Brief Profiles of 2000 Inc. 500 Companies

Brief profiles and stories about interesting and unusual companies on the 2000 Inc. 500 list.

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#14
Dark Day, White Meat
Support Technologies CEO Cliff Oxford knows how to cut calories at Thanksgiving dinner. Two years ago he was so worried that his company wouldn't make payroll that he "didn't eat a bite all day." Knowing payroll was scheduled to clear around the holiday, Oxford had called his bank to increase his credit line. "The day before Thanksgiving they called me and said, 'Can this wait until next week? We have a lot of people leaving for vacation.' I told them, 'Don't go anywhere, I'm coming over there right now." Oxford suffered through an anxiety-filled Thanksgiving Day and confirmed the next afternoon that the money had been transferred in time. --Kate O'Sullivan

Inc. 500 CEOs' Favorite Business Books
1. The E-Myth, by Michael E. Gerber
2. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen R. Covey
3. Built to Last, by James C. Collins and Jerry I. Porras

#18
"One Chai -- Extra Spicy"
As sales of Oregon Chai's tea beverages took off, the company moved operations from the founders' kitchen to a large production plant. Shortly after the new facility made its first shipment, CEO Heather Howitt mixed a cup of her product for a customer demonstration. "It tasted like jalapeño chai," she recalls. Turns out the previous tenant had manufactured salsa, among other things, and the plant's equipment had absorbed the salsa's zesty taste. Howitt immediately called every customer with orders to dump the new shipment. "Chai was so new to the market," she explains, "and we knew that if that was people's first chai experience, we were in trouble." Oregon Chai has since purchased new equipment and instituted more regular tastings. --K.O.

Percentage of 2000 Inc. 500 companies that were started in the founder's home: 61%

#50
Switching Channels
Before starting Lumber Liquidators, Tom Sullivan tried a very different line of work, developing a TV show called Street News. After more than a year on the project, he called it quits, but he says he might try it again. Stay tuned. --K.O.

#64
"Supersize Those Fries!"
Setting short- and long-term goals is important if you want to succeed, but for Eric J. Ruff, the key is to make sure those goals are attainable. So the first long-term goal he set when starting PowerQuest was to be able to take his family to McDonald's and "supersize" their fries without worrying about the cost. To Ruff's amazement, reaching that goal took him much longer than he had anticipated: four years, in fact. But Ruff proudly remembers the day he pulled a twenty from his wallet and "supersized" with impunity. --Sara Callard

#77
Pull!
Jay Borden of Granite Systems likens running a business to shooting skeet, the art of clay-pigeon destruction, which he mastered as a boy and still indulges on occasion. "One of the first lessons you learn is that you aim at where the target is going, not at where it is now," says Borden. "And that's just what you have to do when you're growing a business." --S.C.

#90
CEO Dating Tips
Like many busy entrepreneurs, Eric Jenkins didn't have a lot of time to devote to finding that "someone special" in his life. So he turned to the online personals. But after an unsuccessful attempt at romance with one cyber-fix-up, Jenkins decided not to pursue "Heidi," a second online love connection. Incredibly enough, Heidi's résumé soon turned up on Jenkins's desk. As fate would have it, Heidi chose Jenkins over the job. The couple were married four months later. "And I've never been happier," says Jenkins. --S.C.

#96
Twin-Twin Scenario
Sean and Scott Smith have been virtually inseparable since they were born -- 15 minutes apart from each other. So it's no surprise that the Smith brothers founded Coalition America together in 1995. Their skills dovetail nicely, with Sean acting as the corporate visionary while Scott oversees the daily operations. Sean claims his CEO status has nothing to do with birth order. "But I am always 15 minutes ahead of my brother," he jokes. --S.C.

#108
Miller Time
Michael Miller, on the advice of his stepfather and mentor, Hank Lempke, decided to wait until his 30th birthday to start a company. When Miller turned 30, he said to his stepfather, "OK, I'm ready!" "For what?" asked Lempke. "I don't know," Miller answered, "but I'm ready!" --S.C.

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