the world of fashion. So, in 2018, [...]

Inc.'s inaugural list of founder-friendly private equity firms highlights shops that treat entrepreneurs as partners and operators--rather than as part of the furniture. Private equity firms have been called all [...]

A year ago, business leaders at companies big and small were grappling with the same question: 'When will we return to the office?' Though some founders have welcomed their workers [...]

The article discusses the current state of funding for entrepreneurs in the United States. It highlights the decline in venture capital and private equity activity in recent years, as well as the higher cost of debt financing due to interest rate hikes. However, there are reasons to expect a rebound in 2025, such as large stockpiles of capital and interest rate cuts. The article emphasizes the importance of finding a capital provider that offers support and partnership rather than just financial resources. It also mentions the growing popularity of debt financing as an alternative to equity funding. The article encourages entrepreneurs to consider private equity as a means to accelerate growth and fund acquisitions, and advises conducting due diligence when choosing a capital provider. It also addresses the lack of funding for female founders and the importance of deep industry knowledge and problem-solving skills for entrepreneurs. Finally, the article suggests that entrepreneurs should consider debt financing as a powerful growth tool and prioritize finding a reliable and supportive lender. [Extracted from the article]

Selling your company doesn't always mean cashing out and moving on. For these founders--whose companies have all been Inc. 5000 honorees--transferring ownership to employees, public investors, or a strategic buyer [...]

Shortly after the sale of his second company--the communications hardware maker Acme Packet, which Oracle acquired for $2.1 billion in 2013--Andy Ory came to realize something about computer networks: They [...]

In 2011, tech industry veteran Doug Hirsch launched digital health care marketplace GoodRx with Scott Marlette and Trevor Bezdek. With 20 million people now using it every month to find [...]

Junea Rocha launched Brazi Bites over a decade ago with a single snack. Since then, the better-for-you Latin-inspired foods brand has grown every year--and it's on pace to approach $30 [...]

More than a decade before Covid-19 made remote work the new normal, Krish Ramakrishnan aimed to democratize videoconferencing. In 2020, when the pandemic led to a 400 percent jump in [...]

Global expansion is typically a years-long process, even if you overcome all of the logistical and regulatory hurdles. Unless, that is, like this founder, you find a buyer that already [...]

MOMPRENEUR Shazi Visram INFANT NUTRITION >> Visram founded New York City-based organic baby food company Happy Family in 2003. THREE-YEAR GROWTH SPURT >> Happy Family, a B Corp, debuted on [...]

The ambitious idea wasn't his. But this founder latched onto a partner who helped map out the strategy--and had the capital to make it happen. Selling your company to the [...]

SILVER GO ENERGISTICS CEO: ADAM SHEPHERD BRONZE BERRY LAW FIRM CEO: JOHN S. BERRY JR. WELLNESS PRODUCTS GOLD SAALT CEO: CHER IE HOEGER For allocating 2 percent of annual revenue to send period products to areas of the world where they're scarce. - D.R. SILVER IXLAYER CEO: POURI A SANAE BRONZE KUDO CEO: FARDAD Z ABETIAN "I felt like we were entering the third wave of computers and the internet", says co-founder and CEO Ben Forgan of the launching of his cellular platform, Hologram. CEO: AMANDA BALDWIN BRONZE PURITY COFFEE CEO: ANDREW SAL ISBURY WELLNESS SERVICES GOLD HEADSPACE HEALTH CEO: RUSSELL GL ASS For democratizing mental health care by facilitating on-demand therapy with licensed professionals via its app. SILV ER NOLIJ CONSULTING CEO: ASHLEY MEHTA BRONZE BOUNDLESS IMMIGRATION CEO: X IAO WANG Categor y HEALTH PRODUCTS GOLD NEXUS PHARMACEUTICALS CEO: MARIAM DARSOT When Nexus Pharmaceuticals opened a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, in June, its mission was not just to make high-quality generic medication more affordable and accessible. [Extracted from the article]

The Mentor and the Mentee Liz Young and Robert Reffkin share a passion for real estate, but both admit that the size of the industry can be a blessing and a curse. When it comes to dreaming big and growing fast, few real estate founders have more experience than Compass CEO Robert Reffkin. Not so for Realm founder Liz Young, whose real estate platform helps homeowners maximize the value of their home by guiding them through decisions like how much to spend on a kitchen renovation or when to refinance. [Extracted from the article]

NOBODY CAN pinpoint the timing or impact of a private-tech-sector bubble burst. But preparing for one is not a bad idea, even if you don't think your company would be [...]

IN 2005, GRAFFITI artist David Choe took shares over cash to paint the walls of an outfit called Facebook--shares now worth north of $200 million. Far more often, though, taking [...]

Private equity investors aren't always the most obvious source of funding for startups and small businesses. But they're an increasingly important one. especially for entrepreneurs looking to scale beyond the [...]

