New York, NY - Aug 24, 2010 – For the 2nd year in a row, Inc. magazine ranked FSI among the top 5000 fastest growing private companies in America in its exclusive annual Inc. 5000 list. The list represents the most comprehensive look at the most important segment of the economy—America’s independent-minded entrepreneurs. Music website Pandora, convenience store chain 7-Eleven, Brooklyn Brewery, and Radio Flyer, maker of the iconic children’s red wagon, are among the prominent brands featured on this year’s list.
"The leaders of the companies on this year’s Inc. 5000 have figured out how to grow their businesses during the longest recession since the Great Depression," said Inc. president Bob LaPointe. “The 2010 Inc. 5000 showcases a particularly hardy group of entrepreneurs.”
FSI, founded in 1996 by Ken Marbutt, has continued to grow and expand every year in its 14-year history. "We are especially proud of this recognition for our growth in these current economic times" states Forrest Marbutt, FSI’s Vice President & General Manager. "We stick with our core competencies of order fulfillment, kit packing, pick/pack/ship, online reporting solutions, and constant attention to internal process improvements, and our customers have rewarded us for this focus. We're thankful that the strategy has been paying off these past 14 years." Not only did FSI crack the top 5000 in the US, but upon further review of the rankings, FSI is within the top 200 fastest growing private companies in the state of Georgia and in the top 10 in the Logistics and Transportation category.
Methodology
The Inc. 5000 is ranked according to percentage revenue growth from 2006 through 2009. To qualify, companies must have been founded and generating revenue by the first week of 2006, and therefore able to show four full calendar years of sales. Additionally, they have to be U.S.-based, privately held, for profit, and independent -- not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies -- as of December 31, 2009. Revenue in 2006 must have been at least $80,000, and revenue in 2009 must have been at least $2 million. Despite the fact that most of this year’s measuring period of 2006-2009 took place during the latest recession, aggregate revenue among the companies on the list actually increased to $321.6 billion, up more than 50 percent from last year. The effects of the recession are seen, however, in the median three-year growth rate, which dropped to 96 percent from last year’s 126 percent. This year’s Inc. 5000 employ a record 1.4 million people, up from one million on last year’s list. With unemployment remaining stubbornly high, policymakers and business leaders will do well to look to the Inc. 5000 companies for fresh ideas on achieving growth and creating jobs.
About FSI
Founded in 1996, FSI delivers a winning combination of logistical fulfillment, inventory management, pick/pack/ship and custom kit packing assembly for major corporations and agencies. FSI distinguishes our fulfillment services by combining proven logistical fulfillment with advanced technology. The FSI reporting system delivers data on orders, projects and inventory via the web, 24/7 on a user-friendly dashboard. We help make your job easy! When You Need Experience, FSI Delivers.
About Inc. Magazine
Founded in 1979 and acquired in 2005 by Mansueto Ventures LLC, Inc. (www.inc.com) is the only major business magazine dedicated exclusively to owners and managers of growing private companies that delivers real solutions for today's innovative company builders. With a total paid circulation of 712,647, Inc. provides hands-on tools and market-tested strategies for managing people, finances, sales, marketing, and technology.
Tags: FSI, Inc 5000 List
FSI
Tags: FSI, Employee Interview, Sandi Callicutt
Tags: FSI, Why Fulfillment
Tags: FSI, e-Commerce
Top 25 Small Businesses of the Year - FSI from Balanced Video Solutions.
Tags: FSI, Top 25, Awards, Cobb Chamber of Commerce
Tags: FSI, Cobb Chamber Interview
Tags: FSI, Giving Back, River of Life, Community Outreach
Tags: FSI, Giving Back, Community Outreach
Tags: FSI, Pick Pack Accuracy
Tags: FSI, networking, Cobb Chamber of Commerce, Expo, 2010
Tags: FSI, rapid response, product fulfillment
Tags: FSI
Tags: FSI, Community Outreach, Team In Training
Tags: FSI, Corporate Locations
Tags: FSI, Order Fulfillment Services
At FSI, we strive to get every order shipped out correctly and on time. We’re not afraid of boasting that our order accuracy rates are 99.9% or higher every year, and when you’re dealing with high-end Clients with over 12,000 different items in 18,000 bin locations, that’s saying something. There are endless things that can potentially go wrong with an order. For starts, each order must be entered correctly with the correct quantity of each item. The correct shipping method must be selected, and in many cases there are custom routing guides, custom packing slips, and custom processing requirements.
Even before an order is entered, inventory has to be received correctly and stocked correctly. And all inventory is not the same, even if the item looks the same. Is the item sold in eaches, packs, kits, or cases? Maybe it’s sold in all the above and the client needs 3 Cases of Packs of 3 shipped to 3 stores in 3 states. Get’s very confusing, doesn’t it? After all of that, the order still has to be shipped on time. We count all of those categories to arrive at our 99.9% order accuracy rates. For those clients who’ve been working with us, you’ve grown accustomed to counting on our high order accuracy rates, and our CSR Team has a significant hand in helping make sure this all happens. Bar coding and other technology investments play a huge role in helping meet these high order accuracy rates, but another big reason (other than our top notch CSR Team) is that our employees are incentivized to meet these rates each month. Which brings us to our announcement.
FSI’s CSR Team met their order accuracy incentive each month for the entire year of 2009.
