Commerce Lexington honored Smiley Pete Publishing, the local publishing firm that produces Business Lexington, Chevy Chaser Magazine and Southsider Magazine, as its 2008 Small Business of the Year at its annual Small Business Celebration Awards Dinner at the Griffin Gate Marriott Resort & Spa in September.
This year marked Commerce Lexington's 23rd Small Business Celebration Awards, which are intended to recognize the contributions of small businesses throughout the community. In addition to the Small Business of the Year announcement, Commerce Lexington also recognized Technology Consulting Group America as its Minority Business of the Year, and Hampton Scurlock III of Retirement Tax Advisory Group as the Independent Professional of the Year.
Started in 1997 by two recent college graduates, publishers Chuck Creacy and Chris Eddie, in a borrowed basement space with a computer, a phone line and $200, Smiley Pete Publishing (www.smileypete.com) has grown into a multimillion-dollar multimedia company that focuses on producing locally relevant and locally generated content. The company maintains three publications, four Web sites, a full-time staff of 13 employees and hundreds of freelance writers.
"This community has been very good to us over the years," Creacy said. "Publishing is not the easiest business to succeed in. Our primary mission has always been to serve the interests of our city and its local neighborhoods, and we have always been amazed, and somewhat humbled, by the loyalty and support that our readers and advertisers have shown us in return. This award is no exception to that."
The company's flagship publication, Chevy Chaser Magazine, serves as the longest-running neighborhood-based publication distributed in Lexington, and the company continues to embrace new media technologies in its offerings, including podcasting, webcasting, and the recent launch of its television program Business Lexington TV.
Founded in 2006 by co-owners Jeff Thompson, Marcus Simpson, and Tina Williams, Minority Business of the Year winner TCG America (www.tcgamerica.com) offers a range of enterprise-level IT services to small and medium-sized companies, with the medical industry being one of its stronger niche markets. Since its opening, TCG America has developed partnerships with local and national companies, including Microsoft, Cisco, HP and Dell.
Independent Professional of the Year Scurlock launched his business as Scurlock Financial Services in 1998 after three years of working in finance for a larger firm. He renamed his business Retirement Tax Advisory Group (www.retirementtag.com) in 2004 to emphasize his ability to offer clients tax, insurance and investment advice at one location. Scurlock's aggressive goal-setting has led him to double the total investments that he manages through his company this year, in addition to currently writing a book on investing and financial planning.
The awards dinner, which was sponsored by Idearc Media, was attended by an audience of roughly 300 business and community leaders from throughout the Bluegrass area.
"Most of what we do as an organization and most of our programs are geared toward small businesses, whether it's networking or marketing opportunities, educational seminars, assistance with financing, or discounts on health insurance and office supplies," said Commerce Lexington CEO and President Bob Quick. "That's because nearly 90 percent of the Commerce Lexington Inc. membership is made up of small businesses, and we recognize the positive impact that they have on our local, state and national economy."