DOUG JONES WAS just two years into his first startup when he got a cold call from Kevin Prokop, co-founder and managing partner of Detroit-based private equity firm Rockbridge Growth Equity. BEYOND THE CALL Aside from capital, Rockbridge Growth Equity, co-founded by Kevin Prokop (below), provided Doug Jones's Abuv Media with expertise from Quicken Loans' family of companies. Two years later, after increasing annual revenue sixfold under Rockbridge's ownership, Jones and Schuessler sold the company to HigherEducation.com for an undisclosed sum. [Extracted from the article]

In September 2017, Lou and I merged our companies to create SportsGrid. In 2017, he used them to co-found SportsGrid, a sports betting media company - CNBC meets SportsCenter. HOW I DID IT In 2016, former venture capital investor Jeremy Stein won $1 million playing fantasy basketball. [Extracted from the article]

BREAKING INTO ANY INDUSTRY is always hard, but certain sectors have tailwinds that make them attractive for new entrants. Below are four of today's hottest industries, complete with projected revenue [...]

HOW I MADE IT When tea bottle Matt Rollens he ordered received from the Amazon glass in 2016, he was so disappointed with its quality that he decided to make a better one himself. In 2017, working with manufacturers in China, Rollens, 36, founded Sacramento-based Dragon Glassware. Dragon even released a line of pink, Barbie-themed glassware in 2021 after Rollens pitched Mattel on a licensing deal. [Extracted from the article]

The article presents brief profiles of young corporate founders that bring creative solutions in society, including Colleen Costelo, Anna Stork, and David Widerhorn, in the U.S. The topics discussed include the businesses they started, the technological innovations they brought to the community, and the success of their startup companies.

The article presents factors considered by entrepreneurship reality show "Shark Tank" investor Daymond John when deciding to invest in startup companies that participate in the show. Topics covered include Bubba's Q World Famous Bar-B-Q Catering owned by Al "Bubba" Baker, the marketing strategy of seamless sock company Bombas owned by David Heath and Randy Goldberg, and athletes benefiting from weighted compression gear produced by Patrick Whaley's company Titin.

The company also runs a philanthropic arm that aligns neatly with its core business: Every year, Toy'n Around invites its customers and partners to donate money to causes related to the well-being of children, from building orphanages in Uganda to providing clean water for a pediatric hospital in Haiti. Small and Mighty (10 to 49 employees) TOY'N AROUND PRESIDENT: Dan Bowling AREA OF IMPACT: Child welfare Toy'n Around, an Eden Prairie, Minnesota-based sales representation firm, helps brands sell toys and sporting goods to Target. So he joined Toy'n Around, in 2011, with the hope of one day integrating philanthropy into the business - which he did after becoming president and owner in 2020. [Extracted from the article]

In 2015, Al-Zubaidi created patient-management software to flag the tissue abnormalities in medical records and then automatically notify both patient and doctor about the necessary follow-up exams. Six years later, Denver-based Eon is expanding its tracking system to all manner of documented abnormalities, with the aim of capturing patients at risk for a wide range of diseases and, when necessary, getting them in for additional testing. No 128 AKI AL-ZUBAIDI THREE-YEAR REVENUE GROWTH: 3,131% Aki Al-Zubaidi was an interventional pulmonologist in Colorado who'd become fed up with the U.S. health care system. [Extracted from the article]

GLO:inc/01may21:70n1.jpg PHOTO (COLOR): BALANCING ACT Mud\Wtr CEO Shane Heath built his company around the idea that hard work without physical and mental health will sink you. gl A year ago, business leaders at companies big and small were grappling with the same question: "When will we return to the office?" A record number of companies applied - more than 3,000 - while the number of employees who completed a 43-question survey also reached a new high: 422,000. For the fifth consecutive year, we worked with Quantum Workplace to identify the nation's Best Workplaces as measured by employee engagement. [Extracted from the article]

It ends with a happy hour of food and celebration. gl At Buildertrend, a construction-management software company in Omaha, Nebraska, co-founders Dan Houghton, Jeff Dugger, and Steve Dugger are known as "the Bobs." Prior to starting Buildertrend, Houghton and the Duggers were high school best friends. Eric Fischer, a vice president of customer success who's worked at Buildertrend since 2014, chose to be reimbursed for a family ski trip to Colorado. [Extracted from the article]

In this article renowned musician Greg Koch discusses how he co-founded Stone Brewing, which quickly became enormously influential in the craft beer world, and his recent collaboration with Metallica. He tells that he did not look for a niche in the craft beer, but it became the top-selling 22-ounce beer in U.S. chain stores. He tells that he was not interested in private equity, but VMG Partners had done tremendous research into craft beer and heled him.

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OPTIMIZER PEAK PERFORMANCE POWDER In 2012, when he was 24 years old, Cohen founded Liquid I.V., which makes an electrolyte drink mix. Eight years later, more than 35,000 U.S. stores carry the company's products. GLOBAL AMBITIONS Unilever acquired Liquid I.V. in September for an undisclosed sum and will help the company expand internationally. [Extracted from the article]

A trip to the store will be more informative and entertaining in a 5G world, giving brick-and-mortar retailers a needed boost over online sellers. "The realism coming through devices or virtual dressing rooms with 5G will be staggering", says Jon Nordmark, co-founder and CEO of Iterate.ai, an innovation R&D company in San Jose, California. [Extracted from the article]

The article focuses on founder Bob Parsons of Arizona-based business GoDaddy Operating Co. LLC, which provides affordable web hosting services and controversial television commercials after the success of its initial public offering.