Construction dominates 2004 Mercury 100 list

Last year was another tough year for many businesses in the region. Uncertainty over the war in Iraq and continuing terrorism threats along with a sluggish national economic recovery made just holding the line on revenues difficult for most.
But at least 100 Northern Colorado and southern Wyoming companies found a way to overcome those obstacles and record positive revenue growth in 2003 over 2002 ? in some cases by huge percentages.
Across Colorado Lending, a Fort Collins-based lending company, recorded a nearly 260 percent revenue increase and earned the No. 1 spot on this year?s Mercury 100 list. Nationwide Floor and Window Coverings in Fort Collins reported a 247 percent revenue increase, placing it second on the list. Citadel Advisory Group LLC, a Fort Collins firm specializing in representing business owners who sell their companies, placed third with a 233 percent revenue jump.
This year marks The Northern Colorado Business Report?s fifth annual Mercury 100 awards, which honor the region?s most successful locally based companies as measured by year-over-year revenue growth. The list includes companies that had revenue of at least $75,000 in the first year of the two-year-period being compared.
Perhaps not surprisingly given the region?s still-strong homebuilding industry, construction and construction-related businesses ? including lenders, appraisers, painters and roofers ? dominated the top 20 spots on the list with half falling in those categories.
Computer and information technology-related firms ? predominant a few years ago ? were in the minority this year with only three in the top 20. Vista Solutions Corp., a Fort Collins company that provides a host of IT services, was the highest-ranked IT firm on the list at No. 7 and an impressive 150 percent growth.
Surprises on this year?s list included Banister Construction Inc. in Fort Collins placing fifth ? up from No. 32 last year. Special Application Robotics Inc. in Loveland took a huge jump, capturing the No. 8 position after coming in at No. 97 on last year?s list.
S.A. Robotics, founded in 1992 by Dan and Debbie Johnson, caught fire in 2003 after landing some large contracts with the U.S. Department of Energy and other federal agencies.
?It?s been quite an exciting year for the company,? said Michael Cappello, the company?s chief executive officer. ?I was able to introduce the company into a business market that it hadn?t been in before.?
Front Range Real Estate Consultants Inc., a Loveland company that specializes in real estate valuations and appraisals, slipped from No. 4 on the list last year to a still-respectable No. 14 this year.
The biggest drop on the list belongs to Naranjo Civil Constructors Inc. in Greeley, which claimed the top spot on the list last year with 200 percent growth. This year, the concrete construction company dropped to No. 60 despite a still-healthy 21.2 percent growth.
Jerry Naranjo, who co-owns the company with his father, Herman, said last year was another very busy year but different from the year before.
?We had a huge restructuring,? he said. ?I think we?re on a more manageable growth curve now. I think it was more competitive (in 2003) and people got more aggressive and things got a little tighter.?
Sharpnet Solutions Inc., a Fort Collins Internet marketing and Web site positioning company that?s placed in the top 10 the last two years, fell to No. 30 this year even though it still recorded a 42.1 percent revenue increase.
Chris Sharp, company founder, said the change wasn?t a reflection of a weakness in his business in 2003. ?I wouldn?t say much has cooled off,? he said. ?We just didn?t grow the same because we were maxed out in our staffing and what we were capable of doing.?
Sharp said he?s already added three new employees this year to meet a growing clientele.
Of those companies with revenues of $100 million or more ? and there were four on this year?s list ? Champion Auto Group Inc. in Windsor finished highest on the list at No. 46 with 26.1 percent growth. Others included The Neenan Company in Fort Collins at No. 48; Poudre Valley Health System in Fort Collins at No. 77 and Metal West LLC in Brighton ? a steel manufacturer ? at No. 99.
And a firm doesn?t have to be a big gorilla to make the Mercury 100 list, with several with revenues of less than $1 million earning a spot. The company with the lowest revenue to make the list ? Wernsman Engineering Inc. in Evans ? came in at No. 85 with $170,000 in revenue in 2003, a 13.3 percent increase over 2002.
Proof that the region was still feeling the economic doldrums in 2003 is borne out by the fact that ?about 40 percent? of the responding firms reported revenues that were flat or negative, according to Business Report chief researcher Mishelle Baun.

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