I feel like a mommy gushing about her baby- seeing RelampIt grow from an infant to a maturing 5 year strong company is a thing of beauty. Sure, we had our challenges. Sure, sometimes I wanted to crawl in a hole and disappear. But overall (and totally in hindsight, as I probably didn’t feel this way as it was happening) the development of efficiency, professionalism and stability that 5 years of growth necessitated have worked to produce a company that my partners and I can be proud of. RelampIt is a young company, but one which has weathered a truly tough, perfect storm of a crazy economic downturn, increased pricing and profitability pressure from Asian copycats, and a team of young, enthusiastic but not completely veteran partners.
What makes this 5 year milestone even more special is the understanding that, according to the Small Business Administration, about half of all businesses fail within 5 years. We made it! That is certainly something to celebrate! I will continue to promote this significant success; pride in this company, its challenges and growth, will be a part of me wherever my journey may lead. I wouldn’t chose to change any part of this experience and look forward to more milestones and a post about our 10th year in business!
So small business owners, share your milestones. What are you proud of this year? Where have you taken your company?
As a side note: So much of our economy is supported by small business. I encourage each of the rAVe readers to make an effort to support the local small businesses in your respective cities. The strengthening of the US economy depends on it.