Marketplace Named to Fastest-Growing

Marketplace Named To South Carolina’s Fastest-Growing Companies 2009

Greenville, SC, Nov. 13, 2009 –  Marketplace Staffing Services, Inc., a Greenville-based staffing solutions organization with offices in four states, has been named to South Carolina’s Fastest-Growing Companies 2009 by co-sponsoring organizations The Capital Corporation and the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce. 

Founded in 1996, Marketplace Staffing provides high quality, value-added staffing services and solutions to leading companies across the Southeastern United States.  100% minority owned, Marketplace has grown to become one of the leading independent staffing providers in the entire country by providing world-class, comprehensive staffing and productivity solutions.  The organization provides a blue–chip client list with contract and outsourcing services, temporary staffing, temp-to-hire associates, executive recruiting and placement, and payroll and support services.

South Carolina’s Fastest-Growing Companies 2009 were named yesterday at the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce annual meeting at Wild Dunes Resort in Charleston, South Carolina.  Direct Source Import of Mount Pleasant was named the fastest-growing company in South Carolina, while Arnold Construction of Columbia placed second overall in the rankings.

“We are extremely pleased and humbled to be recognized among South Carolina’s top performing organizations,” said Ray Lattimore, president and chief executive officer of Marketplace Staffing.  “Like any smart organization, we don’t try to be all things to all people.  So while we work in many industries and markets, we have particularly deep expertise that we apply to understanding and meeting client needs, providing the type of talent that makes a positive difference in their operations every day.”

The 25 top performers cover a broad spectrum in terms of size, industry sector and geographic locations. This year’s winners span the breadth of South Carolina, from the Upstate to the Midlands to the Coast, showing that success is not driven by physical location but by strategy and customer focus.  Greenville, Sumter, Liberty, Mount Pleasant, Columbia and Ladson are all represented in the Top 10; Duncan, Simpsonville and Pawleys Island play home to corporate citizens among Top 25 honorees. Overall, nearly a dozen cities from across the Palmetto State are represented, with Greenville (11), Charleston/Mount Pleasant (4) and Columbia (3) representing the greatest number of top performers.  In all, 15 of the Top 25 are companies with revenues exceeding $10 million annually, with remaining honorees having revenues under $10 million.  Median revenue for all finalists was $10.9 million; the largest entrant boasts assets exceeding $1 billion.

According to Dan Adams, president and chief executive officer of presenting sponsor The Capital Corporation (www.thecapitalcorp.com), "This year’s honorees represent an exceptional cross-section of entrepreneurs and business owners. The economic future and viability of South Carolina hinges on companies who innovate and persevere in the face of tough economic times.  And it is these types of companies that represent the backbone of this state’s economy. Without these businesses and their visionary, committed leaders, we could not be anticipating the bright economic future we see ahead for our state.”

The unveiling of the 2009 list ranking the state’s companies demonstrating significant growth does indeed herald a bright future for South Carolina despite current economic challenges. “It is exceptionally pleasing to have another diverse group of honorees in the eighth year of this program,” says Otis Rawl, president and chief executive officer of the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce. “It bodes well for economic growth that entries and interest in the program continue to climb, and that the businesses being honored cover such a broad array of industries and geographies across the Palmetto State.” 

Submissions were compiled, evaluated, and ranked by a review panel from The Capital Corporation, a provider of investment banking services to middle market companies since 1991, in cooperation with the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce. Recognizing exceptional growth and performance is the basis of the South Carolina’s Fastest-Growing Companies 2009, whose inaugural ranking was released in 2002. 

The state’s first recognition initiative that focuses on the achievements of emerging privately and publicly-owned businesses and their contributions to the state’s economy, the 2009 rankings were determined using a proprietary weighted equation tied to increases in gross revenues (or assets), and full-time employment.