Winner: Acuity Group PLLC
Tiffany Couch, owner
2008 revenue grew 250 percent
This year's awards make Vancouver-based Acuity Group a two-time winner, after winning Start-up of the Year in 2008.
Tiffany Couch and Laura Preston founded the company in May 2007 to help small- and medium-size companies make sense of bank records, family trusts, divorces and business partnerships, often when fraud is involved.
"The economy and the nature of the way people are living beyond their means – I think that's why fraud really is prevalent," Couch said.
Couch bought Preston's shares in the business in May 2008 and hired her first employee in June. She was able to support two seasonal employees and an independent contractor later in the year.
Meanwhile, the firm's year-over-year revenue jumped 250 percent to $240,233. Of that, $100,000 came from seven new clients in Clark and Cowlitz counties. Couch also worked in Alaska, Seattle, Central Washington and Portland.
"We fill a niche need in the market," Couch said. "We have expertise that a traditional (accounting) firm either doesn't have or is conflicted (about)."
Net profits were flat from 2007 to 2008 due to investments in training, staff, salaries and computer equipment, including data extraction software that increased efficiency of project review and analysis, Couch said.
"I was able to actually pay myself," she said. "That's a nice feeling. I was able to make a market salary."
In 2009, Couch hopes to hire a couple of technical certified public accountants, develop financial education programs and move from her home office to a downtown Vancouver space.
"I think it goes to show that our business community is strong because I moved here four years ago and didn't know a soul," Couch said of the company's quick growth. "The business people in Vancouver, they're really the ones that helped launch this and keep me busy."
– Charity Thompson
Finalist: Simply Thyme Catering
Kelly Hoeppner and Tamara Leibfarth, owners
Increased gross profit by 20 percent in 2008
The owners of Vancouver-based Simply Thyme Catering, Kelly Hoeppner and Tamara Leibfarth, each brought a unique set of skills when they founded the company in late 2005.
Leibfarth is a certified executive chef with more than 25 years of experience in food service and several prestigious awards under her belt. Hoeppner has more than 20 years of events planning and marketing experience.
Together they created a company that offers full-service catering with event planning, and fresh food that incorporates national trends and global influences with a local twist, using local products as much as possible.
"We come together as a team in a way that enhances the customer experience," Hoeppner said. "Food is a central part of our culture, and we have the savory ingredient to add to an event. I feel honored that people trust us with their private event."
In 2008, the company upped its profit by 20 percent, while in 2007 it doubled. In 2008, the company operated with five full-time equivalent employees, not including Hoeppner and Leibfarth – up from four in 2007.
Hoeppner attributes some of the growth to some marketing opportunities, including those through chambers of commerce and tapping into a marketing and events planning company that allowed Simply Thyme to build relationships for private and corporate events.
The company also connected with Flightcraft, to provide food – and sometimes other products – for people flying out of the private terminal at Portland International Airport.
Along with an extensive menu of food – that has to be able to hold up at 10,000 feet – Simply Thyme provides a concierge service.
"We get requests for slippers, Arabic newspapers, dog beds," Hoeppner said. "It's a different facet of service. … We have to always be ready and available. Sometimes we get a couple days' notice and sometimes we're lucky if we have a few hours' notice."
– Megan Patrick-Vaughn
