Florida's 2003 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winners Announced at Gala.Business Editors TAMPA, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 23, 2003 Local Entrepreneurs Recognized for Their Contribution to the Business Community Richard J. Dobkin, Florida Director of Entrepreneurial Services, announced the winners of Florida's 2003 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year(R) awards at a gala event at The Peabody in Orlando on the evening of Thursday, June 19, 2003. The award winners are:
Construction Products and Services Entrepreneur Of The Year: David
J. Burtt, President, Suncrest Supply, Inc., Ft. Lauderdale.
Suncrest Supply is a wholesale distributor of Formica brand
products, among other products, in the south Florida area. One
key contributor to Suncrest's recent success is a product line
called Quickstep, which is a kind of laminate flooring. This
product is a huge success in the state of Florida because of
its weatherproof feature.
Consumer Products and Services Entrepreneur Of The Year: Stanley
R. Smith, CEO, Shoes For Crews, Inc., West Palm Beach.
Shoes For Crews, Inc. is the leading manufacturer of
slip-resistant footwear in the United States. They currently
have over 15,000 corporate customers that service over 100,000
foodservice, industrial, hotel, healthcare and supermarket
locations. Some of the more notable corporate customers
include McDonald's, Burger King, KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut,
Denny's and The Cheesecake Factory.
Emerging Entrepreneur Of The Year: Craig A. Pisaris-Henderson,
President & CEO, FindWhat.com, Fort Myers.
FindWhat.com is a publicly traded performance-based, bid for
position search engine. Since its inception, the FindWhat.com
search engine has grown from 24 million paid click-throughs to
240 million paid click-throughs in 2002, representing an
increase of 905% over three years.
Financial Services Entrepreneur Of The Year: Alan B. Levan,
Chairman & CEO, BankAtlantic, Fort Lauderdale.
In a time when most banks are becoming detached from their
customer base, Mr. Levan has reengineered BankAtlantic's focus
to become "Florida's Most Convenient Bank," by making the
banking experience more efficient and more enjoyable for
customers. His innovative banking features and
customer-friendly programs have resulted in the creation of
more than 77,000 new checking accounts in 2002 alone.
BankAtlantic has become one of the largest Florida-based
financial institutions.
Health Sciences Entrepreneur Of The Year: David Gury, Chairman &
CEO, Nabi Biopharmaceuticals, Boca Raton.
Nabi Biopharmaceuticals discovers, develops, manufactures and
markets products that power the immune system to help people
with serious, unmet medical needs. The Company has a broad
product portfolio and significant research capabilities
focused on developing and commercializing novel vaccines and
antibody-based therapies that prevent and treat infectious,
autoimmune and addictive diseases.
Manufacturing/Distribution Entrepreneur Of The Year: Joel G.
Lehman, President, Florida Extruders International, Inc., Sanford.
Florida Extruders was initially established as a manufacturer
of aluminum extrusions used in the construction of pool cages
and screen rooms. Extrusions provide the structural framing of
these enclosures. The production of high quality screen doors
was added two years later. The fundamental approach of Florida
Extruders centers around offering products to the industry in
a variety and a quality level previously unavailable from any
historical source.
Retail Entrepreneur Of The Year: Keith Koenig and Kevin Koenig
(1947-2001), President, City Furniture, Fort Lauderdale.
With just $5,000 in savings, Kevin and Keith Koenig started a
waterbed company that later evolved into a retail furniture
empire. Their focus on state-of-the-art technology and other
service differentiators, such as same-day delivery, have
afforded City Furniture distinct competitive advantages,
respect from their national competitors, as well as multiple
industry awards and accolades. Since September 1994, when the
first City Furniture showroom opened, sales volume has more
than quintupled.
Technology Entrepreneur Of The Year: Bruce Chai, President & CEO,
Crystal Photonics, Inc., Sanford.
Crystal Photonics, Inc. develops, manufactures and markets
specialty single crystals and other crystal products and is
the preferred provider of sensitivity detectors used in
Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Scanners for medical
diagnostic imaging. The Company's products provide the
sharpest image and fastest scanning time for the detection of
early stage cancers in oncology.
