ABOVE VIDEO:Tom O’Neal, Ph.D., Executive Director of GrowFL and Associate Vice President at UCF Office of Research and Commercialization speaks about the importance of the entrepreneurial ecosystem and how UCF nurtures companies from the ground up – all with revenue and job growth as the goal.
Presented by GrowFL, in Association with the Edward Lowe Foundation, Anuva has been selected as a leading second-stage businesses in Florida.
BREVARD COUNTY • WEST MELBOURNE, FLORIDA – Anuva, a product “design to distribution” family of businesses, is honored to be recognized as one of 50 top second-stage companies selected from more than 500 nominations statewide as a 2014 Florida Companies to WatchSM winner.
Anuva and all of the 2014 winners will join an esteemed group of 150 Florida alumni honored over the past three years at the Florida Companies to Watch awards event. Presented by GrowFL, in association with the Edward Lowe Foundation, it will be held on Thursday, October 23, at Hard Rock Live in Orlando.
Vinu Patel
“Receiving this distinguished award is such an honor,” says CEO Vinu Patel. “In the United States, our best resource is our brain power—and I want to build on that and create jobs here. Through innovation and collaboration, we are positively impacting the community and economy within Florida and beyond.”
Described as one of Florida’s “rock star entrepreneurs,” Patel and the Anuva team have launched more than 130 cutting-edge products over the past 18 months. In addition, the company has helped raise about $128,000 in funds to support Ma Krupa, which provides medical care for underserved populations in Brevard County and elsewhere.
Overall, This Year’s Florida Companies To Watch Winners:
► Generated $370 million in total annual revenue
► Increased total annual revenue by 36 percent compared to 2012
► Employed 1,757 full-time equivalent residents
► Project 462 net new jobs for 2014
Dr. Tom O’Neal
“Florida Companies to Watch is honored to recognize another outstanding group of stage-two companies,” said Dr. Tom O’Neal, executive director of the Florida Economic Gardening Institute and associate vice president for the University of Central Florida’s Office of Research and Commercialization.
“This is our fourth year of celebrating second-stage business leaders throughout the state of Florida. The companies selected for the Florida Companies to Watch awards program stand out among their peers as companies that should be celebrated. In Florida, they account for 5 percent of the companies and nearly 30 percent of the jobs. These companies make a difference and we’re happy to offer the recognition they deserve.”
Florida Companies to Watch is an awards program that celebrates privately held second-stage companies headquartered in the state.
Florida Companies to Watch is an awards program that celebrates privately held second-stage companies headquartered in the state.
To be eligible, applicants must employ between 6 and 99 full-time equivalent employees and have between $750,000 and $50 million in annual revenue or working capital in place.
Awardees are selected for demonstrating the intent and capacity to grow based on employee or sales growth, exceptional entrepreneurial leadership, sustainable competitive advantage, outstanding corporate culture, inspired community giving and other notable strengths.
Florida Companies to Watch is unique because of its focus on second-stage companies and the wide-ranging industries they represent.
The impact of these companies on Florida’s economy is immense, and this year’s honorees are examples of such companies in the state.
Sponsors include Wells Fargo, TWSquared, University of Central Florida, Florida High Tech Corridor, atLarge, Inc., Carlton Fields Jorden Burt, Filmscape, OUC, AMTIS Inc., Enterprise Florida, Fifth Third Bank, Florida Power Light, Insperity, LSQ Funding, Sorensen Moving Storage, SunTrust, USF Connect.
For more details on Florida Companies to Watch, visit flctw.growfl.com or email info@growfl.com
