Arkansas may be known for its massive retail companies, poultry operations and transportation companies, but it is gaining recognition for cultivating fast-growing companies throughout the state. In the last issue of Inc., the national publication takes its annual look at the growth of businesses around the United States, ranking privately-held companies based on their three-year growth rate.
Fourteen companies in Arkansas received recognition on the 2020 Inc. 5000 list, which compiles the 5,000 fastest-growing privately-held companies in the United States. This marks an increase for Arkansas, which had 11 companies on the list in 2019.
The companies selected for the 2020 list are primarily centered in Central and Northwest Arkansas. Fayetteville had the largest number of companies on the list with four, followed by three in Little Rock. There were also two each in Bentonville and North Little Rock and one each in Fort Smith, Maumelle and Mountain Pine.
According to Inc., the fast-growing company in Arkansas is the Apollo Agency, an advertising and marketing firm in Maumelle. Founded in 2016, the Apollo Agency has had three-year growth of 1,578 percent. The Apollo Agency focuses on marketing for the home improvement sector, providing creative, planning media, call tracking and answering services for clients.
Overall, the Apollo Agency is ranked no. 287 among the 5,000 companies.
Integrity Construction of Arkansas is just behind the Apollo Agency as the second fastest growing company in Arkansas. With a three-year growth of 1,243 percent, the Little Rock-based construction company is no. 365 on the Inc. list. Along with the Apollo Agency, it is the only Arkansas company on the list with a growth rate of more than 1,000 percent.
Founded in 2009, Integrity Construction handles construction projects in multiple industries, including health care, education, government, and tenant projects. The company has 11-50 employees.
RevUnit came in third among the Arkansas companies with a three-year growth rate of 434 percent. Delivering workforce transformation platforms, RevUnit is a business products and services company founded in 2012.
This marks the fourth consecutive year that RevUnit has made the Inc. 5,000 list. Starting in 2017, the Bentonville company made the list at no. 584 – its highest spot on the list to date – followed by the no. 1,228 spot in 2018. RevUnit’s 2020 ranking is a drop from its 2019 ranking when it was no. 754. In 2019, RevUnit had the second-highest growth among Arkansas companies.
Chenal Family Therapy PLC ranked at no. 1,162 among U.S. companies and fourth among Arkansas companies for growth. It reported 388 percent growth over the last three years.
This is the third year Chenal Family Therapy has made the Inc. 5,000 list. It first made the list in 2018, charting at no. 1,854 and also made the list in 2019 at no. 937.
iRealty Arkansas and Team SI were the fifth and sixth fastest-growing companies based on the 2020 list with growth of 251 percent and 220 percent, respectively. A real estate company, iRealty was ranked as no. 1,704 for 2020 – its first appearance on the list. Team SI, which was ranked no. 1,916 this year, has appeared on the Inc. four times – tying RevUnit and overdrive brands for the most appearances on the list by an Arkansas company. It has had four non-consecutive appearances on the list dating back to 2015 (no. 1,507 in 2019, no. 648 in 2016 and no. 276 in 2015).
BlueInGreen, an environmental services company that provides water cleaning products and services, showed 203 percent growth over three years. The Fayetteville company was ranked no. 2,080 for 2020, marking the first appearance for the company on Inc.’s list.
Fort Smith construction firm Greenview Lawns returned to the Inc. 5,000 list this year at no. 2,664. The company, which installs irrigation systems and provides landscaping services, showed 152 percent growth. Last year, Greenview Lawns appeared on the list at no. 3,249.
Three Fayetteville companies were ranked as the ninth, 10th, and 11thfastest-growing companies in Arkansas. The Cabana Group, overdrive brands and Slim Chickens showed 127 percent, 124 percent and 119 percent growth, respectively over a three-year period.
In 2019, the Cabana Group had the highest growth rate among Arkansas companies with 652 percent. That year, it received a ranking of no. 671, which dropped to no. 3,060 for 2020.
Both overdrive brands and Slim Chickens charted in the 3,000 range at no. 3,060 and no. 3,199, respectively. This is overdrive brands’, an e-commerce platform company, fourth appearance on the list, charting in 2019 at no. 1,666, in 2018 at no. 785 and in 2017 at no. 1,089.
Three other Arkansas made the Inc. 5,000 list for the first time. Morefe Properties, based in Mountain Pine, Kitestring Consulting and Travel Nurse Across America were the 12th, 13thand 14thfast-growing companies in the state.
Morfe Properties, which installs and services windows, was ranked at 3,220 and had a growth rate of 118 percent. Bentonville-based Kitestring Consulting, which provides IT services, had a 79 percent growth rate and ranking of no. 4,236. The final spot went to Travel Nurse Across America, which was ranked at no. 4,536 and had a 70 percent growth rate.
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