Florida's winners are now eligible for the National Entrepreneur Of The Year awards designed to honor outstanding entrepreneurs who have demonstrated excellence and extraordinary success in such areas as innovation, financial performance, and personal commitment to their businesses and communities. The national search will culminate at a black-tie awards gala in Palm Springs, California Palm Springs is a famed Riverside County, California desert resort city, approximately 110 miles (177 km) east of Los Angeles and 140 miles (225 km) northeast of San Diego. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 42,807. , on November 22, 2003, where national finalists and the Entrepreneur Of The Year award winners will be announced and celebrated by more than 1,500 attendees. Jay Leno Jay Leno (born April 28, 1950) is an Emmy-winning American comedian, writer who is best known as the current host of NBC television's long-running variety and talk program The Tonight Show. Biography Leno was born in New Rochelle, New York. will serve as master of ceremonies for the evening. The Overall U.S. National Entrepreneur Of The Year will join winners from more than 30 countries around the world in Monte Carlo Monte Carlo (môNtā` kärlō`), town (1982 pop. 13,150), principality of Monaco, on the Mediterranean Sea and the French Riviera. for the World Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards in May of 2004. There, the country winners will be inducted into the World Entrepreneur Of The Year Academy. The induction ceremony will be followed by the announcement of the World Entrepreneur Of The Year. Previous Ernst & Young National Entrepreneur Of The Year award winners include a virtual "Who's Who Who’s Who biographical dictionary of notable living people. [Am. Hist.: Hart, 922] See : Fame " of business leaders, such as Steve Case Steve Case (born August 21, 1958) is a businessman best known as the co-founder and former chief executive officer and chairman of America Online (AOL). He reached his highest profile when he played an instrumental role in AOL's merger with Time Warner in 2000. of America Online See AOL. , Michael Dell Michael Saul Dell (born February 23, 1965, in Houston, Texas) is the founder and CEO of Dell, Inc. Biography Early life and education The son of an orthodontist, Dell was born in to an upper-class Jewish family and attended Herod Elementary School in Houston, of Dell Computer Corporation (company) Dell Computer Corporation - One of the biggest US manufacturers of IBM PC compatibles. "From notebooks to networks", their slogan says. http://us.dell.com. , Jim McCann of 1-800 Flowers.com, Howard Schultz of Starbucks Coffee, Richard M. Schulze Richard M. "Dick" Schulze is the Founder and Chairman of Best Buy. He was born and raised in St. Paul, Minnesota where he graduated from Central High School, afterwards attending Marquette University (he did not graduate[1]). He subsequently spent time in the U.S. of Best Buy, and Scott Kriens of Juniper Networks. The most recent winner (2002) is Jeno F. Paulucci, founder and chairman of Stanford, FL-based Luigino's, Inc. Paulucci, nicknamed the "frozen-food king," has enjoyed phenomenal success as the creator of such well-known food brands as Chun King Chinese cuisine, Jeno's Pizza Rolls and Michelina's frozen entrees. In addition to Jeno Paulucci, another Florida entrepreneur was recognized as a national award recipient last year, Rowland Schaefer of Claire's Stores who was the national Retail category award recipient. The independent panel of judges Panel of Judges is an indie pop band from Melbourne, Australia. Members
-- James H. Boyle, Managing Partner, Inflexion inflection, inflexion the act of bending inward, or the state of being bent inward. Partners, Orlando -- Hugh M. Brown, Founder & CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. , Retired, BAMSI BAMSI Brockton Area Multi Services Inc. BAMSI Bernard/Allison Management Services, Inc. , Titusville -- Joyce Elam, Executive Dean, College of Business Administration, FIU FIU Florida International University FIU Financial Intelligence Unit FIU Fingerprint Identification Unit (Sony) FIU Fire Investigation Unit FIU Fraud Investigation Unit (UK) FIU Facsimile Interface Unit , Miami -- Mark Farrell, President & CEO, The Vestcor Companies, Inc., Jacksonville -- Ira D. Kaplan, Sr. Vice President & CFO See Chief Financial Officer. , Claire's Stores, Inc., Pembroke Pines -- Patricia A. McKay, Boca Raton -- W. Scott Miller, Co-Founder & Managing Director, Lovett Miller & Co., Tampa -- Tom O'Neal, Director, UCF UCF University of Central Florida UCF Uranium Conversion Facility UCF Uniform Contract Format UCF Unregistration Confirm UCF Unit Capability Factor (power plant performance) UCF User Communication Form UCF United Cat Federation Florida Technology Incubator & Office of Research, Orlando -- Tom Wallace, CEO, MarketSmart Technologies, Tampa -- Brian Wilson, Vice President, NASDAQ NASDAQ in full National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations U.S. market for over-the-counter securities. Established in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), NASDAQ is an automated quotation system that reports on , New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Founded and produced by Ernst & Young, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards in Florida is locally sponsored by Bank of America
Bank of America (NYSE: BAC TYO: 8648 ) is the largest commercial bank in the United States in terms of deposits, and the largest company of its kind in the world. , Marsh, Foley & Lardner, Tampa Printing Company, BVP BVP bovine viral papillomatosis. , Inc. and The Florida Venture Forum. Recipients of the Entrepreneur Of The Year award become lifetime members of the Entrepreneur Of The Year Hall of Fame. Entrepreneur Of The Year(R) is a registered service mark of Ernst & Young LLP LLP - Lower Layer Protocol . About Ernst & Young Ernst & Young, a global leader in professional services, is committed to restoring the public's trust in professional services firms and in the quality of financial reporting. Its 106,000 people in more than 140 countries around the globe pursue the highest levels of integrity, quality, and professionalism to provide clients with solutions based on financial, transactional, and risk-management knowledge in Ernst & Young's core services of audit, tax, and corporate finance. Ernst & Young practices also provide legal services legal services n. the work performed by a lawyer for a client. in those parts of the world where permitted. Further information about Ernst & Young and its approach to a variety of business issues can be found at http://www.ey.com/perspectives. Ernst & Young refers to all the members of the global Ernst & Young organization. James S. Turley, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Ernst & Young LLP, is also Chairman of Ernst & Young Global Limited. |
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