Paul Brinkmann: Travel company tops 2017 growth list.
A travel company topped the 2017 list of the fastest-growing companies for Metro Orlando, and was also the fastest-growing travel company in the U.S., as compiled by Inc. magazine editors.
In all, 67 companies from the Orlando area landed on the Inc. 5000 list this year. Of the top five Orlando companies, two were travel-related. Two were in Winter Park and one was in Apopka.
The Air Travel Group reported revenue of $14.7 million, an increase of more than 5,000 percent. It was founded in 2013 by tour operator Eric Peterson.
Peterson, 39, of Lake Nona, said the company specializes in group air contracts, and has its own online platform to help clients manage those contracts. The company currently has 15 employees, and Peterson said he may start hiring again later this year.
“We have spent years building successful relationships and familiarity with airlines. We know their policies, where there flights go, and know exactly who to call to get the answers we need,” the company’s website says.
Peterson, president of the company, is a 2005 graduate of UCF’s Rosen College of Hospitality. He worked nine years as a tour operator, handling tours for student travel – including a lot of flight bookings.
At No. 2 locally was IT services firm VALiNTRY, based in Winter Park, at $5 million in revenue and growth of 2,699.52 percent.
VALiNTRY says it specializes in “just in time” employee resources within the technology, accounting and marketing arenas.
Then came GRA CPA, an accounting firm, in downtown Orlando, with $2 million in revenue and 1,828 percent growth, followed by LiveTrends Design Group plant décor company in Apopka, with $12.8 million in revenue and growth of 1,661 percent; and Teeming Vacation Rentals in Winter Park with $7.4 million and growth of over 821 percent.
The Sentinel profiled LiveTrends in a recent front-page story.
Also of note, direct sales company Jeunesse Global, in Lake Mary, was on the Inc. 5000 list, reporting $1.3 billion in revenue and 517 percent growth. The Sentinel profiled Jeunesse in a front page story in November, which described scrutiny on the company.
Rifle Paper Co., a stationery and consumer products company in Winter Park, reported $21.5 million in revenue and growth of 155.6 percent.
Among the list’s bigger job creators was Avant Healthcare Professionals based in Casselberry.
The company is a staffing provider for nursing and health professionals, reporting a growth
rate of 78 percent and currently over 500 employees. The company says it also helps clients improve continuity of health care, find hard-to-find specialties, and improve patient satisfaction.
Construction panels
Altamonte Springs construction firm Akcel has launched a sister company, Akcel Components, and built a new wall-panel manufacturing facility in Lakeland.
Akcel says the plant is one of the largest in Florida and will produce prefabricated wall panels and supply lumber for residential and commercial projects around the state.
The company has named industry veteran Dutch Holt as operations manager, managing the facility on a daily basis.
Akcel construction focuses on custom homes, single-family and multi-family communities and light commercial structures.
"I am very excited to launch Akcel Components, especially in a healthy Florida construction environment," Rubi Akooka, president and CEO of Akcel Components, said. "The company has already begun supplying wall panels to our shell contractor partner, Akcel Construction, and I'm convinced … we will be extraordinarily successful."
According to the company, prefabricated wall panels offer benefits and advantages over conventional framing techniques used in residential and commercial construction projects.