SALT LAKE CITY — Utah has seen the many benefits small businesses bring and is widely recognized as the state that will lead the U.S. out of the great recession, Salt Lake Chamber President Lane Beattie told a gathering of hundreds of business people Wednesday.
As keynote speaker for the 2010 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year ceremonies, Beattie also told the crowd that many Utah businesses are thriving because they grasped opportunity from the challenges laid at their doorstep over the past few years.
"As business leaders visit the chamber, we recognize that economic challenges have made them more competitive, efficient and nimble," he said. "These companies that are thriving today are those that have proven they are able to adapt and lead change."
Awards offered later in the evening spelled out Beattie's statement even more clearly. Almost every winner among nine categories proved to have a major technology or online marketing component.
Chief Executive Officer Kate Maloney of Lindon-based Costume Craze, for example, has grown her businesses from selling monk costumes to being one of the world's largest online retailers. The attire company started as a test for the search engine optimization program Static Advantage but grew to meet market potential.
In Murray, the School Improvement Network has developed electronic products for teachers looking to improve their skills. Brothers Chet, Cory and Curtis Linton run the company, whose flagship product, PD 360, boasts 46 digitized Video Journal of Education programs broken into hundreds of fully indexed and searchable segments. Future plans for the company include introduction of a handheld device for in-class instruction.
Robert Pedersen II, chief executive officer of ZAGG Inc., also got high marks for the military-grade protective shields his company makes for electronic devices. They are now sold worldwide.
Before the awards, he said having fun at work is key to his company's success.
"Our slogan is to rise above, to rise above mediocrity," he said. "We say, 'work hard, play harder.' "
The Deseret News is a regional sponsor of the contest.
Winners in each category will compete nationally and take on global entrepreneurs.
2010 Entrepreneur of the Year winners
Social Entrepreneur — Preston Cochrane, president and CEO of AAA Fair Credit Foundation
Services — Todd Pedersen, CEO of APX Alarm Security Solutions Inc.
Construction and Manufacturing — Rob Moore, president and COO of Big-D Construction Corp.
Retail — Kate Maloney, CEO of Costume Craze
Business Services — Burt Matthews, president, and Tim Matthews, CEO of Grant Victor
Health Sciences — Jacque Butler, CEO of MedQuest Solutions
Software — Rich Hanks, chairman and president, and John Sperry, CEO of Mindshare Technologies Inc.
Technology — Chet Linton, CEO, and vice presidents Cory Linton and Curtis Linton of School Improvement Network
Emerging — Robert Pedersen II, CEO of ZAGG Inc.
e-mail: rpalmer@desnews.com