After pulling this off, we felt that we needed to celebrate a little more than the usual monthly cash incentive. We put up a banner in the warehouse to commemorate this feat, and then we took the CSR team out for lunch at Gumbeaux’s in Douglasville. Thank you Mary, Karen, Tora, Sandi, Tammy, Beth and Hope for your ongoing contributions to FSI’s success. We’re already looking forward to seeing next year’s banner!
Tags: FSI, Order Accuracy, CSR Award
Tags: FSI, Warehouse Fulfillment
FSI has long been known for providing its customers with the best online order processing services. Our clients know that when partnering with FSI for online order processing, they will receive superior customer support and attention to detail. The FSI team is committed, not only to meeting our client’s online order processing needs, but exceeding their expectations for online order processing services.
At FSI, we pride ourselves on having assembled the best online order processing team in the business. Members of the FSI team are committed to providing our online order processing customers with the high level of service and support they have come to expect. But at FSI, we are so much more than just the best company for online order processing. We are also an online order processing company committed to giving back to the community.
You see, at FSI, we firmly believe that giving back to those in need is a vital part of our business. We encourage all members of the FSI team to find organizations and causes that inspire them. FSI team members have supported a wide variety of charitable organizations and participated in many activities over the years.
A popular choice for many of our employees is supporting the Make A Wish Foundation. In the fall of 2009, members of the FSI team participated in the 2009 Make A Wish 5K Run. Another popular event for our employees is the Susan G. Komen Walk for the Cure. Our employees are also active in many organizations in the communities in which they live. The River of Life Project, News for Kids and Helping Hands are just a few of the many community-based organizations that our employees support each year.
We are so proud of their commitment to the community and to helping those in need.
Tags: FSI, Community Outreach
It is hard to believe, but today FSI turns 14. So much has changed since Hoyt and I founded FSI in 1996. There were so many Clients that were looking for a new kind of fulfillment company, and FSI was created to fill that need. Today, companies still need top-notch fulfillment services, and we are honored to be the strategic fulfillment partner of choice. It has taken a lot of work and the best efforts of a diverse group of people, but I am proud of our Team and pleased with the technology and solutions they have created to serve some really great Clients. But I am also excited about projects currently in the works that will continue to raise the bar as we continue to grow and increase our service offerings. So on that note, thanks to everyone on our team for all their contributions, and to our Clients who rely on us each day. Happy Birthday, FSI!
It is hard to believe, but today FSI turns 14. So much has changed since Hoyt and I founded FSI in 1996. There were so many Clients that were looking for a new kind of fulfillment company, and FSI was created to fill that need. Today, companies still need top-notch fulfillment services, and we are honored to be the strategic fulfillment partner of choice.
It has taken a lot of work and the best efforts of a diverse group of people, but I am proud of our Team and pleased with the technology and solutions they have created to serve some really great Clients. But I am also excited about projects currently in the works that will continue to raise the bar as we continue to grow and increase our service offerings.
So on that note, thanks to everyone on our team for all their contributions, and to our Clients who rely on us each day. Happy Birthday, FSI!
Tags: FSI, 14 Years in Business
There’s a great article in this month’s issue of Multichannel Merchant magazine entitled "Managing Your Fulfillment Folks" with tips on how to manage your fulfillment employees. If you are going to take on the task and risks of managing a warehouse, then there are important things to know about hiring the right people, training them well, keeping up with the inevitable employee turnover, establishing expectations on production and order accuracy, managing incentive programs, and so on. You can do all that in addition to managing your main line of business, OR you can outsource those challenges and let an expert like FSI manage them for you! FSI has 14 years of experience in managing a workforce capable of executing our Clients’ diverse and demanding order fulfillment and kit packing jobs. We’ve learned at lot in those 14 years and have gotten quite good at it. Of course, this article just touches on the labor aspect of managing your own warehouse employees, so there’s also a lot to be learned on order management systems, IT infrastructure, online shopping cart and reporting systems, etc., but those are things that FSI has gotten quite good at as well. Let us do what we do best for you while you do what you do best in selling your product and growing your business.
Tags: fsi, employees, multichannel merchant, workforce
I recently watched an episode of Ace of Cakes where they made a life-sized motorcycle out of cake. Needless to say, it was a challenge that the whole team had to come together to meet. It got me thinking about all of the interesting kit packing projects that the FSI kit packing team has tackled. Some of those kit packing projects have taken our days from average to extraordinary in a matter of moments. Here is just a peek at some of the super cool and unique kit packing projects we have been lucky enough to be involved with over the years.
I can’t wait to see what kind of wonderful kit packing projects will be heading our way over the next few months. If your company has a kit packing project on the horizon, let us know how we can help!
Tags: fsi, kit packing, innovation
Tags: fsi, severe weather
Fulfillment Strategies International – FSI, is pleased to sponsor the American Marketing Association’s Atlanta Chapter 2010 AMY Awards for the 3rd consecutive year. The 2010 edition of the AMY Awards gala will recognize companies and individuals who have made their mark on the Atlanta marketing scene during the previous year and stood out above the rest. AMY awards will be presented for 10 different marketing categories, and two Marketer of the Year awards will recognize an agency and corporate individual for outstanding marketing achievement. Additionally, Arthur Blank, co-founder of Home Depot and owner of the Atlanta Falcons will be honored with the 2010 AMY Lifetime Achievement Award.Held at the historic Fox Theatre on March 11th, this year’s AMY Awards event will be a great opportunity for FSI to salute our industry, our clients and their achievements. It is clients such as these and the programs we manage for them that drive the FSI team to be our very best!
Tags: fsi, amy awards, marketing, sponsor
Tags: fsi, returns, returns processing