The Inner City 100, The Inner City 100 Article

Newsletters

Business Advice

Departments

America's Fastest Growing Urban Businesses

For the past eight years, Inc. and the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC) have teamed up to recognize America's fastest growing urban businesses through the annual Inner City 100 list.

This year, despite their challenging work environments, the members of the 2006 Inner City 100 list have thrived. Between 2000 and 2004, the companies on this year's list created more than 10,300 new jobs, generating average revenues of $31.1 million in 2004 and an aggregate revenue of more than $3 billion. They are leaders in their communities -- and indeed, leaders in the American economy.

Here, you can explore facts and statistics about the companies on the 2006 list, related stories from the June 2006 issue, all 100 profiles of the companies honored on this year's list, an interactive map, and much more.

The Number One Company

Darryl Hart sees Commodity Sourcing Group as a rising tide (the company grew 10,028 percent from 2000 to 2004) and Detroit's small businesses as boats. Hart, the 44-year-old CEO of the nation's fastest growing inner city company, has invested tens of thousands of dollars helping other businesses--including potential competitors--achieve some of the same success he has.

Read the entire profile on this year's number one company.